So, Schönbrunn Palace.  Wow.  Amazing.  Unbelievable.  Truly on a scale beyond anything I had ever seen before, or even imagined.  I’m not overselling it — those of you who have never seen it will STILL be amazed by it when you see it.  And we didn’t even go inside — this is just my reaction from seeing a part of the gardens.  Opulent, excessive, beautiful, lush and peaceful.  I loved it.  Easily my favorite place in Vienna so far.

Dan, Benjamin, Liam and I went today, and we had just a wonderful time.  They have an Easter market going on now, which was fun (and made getting lunch easy) and then we explored the grounds and marveled at the exterior of the palace itself.  It just defies explanation to try and convey the scope of this place.  We saw only a small part of what the palace grounds have to offer (we didn’t visit the labyrinth/maze or the zoo, for example) and they aren’t even yet in their full splendor (they’re in the process of planting the yellow tulips, but nothing else is in yet).  I just loved it.  We played hide and seek among the trees.  We visited the koi pond (there’s probably more than one).  We saw amazing statues and topiary.  We kept Benjamin out of the fountains (he asked me several times to take his shoes off).  Benjamin just ran and ran.  At one point, I was holding Liam as he gazed up through the trees, and I imagined what the princes and princesses must have experienced when they strolled the grounds.  It was so fun and beautiful.  We saw just a little bit of the “wilder” (the less manicured, forest-like) sections, but that part was too hilly for us to explore too deeply with the stroller.  The only downside is that we had to stick to the shade, because (of course) all of our sunscreen is in the air shipment that we can’t get to.  (We’re going to go out and purchase some more tomorrow.)  On the way home, Liam made eyes at an entire family on our tram.  What a great day!

All that, and it was only about 10 minutes on the tram from our current apartment.  I can imagine that it’s somewhere I may even go with the boys on nice afternoons while Dan is at work.  What an amazing place to be able to visit, just on a whim, whenever we like!  What a treat.  We loved it.  We’ll go back.  Soon.