Tolpels in Vienna 10-24-15

Well here we are again today, Tolpels, bumpkins in German.  Each Saturday they have a large Flaumarkt (Flea Market) and it's only a 15 minute walk away.  So as the sun was shining and the weather looked to make fair we headed out and walked down to a canal where it's hosted.  We found it no problem and jumped right in.

Flaumarkt

The flaumarkt is different than Paris or Prague but essentially the same.  I guess the big difference is our reading of the Austrian demeanor, the dealers seem more distant and a bit less friendly.  I greeted them as we came into the booths, in German, and some responded and others just didn't, in Paris they all respond with a greeting as well and in Prague they responded too.   Maybe it's just me.  It was a zoo, not unexpected but still a lot more like roller-derby than one would expect.  Lot's more people smoking, lot's more people cutting you off, etc.  But to do it justice there were lots of juicy things to look at, of course since we're on the train and anything we buy has to be taken back discretion is the keyword.  Attached to the flaumarkt is the naschmarkt which is a series of little eating establishments and food vendors, so we walked through and finally found a little place that attracted us for lunch.  Deb had a pair of Bern sausages, wrapped in bacon and cheese, while I had a goulash soup and a dish of lentils with smoked pork and a couple beers. All pretty tasty.

Klimpt 

Klimpt - Life & Death

After lunch and the market we walked a few blocks up to the Leopold Museum, I wanted to see it last year but when I aborted my bike trip I didn't get to Vienna.  It was a private collection that was willed to the Austrian people by a man named Leopold.  He collected extensively from the German expressionists so the Blau Rider, the Secessionists, etc and decorative arts from the Wiener Werkstatt.
So it was a trip through art from about 1900 to 1950, featuring heavily Gustav Klimpt, and Egon Schiele, but also Emile Nolde, Lyonel Feininger, and others more obscure.

Schiele - CK House on River

Schiele - CK

It was fun to see the Schiele works because he spent some time in Cesky Krumlov, where there is a Schiele museum located as well. So to see several of his large oils that were painted in Cesky Krumlov was enjoyable. We stayed in the museum until closing time and then headed back to the hotel.  I watched the last half of the South Africa vs. New Zealand rugby quarter-finals of World Cup.  It was a really exciting game and very close in the end NZ 20 to SA 18.  We can only hope the final game will be so exciting.  Tonight is daylight savings so have to remember to set clocks back.

Nolde - Rising Clouds