Adventures in Vienna!

I am going to make my post of Vienna comprise mostly of pictures as usual. The city was so magnificent that I don’t think I would appropriately be able to put words to it. Just a little bit of history to our trip to begin: Marco and I went to Paris to catch our flight to Prague (we then took a 5 hour train to Vienna) to meet up with Kris Simpson, my good friend from Northern Ireland. When we were at the airport, I got a phone call from him saying that his flight was cancelled because of a volcano erupting in Iceland. At this point, I had no idea what was going on and was confused as to how this affected his flight. In any case, I was extremely disappointed because it was the last opportunity I had to see him before leaving and now I don’t know when I’ll see him again. I am sad that he didn’t get to share the experience with us, but at the same time happy that he didn’t get on a plane that may have been unsafe.

Kris’ empty bed at the Meininger hostel in Vienna L. It was funny seeing many last names similar to mine. There were tons that ended in ‘-inger.’

After checking into our hostel, Marco and I explored Vienna by foot. At first we walked in the opposite direction and were very confused why people thought Vienna was so incredible. Once we got reoriented it became very clear, very quickly. This is a picture of George Clooney for Nespresso. I don’t know what it’s like in the US right now, but Nespresso is HUGE in Europe and 100% because of good ole George. It’s the ‘in’ thing to buy.

The next day, we started off by going to the most famous café in Vienna, called Café Sacher. They are known for their ‘Sachertorte.’ It is a type of chocolate cake with apricot filling. It was heavenly. I finished it off with a cup of Starbucks J. Speaking of Starbucks, Marco started a collection of Starbucks mugs for everywhere he travels. It’s pretty sweet.

We visited lots of cool churches. This one had a pretty impressive ‘trompe l’oeil’ dome. Thus meaning it is a painting on a flat ceiling. Not a dome at all.

An example of the buildings we saw everywhere. We were fortunate to have gorgeous weather the entire time, which doubled the beauty of the city.

A famous church (Votivkirche) in the heart of the city. The roofs are like in Budapest – bright colors and patterns.

We were there the same weekend as a huge festival in front of the city hall (Rathaus). Most of the people there were Austrian so we got a good feel for what the citizens are like. Lots were dressed in traditional clothes and had a beer and bratwurst in hand. Lots of fat people too. An unfortunate reminder of the US.

There were lots of activities for kids as well as different stands and mini-concerts. The Burgtheater is in the background.

We decided to follow the crowd and eat some traditional food. It was delicious. I hadn’t had horseradish in so long. I ate all of Marco’s too!

Their parliament building was modeled off of the Zappeion in Athens.

View from the top of the steps of the parliament onto the side of Hofburg Palace.

Our legs were very tired since we walk absolutely everywhere when we travel. We think this gives us a better feel of the city and it’s cheaper. But, even though we were exhausted, we decided to check out one of the most famous museums in Vienna (this sentence used to end in a preposition – I changed it just for you, Mom). Marco really likes Natural History so we went there (pictured above).

The inside of the museum was probably more impressive than the outside. As you can see at the top of the picture, the rooms were very ornate with intricate crown molding, paintings everywhere, gold leaf etc. The collections of minerals, fossils, and animals were enormous. By the time we got through the museum, I thought my legs were going to fall off!

Our last day in Vienna was a Sunday so we visited a park and a cemetery. First, we visited Mozart’s grave. It was fairly simple which we both liked.

There was a huge marathon in Vienna on Sunday and somehow we had to get to the other side of this road. We had to wait for quite awhile before there was a gap in the runners.

Marco and me in front of Vienna’s famous 1897 Ferris wheel (Wiener Risenrad). Definitely not the best thing in the city, but a must see nevertheless.

After long days of much walking, we saw it as a nice break to have the 5 hour train ride back to Prague. Two more days of walking ahead of us! Or so we thought…..

Tidbits about Vienna:

• Everyone always seemed to be dressed in their Sunday best.
• The city was very clean and pristine
• We saw lots of 20 year old girls with 40 year old men. Just weird.
• It’s a very rich city. We saw countless numbers of top of the line vehicles and women dripping in bling-bling.
• Lots more fat people than in France
• Everyone speaks English (Marco did at least try to speak some German though)
• The German is different than in Germany – the accent seemed much harsher.
• Quite a few tourists in April so it must be crazy during the summer tourist season
• There are horse and carriages everywhere. A nice break from all the walking!
• There are also people playing classical/jazz music everywhere. It definitely added to the charm of the city. I guess that is appropriate since it is the city of Mozart and many other classical composers!
• Austria has never admitted to their role in WWII and has never paid any retributions (on the contrary, Germany has almost overcompensated – if that is possible). I always had this in the back of my mind when I saw the wealth in Vienna.

We hardly touched the surface of Vienna. A city I definitely plan on returning to again.

I will post about the end of or trip in the next blog! To be continued….