HI, I'M RICK STEVES, BACK WITH MORE OF THE BEST OF EUROPE THIS TIME, WE'RE CELEBRATING THE GOOD LIFE IN VIENNA.

THANKS FOR JOINING US.

WHEN I THINK ABOUT VIENNA, I THINK ABOUT GOOD LIVING, ELEGANT PARKS, ROMANTIC DANUBE RIVER, IMPERIAL ART GALLERIES, AND GREAT MUSIC.

AFTER CENTURIES OF RULE BY THE HABSBURG FAMILY, TODAY, THE PEOPLE ARE CALLING THE SHOTS, AND THEY SEEM TO BE GETTING IT RIGHT.

WE'LL MARVEL AT THE AWE-INSPIRING SCHONBRUNN PALACE AND ENJOY THE IMPERIAL CITY'S FINE ART.

THEN WE'LL RELAX IN A HILLSIDE WINE GARDEN, AND WE'LL VISIT A WORLD-CLASS OPERA HOUSE AND CATCH A LITTLE KLIMT BEFORE TOURING THE DANUBE COUNTRYSIDE WITH ITS STRIKING MELK ABBEY.

VIENNA WAS THE GRAND CAPITAL OF THE FORMERLY-GRAND HABSBURG EMPIRE, WHICH ONCE STRETCHED ACROSS MUCH OF EUROPE.

ITS SUPERPOWER DAYS ARE NOW LONG GONE, AND TODAY, THE CITY ENJOYS THE CULTURAL AND PHYSICAL REMNANTS OF ITS IMPERIAL AGE AS BOTH AN INSPIRATION AND A PLAYGROUND FOR LIVING WELL.

VIENNA SITS ALONG THE DANUBE RIVER.

ST. STEPHEN'S CATHEDRAL MARKS THE CENTER OF TOWN.

THE OLD TOWN, WITH MOST OF THE TOP SITES, IS BOUND TIGHTLY BY THE RINGSTRASSE, MARKING WHAT USED TO BE THE CITY WALL.

THE PALACES OF THE IMPERIAL HABSBURG FAMILY STILL CREATE A BUZZ.

THE ROYAL FAMILY WINTERED DOWNTOWN IN THEIR HOFBURG PALACE AND THEY SUMMERED HERE AT THE SCHONBRUNN PALACE.

AMONG EUROPE'S GRANDIOSE PALACES, ONLY SCHONBRUNN RIVALS VERSAILLES.

IT'S BIG, WITH OVER 1,400 ROOMS.

BUT DON'T WORRY, ONLY 40 ARE SHOWN TO THE PUBLIC.

WHILE THE EXTERIOR IS BAROQUE, THE FAVORITE STYLE OF DIVINE MONARCHS IN THE 17th CENTURY, MUCH OF THE INTERIOR WAS FINISHED UNDER MARIA THERESA IN ROCOCO, THE FRILLIER "LET THEM EAT CAKE" STYLE THAT FOLLOWED.

THE CHANDELIERS ARE EITHER ARE OF BOHEMIAN CRYSTAL OR OF HAND-CARVED WOOD, SHINY WITH GOLD LEAF.

THIS ONE WAS LIT BY 72 CANDLES.

MARIA THERESA, WHO RULED IN THE LATE 1700s, WAS THE ONLY WOMAN TO OFFICIALLY RUN THE HABSBURG EMPIRE IN THAT FAMILY'S SIX-CENTURY REIGN.

SHE WAS A STRONG AND EFFECTIVE EMPRESS, FAMOUS AS THE MOTHER OF 16 CHILDREN, MOST OF WHOM SURVIVED TO ADULTHOOD.

IMAGINE THAT THE MOST POWERFUL WOMAN IN EUROPE WAS EITHER PREGNANT OR HAD A NEWBORN FOR OVER HALF OF HER FORTY-YEAR REIGN.

THE ORIGINAL PRACTITIONER OF "MAKE LOVE, NOT WAR," MARIA THERESA EXPANDED HER EMPIRE WHILE AVOIDING WARS BY CLEVERLY MARRYING HER CHILDREN INTO OTHER ROYAL FAMILIES.

