Uncovering History

Vienna, Austria

After catching the tram together into town, we separated at the Maria-Thersien Platz, near the Volksgarden, at the start of today’s explorations. While Austin went off to the herbarium to find grass collections made by Ronald Gunn from Tasmania in the mid 19th century, Joy went off to explore Vienna and surrounds using her Vienna Pass.

Joy started off her day at the Natural History Museum, which is one of two mirror-image buildings (the other being the Fines Arts Museum) either side of a large open square featuring a statue of Maria-Therese. The museum has impressive stone staircases leading to many galleries on several levels, and an impressive cafe space under the dome on the top level. Of course, Joy made this her choice for morning tea. Exhibitions explored included prehistoric mega-beasts including a woolly mammoth (and dinosaurs of course), fossils and gemstones.

Maria-Thersien Platz and the Natural History Museum

Austin had a successful and fun (though very busy) day looking up the plant sheets found on the Vienna Virtual Herbarium, plus finding lots more of interest. The herbarium is in a 19th century Neo-Renaissance building of the Natural History Museum and covers a network of rooms with floor to almost ceiling cabinets, all stuffed and spilling over with 5.5 million collections from around the world. Using roller ladders to access the higher boxes of folders, it was no mean feat, balancing these weighty boxes down to floor level and to his designated work bench. Rather worn out by the end of the day but well worth the effort.

In the meantime, Joy walked through the Volksgarden which features abundant public seating along the walkways, surrounding geometric and colourful flowerbeds and a fenced off dog exercise area. Then using her Vienna Pass, she caught a bus up the winding roads into the Vienna Woods near Kahlenberg for overviews of Vienna. The view was a little disappointing, due to being rather misty, but still gave a feel for the extent of the city. After a short walk in the woods, thinking of Strauss and his inspiration, she enjoyed a picnic lunch, then caught the bus back to the city. Next, using the pass to enter the Royal Treasury in the Hofburg Imperial Palace, she enjoyed seeing the stunning emerald and richly embroidered robes amongst the many opulent artefacts in glass cases.

Robes of a Knight of the Order of the Golden Fleece

The Distinguished Order of the Golden Fleece is a Catholic order of chivalry founded in Bruges by Philip the Good, Duke of Burgundy, in 1430, to celebrate his marriage to Isabella of Portugal. It currently exists in both a Spanish and Austrian branch; a result of the Spanish War of Succession. Current Knights of the Spanish branch comprise of 17 Heads of State including Queen Elizabeth II, while knights of the Austrian branch include 33 noblemen and princes of small German and Austrian territories. Choice of a Grecian myth as the symbol for the Order was controversial as Jason of the Argonauts, who stole the fleece from a dragon, was not always chivalrous in his dealings with others, even though many of his deeds were interpreted as reflected in the chivalrous lives of the Nine Worthies (Hector, Alexander the Great, Julius Caesar, Joshua, King David, Judah Maccabee, King Arthur, Charlemagne and Godfrey of Bouillon).

2680 carat Emerald Unction Vessel enamelled with gold by Dionysio Miseroni of Prague in 1641 in the Royal Treasury

“The Emerald Unguentarium: As early as the 17th century the 2,680-carat emerald vessel in the centre of the room was regarded as one of the most famous objects in the Imperial Treasury. The tremendous value of the unique showpiece, whose lid was cut out of the jewel’s interior, is illustrated by the story that Genoese jewellers declined to value it as security for a loan which Emperor Ferdinand III (1608-57) sought, avowing that they were not accustomed to dealing with such large pieces.”

Joy then visited the Albertinaplatz Art Gallery to take in the Keith Haring Exhibition. After a coffee and feeling somewhat footsore, she returned to the hotel.

After reuniting at the end of our weary day, we found a ‘Borders’-type bookshop on Mariahilfer Strabe, where we had a cuppa and looked through a few books. Another small pizza for tea and back home for a well-earned rest.

