So... after an uneventful train journey we arrived in Vienna and headed off in search of the Parents' holiday apartment. It was about two seconds from Pilgramgasse U Bahn station so a very good location. After a brief stop to drop luggage we went to the Museums Quartier:
What better way to start a trip to Vienna than with a nice cold beer in the sun? It was laaaahvely. We also managed to fit in some pizza and the first delicious ice cream of the week. I think it's fair to say that the Parents were suitably impressed with the first day of their Viennese jaunt.
I had to work a couple of hours at the beginning of the week, so on Monday I sent Mr and Mrs Blackbird to the Prater for a spin on the Riesenrad. I could think of no better place to go for lunch than the Naschmarkt so we had some delicious falafel from my favourite man. This is a photo I have been meaning to take since the stalls stopped selling scarves and started selling sunglasses:
Actually, that reminds me of an excellent joke- what's pink and fuzzy and wears sunglasses? A peach on a beach. The Route March continued. This poor Merman is getting tired of holding up the whole fountain. Life in Vienna is never easy, that's for sure!
Many, many photographs were taken, and it was exhausting so we thought we'd better go for a sit down in the Burggarten. I was told not to put up any incriminating photos, hope this one does not cause any offence.
One of the (many) lovely things about my final set of visitors was that I had one last chance to do all the touristy things. I also did something new... I saw the Minoritenkirche. It looks a bit concretey I thought, but it is clearly very old and inside is quite nice.
The best thing about it though is that once you see it, you know you're only a few steps away from the absolute number one best thing ever in Vienna... CAFE CENTRAL! The Parents were huuuuuge fans and spent a long time deliberating about which cake to have:
Everyone was pleased with their choice. They are so delicious, I can almost taste it now in fact!
This is the Hofburg reflected in the window of Valentino. The dresses there are always so nice. One day I will be Rich and Successful and able to afford nice things.
The Viennese seem to be excellent at timing their restoration works very poorly. What better time to take things away and cover things in scaffolding than in the summer when there are millions of tourists coming to see the city? Mr Strauss has been gone since April, but luckily they have replaced him with a temporary version. Sadly it is a little small:
Only joking! There is a full size plastic version, perfect for posing Parents!
On Tuesday I had to work again, but after a lunch of noodles (and some rather shocking chopstick technique!) we were off on another Route March. Actually, that is not strictly true. We were invited for coffee on Brigitte's roof terrace. There was time for a quick stop in the Volksgarten though to ooh and aah at the beautiful roses.
Brigitte's roof terrace is AMAZING. You could see pretty much the whole city. Must get a good job and become rich in order to achieve a nice lifestyle with a Perfect Flat. After this and a picnic tea, I went to evening school for the last time ever. It felt fabulous to be finished, so we went for a celebratory beer.
The next day it was a bit rainy, but that didn't stop the keen explorers. We paid a visit to the Karlskirche (another first for me!)
It was really rather fancy and Baroquey (possibly) inside. I was overjoyed to see a tribute to my second favourite Catholic!
There is a lift up into the dome of the church so you can see the paintings. It was really impressive.
I am not sure if this is blasphemous, sorry if it is, but LOOK, NO HANDS!
It brightened up a bit so we went to see the Postsparkasse, because I thought it was only right that I included some Jugendstil in the tour!
There are lots of different, not always pleasant, sensory experiences in Vienna. There seems to be a disproportionate number of Smelly/Dirty People. Sometimes there are Funny Characters too.
This season, black is the new black!
After a piece of pizza for Dad and I, and a very messy falafel for Mother, we went to the Rathaus, where much silliness occurred.
Some of you may be aware of this song:
Everyone knows that kebabs make you more beautiful. Or maybe...
...they make you more stupid. I think I know what Mr Boring would day! I think this next photograph has appeared in pretty much every guide book written about Vienna EVER.
This one, not so much. There is some weird stuff in Vienna. This had something to do with human rights.