DURING HER REIGN, THE REST OF EUROPE RECOGNIZED AUSTRIA AS A GREAT POWER.

HER RIVAL, THE PRUSSIAN EMPEROR, SAID, "WHEN AT LAST THE HABSBURGS GET A GREAT MAN, IT'S A WOMAN."

IN ROOM AFTER LUXURIOUS ROOM, THE PALACE HERALDS THE STORY OF A POWERFUL FAMILY.

FRESCOES IN THE GRAND BALLROOM WERE PROPAGANDA, THE GOOD LIFE UNDER MARIA THERESA.

A CONTEMPORARY OF GEORGE WASHINGTON BUT WORLDS APART POLITICALLY, SHE PRESIDES LIKE THE DIVINE MONARCH SHE WAS OVER A VAST MULTI-ETHNIC EMPIRE AT PEACE.

TUSCANY, WITH BOTTLES OF GOOD CHIANTI, THE NETHERLANDS, WITH THE WILD SEA, HUNGARIANS WITH THEIR MAGYAR HATS AND ANIMALS WERE ALL PART OF HER REALM IN ABOUT 1750.

THERE WAS PEACE, BUT ONLY THOUGH STRENGTH.

THIS FRESCO SHOWS OFF HER STATE-OF-THE-ART MILITARY.

HER INFANTRY MOVES FORWARD IN ALTERNATING LINES, FIRING AND LOADING WITH A HORRIFYING SPEED AND EFFICIENCY.

A WALK THROUGH THE IMPERIAL GARDEN, NOW OVERRUN WITH COMMONERS, CELEBRATES THE EVOLUTION OF OUR SOCIETY FROM AUTOCRACY TO DEMOCRACY.

IT'S BEEN NEARLY A CENTURY SINCE THE LAST EMPEROR CHECKED OUT, AND IF ACCESS TO ONCE OUT-OF-BOUNDS ROYAL GARDENS IS ANY MEASURE, THE PEOPLE ARE DOING QUITE WELL.

WHILE THE HABSBURGS MAY BE GONE, THEIR APPRECIATION OF FINER LIVING IS ALIVE AND WELL, AS YOU'LL LEARN IN THE CAFES.

FOR MANY VIENNESE, THE LIVING ROOM IS DOWN THE STREET AT THE NEIGHBORHOOD COFFEEHOUSE.

EACH COMES WITH ITS OWN INDIVIDUAL CHARACTER.

THE VENERABLE CAFE SPERL IS STILL FURNISHED JUST AS IT WAS ON THE DAY IT OPENED BACK IN 1880.

WHILE A BIT TIRED, OFTEN SMOKY, AND WITH A SHABBY PATINA, A VIENNESE CAFE IS A WELCOMING PLACE.

THEY OFFER LIGHT LUNCHES, FRESH PASTRIES, A WIDE SELECTION OF NEWSPAPERS, AND TAKE-ALL-THE-TIME-YOU-WANT CHARM FOR THE PRICE OF A CUP OF COFFEE.

DIVINE MONARCHS LIKE THE HABSBURGS LIKE THEIR ART DIVINE AS WELL.

IN OTHER WORDS, BAROQUE.

CHARLES CHURCH OFFERS PERHAPS THE BEST BAROQUE IN VIENNA, WITH A UNIQUE COMBINATION OF COLUMNS, CLASSIC PEDIMENT, AND AN ELLIPTICAL DOME.

WE'RE DROPPING IN FOR A PEEK AT THE PAINSTAKING AND COSTLY RESTORATION WORK GOING ON ALL THE TIME TO KEEP THE CULTURAL TREASURES OF EUROPE LOOKING GOOD.

HERE, TOURIST ADMISSIONS HELP PAY THE BILL.

THE CHURCH, WHICH DATES TO THE EARLY 1700s, WAS BUILT AND DECORATED WITH A SCAFFOLDING SYSTEM ESSENTIALLY THE SAME AS THIS ONE.

ASCENDING THE ELEVATOR HIGH INTO THE DOME, YOU'RE IN THE CLOUDS WITH CUPIDS AND ANGELS.

MANY DETAILS THAT APPEAR REFINED AND REALISTIC FROM GROUND LEVEL, SUCH AS GOLD LEAF, FRESCOES, AND FAKE MARBLE, LOOK ROUGH AND SLOPPY UP-CLOSE.

