Vienna: Life on the Danube

We got into Vienna two days ago early in the afternoon. We were debating between taking a taxi from the train station and braving the subway – I’m glad we ended up doing the former because it was a fairly long ride and the subway would have been hot and moderately confusing with all of our luggage. Great life decisions.

We got to our hotel room and found we were just about as close as one could be to the Danube without actually being in it. It was a great view, but since we were spoiled with our Buda-ful view at the last hotel, we weren’t overly awed. We did a quick check-out of the Exec Lounge to get a lay of the land, – again, it had nothing on the first one – grabbed some maps and information (unfortunately we came the day after the last Spanish horse show which Vienna is famous for), and went to go explore Vienna.

Now, the Hilton Vienna Danube, while in a beautiful location, is not near the city center. Being even as ambitious as we are, we could not reasonably walk all the way to where all of the “excitement” is from the hotel. In fact, the sights themselves are sort of spread out. We invested in a 48 hr subway ticket and definitely made use out of it. We probably could have gotten away with not paying though. It was similar to the Munich and Italian subway systems in that you didn’t have to swipe anything to get in, but we weren’t feeling wild so we didn’t take the chance. (No one ever ended up checking, but the “what if” factor made us feel like we made a solid choice.)

We needed to get some lunch (gotta have those priorities in line) and so we decided (since we could go wherever we wanted) to go check out the area by the university since we figured college kids really like to eat. (I was using myself as the example here.) We essentially picked the first restaurant that we saw, but it was really good! (It was called something like Rainman café.) I got a Turkey Salad with some yogurt sauce – there seemed to be a lot of Mediterranean food around – and as I said, I was very happy with it. Our waiter seemed like less of an Al (Bundy, of course) than we’d experienced in Hungary, so we were feeling pretty good about Vienna already. While Sean and Dad finished their beers, Mom and I walked down the road to do a bit of shopping. She got a good deal on a cute scarf, so it’s safe to say we enjoyed our time at the university.

We saw an incredibly impressive looking church right across the street, and even though Mom and Sean were a bit church-ed out (it tends to happen in Europe), I persuaded them to step inside because it was the most famous church in Vienna, St. Stephen’s! (There’s some repetition when it comes to church names since we saw one of these in Budapest. This one lacked the hand.) We got up to the front door to find a sign that said we had come during the only hour during the day when it was closed. We turned around, annoyed at our poor timing, only to find that the girls standing behind us were giving us a strange look. They stepped around us and went straight inside…none of us thought to try the door. Who knew? We went inside and enjoyed the beauty, only to realize that it was not in fact the famous church I thought it was. Oops. The family could probably use more culture though, so I had no qualms about the mistake.

Once I oriented myself on the map (no small feat considering the size of the city), I found that we would save ourselves time and energy (and get the full value of our 11,80 ticket!) if we took the subway to Stephansplatz and the town center. We arrived and saw the actual famous church. It was pretty impressive and there was even an opportunity to climb to the top! Since we’ve developed an affinity for narrow, uneven stairs in the past week, it was a no-brainer – up we climbed! This climb, however, as opposed to our last several, was not only narrow, but also tightly spiraled. It was a struggle to say the least – Mom was freaking out (typical), but the rest of us were struggling a bit, too. Although it was difficult, we were happy to find that anyone else we encountered also seemed to be having a hard time. I mean, we weren’t happy in a sadistic sort of way, but rather in a “we’re glad that our exhaustion was not purely a fat American phenomenon” sort of way. We were frankly a bit disappointed when we (finally) got to the top since we couldn’t even go outside. There were some windows, and I got some “I survived St. Stephen’s climb” shots (because not everyone did – we passed some Europeans at the 80% percent mark who just didn’t think those last 50 steps were worth it), but overall, I would say it was fine just viewing St. Stephen’s from the floor, thank you.

