Vienna 2012
Photo album: https://leoniekephotos.nl/s/public/vienna-2012
Day 1 On the train
(July 27, 2012)
(Short notes on my train ride)
Den Haag CS - Utrecht CS
Early phonecall from mom, who happened to be awake when I had to get up … hmm suspicious! ;-)
My taxi was perfectly on time, which meant that I could take an earlier train, because I’d rather wait for the next train while at Utrecht than at Den Haag: the latter is more of a building site than the former.
Gentleman in the first class quiet train section is an expert at loudly sniffing and snorting every single minute.
Utrecht CS
Too early and in the middle of the vacation period, so not enough people to watch.
Decided to get a coffee at Starbucks where I also suckered myself (eh?) into buying a ceramic refillable mug; will get a refill when at Franfkurt Hbf.
Utrecht CS - Frankfurt am Main Hbf
My reserved seat is a single seat, but as the first class section is very empty, I’ve decided to move to a two-seater: love the space and the quiet.
Behind me two elderly ladies from Suriname are chatting away. In front of me, two gentlemen (seem to be casual acquaintances) are planning their weekend getaway.
Dusseldorf Hbf
Whew! Panic! All of a sudden as we’re entering Dusseldorf Hbf, we get an announcement to change trains. All of us have to move from platform 16 to platform 17 (down the stairs, up the stairs). As we’re settling in, we get the announcement that our current train was not technically able to go into the Netherlands, so the passengers travelling to Amsterdam got our train. For a few minutes it was quite confusing, but after a delay of about 10 minutes, we continued on the way to Frankfurt.
Frankfurt am Main Hbf
A large open station, with large locomotives running their engines: recipe for a large warm station! Placed my luggage in a locker, which made for easier walking around.
Frankfurt am Main Hbf - Wien Westbahnhof
I’ve never seen a first class section of a train so crowded! No chance of exchanging my single seat for a two-seater, but I was happy with my own little space!
For such a long train journey (about 7 hours), it was remarkably unremarkable!
Arrived in Vienna right on time and after a quick check, took the U3/U2 towards the apartment I’m renting this week. Let the fun begin!
Day 2
(July 28, 2012)
After a quick stop at the local Spar supermarket, I took the U2 down to Schottentor, where - according to Wikipedia - I would find the former Palais Ephrussie[1. “The history of the building and the family is described in great detail in “The Hare with Amber Eyes” by Edmund de Waal, whose grandmother - Elisabeth de Waal née Ephrussi, born 1899 - spent there her childhood and youth; De Waal combined the first hand information from her with extensive research in available documents.” Source: wikipedia].
Slowly I made my way down to the Graben. Even though it was 10AM, temperatures were rising. Shops on and around the Graben are expensive and exclusive (just count the number of intimidating doormen), and the tourists are plentiful. The Stephansdom is great to look at, but as they’re restoring it, half of it is hidden behind scaffolding. Walking around I found myself on the Neue Markt where I had some tea (very refreshing in this heat!) at the Oberlaa Kurkonditorei.
On Saturdays at 10:45Am a charming mixed group of men, all dressed in their finest historic uniform, gathers and they play & march to a few favorite tunes. They start at the corner of Kolhmarkt and Graben, and they walk down the Kohlmarkt towards the Hofburg.
Afterwards I walked over to the Wiener Statsoper where I took tram 1 just one stop to the Burggarten. A warm breeze helped me cool down, and even though the Neue Hofburg is very impressive (it houses the Austrian National Library), the temperature made it hard to enjoy. It was time for a siesta!
As we’ve only had this high temperatures (and not even this high!) for a few days back home, I find it difficult to acclimatize. I bet that by the time I leave again next week, I’ll be fully used to the Summer highs just as I was way back during my year in Georgia, USA.
After about two hours back at the apartment, I braved the city again, continuing where I left off: the Hofburg area. This whole section is very impressive and I am looking forward to returning in a few days for the official tour around the stables and such of the Spanish Riding School.
Day 3
(July 29, 2012)
Again, early to bed and early to rise. My uncle had told me about the streetcar museum and as I can remember the little red streetcars from the visit to Vienna with my parents, I took the tram line 2 (there’s a stop right outside my apartment) to Stubbentor and changed to U3 to Schlachthausgasse and walked towards the main entrance of the Wiener Straßenbahnmuseum.
The Viennese red streetcars are wonderful! And the museum has so many older models that I could not stop taking photos of them. There were very few people around and most of them natives. If you’re ever in Vienna for a longer period of time, why not forget about all the Habsburg palaces and visit this little gem?