IT'S SURREAL TO OBSERVE THESE DISTORTED FIGURES FROM THIS UNINTENDED ANGLE.

AS ALWAYS, THE ART HAD A PURPOSE -- TEACHING.

OR PROPAGANDA, DEPENDING ON YOUR PERSPECTIVE.

HERE, FAITH, HOPE, AND CHARITY AND CATHOLIC PRIESTS TRIUMPH AND INSPIRE WHILE PROTESTANTS AND THEIR TROUBLE-MAKING BOOKS ARE TRASHED.

AT THE VERY TOP, YOU'LL SEE THE TINY DOVE, REPRESENTING THE HOLY SPIRIT, SURROUNDED BY A CHEERING SQUAD OF NIPPLE-LIPPED CUPIDS.

NEARBY, IMPERIAL AUSTRIA'S GREATEST LEADER, MARIA THERESA, LOOKS UPON THE COUNTRY'S GREATEST COLLECTION OF ART, THE KUNSTHISTORISCHES MUSEUM.

AS YOU ENTER, YOU'LL BE DAZZLED BY THE SPACE AND REMINDED OF THE FORMER GLORY OF THE HABSBURGS' MULTI-NATIONAL EMPIRE.

AT THE PEAK OF THEIR POWER IN THE 1500s, THE HABSBURG FAMILY RULED AUSTRIA, GERMANY, NORTHERN ITALY, THE NETHERLANDS, EVEN SPAIN, AND THIS MUSEUM OFFERS GREAT ART FROM THROUGHOUT THE REALM.

THE ITALIAN COLLECTION IS PARTICULARLY STRONG.

AROUND THE YEAR 1500, ITALY HAD A RENAISSANCE, OR RE-BIRTH OF INTEREST, IN THE ART OF LEARNING OF ANCIENT GREECE AND ROME.

IN PAINTING, THAT MEANT THAT GREEK GODS JOINED SAINTS AND ANGELS AS POPULAR SUBJECTS.

THE COLLECTION SPANS THE ALL-STARS OF THE ITALIAN RENAISSANCE.

TITIAN, THE VENETIAN, SEEMED PARTICULARLY INTIMATE WITH THE PRE-CHRISTIAN GODS AND THEIR ANTICS.

HERE IN "MARS, VENUS, AND AMOR," A BUSY CUPID OVERSEES THE GODDESS OF LOVE MAKING HER CASE THAT WAR IS NOT THE ANSWER.

MARS, HIS WEAPONS BLISSFULLY DISCARDED, SEES HER POINT.

THE 22-YEAR-OLD RAPHAEL CAPTURED THE SPIRIT OF THE HIGH RENAISSANCE, COMBINING SYMMETRY, GRACE, BEAUTY, AND EMOTION.

HIS "MADONNA OF THE MEADOW" IS A MOUNTAIN OF MOTHERLY LOVE.

MARY'S HEAD IS THE SUMMIT AND HER FLOWING ROBE IS THE BASE, ENFOLDING BABY JESUS AND JOHN THE BAPTIST.

THE GEOMETRIC PERFECTION, SERENE LANDSCAPE, AND MARY'S ADORING FACE MAKE THIS A MASTERPIECE OF SHEER GRACE, BUT THE CROSS THE LITTLE TYKES PLAY WITH FORESHADOWS THEIR GRUESOME DEATHS.

AS THE BAROQUE AGE SUCCEEDS THE RENAISSANCE, IT BRINGS MORE EMOTION AND MELODRAMA.

CARAVAGGIO'S "ROSENKRANZMADONNA" PROVIDES A STRONG CONTRAST TO RAPHAEL'S SUPER-SWEET MADONNAS.

CARAVAGGIO SHOCKED THE ART WORLD WITH BRUTALLY HONEST REALITY -- ORDINARY MADONNAS, HANDS THAT SEEMED TO SPEAK, SAINTS WITH DIRTY FEET.

IN "DAVID WITH THE HEAD OF GOLIATH," CARAVAGGIO TURNS A HARSH LIGHT ON A FAMILIAR BIBLE STORY.