Palaces and Butterflies

Vienna, Austria

After a satisfying cooked breakfast in the bright and friendly hotel breakfast room, we caught a tram into the outer edge of central Vienna and out a short way to the south-east, down to the Belvedere Palace. The trams of Vienna reminded us of moving around the CBD of Melbourne – a great way of seeing the city, and outside of rush-hour, a peaceful progression. Like Melbourne, many of the streets are lined with trees, but in addition have street cafes and market stalls. Vienna is a mixture of old neo-Gothic, Neo-classical and Baroque churches, museums and palaces with Art-Nouveau and Modernist public buildings and apartments. Particularly delightful were the multi-coloured facades of the buildings in some street-scapes. The Belvedere ‘Palace’ actually consists of two separate Palaces, separated by an extensive Baroque-style garden. The bright sunny day was perfect for appreciating the colour of the floral borders against the extensive, manicured lawns. Formally the Summer Residence of Prince Eugene of Savoy, the Belvedere was built soon after his successful campaigns against the Ottoman Empire in the late 1690’s. After Eugene’s death, Empress Maria Theresa turned the Upper Palace into a venue for exhibiting the Imperial collection and what essentially became the first Museum in the world.

The Upper Palace is a stunning architectural building in the Baroque style with its main entrance fronting a huge circular pool and its back leading down a stairway to the Versailles-like formal gardens. Many of the rooms inside the Palace house a large art exhibition but the Marble Hall in the centre of the building is equally impressive with its two story lofty reddish-brown marble structure, gilded-work, fresco painted ceiling and huge chandeliers. On 15th May, 1955, the Austrian State Treaty (reestablishing Austrian independence after WWII) was signed here, by Leopold Figi and representatives of the the four occupying powers: UK, France, USSR and the USA.

The Upper Belvedere houses a twenty-four painting exhibition of Gustav Klimt, including the famous paintings of ‘The Kiss’ and ‘Judith and the Head of Holofernes’ (we never noticed the ‘head’ until looking up the name of the painting for this blog). The total exhibition at the Upper Belvedere contains 420 works across seven themed rooms and three floors. It includes works by Monet, Renoir and Van Gogh and the famous work by Jacques Louie David of Napoleon crossing the Alps at Great St Bernard Pass on his rearing white charger.

After enjoying the sights of the Upper Palace, Joy decided she just had to have an iced coffee and Austin his pot of tea, before visiting the Lower Palace. A pleasant break, sitting in the sunshine on the outdoor balcony of the restaurant, at the back of the Upper Belvedere, sipping our cuppa’s and watching the world (well – other patrons) wandering by, was so refreshing, we didn’t really feel like moving on. We took the opportunity to send a couple of photos home.

In the Orangery at the Lower Belvedere was an exhibition of Klemens Brosch, an ink-brush artist with incredible talent and an eye for fine detail. We found his drawings of nature and simple objects (e.g. a wall of shoes) fascinating, but his depictions of war and death were extremely sobering. Apparently, he was heavily medicated with morphine and cocaine to counter his mental anguish of the horrors of WWI. Apart from the art exhibitions, other rooms in the Palaces displayed gilded mirrors, ceiling murals and statues.

Following the Palace visits, we found that the Vienna University Botanical Gardens ran alongside the grounds, so we wandered along the little pathways and through the plant displays for some time. Very pleasant place with sections of wildflower ‘meadows’ and large shade trees as well as rockeries and ponds.

Back into town by tram, we stopped for some morning tea (which we brought with us from breakfast) in the Stadtpark (City Park) along the Weinfluss (Vienna River). Lawns and Oaks, a lake, some ducks and dogs being walked, made for a peaceful break in our busy morning thus far. It had the feel of somewhere like the Treasury or Fitzroy gardens in Melbourne, with city workers and families relaxing on the lawns and park benches.

Off to St. Stephen’s Cathedral with its multicoloured tiled roof, Romanesque towers and Gothic Choir, 6 chapels and more than 20 altars. This church is clearly loved and in use by the local community. The stone pulpit was particularly interesting, with its carvings of the Doctors of the Church (St. Augustine of Hippo, St. Ambrose, St. Gregory the Great and St. Jerome), toads and lizards biting each other (struggle between evil and good) on the hand-rail, a puppy at the top of the stairs protecting the preacher and the sculptor looking out a basement window.

Wandering back through town, we found the Palmenhaus Cafe for a cuppa and the nearby Schmetterlinghaus (Butterfly House) full of fluttering colour. Trying to catch a good photo of these ‘never-sit-still’ beauties was a challenge and took some time but we were happy with some of our results. After all this excitement, we decided to call it a day but headed home past the National History Museum to find access to the Herbarium for Austin’s planned visit tomorrow. Another small take-away pizza for tea and we could put our feet up for a well-earned rest.

To the Centre of Europe

Vienna, Austria

Arrived in Vienna mid afternoon and caught a public bus from Westbahnhof Railway Station to our hotel. Thankfully Joy had caught sight of the hotel from the bus, and we were able to walk the short distance straight there. The receptionist was very helpful and the check-in efficient, which was a blessing as we now been travelling for over 24 hours.

