June 2-6, 2015
The First Ring ~ An
Old Vienna Love Affair Being Rekindled
(Part 1)
John bikes into center of Hofburg Palaces and Tresury |
First Night. We
took a relaxing train ride from Budapest to Vienna. When I was 18 years old I was
in Vienna with girlfriends and was wondering how much I would remember besides
the beer drinking and handsome men. John has booked us at a very small hotel
called Das Tyrol, very near all the
main tourist sites. I love these small hotels for their friendliness and
uniqueness. Indeed this hotel was
especially unique with paintings of Donald Duck on the wall among other unusual
decorations. In our room we find fresh
fruit and wine and are especially pleased to see a nespresso machine! We go out strolling and I am immediately struck
by all the families lovingly walking with their children, lining up for ice
cream cones or sitting by the side of the street having Viennese coffee or
wine.
The atmosphere seems tranquil and laid back and I have to remind myself
it is 6 pm Tuesday evening and not a Sunday. It does not seem like a big
bustling city nor are there any skyscrapers. I stop at a Starbucks for coffee
while John goes back to the hotel. Later I discover that Viennese coffee is
cheaper and preferred by the locals. Like the Viennese people the coffee taste
is more mellow. I must remember to do as the natives do.
Ringstrasse. We decided to try our hand again with Citybikewein ~ city bikes ~ but this
time consult first with our hotel manager to register via Internet and thus obtain
the magic password. We successfully rent 2 clunky bikes (with 3 gears) and set
off for the circular ring road known as Ringstrasse to Old Town, which is
inside this circular ring. Bike rentals are 2 euros an hour with the first hour
free and John feels entirely empowered with his I-pad and bike. As we bike inside the circle I am completely
awestruck by the architecture of the palaces, the churches and museums. I want to stop everywhere to take pictures.
This city makes Budapest look pale like a
child and clearly is in the same classic league as Paris, London and Rome. While it is a collapsed empire that once
consisted of over 60 million people, now the city with only 1.8 million people
is still elegant, grand and amazing. I feel a love affair coming on, as this is
fast becoming my favorite city. We find a place outdoors for dinner and I order
Viennese Schnitzel of Veal while John orders salmon filet. Now who is eating locally? Salmon in a
land-locked country? Nonetheless the
schnitzel is not what I remembered and I realize it was the large white
sausages (bratwurst) with hot mustard that I used to love here, especially when
served with beer. Or, was that Germany? I decide to search for the sausages the
next day.
The Morning After. The next morning in our sweet hotel we
have the best breakfast yet. John orders egg white omelets to have along side
his donut. I have fresh fruit and the
same rather amazing donut.
We decide to bike to the Spanish Riding School which we both remember being impressed with
when we were here 40 years ago. We are
told we should get there early before the riding exercises start at 10 am.
However, finding a public bike stall to lock our bike is more difficult than we
thought. We arrive late to a very long line up. If we had read Rick Steve’s
guidebook we would have known that we didn’t have to wait in line and could
come back later to see Vienna’s renowned Lipizzaner stallions. Since this is
not a performance but only horses practicing and mainly trotting most people
don’t stay for the full 2 hours. When people leave new tickets are printed so
prancing in later is no problem. However,
I tell John if he wants to be a tourist he has to learn to wait. He tells me
that he prioritizes what to see by how long the waiting lines are. We persist and eventually find seats on the 2nd
level in this Baroque hall with huge chandeliers. I think this hall seems
smaller and less impressive than I remember it being at age 18. We stay 30 minutes and leave a little
disappointed. I wonder if memory embellishes loving experiences.
St. Stephen’s
Cathedral
We bike to St. Stephens Cathedral the bull’s eye of the
concentric ring circle of old town. Here
there are tour buses, horse carts and Mozart-style dressed agents selling music
concerts designed for tourists. This
massive Gothic cathedral built from 1300 to 1450 has survived Vienna’s many
wars, perhaps, because of the 450-foot towers which seem to reach for heaven.
They took 65 years to build this tower and there was supposed to be a 2nd
tower, which was never completed because of lack of money. There is a sharply
pitched roof covered with colored ceramic tiles in a zig zag pattern similar to
the St. Stephen’s church we saw in Budapest.
Center Aisle |
There are columns
with life-size tone statues of Madonnas and babies. There is a large, black marble
altarpiece. John thinks the cathedrals
we have seen in Spain are much more beautiful than this one.
I continue to be spiritually
uninspired by Austria’s national church and wonder what is wrong with me as I
watch hundreds of people gaze in awe at the spires. The organ looks plain yet
interesting to me and I wish we could hear Mozart here.
Three out of four Austrian
people are Catholic and one in ten are Muslim. I would not accept a marriage
ring in this cathedral.
I look for a place to have Viennese coffee but see a Starbucks.
I look for a place to have Viennese coffee but see a Starbucks.
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