Wiener Schnitzel and Beers

Hallo aus Österreich Hello from Austria. It’s been a busy couple days here in Vienna. We arrived here tuesday at noon after a beautiful drive through the Czech/Austrian countryside. For most of the drive we seemed to be sticking to back roads which took us through countless little towns and endless rolling hills of green. As we drove into Vienna, I was a little taken back by how big it was. With a population of over 2 million people, it was much like a North American city at first glance. That of course was the modern Vienna. We proceeded to head to old Vienna where it was pretty much what I expected. No matter which way you look, every building looks grand and very ornate as if it was a part of a palace or belonged to royalty.  

We arrived at our hotel but it was still a little early so the room weren’t ready so we piled all our luggage in the storage room. On a side note, this hotel (Magdas Hotel) is part of the planeterra project. This means this particular hotel is run by refugees and ex pats who came to Austria for a better life. The Planeterra program gives them employments and a chance to earn new skills.  Anyway, back to our day. We grab a few things and head for lunch at a park very close to the hotel. From there, we jumped on the underground to the center of Old Vienna where we were greeted with a private tour guide.  Walter, our guide, walked us to several very massive Cathedrals, the first being St Stephens. The architecture of this cathedral was just (for lack of better word) insane! The intricate details of every square inch was something to admire. You would have to see it to understand. We do a quick  tour inside and then move to the back where a little chapel off the main church stood. This was where Wolfgang Amedeus Mozarts body lay before his burial.  We later visit the cathedral where he was married and 4 of his 6 children baptized. We then visited were Mozart lived for a little while and the site where he died. The building he died in was torn down but a plaque dedicated to him is now on the building that stands on the site now.  As some of you know,  Mozart spent the last 10 years of his life in Vienna and it’s where  he composed his best work. He died at age 36.  We move on to visit a few more sites before parting ways with Walter. From there, we meet back up with Zoran and head for dinner. His restaurant pick was once again on the money. Most of the people ordered the local Wiener Schnitzel but I try the pepper steak and local beer. Fantastic meal! Once dinner was complete, most of us tried the Apple Strudel which seemed to be the right thing to do being in Austria of course. It was good…….but not great. I’ll be honest, I was a little underwhelmed but who knows, maybe I expected too much.  From there, we called it a night and took the underground back to our hotel.

 It was late by the time we got back to our hotel and we still hadn’t checked in yet. We check in one by one and call it a night. I was a little taken back that the rooms didn’t have a tv but not a huge deal. I just turn on some netflix and watch that until sleep, which didn’t take long.

 The next day was a free day so we could do whatever we liked. It seemed as though most of us had the same few things in mind any way. After breakfast we went to the Spanish riding school and watch the horses practice for a while. Horse shows are a life long tradition in Vienna. Once again we weren’t supposed to take pictures which is a shame given the stables weren’t exactly what most of us call stables. It was a huge palace like building with 2 floors of seating all the way around. With columns and sculptures every where, it was a building fit for a king. They take their horsemanship very serious in Vienna.

 From there, we head to a local market area with cafes, restaurants, souvenir and many other stores.  We do a little shopping and then break for lunch.  A few of us went our separate ways from there. Myself and a few others decided to go visit Schonbrunn Palace. Great decision on out part. This is a massive gold colored palace once occupied by the Hapsburgs.  To be honest, I am not sure what was more impressive, the palace or the grounds behind it. The exceptionally groomed gardens, lined with huge statues go back forever where its greeted with a very impressive fountain. On  the hill overlooking it all, massive archways to complete the design. You will have to check out my pics on Facebook or Instagram to see what I am taking about. We then take on a tour of the palace itself. Once again, the interior decorating and furnishings were something to see. To think, this was just their summer home!!

 Once we were finished, we head back to the hotel to get changed and cleaned up as we had tickets to the Barock & Klassik Konzerte that night. We all meet up in the town square with Zoran and go for a nice dinner first. We find this little place out of the way, down an alley and file in. Great find! The food was fantastic and the service equally as good.  After desserts, we head off for an evening of classical music and a little opera singing. How else does one finish a visit to Vienna??  This was my first classical music show and I can tell you this, it will not be my last. Simply Phenomenal. The play though different eras of music, by different composers etc. A few arrangements has singing by both male and female opera singers. The notes those two reached was beyond comprehension. There were no microphones, just their voice and the acoustics of the room itself. It wasn’t a big room or large audience, 150 at the most.  During the break, we enjoyed champagne and conversation, then back for the 2nd half of the performance.  I know some of you reading this are probably not fans of this type of thing but trust me when I tell you, the experience of it in person is something to consider.

 Once the konzerte was over, we headed back to the hotel but by this time, it was pouring rain. Very few of us were prepared for this so it was a very wet walk back to the underground. We get on the train, water dripping off of us, a spectacle to those around but quite enjoyable for us. I mean what else can you do but go with it. Its raining in Vienna, things could be worst!!

 That pretty much sums up our couple days in Vienna. I just touched on the main things we done as I don’t want to bore you with my rambling. I was so tired last night after I got back that I couldn’t even write, I just went to bed instead. I am not writing this on the train to Budapest. That’s right, I am not on my final leg of the journey to Budapest. We crossed the Hungarian border a few minutes ago.  I will end this now and grab a tea and watch  the countryside fly by.  Cheers to you all and i’ll write a little more while in Budapest!