After a bit of a nap to catch up on our time disorientation, we wandered down the nearby Mariahilfer Strabe to find some tea. This street is a wide mall, and claims the title of the longest shopping street in Vienna. After walking for some way down, Austin started to feel a bit dizzy, due to jet-lag, so we stopped for some pizza and a drink at one of the many sets of street-side tables and chairs. The meal was surprisingly inexpensive so we took note of the location for a possible return visit. Back to our room to make some plans for the morrow and sleep.

A Last Taste of Madagascar

Antananarivo, Madagascar
August 26, 2015

Our wedding anniversary today. We had a leisurely morning with a short walk to a small garden and the top of a long market street. Bought ‘The Lemur’s of Madagascar’ from a street vendor for $26US. Left the hotel at 10:30am, stopping at a street of craft shops on the way to the airport. Here we purchased T-shirts and scarves for the kids. The plane left at 3:00pm for Jo’berg where we spent four and half hours at the airport until we boarded our last flight for home.

A Clutch of Chameleons

Antananarivo, Madagascar
August 25, 2015

We reluctantly headed back off home with our one hour trip back across the lake and down the man-made canal, three and half hours to lunch, half an hour to the reptile park and finally arriving back in Tana about 6:30pm.

Lunch was at the Grace Resort, set up by a little Christian lady who had a vision to leave Tana and go to the forest. A lovely lunch (not too much) with Indri calling in the background.

The reptile park (Peyreiras Nature Farm or Mandraka Reptile Farm) was set up many years ago as a butterfly and moth centre but is now rather run down and mainly displaying Geckos, Chameleons, Snakes, Frogs and Crocodiles. Also had three Tenrec which are funny little hedgehog-shrew animals. There are 34 species of Tenrec of which 31 are endemic to Madagascar. Those on display here are the Common Tenrec. The farm had a number of Leaf-tailed Gecko species, with their intricate patterns and shapes to aid camouflage. There were also at least a dozen species of Chameleon, some of which we had seen in the wild. We took lots of photos. One Chameleon was encouraged to take insects from the end of a stick held up to him by a keeper. For such a lethargic-looking reptile, the rapid flash of its extremely long sticky tongue was startling.

We had our last dinner together tonight at Chalet de Roses where we all shared a highlight of the trip. Lots of nice things said about Lala, who was rather touched and found it difficult to respond.

Madagascan Giant Fire Millipede and Tomato Frogs

Hybrids and Pitchers

Toamasina (Tamatave), Madagascar
August 24, 2015

After a breakfast of fruit, toast and cheese, we set off for a tour of the gardens and reserve around the resort. Lots of local plants were pointed out e.g. vanilla, cinnamon, cycads, orchids and palms. Our Guide called the lemurs and they came leaping from the surrounding garden and forest to enjoy the fruit he offered them. We spent a lot of time photographing Lemurs – Common Brown, Crowned, Red-fronted and Black Lemurs and hybrids between them (including male red Lemurs – Black x Crowned), Black and White Ruffed Lemur, Indri and male Coquerel Sifaka. The Sifaka is from Western Madagascar but is kept here without a mate. We had already met some of these Lemurs, while scavenging food (them, not us) from the restaurant tables or visiting us on the balconies of our cabins. The Black and White Ruffed Lemurs performed some amusing acrobatic tricks for us to reach the bananas our Guide held out for them – leaping over each other, hanging upside down by their back legs or hanging by one fore leg and one hind leg or lying on their backs on a branch to munch their food.

The Indri is a single species but varies across Madagascar in the amount of white is has to its fur. Those in the Pangalanes are almost completely black with only some white between its back legs.

Finally as part of our tour, we walked through the forest and along the beach to a bog with Pitcher Plants. Amazing to see these natural fly traps, sitting innocently among the reeds or scrambling over small bushes and shrubs, where their victims are attracted by the odorous and fatal fluid in their base of their ‘pitchers’.

We decided not to go on the local village tour that afternoon. We both had a sleep and took a walk along the beach.

Black and White Ruffed Lemur pays us a visit

In the evening before dinner, we caught a boat across the lake to an island with half a dozen resident Aye-Aye. Thinking we would have to keep scouring the trees to find them, we were surprised to find that the guides had put out coconuts at stations to attract them down to the lower trunks. Aye-Aye’s are much bigger than we imagined, with their large fluffy tails, funny pinched faces, wiry fur on the back and long slender and nailed fingers (including their extremely elongated and bony forefinger, used for extracting grubs from cavities in branches. We were only 3-5 meters away from them and watched fascinated as they used their claws and teeth to break into the coconuts with a scratching, sawing motion and ripping action. Joy was able to get some good photos and videos of them at work. A real highlight of our trip.

