Arriving in Vienna
The city of music has many charms and to choose a few might be hard considering you’ll want to see and experience everything. I loved my time in Vienna and when it was time to leave I almost cried. The city is incredibly clean, beautiful and accessible. A few facts I learned along the way are that Austria is one of the leading countries on sustainable energy. How cool is that? Also, a woman has up to three years of paid maternity leave with her job position secured for her return. You’re in love already aren’t you? Well here are a few more things that will surely make you want to visit Vienna in this special three part travel blog series!
My first stop in Vienna was at the Hundertwasser house designed by Friedensreich Hundertwasser. It was interesting to see how the artist’s vision came to life with the fusion of nature and architecture. Right in front of the house is the Hundertwasser village.
Inside there are coffee shops, souvenir shops, a bar, stores and an art gallery! It took me half an hour to explore the village and its surroundings which to my excitement included a classic red phone booth.
The exploring continued at the Belvedere Palace of Prince Eugene of Savoy. Nowadays it is very common to host weddings at the Palace or its grounds. I saw a Turkish wedding photoshoot during my visit. The palace’s pond was constructed for the sole purpose of reflecting the palace on its waters when the weather is just right. Make sure to catch The Kiss by Klimt in the palace’s museum.
Afterwards I checked into Ananas, a four star hotel. This is by far one of my favorite hotels. They have excellent service, very helpful staff, and delicious breakfasts and may I add the comfiest beds. Plus it has a prime location which makes it perfect for walking around Vienna since everything is so close by.
The afternoon was simply enchanting as I went on to enjoy a Mozart concert at the Musikverein in the Golden Hall by the Vienna Mozart Orchestra. The concert was sublime, energetic and elegant. The musicians were dressed as Mozart and the singers were dressed in the costume of their character. I was pleasantly surprised when they performed a few arias from The Magic Flute. I sat at one of the floor boxes right next to the stage which costs 105 euros. The dress code is semi-formal, dressy clothes but no ball gowns although I saw men in tuxedos.
When it’s time for the intermission the best thing to do is take a bathroom break, eat a snack or drink some champagne if you’re feeling fancy.
When the concert was over my stomach was growling. I ate at a hidden gem which sadly I did not get the name of but trust me it was amazing. It was an adventure all on its own to get to our table because it was three floors underground. Many stairs later I arrived at the most charming restaurant setting I had ever laid eyes on. Picture the scene Hazel and Augustus are dining in Amsterdam from the movie The Fault in our Stars. That’s the exact thing that popped into my head as I took it all in.
There I ate snitzel with salad and fries and for dessert strudel! The staff was very friendly. They didn’t speak any Spanish and very little English so when they heard a word that vaguely sounded like something they knew they would repeat it and yell it happily. That was the case with the word chocolate!
Remember this is a three part travel blog so there will be more on this wonderful city soon. Happy Travels!