AUSTRIA - Best of Europe 2014 - page 76

pression that the entire building is a safe-deposit box. The interior is similarly functionalist.
Theglassroofletsinlight;theglassfloorhelpsilluminatethebasement.Fixtures,vents,and
even the furniture fit right in—all bold, geometrical, and modern. In the back, the fine little
Museum Postsparkasse is dedicated to Wagner and provides a visual review of his work.
▲ Museum of Military History (Heeresgeschichtliches Museum)
While much of the Habsburg Empire was built on strategic marriages rather than the spoils
ofwar,abigpartofHabsburghistoryismilitary.Andthishugeplace,builtabout1860asan
arsenal by Franz Josef, tells the story well with a thoughtful motto (apparently learned from
the school of hard knocks): “War belongs to museums.”
CostandHours: €5includes goodaudioguide, daily9:00-17:00,onArsenalstrasse near
the Ostbahnhof (a.k.a. Südbahnhof), tel. [phone], www.hgm.or.at . It's a 10-minute walk
behind the Belevedere Palace.
Visiting the Museum: Located inconveniently outside the Ring, you'll wander the
wings of this vast museum nearly all alone. Its two floors hold a rich collection of artifacts
andhistorictreasuresfromthetimesofMariaTheresatoPrinceEugenetoFranzJoseph.The
particularly interesting 20th-century section includes exhibits devoted to Sarajevo in 1914
(with the car Franz Ferdinand rode in and the uniform he wore when he was assassinated),
Chancellor Dolfuss and the pre-Hitler Austrian Fascist party, the Anschluss , and World War
II.
▲ Kunst Haus Wien Museum and Hundertwasser Haus
This “make yourself at home” museum and nearby apartment complex are a hit with lovers
of modern art, mixing the work and philosophy of local painter/environmentalist Friedens-
reich Hundertwasser (1928-2000).
Cost and Hours: €10 for Hundertwasser Museum, €12 combo-ticket includes special
exhibitions, half-price on Mon, open daily 10:00-19:00, extremely fragrant and colorful
garden café, tel. [phone], www.kunsthauswien.com .
Getting There: It's located at Untere Weissgerberstrasse 13 (tram #1: Radetzkyplatz or
U-3: Landstrasse). Note that the tram stop is much closer than the U-Bahn stop. From the
Landstrasse U-Bahn stop, walk 10 minutes downhill (north) along Untere Viaduktgasse (a
blockeastofthestation),orridetram#0threestopstoRadetzkyplatz;fromtheresignspoint
to the museum.
Visiting the Museum and Apartments: Stand in front of the colorful checkerboard
building that houses the Kunst Haus Wien Museum. Consider Hundertwasser's style. He
was against “window racism”: Neighboring houses allow only one kind of window, but
100H 2 O's windows are each different—and he encouraged residents in the Hundertwasser-
haus (a 5-10 minute walk away, described below) to personalize them. He recognized “tree