Advertisement
Published: August 16th 2016
Edit Blog Post
August 14, 2016
We arrived in Vienna today by train from Budapest. The train ride was uneventful, but quite enjoyable. On the way from the train station to the hotel J, B and JP (who were sharing a taxi) got a guided tour from the taxi driver. J got a little worried when the taxi driver told her that the hotel was cheap and that the showers were in the corridor. However, it is not bad, it is a 3-star, but it is clean and very close to the tourist area. Today we didn't do much, after checking in, lunch and a nap we went walking about. We had dinner at a spanish restaurant. We had a good time, between the big class of wine ( I'm sure it was 9 oz), the waiter screwing up J's and my orders ( chicken instead of seafood paella), B falling asleep at the table, T witnessing the cook and the owner yelling at each other when he went to check on our order and reminiscing about events that happenned on other trips, all in all it was a good evening. At the end of our meal the owner came to apologize again
and offered us free drinks. So we ordered 3 cognacs and 2 baileys. When he came back with the drinks he noticed he´d brought 3 baileys and 2 cognacs. He went back for the extra cognac then sat down with us, took the baileys for himself and proceeded to tell us everything that went wrong in the restaurant that day.
August 15, 2016
This morning we went on another walking tour through the historic old town (we had had a short tour when we stopped here with the river cruise). Our guide showed us not only the historical buildings (Hofburg Palace-former imperial residence, St-Stephen's cathedral, among many others) but also the small streets and alleys where the real people lived. There are also roman ruins on display. They are on the side of the road in a square. They have built a wall around them.
Vienna is regarded as the city of music because of its musical legacy (Mozart, Bethovan, Strauss, Schubert, among others). The city has a rich history starting with its early Celtic and roman settlements, the the medieval and baroque City, the capital of the Austro-Hungarian Empire ruled by the Habsburg until WW1. The
architecture is incredible. I've included a few pictures. The new luxury shopping area in the old city offers stores like Louis Vuitton, Armani, cavali, Prada and Saint Laurent. Not the area we were shopping in.
J, S and I visited the Belvedere Museum. It had a Gustav Klimt exposition. He was described by our guide as the Picasso of Austria. For 40 years JP and I have had 2 prints by Klimt, "The Kiss" and "Adele" also known as the Woman In Gold (not sure what the official title is). Today I got to see the original Kiss. It was quite impressive. I will have to go to New York to see Adele. They sell Klimt memorabilia all over, not only in Vienna. We saw some in every cities we have visited so far. And yes, I did buy a few pieces.
August 16, 2016 - last day in Vienna.
Today the girls visited Schönbrunn Palace, the former summer residence of the Hofburg. It is the Versailles of Vienna. The 1,441-room
Baroque palace is one of the most important architectural, cultural, and historical monuments in the country. Since the mid-1950s it has been a major tourist attraction.
The history of the palace and its vast gardens spans over 300 years, reflecting the changing tastes, interests, and aspirations of successive
Habsburg monarchs.
Tonight we had dinner at Figlmüller. This restaurant has been in operation since 1905 and specialyzes in the schnitzel. Our guide pointed it out to us during our walk through the old town. She told us they make the best schnitzel in town. It was very good and very big, it hung over the plate. Nobody could eat it all.
See additional photos
Advertisement
Tot: 0.095s; Tpl: 0.009s; cc: 9; qc: 44; dbt: 0.0423s; 1; m:domysql w:travelblog (10.17.0.13); sld: 1;
; mem: 1.1mb
Lylaenvoyage
Lyla en voyage
Holy crap
You weren't kidding about the big schnitzel!!