Vienna, my Affair with Mozart. Part 2

"The hills are alive with the sound of music

With songs they have sung for a thousand years

The hills fill my heart with the sound of music
My heart wants to sing every song it hears"

My favourite musical, with Julie Andrews was based in Austria. Little did I know that Vienna, the only Austrian city I was visiting, had nothing to do with the film, The Sound of Music, but everything to do with the sound of music...

Our adventure to find St Marx Cemetery.
The streets were empty. Vienna was beyond quiet

Many great composers lived, breathed and performed their immortalised masterpieces, such as Mozart, Beethoven and Johann Strauss among others, but I found that I somehow connected with only one of these magnificent men. His name was Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart.

My affair with Mozart

I have an affinity for cemeteries and cathedrals. I think it's the silence within them that I find absolute peace. So when I found a tourist map that showed the cemetery of where Mozart was buried, I jumped at the opportunity to find it.

Mozart's grave stands alone in the middle of the park

It's quite far from the city centre but Amanda and I found it with a hop, skip and a jump on a tram; we were not disappointed. St Marx Cemetery was used from 1784 to 1874. Mozart lies within an unmarked grave but years later a gravestone was erected to where he is thought to be buried. The grounds are old and show signs of decay but it was an amazing experience walking through it and looking at some of the beautiful grave sites.

You can see how old this place is

I wonder what the cemetery looks like in spring

My next encounter with Mozart was at the Vienna State Opera. A beautiful building with a long history. I didn't go inside but its architectural structure was obviously impressive, even from the outside.

I like the statue at the top of the opera house

My last affair with him was by pure chance. Our tour guide mentioned that there is a bit of local secret: Vienna boasts of having the last cafe Mozart played in. After our tour, Amanda, Mike and I hunted for the said secret. The Frauenhuber is a beautiful cafe that has kept the interior cosy and quaint from when it first opened. We enjoyed a delicious cup of hot chocolate.

Best cup of hot chocolate ever!

That sums up my whole liaison with a dead guy :) And it was by all means fun and memorable.

Here is Part 1 of my Vienna post