DAVID SHOWS OFF THE DRIPPING HEAD OF THE SLAIN GIANT.

THE PAINTING, BLED OF COLOR, IS LIKE A BLACK-AND-WHITE CRIME SCENE PHOTO.

THIS DAVID IS NOT A HEROIC RENAISSANCE MAN LIKE MICHELANGELO'S FAMOUS STATUE, BUT A HOMELESS TEEN THAT CARAVAGGIO HIRED OFF THE STREET, AND THE SEVERED HEAD OF GOLIATH IS NONE OTHER THAN CARAVAGGIO HIMSELF, AN IN-YOUR-FACE SELF-PORTRAIT.

PART OF THE NORTHERN RENAISSANCE WAS DIFFERENT.

FUNDED BY THE ECONOMIC BOOM FROM FLEMISH AND DUTCH TRADING, IT WAS MORE SECULAR AND PROTESTANT THAN THE CATHOLIC-FUNDED ART OF THE ITALIAN RENAISSANCE.

RATHER THAN MADONNAS AND SAINTS AND GREEK GODS, YOU'LL SEE PEASANTS, LANDSCAPES, AND FOOD.

PAINTINGS ARE SMALLER, FULL OF DOWN-TO-EARTH OBJECTS DESIGNED TO APPEAL TO THE THRIVING MERCHANT CLASS.

NORTHERN ARTISTS EMBRACED THE DETAILS, ENCOURAGING THE VIEWER TO APPRECIATE THE BEAUTY IN EVERYDAY THINGS.

PIETER BRUEGEL THE ELDER WAS THE NORMAN ROCKWELL OF THE 16th CENTURY, THE UNDISPUTED MASTER OF THE SLICE-OF-LIFE VILLAGE SCENE.

WHILE A CITY SLICKER HIMSELF, BRUEGEL DRESSED DOWN TO OBSERVE COUNTRY FOLK AT PLAY.

EVEN AS HE HIGHLIGHTED THE RUSTIC SIMPLICITY OF THEIR LIVES, HE SHOWED THEIR QUIRKS AS UNIVERSAL EXAMPLES OF HUMAN FOLLY.

IN HIS "FARMER'S DANCE," THERE'S NOT A SAINT IN SIGHT, BUT THERE IS A MESSAGE.

BAGPIPES SYMBOLIZED HEDONISM.

IN THIS SCENE, THE CHURCH IS IGNORED WHILE THE PIPER GETS ALL THE ATTENTION.

PERHAPS THE BEST WAY TO MATCH THIS RUSTIC CONVIVIALITY TODAY IS TO HEAD INTO THE NEARBY VIENNA WOOD.

HERE IN THE FOOTHILLS OF THE ALPS, LOCALS ENJOY THEIR NATURAL BACKYARD.

AND, AMIDST THE FAMOUS VINEYARDS, THEY GATHER FOR THE RITUAL OF TASTING THE NEW WINE.

THE UNIQUELY VIENNESE INSTITUTION OF THE HEURIGER IS TWO THINGS -- IT'S A YOUNG WINE AND A PLACE TO DRINK IT.

A LONG TIME AGO, WHEN THE HABSBURG EMPERORS ALLOWED VIENNA'S VINTNERS TO SELL THEIR YOUNG WINE TAX-FREE, SEVERAL HUNDRED FAMILIES OPENED UP THESE WINE GARDEN EATERIES, CLUSTERED AROUND THE EDGE OF TOWN, AND A TRADITION WAS BORN.

TODAY, THERE ARE MORE THAN 1,700 ACRES OF VINEYARDS WITHIN VIENNA'S CITY LIMITS AND COUNTLESS HEURIGER TAVERNS.

FOR A HEURIGER EVENING, RIDE A TRAM INTO THIS WINE GARDEN DISTRICT, WANDER AROUND, AND CHOOSE THE PLACE WITH THE BEST AMBIANCE.

MANY LOCALS CLAIM THAT IT TAKES SEVERAL YEARS OF PRACTICE TO DISTINGUISH BETWEEN THE YOUNG HEURIGER WINE AND VINEGAR.

TO ENJOY A MORE REFINED WINE, SOME VOCABULARY HELPS.

