Day 2, Part 2.
As it’s one of DH’s favourite films, before we left, we’d looked at the Third Man tour, but it was only on Fridays [when we weren’t going to be in Vienna at all] and Mondays, when we had tickets for the opera. So as the weather had turned clement, we decided that tonight was the night for the Prater. Those not in the know may still recognise the distinctive red cabins that circle around the big wheel or “Riesenrad” from clips from the film, but what is far less well-known is that the Prater itself is a huge amusement park with loads of “attractions”, bars, cafes and restaurants. Getting there is easy on the underground, and due to our Vienna cards, [which we had already validated for the first and only time when we got the tram back to our hotel from the Hofburg] free. Not only that, but the cards gave us a discount on the Riesenrad, or would have done, we discovered, had we taken with us the booklet that you are given with them. And no senior discounts here. I almost said that I’d go back to the hotel for them but truthfully I didn’t fancy walking up the street that leads to the Prater by myself – its use as a toilet was off-putting enough, but there were clearly other activities going on that I didn’t fancy getting too close to. So we kicked ourselves mentally, and paid the €8 each for one ride.

After waiting about 15 minutes in the line, which seemed quite a long time for the small number of people who were waiting, we eventually got to the front, to find that several of the cars were allowed to go past, before one was stopped for us to board. In some cases it was obvious why – they were being used as dining cars, complete with white china and candlesticks, and as the cabin got to the bottom, it was stopped just long enough for a waiter to board, remove and replace plates, and leave again. But others were just went past unoccupied, which of course added to the waiting time. Still, here we were at the front, and we were on the next one. Truthfully it is not vey exciting, but the engineering is interesting, the views over the park and Vienna are good, and perhaps best of all, we could take pictures of the scariest rides to show our kids [who love that sort of thing, unlike their mother] when we got home. One was truly awful – swinging its victims up into the air at the end of a dragon-shaped arm, then throwing them about upside down. My description isn’t great, but you’ve probably seen similar. Strangely enough there was quite a queue for this one, so presumably there are others who enjoy this sort of thing.

Generally however, the park could not be said to be busy, and many side shows like the haunted house, the ghost train, the walzers, etc. were pretty deserted. In fact, there are few things sadder than a deserted funfair, and this was close to being just that. After we alighted from the RR, we traipsed around a bit, before wandering into the beer garden where we saw a few people sitting around – to find that this was where everyone was, eating and drinking, never mind about the fair. And what they were eating were great lumps of pork, huge plates of sausages, and massive piles of chips. Sometimes simultaneously. After ordering two beers, we found we were quite hungry too, so we tried the “weisswurst und erdapfelsalat”, erdapfel being the Austrian/german for potato [german = karttoffel]. And very good they were too, though I think DH would have preferred an English banger! By now it was getting quite dark despite being the longest day of the year, and regretfully we decided that this was enough for our first day in Vienna, so we dragged ourselves away via the underground which delivered us to within 100 metres of our hotel.

Next – DAY THREE – Hiking and Heuriger.

yk, i confess that it did get us down at times. especially when we kept meeting the "jolly hockey sticks" types who hold that "there's no such thing as bad weather, only bad clothing" but I always think that they are just too good to be true.

Stoke - we try. My mood was not improved yesterday when DH pointed out that the forecast for Cornwall this week is dreadful, and it's 30C in vienna. Which I have decided is TOO HOT.

one good thing about staying in the sort of down-market establishments that we frequent - they do not have silly rules about the minibar. we moved stuff about, took their things out and put our own in, all without comment or consequence. a bad thing is that some of them were so downmarket that they didn't have a minibar, so the question did not arise! apart from the first two, none of them did, though the gasthof in St. Wolfgang had a guest fridge. this could have been a disadvantage had the weather been warm, but as it wasn't, it wasn't. [not an elegant sentence, but you get my drift].

