We went through archways that were part of Hofburg Palace into a courtyard where a statue pf Kaiser Franz I dominated . Then we continued outside those walls to an area where we had views of Neue Burg Palace, a couple of impressive equestrian statues and other key buildings of Vienna.

We went back to the courtyard but this time exited through a totally gorgeous gate decorated with frescoes on the ceiling. This placed us beside the Imperial Treasury where some of the group had opted to take a tour. But... for us four ladies, our tour was over; we now had the opportunity to do as we wished for the remainder of the day.