TRY THE GRUNER VELTLINER, A DRY WHITE WINE.

SINCE AUSTRIAN WINE IS OFTEN SWEET, REMEMBER THE WORD TROCKEN.

THAT MEANS DRY.

WHILE WAITRESSES BRING YOUR WINE, THE FOOD IS SELF-SERVED.

AS IS THE TRADITION, THEY DON'T SERVE FINE CUISINE, ONLY SIMPLE DISHES AND COLD CUTS FROM A HEARTY BUFFET LIKE THIS.

CLEARLY, NO ONE'S GOING HUNGRY TONIGHT.

SO HERE WE HAVE EVERYTHING YOU CAN IMAGINE IN A TRADITIONAL VIENNESE COUNTRY RESTAURANT.

YOU GOT YOUR SAUERKRAUT, YOUR RED KRAUT, SCHWEINEBRATEN, ALP CHEESE, MOUNTAIN CHEESE, SOME POTATO SALAD, AND SOMETHING I THINK IS VERY IMPORTANT, SCHMALTZ.

THIS IS LARD, ACTUALLY, AND IT'S SOMETHING YOUNG PEOPLE DON'T EAT MUCH, BUT THE OLD-TIMERS LOVE IT.

MMM, TAKES YOU WAY BACK.

LARD.

VIENNA HAS FINE ART AND ARCHITECTURE FROM JUST ABOUT EVERY AGE, AND PARTICULARLY INTERESTING IS THE ART FROM THE LAST DECADES OF HABSURG RULE, ART NOUVEAU.

VIENNA GAVE BIRTH TO ITS OWN CURVACEOUS BRAND OF ART NOUVEAU IN THE EARLY 1900s -- JUGENDSTIL.

PLAYFUL EXAMPLES ARE ALL OVER TOWN.

WHETHER ARCHITECTURE, COFFEE, CAKES, OR MUSIC, IT'S ALL PART OF THE GOOD LIFE, VIENNA STYLE.

THE BELVEDERE PALACE, WITH ITS ELEGANT BAROQUE GARDENS, WAS THE LAVISH HOME OF PRINCE EUGENE OF SAVOY, THE STILL MUCH-APPRECIATED CONQUEROR OF THE TURKS.

EUGENE WAS THE GREATEST MILITARY GENIUS OF HIS AGE, AND HIGHLY VALUED BY HIS EMPEROR.

WHEN YOU CONQUER GREAT ENEMIES AS EUGENE DID, YOU GET REALLY RICH.

SINCE HE HAD NO HEIRS, THE STATE INHERITED HIS PALACE.

IN THE 19th CENTURY, EMPEROR JOSEPH II CONVERTED THE PALACE INTO AUSTRIA'S FIRST GREAT PUBLIC ART GALLERY.

IT HOUSES THE AUSTRIAN GALLERY OF 19th AND 20th CENTURY ART.

AS AUSTRIA BECAME A LEADER IN EUROPEAN ART AROUND 1900, THAT AGE IS THE COLLECTION'S FORTE, WITH FINE WORKS BY A SCHOOL OF RESPECTED ROMANTICS, EGON SCHIELE, AND GUSTAV KLIMT.

IN THE ROOM FULL OF SUMPTUOUS PAINTINGS BY KLIMT, YOU CAN GET CAUGHT UP IN HIS CREED THAT ALL ART IS EROTIC.

HE WAS FASCINATED WITH BOTH THE BEAUTY AND THE DANGER OF WOMEN.

HE PAINTED DURING THE TURN OF THE CENTURY WHEN VIENNA WAS A SPLENDID LABORATORY OF HEDONISM, THE LOVE OF PLEASURE.

FOR KLIMT, EVE WAS THE PROTOTYPICAL WOMAN.

HER BODY, NOT THE APPLE, PROVIDED THE SEDUCTION.

FRUSTRATED BY CENSORSHIP, KLIMT REFUSED EVERY FORM OF STATE SUPPORT.

WHILE HE DIDN'T PAINT WOMEN ENTIRELY NUDE, HE MANAGED TO CAPTURE A BEWITCHING EROTICISM.

HERE, JUDITH IS NO BIBLICAL HEROINE BUT A HIGH-SOCIETY VIENNESE WOMAN WITH AN OSTENTATIOUS NECKLACE.

