After spending 12 hours in stations and trains on Friday, we got into Vienna after 11:00 P.M. had come and gone, and for the most part, we were gone. My last nerve was on a DNR list (Do Not Resuscitate), Kat was limping from racing up and down stairs and my sense of humor was sailing away down the Danube.
We grabbed a cab at the station and tried to convey our hotel name using sign, facial, body and telegram to our cabbie from Azerbaijan who had a total of 6 words he worked with. Coming out of the train station, we passed at least 10 adult entertainment establishments and a lot of large, dark, foreboding buildings - OMG, what have we done? Anyhow, we made it to our Hotel Bellevue and were pleasantly surprised - nice room, helpful staff, air conditioning, nice breakfast buffet and 96 TV channels - all of them in German. You haven't lived till you watch 2 1/2 Men in German. We have seen some episodes so often that we were laughing right along with the German laugh track.
Well the light of morning arrived and with it, our first impressions took a 180. Vienna is a large city that carries itself well and has a grace and dignity about it. Both mornings, we walked 1 1/2 blocks to catch the "D" tram down to the Ringe Strasse. We just got off at the first amazing Church and then just followed our nose, or some helpful suggestions from other folks we met and chatted with along the way. There are several points I would like to make regarding Vienna: 1.) Around every corner, there is an amazing building, fountain or statue or all three - just sitting there waiting for your sincere appreciation - which there was more than enough of and 2.) Surrounding all those buildings, fountains and statues were these wonderful parks that were made for strolling, relaxing and digesting the wonder that is Vienna. Also as a minor footnote, Austrians refer to their crown jewel as Wien, not Vienna which initially confused me but I did eventually catch on.
We also found that having traveled so far East, there are fewer English speakers, but in some ways, that is a welcome relief. We are still listening to mindless chatter, but we don't know what they're saying. We also have found things much cheaper here. Our room cost only $98.00 a night and is much nicer than a lot of hotels we have stayed at which cost more Euros/Pounds. Dining out is also cheaper - a $30 meal elsewhere comes in around $12.50 - and it is 5 star.
So Vienna is filled with long walks, casual dining, ice cream in copious amounts, laughter and a abundance of grins and guffaws. This maybe early in the game but a future trip may start in Budapest and head South where our Euro stretches further and our standard of living will actually rise.
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| Checking out the local news |
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| Our station and the D tram |
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| The first big church and park we saw. We took a chance and got off the tram. |
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| We picked up a sandwich and had a picnic. It was the Sigmund Freud Park. |
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| Look at the beautiful roof |
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| Then we went in the church |
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| I love the way the sun shining through the stained glass lights up the floor. |
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| We walked the city hall. They were having a film festival in the park in front of the building |
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| Every window had a box with red flowers |
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| We stopped for a beverage. This is a panorama of the view....notice the city hall in the distance |
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| Lots of choices of drinks. It was Saturday and surprisingly uncrowded. |
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| We continued to walk down the Ringestrasse and came to the Parliament building and lovely fountain |
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| Statue on top of the Parliament |
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| Sun streaming through the fountain mist |
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| Fountain detail |
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| Then walked across the street to the Volksgarten |
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| Surprised to find one of the most beautiful rose gardens I've ever seen....the odor was fantastic |
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| Panorama of the garden |
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| View of the spires of the City Hall building over the trees |
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| Older and newer modes of transportation |
We bought tickets to a concert. The Viennese Mozart players. Our plan was to go to the Vienna Opera but they were on a gig out of town so this was plan B which was still very good. We went out to dinner and then to the concert.
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| The "Schwarz", fine dining and just around the corner from the music venue, ah we do so love the arts! |
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| The Austrians know how to brew a good lager |
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| So many people with camera's, we are now in over 100 family albums |
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| These guys could play, and all dressed up in waistcoats and powdered wigs |
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| The Soprano, I later asked her if she knew Tony - she gave me a questioning look, bada bing! |
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