Into the Pangalanes

Toamasina (Tamatave), Madagascar
August 23, 2015

A Travellers Palm in the early morning light

Set off after an early breakfast at 6:30am for a five hour trip. Three and half hours on a good sealed road through rolling hills of traveller palms, bananas and taro with occasional rice paddies. Most of the hills here have been deforested but there is at least some regrowth evident. Half an hour on an unmade road through thickets of the creamy-yellow flowered Grevillea banksii, until we came to a village, beyond which was a beach on a coastal lake. This is part of the Canal de Pangalanes, a chain of natural and man-made lakes, rivers and waterways that extend for 645 km down the east coast of Madagascar, separated from the sea by only a dune system. Many of the connections between the natural lakes were cut by hand during the French colonial period, using Chinese coolie labour and many lives were lost. An hour’s boat ride down the lake and along a channel with the occasional dwelling and fisherman, until we reached our destination on a beach at a resort. Very nice.

Lunch took a while and we didn’t get our bungalows until later, but it was pleasant just to relax and enjoy the peaceful atmosphere. A restful afternoon with Joy reading in the hammock (shades of ‘Death in Paradise’) and Austin taking a little walk through the local jungle. I don’t know – some people are never happy. While we were revelling in the beauty around us, Austin met one of our party on the track complaining about the insects around their ankles (he couldn’t see any) and that the beach was oh-hum and not as good as Australian beaches and that there was a lack of a real security system for their belongings. Another couple were bemused by the ‘primitive’ hot water system (a fire-heated tank) and that they didn’t get a view of the lake from their cabin. Austin refused to let his spirit be dampened by these negatives comments.

The evening found us on the beach enjoying the singing and dancing of a local village children’s group – 5 rows of 7 children each. Later in the program, the kids got us up to dance as well. A couple of the girls danced with flower pots on their heads and some of our group tried the same, without a lot of success. One little girl up the back, not in costume danced with a bottle of water on her head to show how clever she was, even though she wasn’t in the group.

Leaping Lemurs

Andasibe, Madagascar
August 22, 2015

Indri (or Babakoto) are the largest lemur species at up to 9 kg in weight and can reach to 120 cm with its legs and arms extended. It is the only lemur that has a rudimentary tail instead of a long tail. It holds its body upright when clinging to tree trunks or when moving through the forest. This ‘teddy bear’ lives in small groups and keep in touch by singing or roaring to each other.

Joy woke up in the night with a migraine, and not feeling too good after breakfast, decided to spend the morning at the hotel while the rest of us trooped off to hunt for Lemurs in the Park. The tracks here were dry and covered in tree roots that threatened to trip up the unwary walker. However, the forest was a little more open than down south and more amenable to Lemur spotting. After a few photos of chameleons near the entrance, we wandered in and found interesting plants and spiders to examine. We soon found the Common Brown Lemurs quite close to our path. A good deal further on we found a small family of Indri high in the trees. They were easily frightened and rapidly moved away with their huge leaps from branch to branch. After our cautious following for a while, they eventually settled down and we got a few nice photographs. Before long they started their wailing call which impressed all present. A load haunting cry that can be heard for 5 kilometres around. Another family of Indri were spotted a little later in our travels and more photos taken. Next were a bundle of three Eastern Woolly Lemurs sleeping high in the trees and providing little to photograph. Finally, we found a troop of Diademed Sifaka which bounced around our heads like monkeys, seemingly not worried by us. In fact we thought that they may have even been showing off a little.

Out of the Park by midday and back home, where Joy was reasonably recovered and ready to join us for the afternoon. After lunch we headed to Lemur Island and the small zoo associated with the Resort. For the Island, we were rowed across a moat in small canoes, much to the laughter of the party. Once landed, we were soon assailed on all sides by Common Brown Lemurs who jumped onto our shoulders looking for food. With their cute black faces, golden eyes and soft little fingers, they delighted us all. More cautious were some small Grey Bamboo Lemurs, who came as close as they dared but stayed on their tree trunks. One Black and White Ruffed Lemur made up the party and amused us with his antics of hanging upside down to receive pieces of banana from our guides. Supposedly there is also a Ring-tailed Lemur on the Island, but he didn’t come to visit us. These Lemurs are the common species we see in zoos back home and around the world but in Madagascar they are confined to the south-west regions and becoming more and more endangered due to habitat destruction. As we understood it, all of these Lemurs are ex-pets from villages or stranded by forest destruction. Although some people decry the unnaturalness of these habituated Lemurs, they are well cared for and serve the purpose of allowing world visitors to appreciate the beauty of these endangered animals.