Father is something of a beer connoisseur , so I took him to Siebenstern. They brew all their own beer on premises and have lots of different ones. My favourite is the smoky beer, and the chilli beer inspired Father to create his own. My tastebuds are positively tingling with anticipation!
Mrs Blackbird had a rest back at the apartment so Father and I went to Karlsplatz and took almost identical photos, before going to the Naschmarkt to pick up a picnic tea.
Against our better judgement, we wandered by the Oper to see the ballet which was being shown on the big screen. It was an homage to Jerome Robbins, whoever he is when he's at home, and I have discovered that I am not a fan of Philip Glass music unless it is a film soundtrack.
The only funny thing was the two children dancing along. They reminded me of a brother and sister combination that I know rather well actually...
The Thursday was a Feiertag for something Catholic, and was thus a very bad day to try and go up Stephansdom.
So instead we had to go and take some more photos. I took about 900 over the course of the week. Mrs Blackbird took more like 9000 by my reckoning!
Dad made a rather shrewd observation which tied in nicely with one of mine from a few months ago- the Austrians are OBSESSED with dogs, particularly those of the impractically small variety!
I have had no need for my Mountain Delights during my year of city life, though I do still think about them on a regular basis.
After all our walking, we deserved a trip to a cafe. This time it was Demel. I will miss the smell of the Sachertorte as you walk past the kitchen.
I will miss the beautiful icing creations in the shop and in the window.
I will also miss the delicious cake, which I sadly neglected to photograph. Somehow I don't think this post will be short on photos though!
Vienna is the city of music. On rollerskates, apparently.
Ever since my first day at work when I saw it from the tram, I have been meaning to photograph the Russian church near Rennweg. Finally I got round to it.
At the Polish church opposite the Belvedere there is a statue of my all time, number one favourite Catholic ever!
Who would have thought my two favourites would appear in the same blog post? Speaking of favourites, I took Mother to Cafe Schwarzenberg. This is my favourite cafe to go to just for coffee and not cake.
We were very excited for the Sommernachtskonzert at Schoenbrunn (sorry, no more umlauts now I'm not using a German keyboard!). It was a bit sad that Daddy wasn't feeling well enough to come...
But then I got a phonecall saying he had arrived and was looking for us! So all's well that ends well!
It was brilliant, a real highlight of the trip. The atmosphere was fabulous and the music excellent. I can take no credit for the next photo, it was taken by someone much taller, and with a much steadier hand. Can't think who it might have been.
Ding ding round two, we finally made it up Stephansdom. It was worth the wait.
The view from the Kahlenberg was excellent, as was the mountain picnic, but what impressed me the most was the array of postcards on sale in the souvenir shop.
My lucky Parents were treated to a glimpse into almost all aspects of Vienna life. Well, the good ones anyway. We went to a Heuriger in Grinzing where it rained very heavily but luckily we were under a roof enjoying our wine and Almdudler (not mixed together, that would just be wrong!)
The service at Zanoni und Zanoni is furchtbar, but the Eis is pretty good:
Saturday was sadly the last day but there was a Blaskapelle festival which meant lots of brass bands across the city. We only saw one on Stephansplatz but it was a good start to the day.
Nobody can come to Vienna without going to Aida. I will miss the pink uniforms and brown tights. And the cake and coffee.
Schoenbrunn by day was lovely and it was really hot.
The ongoing joke of the week was this:
We encountered the Bikers of Christ. Yes, for real.
And then it was time to say so long, farewell, auf wiedersehen, adieu to the beloved Parents. I was sad to wave them off at the bus station but also excited because it meant only a couple more days before my return to Engerland!
Sorry for this colossal post, but now it is out of the way. I am am back in the nest and it is ever so lovely. There will probably not be many more posts after this one. Sniff sniff. Perhaps I will do a "best of Vienna" type review. That will be pretty short hahahaha. TTFN, dears!
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