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Published: March 13th 2007
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Vienna
View from the Parliament (June 27 through June 29 2006)
June 27
Arriving into Vienna, we validated our tickets before we even headed out to explore the city. We wanted to make sure that there would be no surprises on the day we left for Bratislava. We checked train schedules and left the Westbahnhof satisfied. The heat of the afternoon hit us immediately, and as we looked on the map, we were relieved that the hostel was only but a couple of blocks away. After walking in circles, through residential and commercial districts, we finally saw a sign for the hostel, and felt foolish. Sweating and uncomfortable we headed up to our room and relaxed, took a nap and were a bit ticked about our decision on the hostel. On the train ride from Salzburg we had called several places, but all were booked except for the place we stayed at--the Westend City Hostel. The guide said that it was well located, it was, and friendly, we didn't experience that. Late afternoon we headed out for an internet cafe, and searched south of the city.
On our walk, we stopped at a snack shop suggested on the guide--Trzesniewski--and munched on some tiny sandwiches and small
Vienna
Walking towards central Vienna servings of beer. Good prices, and the atmosphere helped us cool down and relax a bit more as we began our walk through town--though served in small quantities, the beer was satisfying. Still trekking on Maria hilfer strasse, we headed south towards Cafe Sperl, to look inside to see if we needed another rest. The prices were a bit too high, so we continued. Walking south several more blocks, we finally spot an internet cafe that is out of the way of the main streets, and which the prices are excellent. There is no one walking in this part of town, and the architecture of the buildings is jaw dropping. On our way we had spotted an Irish bar, and since it was the only good place we had seen, we headed there for the first match of the day after we used the internet. Close at the beginning, Brazil at the end beat Ghana 3-1. We had some great brews, but not many, as we were beginning to get hungry.
With not much cash on hand, we didn't want to take out some more, so we settled on a Chinese buffet on one of the side streets off of
Vienna
The streets of Vienna Maria hilfer strasse. Worst decision we made. The buffet is under 4 Euros for a reason. We headed out, and walked to the hostel for the second game of the day--France v. Spain. Had some beers at the hostel's bar, which was tiny. It had a courtyard, and I am sure it would have been fun with more people, but no one was staying at the place. France won, and we headed to bed early, to take advantage of waking up early.
June 28
We took advantage of the complimentary breakfast, which was surprisingly good--though they kicked us out with 10 minutes still for breakfast. The room where we stayed was reasonable in size, with a bathroom, looking out into the street. We had the top floor, and the only bad thing about it was that there was remodeling of the building in front of us. So all of the early morning before we went down for breakfast, hammers pounding woke us up unnecessarily. We decided to walk the whole day, and the early sun felt great.
We walked from the hostel to central Vienna, and from there we walked around the city's great architecture. Walking through this part of
Vienna
a view of a side street town is truly like walking through a museum. Going from one great building to the next, is like walking to one piece of art to the next. After walking a while, we end up in front of the Burgtheater, and rest in the small park that is found across the street. We sit, and people watch and head north once again. After walking in the field of grass in front of the Votivkirche, we decide to head to the Sigmund Freud Museum. It is his old house, and the walk through the different rooms is great. After learning a bit about Freud's history, we head out to a very darken sky, and head once again into central Vienna, and cut across to head to the Oberes Belvedere, where
The Kiss is housed. Mid-afternoon now, and we get a bit hungry, so we stopped at a grocery store to buy some things to eat. A warm beer, and a sloppy sandwich. We choose a quiet spot under a monument. Not satisfied, we keep going, while the sky gets darker.
We again cut through the city's wonderful architecture, and take another seat to people watch at Schwarzenberg platz. Listen to the fountain,
take some pictures, and have a pleasant conversation with my brother. Again we head on, and finally we arrive to Belvedere. A wonderful building, we head inside but the entrance is a bit pricey, and decide that there are other things that we need to do. A bit sad that I didn't get to see
The Kiss we walk around the grounds, and head to see more of the city.
We walk past more beautiful architecture, and another domed church. Another internet cafe stop. This time a bit pricier, but a beer is included, and it is quite refreshing, as the sun once again comes out in the late afternoon. Feeling accomplished by our day, we read the suggestions by our guide about bars and cafes. We settle on an open air one, where everything is for sale--Das Mobel. Not enjoyable, we head out and try something else. We finally settle on a restaurant where the food portions are huge, and the beers are as big as we have seen thus far. With our bellies extremely happy, and already early evening we head back to the hostel to see what is next. Walking back, the streets are getting quieter, and
we don't notice many bars.
Arriving to our room, we change and decide that the best place for the night was to go to Wombat's, the hostel near Westbahnhof, and hang out the bar there. We were going to stay at this place, but we had called too late to book any rooms. The place was highly recommended by many brochures and other people we spoke to. The bar is surprisingly large. The night is wasted away drinking huge mugs of beer, and contemplating wins and losses with Aussies. The crowd was great, and we have wonderful conversations with everyone.
Early morning rolls around, and we head back to our hostel to get some hours of shut eye, as we have to wake up early and head to Bratislava.
June 29
We wake up, talk to some of our room mates, and discuss the night before. They had gone to a beer garden, and hadn't had too much fun. Had breakfast extremely hung over, and headed out of the place in the rain. We took the metro, with the morning commute, and arrived to the Sudbahnhoff.
Vienna was a beautiful city. The architecture was truly magnificent, and everywhere you turned
you could get lost in it's streets. At times though, the city felt like a museum, very quiet, and that you had to go from one spot of art to the next, to get a general feeling for the city. The weather was great, and our time there was ok. I enjoyed it, and two three days was perfect.
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