Joy Brown making friends with a Brown Lemur

Off to Crocodile Lake where the resident Nile Crocs lay around looking like plastic models – not flinching a muscle or eye. However, a few in the water convinced us that they were real, even though they very lazily swam along. A cage with a male Fossa was of interest, even though he remained curled up and sleepy, only occasionally staring at us with its large liquid eyes. Apparently there was a female present as well but she remained in a tunnel underground. Fossa, along with Harrier Hawks are the main predators of lemurs. Other beasties in the zoo included some some lovely red-chested White-faced Whistling Ducks and Red-billed Teal, a small family of Helmeted Guinea-fowl and a python, which a few brave souls handled. Having had a good wander around, it was time to head back and to dinner.

A night walk turned up some Chameleons, an occasional small frog and a few insects. No Lemurs, although our guide was convinced he saw a Mouse Lemur. We imagined we could spot its eyes but not seeing any other part of these shy little animals, we were not so convinced.

Antsirabe to Andasibe

Andasibe, Madagascar
August 21, 2015

Another long day in the saddle as we made our way north, back through Antananarivo (Tana) and east to Andasibe. Every town here seems to start with ‘A’. At least we changed to 4WD’s just before Tana, which made half of our journey much more bearable. It’s amazing how some extra leg room makes all the difference. Our vehicle changeover was also where we stopped for lunch at a holiday resort built on the edge of a lake. A large complex with dining room and a large swimming pool. A leisurely lunch and relax before heading off on the next leg of our journey.

The villages of the east are largely made of timber, rather than of bricks. Many abandoned factories appear in these parts but otherwise the villages are much the same as south of Tana. Off the bitumen at Moramanga and onto an unmade road into the Analamazoatra National Park but eventually we came to a great resort on the edge of the forest.

The Vakona Forest Lodge with its scattered chalet-like accommodation, set in lovely lush gardens and its large circular reception, lounge and restaurant was a real treat. Bed soon after dinner to get some good sleep before a big day of potential Lemur spotting tomorrow.

The Long Drive Back

Antsirabe, Madagascar
August 20, 2015

We retraced our long drive back to Antsirabe today. Our bus is built for the slight and slim Malagasy. It’s a bit of a squeeze for most of us, particularly considering that in addition to our well nourished frames, we have to find room for our backpacks, water bottles, cameras, guidebooks etc. And if you happen to be sitting over the wheel well, it is worse again, with knees up to your chin and a bottom that feels every pot-hole and bump – which are frequent. Eight hours plus under such conditions is not much fun. At least we have curtains we can draw across the windows to keep the sun out. We all rotate around the seats every half day, so at least each can sample the delights of bad, very bad and extremely bad seating. After a while, the bad seems almost good. And because we are all in the same boat (I mean bus), a shared experience lightens the burden and the mood.

Lunch at the same spot with the dancers. We wish they wouldn’t feed us so much. A three course lunch and dinner is hard work and probably doesn’t help our bus-seat squashing ordeals. At the end of our long, long drive, our guide took us to a gem stone shop, which most of us were glad was closed, as we had had enough for one day. However, we were then taken to a Zebu-horn carving shop, which despite our tiredness we did find interesting. All sorts of wares were available for purchase and we ended up with a fridge magnet of a oxen-drawn cart for Austin’s mum.

Dressed up in their Sunday best for Church

So glad to get to our guest house (Chambres du Voyageur), even though the beds were rather hard and the pillows thin. Lonely Planet makes the following statement. “This ecolodge is a rarity in Antsirabe, an island of nature on the edge of the city. The owner’s passion is gardening and you’ll find some 800 species of plant in its themed gardens (Majorelle, Alhambra, Japanese etc), as well as 14 species of bird, tortoise and chameleon. The brick bungalows are pretty, spacious and very comfortable. The gardens were lovely with their flower beds of tropical plants, large pond with bridges, fish and Leopard Tortoises. Joy made friends with the owners’ dogs and we obtained occasional glimpses of the resident blue kingfisher and found a large chameleon in one the garden trees.