We left the church and continued heading along my walking tour. (My faith in NatGeo has been largely restored.) We walked down the famous shopping street – it was pretty whatever – and found the stores I had randomly googled which sounded interesting. The first, labeled as an “arts and crafts” stores, was essentially a fancy art gallery that was well out of our price range, and the second, an antiques store, was essentially a picker’s (as in, American Pickers – watch if you don’t already) paradise. We saw a couple of cool things but didn’t end up getting anything. (We didn’t have quite the same historical knowledge and bargaining power as the pickers on TV.)

We continued along my tour until we hit Kapuzinerkiche, a 17^th century church with a bunch of Habsburg graves in it. They were surprisingly cool to see, mostly because of how ornate they were. It was also pretty cool in there, which was also a big plus, as Vienna was (and this train back to Praha is) excessively hot. We left the church wondering where they’re going to put the future Habsburgs as the most recent relative died last year and there’s only one slot left. All that thinking got me in the mood for a snack (let’s be honest, I’m always in the mood for a snack) and as we were right near the famous Hotel Sacher (the original creator of the famous Viennese Sacher-torte – they’re also obviously famous for their ability to create original and interesting names), we thought we’d take a walk over to see what was going on. I was under the impression that we would be able to sit on the roof. The first person we asked was very adamant in his “NO.” It turned out that this was because we were actually next door to the hotel and not even at the right restaurant. Unfortunately, once we made our way around the bend and double checked the name to ensure we were in the right place, we heard that the roof was still not a viable option.

We were bummed, but not defeated. Always (well, sometimes) equipped with a backup plan, one of my walking tours suggested a delicious ice cream shop. We made our way to Zanoni Gelateria and each got a delicious, cold dish. I wish I had one now since it’s so damn hot on this train. I got Nutella, nougat, and stracciatella – sooo good.

We meandered back to the hotel and hung out in the lounge while taking turns to shower and get ready for dinner. Dad made a friend – his (awesome) Duke shirt drew the attention of a father who was visiting his daughter studying abroad in Vienna. It turned out he had mistaken Duke blue for Kentucky blue, but he was very nice and would always talk to us when we saw him. We make friends everywhere we go. Actually, the initial exchange occurred while I was in the shower; when I returned I was ready for dinner. Earlier in the day, I had talked to the woman at the lounge about Danube Island as a possible option. She made it sound like a solid plan. While Dad was socializing (social butterfly that he is), Mom asked a different person, however, she said “No. This is not a place for you.” As Mom was offended that the lady meant that it was not for her because it was for crazy young people, she became pretty determined to go. Danube Island is exactly what it sounds like – it’s an island in the middle of the Danube. Hope that’s clear. Regardless, we set off on the subway. We got a really late start (long showers were perhaps a bad idea), and so we didn’t get to the island until about 9:30. We got out of the subway station, only to find…nothing? Sure, there were groups of questionable youths drinking and (likely) doing other illegal things in circles strewn across the grounds, but the restaurants and bars the concierge and internet promised were nowhere to be found. Dad was displeased, but Mom and I were still pretty sure we could somehow make this work. Soon though, we were pretty set on going back to town when Mom stopped a couple who appeared out of the freaking bushes where all of the fun was. It turned out everything was across the river on the other side, but the thought of having to come back to this train station late at night was unappealing enough to send us back into town.

We went to the area we were in during the afternoon only to find everything to be closed. Apparently the Viennese are not the same as the Spanish who eat super late. We walked from restaurant to restaurant and eventually made out way back to the Hotel Sacher, as it was literally the only place open. We were resigned to the fact that we couldn’t sit on the roof and settled for sitting under the awning outside. Sean and I got some Wiener Schnitzer (classic) and Mom and Dad got some Goulash Soup. It was fine, but to be fair anything would have been fine at that point. The beauty of eating at Hotel Sacher is that we now had no reasonable excuse as to why we shouldn’t get the Sacher-torte. We did, and it was great. There was some raspberry in it which I figured would be a deal breaker but it actually added a bit to the cake. Let’s not get it twisted – I will not be having raspberry in any future cakes, but in this particular case, I let it slide. Fully satisfied, we made the trek back to the Danube to turn in for the night.

