Vienna

Share Button

Vienna, Austria


Vienna (Wien) is considered to be the Eastern-most city of the West. Coins even read “Osterreich” or Kingdom of the East. I read somewhere that dogs are the preferred children…excellent! I also read that Vienna seemed to have been designed to help people simply meander through a day. It has long been a mecca for musicians–Mozart, Brahams, Strauss, Beethoven. I thought of waltzes, coffee houses, and the Vienna woods.

Afternoon Light at Hofburg, Vienna
Afternoon Light at Hofburg, Vienna
Cafe Hawelka, Vienna, Austria
Cafe Hawelka, Vienna, Austria

We arrived in Vienna at night–having shared a compartment with 4 other people who got on the train in Salzburg. We took the metro to our pension (Schweizer Pension Vienna … and the metro lines are named U2, U3, U4…gotta love that :). The pension is nice, but odd. We’re on the 4th floor of an old warehouse. High ceilings, older 70s style furniture, oriental rugs and energy-saving light timers for the bathrooms (you must hurry!). It was spit-shined clean.

Vienna streets
Vienna streets
Vienna church courtyard
Vienna church courtyard

Our first day was spent wandering the town. I was awed by a shop that sold teeny-tiny needlepoints. While there, Bryan asked the salesperson for a recommendation for schnitzel and he directed us to “Figlmuller”. What a great recommendation! This place was tucked away in an arcade-like alley. It has green and red painted cast iron light fixtures. The waiters were all older men, dressed in black suits with crisp white shirts. It was packed. We waited only a short while, then were seated alongside a couple from Oakland–Jim and Anne. We ordered wine (it came it mugs), salad and schnitzel (it came on a plate, thin and hanging over the sides of the plate). Something in that meal seemed to have drugged us like a narcotic. It was intensely good and we left in a happy haze.

Zum Figlmuller, Vienna, Austria
Zum Figlmuller, Vienna, Austria

We spent a lot of time in cafes–Cafe Hawelka had velvet settees, red & white-striped seats, wood floors, marble-top tables, ambient globe lights, red velvet curtains, snugs, coat racks, and dark wood lining the smoky rooms. Coffee came in tiny white cups served on silver trays with a small glass of water and sugar cubes in tiny glass bowls. Newspapers–from at least 10 cities–occupied a library-like shelf, with the wooden poles holding the papers into slots.

Steve, Vienna, Austria
St. Stephansdom Cathedral, aka “Steve”, Vienna, Austria

We spent our two days there wandering the city center. We saw the Plague statue with arms and legs sticking out of the mass, and a brown-coated bird lady hovering protectively around the pigeons there. There was “Steve” the church and its colorful roof. I bought a red velvet scarf and wore it to a standing-room only opera of the Barber of Seville. We petted other people’s dogs 🙂 And we sat in the sun or cafes watching and smiling.

Vienna
Vienna

On Oct 22, we returned via train to Budapest.

Austrian Flag
Austrian Flag