Ann, please don't quit now. This is good, even if the entertainment seems to be at your expense. I didn't realize that you could dine on the Reisenrad, though I also recognize that that information does me no good, since I know I wouldn't want to. Your account is entertaining. Sorry if the trip wasn't as entertaining as you had hoped. Anyway, keep it coming. The report could wind up being the best part.

hi julie, thanks for the encouragement. work has intervened over the last few days, but I have the next day written - in my head!

BTW, the weather here continues to be just as bad, and I keep trying to resist the temptation to see what it's like in austria! silly me.

I'll try to get it down in print tonight.

regards, ann

We'll wait patiently.

DAY 3.

How do you rate hotels? For me, a good night’s sleep is pretty important, and at the Austria, that is what we got. It was quiet [our room overlooked a courtyard at the back, but the hotel’s being in a what we English call a “cul de sac” [do the French have a word for that?] must have helped too] and we were able to have our morning cuppa. Though there was no A/C, if it ever got hot, [fat chance] there was a floor-mounted fan which looked pretty powerful. And the bathroom had a very useful washing line which we made full use of, as well as a really good shower.

Next, the breakfast. As it was included in the price, it needed to be good and it didn’t disappoint. Fresh fruit [strawberries the first day, not repeated unfortunately], good scrambled eggs and bacon, plenty of different rolls and breads, and decent coffee. I began to see why it ranks so high on TA. As we ate, we discussed the plan for the day. We had originally intended to follow the suggestion of a fellow fodorite to go to the museum of Vienna, for the very good reason that it’s free on Sundays. But the sun was shining, and we fancied getting some fresh air. So we opted for the Belvedere [the botanical and alpine gardens are next door] followed by the trip to Grinzing and the Kalhenberg that I had copied out of a guide-book, the aim being to try some of the Heuriger [wine pubs is the best way to describe them] that we had read about. We could catch the tram to Heiligenstadt from just by the Belevedere so this should work out well, so long as the weather held.

Back to the room to wring out and hang out the washing [we try to do a little each day to keep on top of it, hopefully keeping down what we need to pack] then guide-books etc. in hand, we set off. First stop is the tram stop in Schwedenplatz, where we catch tram 2 to Schwarzenbergplatz, then tram D up to the upper Belvedere. Signs send you to the palace, but our first stop was the alpine garden next door [€3 with the Vienna card, to be fair only moderately interesting at best unless you are a bonsai nut] followed by a wander around the botanical garden, [free] which is probably better in spring, though we liked their way of keeping slugs off hostas. Memory tells me that we got a couple of € off with our V/cards, then we headed for the top floor and worked our way down. Truth to tell, the most interesting things were the Klimts, when we could get near them, and we were a bit disappointed with the exhibitions, until we got to the ground floor and found a room full of funny busts. Yes, that’s right, sculptures of the heads and shoulders of about 30 men, all pulling funny faces. Sadly I made no note of the name of the artist, but I do remember that the blurb said that he had been disappointed by something, and took it out on the world with his sculptures. Lucky for the world, I say.

Then it was back outside to walk through the gardens, laid out in formal French style, down to the lower Belevedere, which was holding an exhibition of the works of Waldmueller, the famous 19C Viennese painter. No, we’d never heard of him either. He was certainly prolific, and we liked some of his portraits, but there were lots of landscapes that frankly may be more significant to Austrians than to anyone else.

By now we needed some refreshment, and we headed for the outdoor café, only to find that all the tables were taken. But there were a couple of chairs at a table with just a little old lady at it, who happened to be the little old lady who had engaged me in conversation in the ladies’ loo earlier. I say “engaged in conversation”; what had happened was that she spoke to me quite volubly and at length, and I said “ja” and “nein” at what I though were the appropriate places. Anyway, she seemed quite happy for us to sit with her, and while we sat there, she told us [I think] about what we ought to see in the Belvedere, why she was so happy to see the Waldmueller exhibition, how the area round the Prater [where she lived] had changed, [not for the better] and how we ought to go to the Kahlenberg, which was of course, co-incidentally, just where we were headed. She even wrote down the exact directions of how to get there.