WITH HALF-CLOSED EYES AND LIGHTLY-PARTED LIPS, SHE'S DISMISSIVE, YET MYSTERIOUS AND SEDUCTIVE.

HOLDING THE HEAD OF HER BIBLICAL VICTIM, SHE'S THE MODERN FEMME FATALE.

IN PERHAPS HIS MOST FAMOUS PAINTING, "THE KISS," THE WOMAN IS NO LONGER DOMINATING, BUT SUBMISSIVE, ABANDONING HERSELF TO HER MAN IN A FERTILE FIELD IN A VAST UNIVERSE.

IN A GLOW EMANATING FROM A RADIANCE OF DESIRE, THE BODY SHE PRESSES AGAINST IS A SELF PORTRAIT OF THE ARTIST HIMSELF, GUSTAV KLIMT.

AT THE HOFBURG, THE HABSBURG WINTER PALACE IN THE TOWN CENTER, VIENNA'S LOVE OF MUSIC IS BEAUTIFULLY CAPTURED IN A FINE COLLECTION OF HISTORIC INSTRUMENTS.

VIENNA WAS EUROPE'S MUSIC CAPITAL LONG BEFORE BEETHOVEN CALLED IT HOME.

AS FAR BACK AS THE 12th CENTURY, IT WAS A MECCA FOR MUSICIANS.

LATER HABSURG EMPERORS WERE GENEROUS PATRONS OF MUSIC.

IN FACT, MANY WERE TALENTED MUSICIANS AND COMPOSERS THEMSELVES.

PALATIAL ROOMS ARE FILLED WITH ODD MEDIEVAL NOISEMAKERS, REGAL TRUMPETS, FAMOUS PIANOS, AND MORE.

IMMERSED IN MUSIC HISTORY, THIS PORTRAIT IS OF A 13-YEAR-OLD BEETHOVEN.

VISITORS CAN ACTUALLY HEAR THESE PRECIOUS INSTRUMENTS BEING PLAYED WITH THE ACCOMPANYING AUDIO GUIDE.

THE CLAVICHORD AND THE HARPSICHORD WERE TWO PREDECESSORS TO THE PIANO.

FOR A COUPLE OF HUNDRED YEARS, THE CLAVICHORD WAS THE STANDARD KEYBOARD INSTRUMENT.

IT'S SMALL, IT'S SIMPLE, GOOD FOR DOMESTIC, INTIMATE SETTINGS.

THE KEYBOARD ACTUALLY IS VERY SIMPLE, JUST A TEETER-TOTTER MOTION.

YOU CAN DO A LITTLE DYNAMIC CONTRAST -- ♪♪ FROM SOFT TO LESS SOFT.

♪♪ AND A LITTLE VIBRATO IF YOU LIKE.

♪♪ THE HARPSICHORD MAKES A BIGGER AND A BRIGHTER SOUND BECAUSE THE STRINGS, RATHER THAN BEING HIT WITH A HAMMER -- ♪♪ WERE PLUCKED WITH A QUILL.

AND BECAUSE A PLUCK IS A PLUCK, THE VOLUME WAS ALWAYS THE SAME.

♪♪ AROUND 1700, THEY DEVELOPED A MORE COMPLICATED MECHANISM THAT WHEN YOU HIT THE KEY, IT WOULD THROW THE HAMMER UP TO THE STRING, AND YOU COULD STRIKE IT SOFTER OR LOUDER.

THEY CALLED IT THE SOFT-LOUD, PIANOFORTE.

♪♪ TODAY WE CALL IT THE PIANO.

THESE DAYS, VISITORS TO VIENNA FIND MUSICAL TREATS WHEREVER THEY TURN.

[ MAN SINGING ] EVEN IF YOU DON'T HAVE TIME OR MONEY FOR A PERFORMANCE, A VISIT TO THE OPERA IS A MUST.

THE VIENNA STATE OPERA HOUSE, BUILT IN THE 1860s, IS THE PRIDE OF THE CITY.

HERE IN THE GRAND ENTRY HALL, IT'S EASY TO IMAGINE AN AGE WHEN OPERA WAS AS POPULAR AS MOVIES ARE TODAY.

