announcer: american public television presents the splendors of the world in the lifelike reality of high-definition television. hi. i'm rudy maxa. imagine yourself floating to the strains of a viennese waltz, reveling in the aroma of fresh apple strudel, and gliding down the waters of the danube river. well, that's what's in store when we visit vienna next smart travels. announcer: smart travels is made possible in part by expedia.com, a travel web site that offers travelers a variety of ways to find the trip they're looking for, including flights, hotels, and vacation packages. expedia.com. don't just travel. travel right. captioning made possible by u.s. department of education

smart travels is a grand tour of the old world, the people, places, sights, and distinctly european flavors. our host is travel writer and columnist rudy maxa, public radio's original savvy traveler. now tips, trips, and secret places on smart travels. maxa: vienna dazzles like an imperial court. glorious violin music...

graceful dancing... aromatic coffee, and delicate cream cakes draw visitors to this elegant capital. the cultural hub of europe for centuries, vienna nurtured musicians, artists, and philosophers to greatness. beethoven and mozart performed within the baroque music halls, and this was the birthplace of psychoanalysis. with a prime location along the danube river, the city was the bridge between eastern and western europe. the golden age of vienna saw wealth and power to rival that of paris and london. and the city's smoky, caffeine-fueled cafes spawned a kind of feverish brilliance that has seldom been equaled. vienna was the ruling seat of the great austro-hungarian empire that once covered a large part of europe. the hapsburgs, europe's most powerful ruling family, governed their domain with regal flourish.

though it's now an imperial city without an empire, the proud capital still glitters with reminders of its former glory. and with the fall of communism, vienna has once again become the gateway to eastern europe. maxa, voice-over: with our home base in vienna, we'll take in the city highlights, then we'll head to the danube river valley for cruising, countryside, and more. [blue danube waltz playing] what could be more viennese than a waltz? it was the dance sensation that swept the city in the 19th century. i'm here at vienna's most famous dancing school with my instructor katarina trying to learn the delicate steps that kept the nobility on their toes. so, now, let us try to dance very easy 6 steps of viennese waltz. and i will show it beside you. we are starting with the right foot one step forward. second step-- left foot to the side

and close at 3. maxa, voice-over: founded in 1919, the prestigious elmayer school instructs complete novices like me in the dances and manners of the old austrian imperial system. formal balls are still a way of life here, reawakening the grandeur of the imperial court and traditional vienna. traditional vienna is most apparent here at the hofburg palace. this enormous complex was the place the ruling hapsburgs called home. the powerful dynasty lasted from the late 13th century until the end of world war i. each generation added to the palace until the hofburg became almost a city within itself. the hapsburgs reached the height of their power in the 16th century under the reign of maximilian i, who, through arranged marriages with other european bigwigs, greatly added to the empire's territory and power.

by the 19th century, vienna had become the center of that international assembly known as the congress of vienna. all the crown heads of europe gathered here to haggle over political questions and to indulge in grand receptions and balls. among the hofburg's countless rooms are the private chambers of franz josef, europe's longest serving monarch and austria's most popular. it was franz josef's large-scale building plan for the city that in many ways made vienna what it is today. the emperor ordered the removal of the medieval fortifications that surrounded the old city, and he replaced them with a large ring road, or ringstrasse, and lined it with grand public buildings. most of vienna's historic sites lie within this area. an austrian writer once said of st. stephan's cathedral, "like a mountain, it is simple and wonderful. its sheer beauty lifts the spirit." [organ music playing] some consider it the city's most important landmark. the brightly tiled roof and 450-foot steeple

have come to symbolize the essence of vienna. construction began around the turn of the 14th century and took 2 more centuries to complete. here mourners came to attend mozart's pauper's funeral. and when napoleon marched on the city in 1805, he posted his edict on the cathedral door. your trip to vienna won't be complete without a visit to one of the legendary coffee shops. we're at cafe demel, once the sole supplier of pastries to the royal hapsburgs. here are a few tips on ordering coffee. schwarzer is black, brauner is brown with a little milk, and whipped cream is called schlag.

