A Moveable Feast: Vienna Waits for You

Last weekend I went to visit a good friend of mine from AU who is spending the spring semester in Vienna. I flew in Bratislava Friday evening, thinking until the day before that Bratislava was in Austria. Wrong, it's the capital of Slovakia. Then I took a bus from the airport in Bratislava to downtown Vienna. Stepping off the plane in Bratislava brought back a lot of memories of African airports - this was the first impression I had of Eastern Europe and it kind of surprised me the immediate difference one can see between the East and West.

In Vienna I played the complete tourist. Lauren and I went to the Hofburg Palace to see the library, we stepped inside Stephansdom, went to the summer residence of Maria Teresa, rode the famous ferris wheel, and explored an open air market. I can't decide though if my favorite part was the cafes or the opera. Cafes in Vienna are fabulous. Each is different with either an elegant, but inviting feel or a smoky, cluttered, and chaotic twist. What I loved the most is that no matter the setting the waiter always came out in a tuxedo to take our order. Alslo, in Vienna to make sure everyone who wants to sit has a seat they combine groups at tables. For example two girls are having coffee at a table for 4 and so the waiter adds another couple to the table. I really don't think that would go over too well in the US. My other favorite was the opera. Lauren and I stood in line for an hour to get standing room tickets at the Vienna Opera house. We saw the Flying Dutchman by Wagner and for so many reasons I was blown away.

Vienna was the perfect weekend away, but I am glad to be back in Paris where I don't feel completely foreign anymore.