PICTURE WHITE-GLOVED DANDIES WITH THEIR DATES.

TOURS ARE OFFERED DAILY.

Woman: WE'RE STANDING NOW IN A VERY ELEGANT INTERMISSION ROOM, WHICH TAKES US BACK INTO THE TIME OF FRANZ JOSEPH.

THE AUDITORIUM, ALTOGETHER, HOLDS 2,200 PLACES.

YOU HAVE A FANTASTIC VIEW FROM YOUR SEATS.

YOU HAVE TO IMAGINE THAT ENTIRE AUDITORIUM WAS DAMAGED IN WORLD WAR TWO.

SO THIS PLACE WAS TERRIBLY HIT BY THE BOMBS.

THE ENTIRE AUDITORIUM BURNED DOWN, ALSO THE STAGE AREA, SO IT HAD TO BE COMPLETELY REBUILT AFTER THE WAR.

WELL, WE ARE NOW ON ONE OF THE BIGGEST STAGES IN EUROPE.

IT'S POSSIBLE TO COMPARE THE ENTIRE SIZE OF THE STAGE TO THE INTERIOR OF ST. STEPHEN'S CATHEDRAL.

Steves: THE VIENNA STATE OPERA, WITH MUSICIANS PROVIDED BY THE VIENNA PHILHARMONIC ORCHESTRA IN THE PIT, IS ONE OF THE WORLD'S TOP OPERA HOUSES, OFFERING 300 PERFORMANCES A YEAR.

WHILE THE ORCHESTRA AND THE OPERA TAKE THE SUMMER OFF, VIENNA'S MUSIC SCENE THRIVES YEAR-ROUND.

AND MOST SUMMER EVENINGS IN FRONT OF THE CITY HALL, FREE CONCERTS ARE BROADCAST ON A GIANT SCREEN.

JUST BEFORE THE SHOW, PEOPLE GATHER TO ENJOY DINNER IN THE PARK.

IT'S A LIVELY LOCAL SCENE.

SURE, THERE'S SOME SCHNITZEL, BUT IT'S MOSTLY WORLD FOOD WITH VIENNA AT PLAY.

SINGLES CONSIDER THIS THE BEST PICK-UP PLACE IN TOWN.

THE CITY GOVERNMENT SUBSIDIZES THE EVENT, BELIEVING EVEN THOSE JUST LOOKING TO HOOK UP WILL PICK UP AN APPRECIATION OF A LITTLE HIGH CULTURE AT THE SAME TIME.

TONIGHT, 3,000 SEATS ARE FILLED AS PEOPLE WHO COULDN'T MAKE IT TO THE ORIGINAL PERFORMANCE ENJOY THE VIENNA STATE OPERA AND ITS ORCHESTRA PERFORM "THE LOVE POTION" BY DONIZETTI FOR FREE.

[ MAN SINGING ] THE DANUBE RIVER IS AN INTEGRAL PART OF VIENNA FOR BOTH TRADE AND FOR RECREATION.

THE MIGHTY RIVER FLOWS NEARLY 2,000 MILES THROUGH TEN COUNTRIES, FROM THE BLACK FOREST IN GERMANY TO THE BLACK SEA IN ROMANIA.

WESTERN EUROPE'S LONGEST RIVER, IT'S ALSO THE ONLY MAJOR RIVER FLOWING WEST TO EAST, MAKING THE DANUBE INVALUABLE FOR COMMERCIAL TRANSPORTATION.

THE TOWN OF MELK, JUST A SHORT TRIP BY BOAT, CAR, OR TRAIN FROM VIENNA IS A FINE BASE FOR EXPLORING THE DANUBE RIVER VALLEY.

ITS TRAFFIC-FREE AND COBBLED TOWN CENTER WITH CHEERY EATERIES AND BUDGET GUEST HOUSES IS DWARFED BY ITS MAGNIFICENT ABBEY.

MELK'S NEWLY RESTORED ABBEY BEAMS PROUDLY OVER THE DANUBE VALLEY.

ESTABLISHED AS A FORTIFIED BENEDICTINE ABBEY IN THE 11th CENTURY, IT WAS DESTROYED BY FIRE.

