Vienna: The Spanish Riding School

    Another weird dream I've had since I was a little girl is to see a performance at the Spanish Riding School. If you aren't familiar with the Spanish Riding School, it is a prestigious equestrian institute that trains Lipizzaner horses, a meticulously bred and highly desired horse breed. They are often called "the dancing horses" because of their incredible footwork, elegant jumps, and synchronized movements. Unfortunately, the school only has performances on the weekends so I was not able to get tickets to see one. Instead, I booked a ticket to go see a training session. I figured it would be like a rehearsal and I would see most of the cool stuff either way. That wasn't necessarily true.

   Don't get me wrong, I really enjoyed my time, and I wasn't disappointed, but the horses we saw were very young and inexperienced so we only got to watch them do the basics. However, the experience was super cheap and totally worth it. I would love to go back and watch a real performance while I am here. I only have videos and no pictures so here are some really bad screenshots. 

This horse was the most beautiful and he knew it too. 

Everyone comments on how sophisticated and subtle the
communication between master and horse is, but I didn't see it. Literally. 


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