Eventually, we were able to make our excuses and left, heading for the tram stop in Schwarzenbergplatz where we could board the tram to Heiligenstadt. The time to wait for the next tram is displayed by every stop and the trams are very frequent, so in no time at all the tram had arrived and we were on our way. It soon appeared that today was our day to be engaged in conversation by the locals, as two ladies sitting in front of us heard us talking about the “music” we had heard the day before and joined in, saying that they didn’t know what it was about either but they had liked it no more than we had. They kindly pointed out a few landmarks and we had a nice chat until they had to get off. Then we were left on our own until we got to Heiligenstadt, about 30 minutes later. The underground station, which is where the buses stop, turned out to be just round the corner, and was well-signposted. Again, the time for the next bus [no 38A] was indicated at the bus stop, and it soon arrived, and we all piled on. Perhaps because it was Sunday, there were a lot of locals as well as tourists on the bus, and along the way quite a lot of people failed to get on, as it was too full. This, and the drunk at the back, led to quite an eventful journey, as people tried and failed to board the bus, and when they succeeded, then tried not to have to stand or sit near the drunk. The bus gradually left the city behind, and wound its way up the side of the Kahlenberg, stopping first at “Cobenzl” [the place where the little old lady had told us to get off] and then at the Kahlenberg, which is the top of the mountain. For views and touristy stuff, the Kalhenberg is definitely the place to be; for a nice inn with a restaurant terrace overlooking the Danube, go for Cobenzl. We didn’t, and we regretted it. The old lady had told us about the changes that they had made to the top of the mountain, and when we got there, we understood what she meant. A large modern and trendy hotel has replaced whatever was there before, and the prices were to match. However we were too hungry to be too choosy, and a very snooty waiter graciously served us with beers and overpriced bowls of soup, but we did have a fantastic view sitting in the sun on the terrace while we were eating it.

Then we set off to explore the vinyards and countryside, and hopefully to find a Heuriger or two. This did not prove as easy as the guide books had suggested. Either they were shut [some inexplicably close on Sundays,] or just not there at all. The impression we’d had was that they were dotted all over the vinyards, but if they were, we didn’t find them. Several times we found maps at the end of the footpaths which crisscross the hillside, but the inns they showed were very elusive. Eventually, by now somewhat thirsty, we ended up back on the outskirts of Grinzing, and despairing of ever getting a drink, decided to follow signs to Beethoven’s House, where he allegedly spent several summers writing the 6th Symphony. And guess what? Right next door we found a Heuriger, with the tell-tale branch of fir-tree hanging outside to denote that they only sell their own wine. Hooray- thank you Ludwig. This was one of the simpler types of establishment, offering only their own wines, and only two types – red or white, with soda water or not. So we had a “viertel” of each, and a large bottle of mineral water [which you are sensibly expected to order] and looked about us. The “pub” consisted of an old building, with a courtyard and a garden, all set out with long tables, most of which were occupied but not fully. When our wine arrived, the waitress put a ticket in a glass on our table – these then get added up when you leave and want to pay. Food, if you wanted it, [we didn’t yet] was available from a hot and cold buffet indoors where you could ask for what you wanted and then paid straight away.

After we had slaked our thirst, we decided that we should do homage to the great composer, so we went next door to the Beethovenhaus. Truthfully it wasn’t much – a low building on two levels, with two rooms set out with memorabilia, documents, and music. But it was interesting to see, and to try to imagine him composing all day, and drinking next door all night! Further exploration revealed another Heuriger hidden away on the next corner, which we had to sample of course, but this one was rather more elaborate in its offerings, with a number of different styles of wine available. Again we had our “zwei viertel” and mineral water, and this time, we decided we should try the food as well. DH had what turned out to be roast pork and vegetables, and I had some cold beef and salads, of which there was a terrific choice. All this cost about €15 or so, with the wine costing about €2.50 per glass for the cheapest, going up to €4 or €5 for the best, which are normally sold in half-glasses, or “achtel”. Great self-control was required to resist the temptation to try them all!