WHAT YOU SEE TODAY IS 18th CENTURY BAROQUE.

TODAY, AS THEY HAVE FOR 900 YEARS, MONKS PRAY, MEDITATE, AND FOLLOW THE RULES OF ST. BENEDICT RIGHT HERE.

THE INSTITUTION SURVIVES.

THAT'S THE POINT OF THE MODERN FRESCOES GRACING THE COURTYARD.

LIKE THE MONKS, VISITORS STROLL PAST SIX CENTURIES OF HABSBURG EMPERORS AS THEY TOUR THE BUILDING.

FOR THE BENEDICTINE MONKS, THE LIBRARY WAS, AFTER THE ACTUAL CHURCH, THE MOST IMPORTANT ROOM IN THE ENTIRE ABBEY.

THAT'S MADE CLEAR BY THE EXTRAVAGANT INVESTMENT IN ITS ELABORATE DECOR.

MANY OF EUROPE'S FINEST OLD LIBRARIES ARE HOUSED IN MONASTERIES LIKE THIS.

IN THE MIDDLE AGES, MONASTERIES HOARDED AND CONTROLLED KNOWLEDGE, MONKS WERE EUROPE'S EDUCATED ELITES, AND IT WAS IN INFORMATION POWER CENTERS LIKE THIS THAT THEY DECIDED WHAT WAS AND WHAT WASN'T.

LONG BEFORE DEWEY AND HIS DECIMALS, THE BOOKS HERE WERE ORGANIZED, STARTING WITH BIBLES, THEN THEOLOGY, AND FROM THERE, INTO LAW, PHILOSOPHY, MEDICINE, AND SO ON.

MANY OF THE COLLECTION'S OLDEST BOOKS WERE WRITTEN AND TRANSCRIBED HERE.

IT'S A VISUAL REMINDER OF HOW MONASTERIES WERE THE STOREHOUSE OF KNOWLEDGE THROUGH THE AGES.

THERE WOULD BE A GUTENBERG BIBLE, BUT IT WAS SOLD TO HARVARD UNIVERSITY TO RAISE MONEY TO RESTORE THE LIBRARY AND THIS -- THE GILDED CHURCH IS CLASSIC BAROQUE.

EVERYTHING WORKS TOGETHER THEATRICALLY -- THE ARCHITECTURE, FRESCOES, PIPE ORGAN, AND OPULENT CHAPELS, ALL COMBINING TO MAKE THE BENEDICTINES' THEOLOGICAL POINT, "A JUST BATTLE LEADS TO VICTORY."

IN THE FRONT, BELOW THE HUGE PAPAL CROWN, SAINTS PETER AND PAUL SHAKE HANDS BEFORE DEPARTING FOR THEIR FINAL BATTLES, MARTYRDOM, AND ULTIMATE TRIUMPH.

AND HIGH ABOVE, ST. BENEDICT MAKES HIS GLORIOUS ENTRY INTO HEAVEN.

THE DANUBE RIVER VALLEY IS AT ITS ROMANTIC BEST BETWEEN MELK AND VIENNA.

THIS STRETCH, CALLED THE WACHAU VALLEY, IS EASILY EXPLORED BY BIKE, OR BOAT, OR BOTH.

THE WACHAU IS STEEPED IN TRADITION, BLANKETED WITH VINEYARDS, AND ORNAMENTED WITH CUTE VILLAGES AND FABLED CASTLES.

CYCLING IS POPULAR, WITH CLEARLY-MARKED BIKE PATHS AND NO SHORTAGE OF COLORFUL PUBS FOR A MEAL OR A DRINK.

AND WHETHER YOU ROLL ON OR WALK ON, CRUISE SHIPS HAVE YOU HUMMING THE STRAUSS WALTZ THAT CAUSES EVERYONE WHO VISITS TO WONDER, "WHY ISN'T THE DANUBE BLUE?"

THANKS FOR JOINING US.

I HOPE YOU'VE ENJOYED OUR VISIT TO VIENNA AND OUR QUICK CRUISE DOWN THE DANUBE RIVER VALLEY.

I'M RICK STEVES.

UNTIL NEXT TIME, KEEP ON TRAVELLING.

AUF WIEDERSEHEN.