Within a few stops, the U3 took me back to the center of town to the Stephansplatz. Earlier this month, while I was planning and researching all my sight-seeing goals, I had decided to visit the Stephansdom and be part of a church service. I must confess, I didn’t. My visit to the streetcar museum was my moment of contemplation. I did check out a little café friends of mine had advised: Café Diglas. A nice fluffy pastry with berries and chocolate, accompanied by a pot of Darjeeling tea: wonderful!
On my list to visit were the special Gustav Klimt exhibitions. Always open to the public, but this year all with special attention as it’s 150yrs since his birth. The Secession on the Karlsplatz is an amazing building. It’s actually one of the few buildings I clearly remember from my earlier visit. Pure white, square and rectangular shapes, gold and the idea of flowers. A clear idea of what the Secession is and was about can be read from the inscription:
Der Zeit ihre Kunst | Der Kunst ihre Freiheit
Inside are changing exhibitions, but more importantly, it is now also home to the Beethoven Frieze by Gustav Klimt. Beautifully and lovingly restored, kept in a newly build basement (it was very very cold!). You are not allowed to take photographs, because the art is very delicate.
Once outside, the heat hit me. Walking around the beginning of the Naschmarkt I decided to take a little break. Walking around the ring, I stopped at the Museums Quartier where - apart from a wonderful group of museums - I had lunch in the middle of the MQ. Nicely shaded, with a bit of a breeze I watched the people walk by. We were even entertained by a large group of emo/goth/steampunk kids who had gathered to take a group photo. After lunch I went back the apartment for a little break (and to upload some photos).
Later that evening, I took the tram back towards the ring, because there were a few places still to check out. One of them the holocaust memorial on the Judenplatz. Very impressive and poignant. A quick bite to eat from a Würstelstand and back to the apartment to get some sleep/rest.
Day 4
(July 30, 2012)
Growing up my mother was smart enough to introduce me the wonderful and alien world of the Sissi movies trilogy. And Vienna’s Schönbrunn is certainly the place where you can feel this wonder.
The Palmenhaus is an amazing old-fashioned hothouse, build with iron and rivets. The hardcore industrialist look is filled to the brim with gorgeous green plant life. Amazing circulair staircases are draped with curly plants and flowers; a soft mist is sprouting from the upper railings coating all the greens with the moisture and humidity they need.
Continuing outside, I walked the lanes towards the renowed Neptune fountain situated between the actual Schönbrunn Palace and the Gloriette. As people wandered around the paths of the formal garden, I took a seat on one of the benches and I munched on a fresh Kaiserbrödchen. People watching is a nice way to occupy your time.
I continued my trek across the gardens towards the palace’s private garden called the Crown Prince Rudolf Garden. Tucked away towards one side of the palace, it is simply a little gem. I’ve taken so many photos that instead of adding them only to my Vienna flickr set, I’ve also created a separate set of only the Schönbrunn photos.
After this visit, I took the U-Bahn back into town and I decided to visit another classic: Café Sperl. Inside a spectecular collection of wood and shiny lamps, but with this great weather, I opted for lunch outside.
Again, I took a break by going back to my apartment: uploading photos, taking a nap, and doing some grocery shopping. Later that afternoon, I continued checking items off my sight-seeing list. This time a visit to Karlsplatz part two. I’d already visited one side of the area (see my post on Day 2), but now it was time for another amazing building and its neighbor: a church.
The Karlsplatz Stadtbahn Station designed by Otto Wagner is an iconic sight. Seemingly lost against the splendor of for instance the building of the Wiener Musikverein, these two buildings are just adorable and filled with gorgeous Jugendstil details.
Another remarkable building on the Karlsplatz is of course the Karlskirche. Not one of my favorite buildings, as sometimes too much is simply too much! However, I did not want to skip seeing this monstrosity, as it is part of the iconic buildings in Vienna.
Opting for an internationally themed dinner, I stopped at a TGIF’s where I had a nice, juicy hamburger accompanied by a mojito (or two).
Day 5
(July 31, 2012)
Another morning, another start of a warm day.
I decided to take my breakfast at Café Griensteidl, and what better than to sit outside watching the fiakers assemble at the Michaelerplatz in front of the Hofburg complex. This café is frequented by the fiaker drivers and I was witness to some lovely viennese dialects, none of which I understood!
Afterwards I trekked across the Hofburg(s) and the Heldenplatz towards the two large museum buildings of the Naturhistorisches Museum and the Kunsthistorisches Museum. The latter has a large variety of beautiful collections, but I was only interested in the special construction on display to view the sections in the main hall designed and painted by Gustav Klimt. Again, I was not allowed to take photographs, but when I checked the set-up out across the landing of the hallway, I was able to snap at least one photo that is even fairly decent!
