Hello from Wien (Vienna)

Hi Everyone,

We have now had two full days in Vienna, long enough to have something to write about.

We are staying in a room in a lovely old apartment building. It is spacious and squeaky-clean, with no frills. The woman who operates it is Elena. She is young, I think, but old before her time. She wears her hair parted in the middle and pulled back severely, reminding me of the photos I have seen of both my great-great grandmothers. She is not particularly friendly; even calling her helpful would be a stretch. But she is efficient!

Our impressions of Vienna so far are not as strong as some of the other European cities we have visited. People seem much more formal than in Amsterdam. The national election is happening on Sunday, and so there are election posters everywhere, most of them defaced with graffiti. From what we can guess from posters and newspaper headlines, it seems like immigration, the economy versus the environment and civil liberties are top issues. Sound familiar?

There is far less English, but still plenty enough to make our way. I keep asking Frank, "How do you say 'X' in German?" Or, "What does 'Y' mean?" He looks at me sternly over the top of his glasses and says "Wendy, I only took German to grade 10. And I was a teenaged boy -- I wasn't even paying attention!" I still keep asking though. If we need to buy a ball-point pen along the way, Frank will have no problem...

We got a late start yesterday, not leaving our room until 11 a.m.. Although we were both really tired and needed the sleep and slower pace, a part of me couldn't help but but think that the travel gods would frown on us for wasting precious time in this exotic place. We set off for a food market to buy a picnic lunch. At one stall, to our complete surprise, we managed to spend almost 30 euro on little Middle Eastern treats. We hadn't realized the total was adding up so fast! Luckily, we had just enough money to cover the bill, or it might have been an unpleasant scene... The sad part is, the food doesn't really even appeal that much to us today.

Also yesterday, we went to another sumptuous art gallery. One piece they have, a gold salt cellar encrusted with jewels, is insured for $60 million, so the wealth that building holds must be in the hundreds of billions. The art treasures here are owned not by the Catholic Church, as in Italy, but by the state, inherited from the Habsburg Empire, which disintegrated with the advent of World War I.

 

 

Last night, we made our way by public transit to a "heuringer" -- a wine garden -- on the outskirts of the city. We tried something called "sturm" (wine before it's wine, sweet and bubbly and only slightly fermented) and ate a deli-style dinner on picnic tables right next to the vineyard, with a view of the valley and the next town over. It was very charming and worth the commute.

Today, more sightseeing and tonight we may buy very cheap standing room tickets to the Vienna Opera to see a portion of the Barber of Seville. Although it's all very cultured and historic and all that, Frank and I both think that once in a lifetime in Vienna will be enough!

Goodbye, dear family and  friends. We would love to hear from you if you get a chance.

Probst,

Wendy and Frank