Vienna, Austria

::Blogging Location: San Diego, a couple years after study abroad::

Even though it's been a while since these trips, that hasn't changed my love for writing nor has it changed my love for travel. I'm also damn determined to finish these accounts of my trip; gonna make study abroad worth every dollar/euro/pound.

Vienna: it seems to be the place where culture is just part of normal, everyday life. The wide tree-lined cobblestone streets with cable cars running alongside horse-drawn carriages. Statues of famous figures at parks, plaques of where notable individuals used to live, Roman ruins in the middle of town squares. You know, your standard European capital with a certain vivacity for the performing arts. There's no extra effort needed to incorporate culture into your daily grind. But that's probably just how it is when there are opera houses, museums and theatres on every street. And if there isn't one, you're probably in a residential area... where your favourite classical composer used to live. No big deal. 

The Gloriette: freaking beautiful. A bit jealous of the girl whose man built this for her. A bit jealous of his bank account as well. 

Really though, it seems as though people leave work during the weekday, sit down at a restaurant for a leisurely dinner and then pop over to the nearest play, ballet or opera for less than 5€ for a ticket! I could be completely wrong about this, but that is what my schedule would be like if I lived in Vienna. I'd also spend my Sunday afternoons at the Schönbrunn palace on the enormous grounds (the photo above is just part of the massive estate) and my other days off at one of the many art museums or galleries. Of course Vienna is chock full of touristy gimmicks like their full old-timey-dress orchestras that is sold by some dude in a bright red jacket with a powdered wig and a sign, but if anyone's gonna do it right, it'd be Vienna, right?

Vienna: doin' it right

The food highlights in Vienna for me were chocolate and of course, the wiener-schnitzel, which is nothing like a hot dog, mind you. It seriously is closer to a Japanese katsu than it is to a German brat. Didn't expect that? Neither did I.

Schnitzelwirt in the city centre served up an apologetically delicious schnitzel

After lots of Google searches and review-readings, my travel buddy, Tatiana, determined that Schnitzelwirt would be worthy of a spot in our (sadly) limited stomach space and our (also sadly limited) euros and it definitely was! Made of tenderized boneless veal and dipped in an egg batter & breadcrumbs, the cutlets were a far cry from your typical fried food. Served with a slice of lemon for an extra zing, schnitzel is meant to be a tasty and moist experience coated in a crispy layer of golden-fried batter. Wow.

Okay, back out into the world--let me dazzle you with some photos:

Stephenskirche in Stephensplat

The 'kirche' or church in Sigmund Freud park

The Viennese Parliament

Mozart's piano--the museum folk let you transform from enthusiast into creepy fan by gradually introducing you to progressively less-important items. One second you're looking at original sheet music from Hadyn, Schubert's glasses, and then gaping at Beethoven's door, which they've removed from it's hinges and put behind glass. You know you've gone too far when you're trying to sniff the old handkerchiefs of the masters of old. But it's okay because they're all dead.

Eggs. It's a seasonal thing...

Oh, Tots and I were in town for Easter! Did I mention that? They're really into their decorated eggs. There were markets all over the city, up to that Sunday, selling painted eggs, animals made from pinecones and raffia, baked goodies and of course chocolate.

... Perhaps more than other cultures are...

"Excuse me, sir. Your backpack looks heavy. You should eat some carbs before you faint from exhaustion."

Really though, I had such a hard time choosing from the gamut of pretzels, covered in chocolate, with almonds, with fruit... the list goes on. I ended up gorging myself on two different kinds that morning because 1) I couldn't decide and 2) I'd already had breakfast, but second breakfast was really coming up on my watch. I hate being late for anything. It's just rude.

Nothin' more legit than an opera in Vienna!

Tatiana and I met up with two of our friends on separate occasions in Vienna. We met with our friend Michael to catch dinner and on another day, we ran into Kayla to catch an opera (Parsifal). Michael had just been traveling with a group of his acquaintances and he expressed to us how happy he was to be on our routine. These acquaintances weren't very accommodated to traveling. Or spending money. This is one of the worst crimes of traveling. Or just living. Let me explain...

Let's say you spend $600 on a roundtrip somewhere. You get penny-pinchy over meals and decide to eat bread and milk instead of feasting on the local fare. You save a ton of money to see a couple things recommended by a guidebook. For the most part, you take in the "free sights." In all, you spend $700 and have a "pretty good" time, instead of spending $800 and having a fantastic time--that first $600 is a lot happier with you if you spend a little more having a fantastic time than a good one. (However, that being said, diminishing returns still applies $1,000 later). Your first problem is not experiencing one of the quintessential aspects of the local culture: food. Food transcends all nations and backgrounds in that EVERYONE gathers over food. Parties, funerals, meetings, nights out, events. All garnished with food. All improved with food! Best of all, food is different EVERYWHERE. Your next problem is that you're holding onto your money tighter than life itself. That paper note/bill in your hand won't make you happy. It's what you spend it on that will bring you memories. Unless you tuck your crinkled up "presidential flashcards" into bed every night and go on merry-go-rounds with them after sharing your ice cream with them, money is not going to improve your life. You have to trade your cash for it to mean anything to you. I understand saving money and being frugal, but if you are that type of person, this is for you: when you're traveling, you need to be a little more liberal. If you really need to save, why the hell did you spend that $600 in the first place? If you need to "just get away" turn on the telly and let Anthony Bourdain narrate you elsewhere. Or if you want to go really far, I know a couple named absinthe and wormwood that can take you farrrrrr away for a while, but from reading reviews like that of Lattepiu in the LA Times, I don't recommend it. Still, it's less than $600, you cheapwad. ;) /endrant

Back to culture!

Tots and I got to see Faust; though it was all in Austrian-German, it was freaking entertaining and the set design/lighting was fantastic. It also helped to roughly know the story. Parsifal was my first opera ever. It was really lengthy and I'm not ashamed to say that I nodded off once or twice. after a busy day of walking all over Vienna's city centre. The opera wasn't boring--there were even subtitles, but traveling does take a ton out of ya.

Kayla and I were stalking Beethoven: we actually got into his home and started going through his things.

One of my favourite (nerdy) things was visiting Beethoven's home with Kayla. My piano teacher's teacher's teacher's teacher was taught by Beethoven. I might be missing a few teachers in between, but all of them are/were great pianists (that explains the piano lesson bill, I suppose), until the line got to me. I have no plans to get famous, compete or teach piano any time soon. :-/ Anyways, great-grandteacher Beethoven was kind enough to let us in and let us scope out his stuff, including piano, old letters, original sheet music, paintings and whatnot.

Planning a trip to Vienna sometime soon? Definitely hit the Schönbrunn (go on the tour inside the palace as well), the Belvedere, the Manner chocolatiers (you can pass up on the outside-of-town Schoko-museum, it wasn't much), Stephenplatz and the Catacombs, and definitely catch some live performances (for cheaper tickets, buy them the day of the performance)! Are you a classical music buff? Yes? Well, hit up Haus der Musik because apart from it being really fun to say, it's a pretty comprehensive exploration of the artists that lived in Vienna. Mozart's and Haydn's homes are also up for touring and are all within the city centre.

If you're especially classical music-smitten, go to Zentralfriedhof Cemetery just outside of the city centre, where greats like Beethoven, Strauss and Schubert are buried. It costs less than a few Euros to take a tram there.   

If you have extra time in Austria, Kayla recommends Salzburg where you can hit up a Sound of Music tour. Sounds lovely, no? Thanks for reading!

Wien Staats-Oper (State Opera House)