As it was nearing the full hour, I decided to hike back to the other side of the old center of town to see the Anker Uhr. This special clock is in the middle of a building site, and when the clock hit One, nothing much happened. Supposedly I was to hear a piece of music by Joseph Haydn, but I only saw the figure of Marcus Aurelius move away to make place for the figure of Joseph Haydn. A bit disappointing as I was waiting for close to 10 minutes in the heat.
Taking tram 2 back to my apartment, I decided to visit the Karmeliter market to get some lunch. A nice sheep’s cheese brie with some fresh bread really hit the spot. Back at the apartment I felt really tired (I hadn’t slept much the night before, too much noise out on the street below), and I decided to just chill and relax. I basically did not do much for the rest of the day. I guess I needed this time off!
Day 6
(August 1, 2012)
After my extended downtime, today I was ready to hit the town and visit more of the buildings and sights I still had on my list.
I decided to try to rent a bike using the City Bike Wien plan. As in Paris, here you can sign up and rent a bike for free for the first hour. You pick out one at a set bike station, bike to wherever you want to go and you return the bike to another station. When you stay within the hour, it’s for free; if you go over, you pay a small amount for that extra hour. Right around the corner from my apartment there was such a bike station and I picked a beauty.
Biking to the Prater because I just had to see the Riesenrad. From there on I biked over to the Hundertwasser Haus. I parked my bike at the designated station and walked towards this great building. This housing project (I cannot imagine you can live in peace and quiet there, because the number of tourists brought in by busses is just amazing) was controversial in its day, but nowadays I think it’s brought a new prosperity to what is otherwise an uneventul section of town with public housing flats.
Hundertwasser saw how these housing projects could be changed, and boy, he certainly changed how you look at otherwise decent but boring grey buildings. Such detail and color! It was great walking around and listening to the comments of all the tourists. Some quite forgot that the building has occupants, because I found them quite rude trying to open doors and pressing doorbells.
When I’d seen all I wanted to see, I walked back to the bike station, but I discovered that somehow my account had been blocked. Fearing that my credit card was going to be charged the amount for a lost bike (€600), I tried to phone the company. Too bad my mobile phone blocked me from the cheap austrian area code. Luckily I found a pay phone, and I was able to explain what I had done. They explained I had not put away the bike properly (wait for the green light to stop flashing!) and they unblocked my account. Phew!
The rest of the day I had no more problems checking out bikes when I needed them. If I’d known how easy this program was, I’d probably used the City Bike plan for all days except perhaps when I visited Schönbrunn.
Back on track, I biked over to the building of the Österreichische Postsparkasse (P.S.K.). Another architectural beauty by Otto Wagner. Inside they have a small museum explaining about the Postsparkasse and Otto Wagner’s architecture. I treated myself to some beautifully designed porcelain mugs (with real gold, mind you!).
Picking up another bike, a rode around the Ringstraße. Deciding to go into the center of town again (I still wanted to do some shopping), I choose the Stephansplatz bike station and I walked towards Zum Schwarzen Kameel: a restaurant, a bar, a pastry/chocolate shop and a delicatessen store. A walking lunch of fresh bread and fresh juice, I checked out some of the smaller streets in the center of town. However, one more building was on my sight-seeing list. Another bike and off I went!
The Belvedere buildings in the Belvedere gardens: the Upper Belvedere is host to a large collection of Gustav Klimt art, including his famous paintings of the Kiss and Judith. At the Upper Belvedere, I had a quiet dinner mostly watching other people run around the park.
Finally I felt I had seen all I wanted to see in this city. Of course, I could have checked out more museums and historical buildings, but after these intense five days of sight-seeing you get to a point where you cannot see anything anymore.
On my way back to the apartment, I did bike around the Stadtpark and I simply could not return home without taking a photo of another of Vienna’s classics: Johann Strauß II. With the moon over his right shoulder, the gold gleaming, I was ready to say goodbye to this wonderful city.
Considering I easily really planned my trip only about one month ago, I feel that I will certainly visit again!
Day 7
(August 2, 2012)
Train ride from The Hague to Vienna (and back again) from Leonieke Aalders on Vimeo.
TAGS:- Den Haag CS
- Frankfurt Main Hauptbahnhof
- Passau
- Utrecht CS
- Wien Westbahnhof
- Vacation
- Vakantie
- Vienna
- Wenen
- Wien