and to order vienna's most famous pastry, well, all you have to say is "sachertorte," mit schlag, of course. woman: coffee was always very important in vienna's history. um, it was brought here. it was brought to vienna when the austrians were fighting against the turks in the 17th, uh, century. and when the turks went away again, what they left were coffee beans. nobody knew what to do with these coffee beans, but then somehow they found out that you can grind them and, um, mix them with hot water and so this, uh, coffee tradition developed in vienna. but turks did not invent schlag, did they? no, they didn't. ha ha! maxa, voice-over: by the 19th century, coffeehouses were the hub of the city's intellectual life, a place to read newspapers and meet with friends. some writers even spent entire days in their favorite cafe. viennese coffee is distinct. not quite as strong as espresso

but with more of a kick than the average american brew. demel's specialties include fine chocolates made right here on the premises and exquisite cream cakes to die for. now that we've fortified ourselves with caffeine and chocolate, we're ready to take on that great viennese institution, the museum of fine arts. a grand staircase leads to galleries that are among the best in europe. the hapsburgs were enthusiastic collectors and much of the artwork created in territories claimed by the empire found its way back to vienna. peter paul rubens was appointed to the service of a hapsburg governor in brussels, where he painted many of his exuberant portraits. and you'll find works of many other old masters, including raphael's madonna in the meadow...

rembrandt... there's an especially good collection of pieter breughel the elder and his superb landscapes and genre scenes. the museum's collection is so large you'd be better off concentrating on just a few areas, or, even better, returning for a second visit. just across the street, vienna's magnificent new museumsquartier unites baroque buildings with avant-garde architecture. always a generous patron of the arts, the city recently opened this cultural complex on the site of the old imperial riding stables. the center draws together fresh, offbeat exhibits...

working artists in residence... and inventive galleries in a single, extraordinary location. the leopold gallery features a great collection of modern viennese painters, including gustav klimt... and egon schiele. vienna's most outrageo buildings we designe by friedensreich hundertwasser. was a inr anarchitecfoenvirs

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nna erst to mern at thenulre and a flourished. a year-old prodigy named mozart astonished the empress with his amazing talents. s phed ugh many enlightened reforms, maritheresa waalso prish and anti-semitic. she went into permanent mourning here at schoenbrunn and left the affairs of state to her sonjoseph ii. tantalizing aromas float over from the hofbackstube cafe in the schoenbrunn park area. we're joining other hungry observers at an apple strudel-making demo.

here, you have the chance to watch a professional sugar baker . the viennese made famous this delicacy, with its thin layers of dough and sweet apple filling. then bread crumbs roasted in butter, cinnamon sugar, raisins, and soak it in rum for 24 hours. and lemon juice. maxa, voice-over: its origins most likely extend to the early greeks, who perfected the method of making thin dough for baklava pastries. won:ow to get the apple strudel on the baking tray. with the cloth, i roll it upside down... and so now, make a little loop, and lift it gently. then i roll it carefully on the baking tray and not on the floor. maxa, voice-over: after the hungarians improvised on baklava techniques, ne stepped in and perfected the strudel.

after finishing our strudel, we've settled in for a concert in schoenbrunn's former greenhouse and music conservatory. with a citizen registry that's included the likes of mozart, haydn, beethoven, and brahms, vienna has always been in love with music. [playing classical music] [singing operatically] maxa, voice-over: mozart spent his most productive years ts ty johann strauss the elder started his career serenading diners in viennese restaurants. johann strauss the younger built on his father's work and developed the viennese waltz to a level of technical perfection. [music continuing] [music ends]

music takes a crazy, high-tech twist at the city's new house of music. a trip through the museum is like embarking on a weird journey of sound. with amazingly innovative exhibits, the museum stretches the boundaries of musical experience. [drums] you not only hear different sounds, you see them, feel them, and create them yourself. you can steer a notehrgh mucalasce. paint a musical picture... [man sin long note in varying pitches] and even conduct a virtual performance of vienna's famous symphony orchestra. [orchestra playing slowly, then quickly] whoa. maxa, voice-over: but watch out. ifouon kp up, the orchestra members will revolt. [orchestra stops playing] [man grumbling in german] that same guy. the same troubleke [continuing in german]