We only had one full day in Vienna so I wanted to make the most of it. We started off moderately early and headed to the Schonbrunn Castle. According to the concierge it was the castle to see, but if it was anything like the island, I wasn’t so sure I wanted to see it. Luckily, we took the trip – it was great and well worth the long(ish) subway ride. We got to the castle and were not sure whether or not to be excited or not about the accompanying audioguide. Luckily, it turned out to be appropriately timed and actually pretty interesting. A tidbit: Sisi was an anorexic bitch. Her husband doted on her and just because she had to get married at 15 and had no say as to her choice of husband or anything else in her life, she was resentful. She would also often miss meals so as to keep her slim figure. Whatever, Sisi. Another tidbit: there’s a painting of someone’s wedding with Mozart in it even though he wasn’t really there. He wasn’t famous at the time that this wedding took place in real life, but was when the painting reconstructing the event was made. Cute. I hope people start painting me into portraits when I get famous.

After the museum we headed out to check out the gardens. They were large and in charge with a giant fountain in the middle. As I mentioned, it was hooooooooot out so I really had an urge to jump in the fountain but I didn’t think it was worth the risk of being kicked out of the castle and possibly the country for so I somehow held back. We were all fading fast – luckily, right in front of the zoo (which claimed to house pandas, koalas, elephants and more!) there was an oasis in the form of a café with umbrellas. We settled in for a refreshing afternoon drink. I got this citrus beer that tasted just like the Tinto de Verano from Parque Retiro in Madrid, so I was a happy camper. We got ourselves re-excited about spending an afternoon traveling around in this heat and made our way back to the subway for the rest of our Viennese adventure.

On our way to the subway we stopped to admire some artwork that seemed pretty original and unique. I don’t really know how to describe what it looked like, but as this story will end with us each buying one, please come to my future apartment (which I will hopefully find next week…) to see what I’m talking about. We talked to the guy about his paintings, which he apparently made with spray paint, and learned that each one takes about two days to make. I got one with a little dude who reminds me of Charlie Chaplin on it – I was torn between him and a rose, but I decided Charlie had more character. Also, I had fallen in love with his quirky little figure in the spotlight, about to turn around and wow his audience, so I couldn’t leave him behind…and the rose somehow seemed to classy for a first real apartment. Mom and Dad got some lovey-dovey couple, and Sean got a cool, jazzy guitar player. We tried to barter to no avail, but I think the 10 euro we each spent were well worth it. I’m fairly certain that now that I think this is unique I’m going to see them on every corner in New York, but at least I’ll know that mine’s from Vienna – it will still make me feel cool.

We made it back to the center of town and headed to the famous (according to NatGeo) Café Demel. It’s known for its pastries and coffee. As we entered there was a full-sized wedding dress cake. This is the stuff of Cake Boss! The room where the make the cakes was encased in glass so that you could watch. It was a little uncomfortable, but also a little like TV. I got a quiche for lunch which was incredible, Mom got some gazpacho which I assume was disgusting because gazpacho’s the worst but she assures me it was great, and Sean got the Goulash. We had to get dessert so I got an Iced Coffee with Bailey’s which was delish. Sean got some crepes which were fine but not extraordinary, and Dad got an Iced Hot Chocolate with Bailey’s. Feeling rejuvenated, we continued on our way. As I previously mentioned, I felt the family was a bit under-cultured, so we headed over to the only remaining apartment of the many Mozart had lived in during his life. This was his biggest and most ornate and he only lived there for two years. The ticket again included an audioguide, but this time the guide was reeeeeeeally long and unnecessarily detailed. Although it was fun to learn about all of Mozart’s gambling debts and womanizing tendencies, a mere sentence about them would have been nice. It got into such minute detail that had I decided to listen I could have heard Mozart reacting to reactions in Vienna and Prague of people who had seen the Marriage of Figaro for the first time. It was overall interesting to see and I’m glad we went, but I could have done with a condensed guide. (I’m sure you’re all thinking that you feel the same way about my blog. I’m a hypocrite. Deal with it.)

