Photo Footsteps

My dad taught my sister and I how to count to twenty in German. A little background, my dad enlisted in the Army of Occupation at the end of WWII, his parents signed a release because he was seventeen. He joined up with two childhood friends. After the army tests, they sent him to Vienna and put him in the intelligence division. This was an amazing experience for a young boy from a small town in Utah. My dad always told glowing stories about his time in Vienna. So now you are caught up. My dad never had nor took the opportunity to return to Vienna. He passed away suddenly last October.

My husband ran the Berlin marathon this year, so I tagged along. As part of our itinerary, we went to Vienna, where I spent a joyous day retracing the footsteps of my father. My dad’s love for photography started way back then, in 1946. He had a pretty good camera for the time, and I had copies of his black and white pictures. Working like a detective, Google and I tracked down three locations of his photos.

First, a picture of a large Ferris wheel with some kind of tall monument in front of it. Found the Ferris wheel which happens to be the oldest in the world. The monument was slightly trickier since there have been some new buildings in the last 70+ years! Crossed traffic, still a trolley station nearby. Unfortunately, the angle he had was slightly blocked by a new building, but we got the shot. Tears came down my cheeks, I was standing in the same spot my dad stood in June of 1947, (as noted on his snapshot). I felt him smiling.

Second, my husband and I (the intrepid detectives) hailed a taxi and headed to the City & County building. As my guardian angels would have it the taxi dropped us off on almost the exact spot of his next picture. This is astounding considering how big this building is, the taxi could have dropped us anywhere with a long walk. We took several pictures to capture the right angle. No trees blocking the view in 2025.

From there we walked to the Royal Palace. As we got to the front of the building it didn’t look exactly the same as his picture, it is now a museum. So, I went in and showed dad’s picture to a nice lady at the information desk. She noted there were a lot of palace entrances, as it was a very large building. She drew me a little map along the building to the place she thought it might be. This was a little tricky as there are mini courtyards coming off the main street. Suddenly I recognized the decorative iron gate from the back. We came out through the arch onto a busy plaza and there it was! I couldn’t believe it, same gate, same four statues from 1947.

Me at the Gate to the Imperial Palace

Traveling through time and space I felt such a connection to my dad whose travels on weekends around Europe by train and jeep changed his life. He learned there was more out there. His commanding officer, a West Point graduate took him under his wing. He encouraged him to go to college. Somehow, I felt like I was part of his dreams even if he didn’t know it then. Spending time with my dad’s spirit in Vienna and walking in his footsteps has changed my life too! Auf Wiedersehen, Until We Meet Again.