[orchestra murmuring loudly] he's asking me if i've ever heard this song. maxa, voice-over: besides being a hotbed of musical inspiration, vienna is the acknowledged birthplace of psychoanalysis. gmd eu t founder of psychoanalysis, lived and worked in this house for 40 years. freud pioneered the idea that psychological disorders in patients could be directly traced to forgotten traumas in childhood. his theories had enormous impact beyond the psychological community, influencing anthropology, education, art, and literature. but life cng i1938 when hlemarched into austria, killing or imprisoning most of vienna's jewish population. frd d his mily were forced tflee to london. [accordion playing festive music] want to know where locals spend a laid-back evening? head to one of the pretty wine villages that line the periphery of the city.

[singing in german] called heurigen, these villages embody one of vienna's most beloved institutions. heurigen means "this year's," and that refers to the latest vintage. about 200 years ago, wine sellers began encouraging customers to come to their villages to sample new wines from the recent harvest. the wine was usually harvested and pressed by the vintner himself. eventually, a series of pastoral wine gardens sprang up, where people gathered to celebrate life or just to pass the time. mayer am platz, a wine garden in the village of heiligenstadt, looks much as it did when beethoven lived here. [singing in german] keep in mind that police are very strict about intoxicated drivers, so it's much better and safer to take public transportation to the heurigen. you can tell if a wine garden is open by the hanging branch of evergreen over the door.

the rural area outside of vienna offers lots of day trip options and some of the most evocative scenery in europe. we're off to visit one of austria's best monasteries and take a trip down the famed danube river. we're stopping in krems, a 1,000-year-old town lined with ancient homes and narrow streets nestled beside the danube. at one time, the aristocrats of krems barricaded the danube and charged heavy tolls from river traffic. if the victims couldn't afford to pay the fee, the townspeople simply confiscated their cargo. maxa, voice-over: krems is where we board a boat for our tour of the danube, europe's legendary waterway. an on-board orchestra sets the perfect tone for our trip. few rivers in the world are surrounded by so much scenic splendor, architectural majesty, and history. for centuries, the danube has been austria's vital shipping lane and served as the link between eastern and western europe.

the most scenic stretch is here in the wachau valley, between krems and the town of melk. this is vineyard country. the rolling hills and fertile soil of the wachau valley are a highlight of any visit to austria. the abundant vineyards produce celebrated wines, and lining the riverbanks is a steady stream of castles and ruins that range from prehistoric times to roman occupation to hapsburg rule. we leave the boat at the town of melk-- an amiable jumble of cobblestone streets, old towers, and renaissance houses. melk's claim to fame is the spectacular baroque abbey that sits overlooking the danube. leopold ii gave the building to the benedictine monks, who turned it into an abbey. during the middle ages, it earned a reputation throughout europe as an important center of learning and culture.

those who've read umberto eco's novel the name of the rose may remember several admiring references. the abbey library still overflows with texts painstakingly hand-copied by the monks. some of the abbey highlights include the red marble hall, with its richly painted flat ceiling that appears dome-like when viewed from the center of the room. even more astonishing is the golden abbey church. the glorious decorations reflect the intense feeling of victory that was typical of catholic churches after the counter-reformation. melk is still a working monastery and home to 30 benedictine monks, who spend their days praying and teaching austrian youth. and the abbey continues to wield power as one of the few religious institutions that reports directly to the pope.

cloaked in imperial nostalgia, vienna holds firmly to its identity as the cultural center of europe: art, architecture, music, dance. as an austrian writer once said, "the streets of vienna are surfaced with culture as the streets of other cities with asphalt." and centuries later, after its golden age has been muted by the passage of time, vienna continues to dazzle. all videos and dvds of smart travels are $24.95 each, plus shipping. call 800-866-7425 for the two-episode dvd or video on vienna, salzburg, and the lakes district. details of all of our travel videos, dvds, and best guidebooks are on the web at smarttravels.tv. please have a credit card ready and call 800-866-7425, or visit us on the web.

captioning made possible by u.s. department of education captioned by the national captioning institute --www.ncicap.org-- smart travels is made possible in part by expedia.com-- a travel web site that offers travelers a variety of ways to find the trip they're looking for, including flights, hotels, and vacation packages.