I suppose that by now it was about 7pm, so we decided that it might be an idea to get ourselves back to the town proper, where we had seen a bus stop going back to the underground. Of course, on the way we had to pass several more Heuriger [like policemen that all come along together] and one looked particularly enticing, so we went in and tried what they had to offer, accompanied by a pudding of pancakes and plums, which was very nice. Now, we had tried to be very careful with what we drank and had had plenty of water too. But I must confess that at this point our recollections diverge – I am sure that we went to a fourth establishment, though I remember nothing about it – DH maintains that we got straight on the bus after no. 3! Whoever is correct, we did manage to get on the bus, find the underground, AND make our way back to the hotel, without incident. As it was a nice evening, after a cup of tea we went out for a wander round the old town to see it lit up; it was lucky that we chose this evening, as this was the last dry weather that we were to enjoy for some time.

Tomorrow – what to do in Vienna in the wet.

When we lived in Vienna, our apartment was in Nussdorf which is at the very end of the D Tram line. I wish i had a nickel for everytime I rode that tram!

We have also been up to Kahlenberg and spent quite a few nights in Grinzing at a heuriger called the Weinbotich which was a favorite of my husband's boss. We were always treated very well when we were with him and I got Arnold Schwarzennegger's autograph one night when we were there. It was right after Conan came out and before he was a "star".

I have a lot of wonderful memories of Vienna.

I'm enjoying your report. I loved the Klimts, especially "The Kiss," of course.

I've been to Vienna a couple of times, but I'm going back in September. One of the things I want to do is to take the "Third Man" tour. I'll have to do the Friday one, I guess.

I really hope the weather is better when I am in Vienna.

hi bettyk,

have i thanked you yet for your help in planning our trip? certainly our half day exploring the Heuriger was one of the best, so thanks for all the tips. ditto with Hallstadt which is coming up soon.

Peg - looking at the Klimts wasn't easy - they were surrounded by tour groups all the time we were there. in the end, we had to use our elbows to get a good view.

you would be VERY unlucky to get weather as bad as ours. hope you enjoy your trip!

Ann, I'm just sorry you had such crummy weather. I know how that can put a "damper" on your vacation!

Hi, ann,

I love the idea of the funny busts.

Would love to bump into you in a Heuriger and toss back a couple. You two are fun to travel with after the fact even.

AM

hi stoke,

not sure we were too much fun, at the time. Some of it is more entertaining in retrospect.

but the Heuriger were a REAL highlight, all the better because we didn't really know what to expect.

regards, ann

Hi ann, I'm waiting for the next installment! Too busy with your ?

bookmarking

hi yk,

had to go what they call in these parts "up country" for a funeral I'm afraid.

but back now, and hoping to add some more soon as a I can.

Chucks being looked after by others, I'm pleased to say.

regards, ann

Sorry to hear that, ann.

Sorry, ann.

thanks, stoke, yk,

she was an old and dear friend who'd have been 90 next week. She died at home with her children round her and quietly slipped away. we had a lovely service with one of her students who is assistant organist at Westminster Abbey playing [she was a music teacher] and then went back to her house for a party with lots of tears and laughter. she'd have loved it.

we used to write regularly and in one of my last letters to her I described the performance of Aida we saw in Vienna - WHICH IS COMING UP NEXT. so she had a sneak preview.

Maybe you'll have time to tell us about Aida when the Ashes die down.

yes, I know - more important things to do at the moment. the whole family is obsessed, and they can stay at home tomorrow [last day of the match] while I go to work. it's not fair.