schottenring & alsergrund

Also of interest is the Freyung square where persecuted fugitives were safe from arrest due to the right of sanctuary granted to the monks of the Schottenkirche. The square is filled with quintessential Viennese architecture.

The Freyung Passage connects the square to Herrengasse. The passage is like a tunnel of glass and gold. A tiered statue of a water sprite of the Danube is nestled in the passage along with the entrance to Café Central if you are in need of a Kaisermelange (black coffee with an egg yolk and brandy).

In the square is the Schottenkirche with Baroque styling and a copper onion dome. The church is nice, but we were more intrigued by the young musicians filing into the apse for a concert dress rehearsal.

Also of note is the Schönborn-Batthyány Palace built from 1699 to 1706. Around the corner from the palace is the small and modern Hermann Gmeiner Park with a playground filled with small, white playhouses. Apparently Herr Gmeiner founded a world-wide organization that helps orphans.

We enjoyed the Börse, or stock exchange off of the Börseplatz.  It was commissioned when the Ringstrasse was conceived. We were there when it was closed, but it seems seriously substantial, like important stuff happens here during the week. It also has a hidden central courtyard.

The Freud Museum is also in this neighborhood, but we missed it.

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