After the Mozarthaus, we thought we’d see the famous Ankeruhr (a clock from the early 1900s) and Hoher Mark (an old square)t before heading back to the hotel. The Ankeruhr is “considered to be one of the finest art nouvea monuments in Vienna. Instead of hands, the Ankeruhr shows the time by means of 12 figures representing famous Viennese historical personalities.” I wish we had been there at the top of the hour to see the figures change but it was still a pretty impressive sight. After figuring out how it worked (sort of), we headed back to the hotel, determined to make it out for dinner earlier.

We went to a different stop for dinner, where our taxi driver had said there’s a lot of good restaurants. As we were all pretty hungry and tired, we decided to go to the restaurant right across the street from the train exit we’d chosen. Although Mom was initially nervous as we were the only people in the entire restaurant, it turned out to be one of our favorite meals! Our waiter was very nice and told us all about his upcoming trip to Washington D.C. I got the turkey schnitzel which was nearly as good as the corn flake covered schnitzel I had in Prague, Mom got a sandwich which seemed good, and Dad and Sean got some sort of beef dish. We met the big boss who was an old woman who was very kind and set out on our way. Mom was feeling decadent and wanted some dessert. As evidenced by the embarrassing number of references to food in this blog, I am never one to say no to sweets, or any food in general.

We were a mere 2 subway stops away from a famous coffee shop, Landtmann’s, so we headed there to check it out. I got another awesome coffee drink, – dark chocolate and caramel iced cappuchino or something – Sean got his fancy Viennese coffee, and Mom got some hazelnut and vanilla ice cream. It was deeeeeelicious. The boys went out and sat by the river at the hotel when we got back. Mom and I packed up and relaxed.

We had one more half day in Vienna before heading back to Prague to wrap up our trip. As I had failed at finding a great flea market in Budapest (sad times), I did my best to find something comparable in Vienna. Vienna has a famous Nachtmarkt every day which sells all sorts of fruits, vegetables, nuts, and other foods, but on the weekends, other vendors come and it becomes a sort of free-for-all flea market, called the Flohmarkt. We made our way over at a reasonable time and made our way through the market. We saw your standard scarves and shot glasses, and even found a great Christmas ornament (we were getting down to the wire and I was getting worried), but didn’t see anything all that extraordinary…that is, until we crossed over to the next street and found ourselves in what seemed like a gigantic, collaborative garage sale. There were all sorts of junk and some treasures too. We had a great time looking through some crazy old memorabilia – Sean found some old Nazi identification papers, we saw some really old toys, we saw all sorts of old jewelry – and even got a couple of truly unique things. Sean and I got some neat, old beersteins, and Dad got some street signs from the 1930s. Overall, it was well worth the trek.

On our way back to the hotel, we stopped at Café Museum for lunch. It had come up on my list of “best coffee houses in Vienna.” We were surprised to find that they literally had the same exact menu as the restaurant we’d gone to for dessert the night before. We were strangely okay with it, but I started to question whether my list was a big conspiracy. Mom and I got grilled chicken salads that were great, and Sean had a ham and cheese sandwich with homemade chips which he really enjoyed. We made it back to the hotel, packed up for good, and took a taxi to the stiflingly hot train station. We were aggressively early so we spent a delirious hour trying not to melt looking forward to the A/C on the train. We got on to find that it’s not much better than outside even though the ticket guy assured us “it’s on full working.” I’m upset that our vacation’s coming to an end, but I must admit that I’m pretty excited to turn the A/C to full blast as soon as we get to airport hotel we’re spending the night at before heading out tomorrow. Overall, I think we’ve all had a wonderful time abroad. It’s been a very busy 10 days but we’ve had a lot of fun. We’ve seen a lot of what there is to see, enjoyed some good meals and drinks, and loved spending some extended time together as a family (most of the time)! Plus, the closer we get to the end of our busy vacation, the closer we get to what I’m sure will be an incredible plane ride home that will be just the relaxing vacation I need before getting back to real life. 

Auf wiedersehen!