When Bond and Kara arrive in Vienna, they ride through the city in a horse carriage. Bond hails the carriage at the prater and they pass a number of famous locations, such as the Schönbrunn Palace before ending up at their hotel, the Im Palais Schwarzenberg (covered earlier).
But before ending up at the hotel, they also ride past a big statue in central Vienna. The statue is surrounded by magnificent buildings and part of the Hofburg Palace can be seen in the background. However, the statue is located right in front of the Museum of Art History (Kunsthistorisches Museum), situated in the very central part of Vienna. This building is actually one of two identical buildings and the other, the Natural History Museum (Naturhistorisches Museum Wien), is facing the Museum of Art History across the park. The square is called Maria-Theresien-Platz and is very easy to find in central Vienna. Conveniently located near the Spanish riding school, the famous café Demel and Hofburg.
At the center of the square you find the big statue that Bond and Kara are passing. It is depicting Empress Maria Theresa who has given her name to the square. After passing the statue, the imperial palace, Hofburg is seen at a distance in the background.
The two museums have identical exteriors and face each other across Maria-Theresien-Platz. The buildings were built between 1872 and 1891 by emperor Franz Joseph I of Austria-Hungary.
The horse carriages in Vienna are still popular by tourists and can be found throughout the city. Some of the drivers still have the same bowler hat as Bond's coachman had in the film. They are quite expensive though and cost between € 60 and € 90 per trip. Neither this location, the Prater, the Schönbrunn Palace or the Palais Schwarzenberg are really within riding distance of each other.
No comments:
Post a Comment