Yesterday we decided we were tired of eating breakfast out so we bought some good rolls, butter and cheese to eat this morning and it was great! Almost breakfast in bed. It took a lot less time than going to a restaurant and it gave us a headstart to the day.
I really wanted to go to downtown Vienna today and walk around gawking at the buildings, museums, churches, etc. David studied the subway map, found a subway entrance less than three blocks from our hotel and off we went. The Vienna subway is very nice and clean and safe. We only got to ride it three stops but I do love good mass transit.
When we exited the subway this was the first building we saw. Interesting building decoration, don't you think?
Our first stop was a coffee shop because I hadn't had any coffee yet. I just could not wait any longer. We found a nice cafe, sat in front of a big window and people watched for a little while. Then we headed out to see what we could see. Below is Mozart Park with his statute and a clef carved into the lawn in front of it. Right next door to the park is this statute of a big pink rabbit. Not sure why but it is cute.
We have seen other buildings decorated like this (in Paris, I think), but we like the way it looks so here's a picture.
This "drape" of ornaments was displayed in a window we walked by and the next picture of the church I took because those zig-zag lines are all small mosiac tiles. What intricate work!
All that walking and site seeing is exhausting so it was time for a break. On our guided tour, Christian showed us the Imperial Hotel. It was built as a palace in 1863. The royals sold it five years later and it was converted into a hotel for the 1873 Vienna World's Fair. He told us many famous people had stayed there like Queen Elizabeth II and Charlie Chaplan. Adolph Hitler worked there as a day laborer as a young man and returned as an honored guest in 1938. We walked by the hotel today and, of course, I decided I needed to see it so in we walked. I must confess the lobby is very modest but the accoutrements are fabulous! We used the rest rooms and they were the coolest ones I've ever seen. The toilets are each in their own, fairly large rooms. The hand soap is luxurious as are the hand towels. And the hand lotion provided was incredible. I could have spent a lot more time in there but I heard a fancy dessert calling my name. These chocolate desserts were very decadent!
This chocolate house was on display. It was very intricate.
Just as an aside, when we got back to our hotel I looked up the room rates for the Imperial Hotel. For next week, as an example, you can reserve a twin room at a special rate of around $450.00 per night. From there the rates increase to $518.00 for a king room and $636.00 per night for a junior suite. The Imperial Suite is $3,222.00 per night and they don't even list the price of the three top suites. David wonders why we didn't stay there!!!
When David was finally able to drag me away from this pretentious palace, I mean hotel, we decided there was one more thing we wanted to see/do in Vienna before we left. We wanted to ride the Wiener Risenrad, the giant ferris wheel. He was able to get us there on the subway which was very convenient. The ferris wheel was erected in 1897 and has been featured in a few Hollywood movies. There are eight large cars (rooms) which hold about 12 people. There are also fancy cars which can be rented for private dinners, parties, and even weddings. The ride costs about $12.00 per person and only lasts one turn around the wheel. The views are amazing and we think it would be gorgeous at night too.
It was a fun ride and we are happy we did it. By then it had been a long day and we were ready for a rest. We took the subway back to our hotel and relaxed for awhile before dinner. There was a moment when I thought I lost my glasses but thankfully someone turned them into the front desk at the hotel so I got them back!
We didn't know where we wanted to have dinner so we asked one of the hotel clerks and she recommended a place called Cafe Landtmann. We had heard of it, but had also heard that you have to wait forever to get in. We decided to give it a try and walked over and got seated immediately. Go figure!
This was without a doubt the best meal of our trip so far. David ordered pumpkin risotto which he loved.
I ordered wiener schnitzel (yes, again), and just look at it! It was by the far the best I've ever eaten. I didn't even eat half of it but it was delicious.
For dessert I had chocolate souffle covered with warm milk chocolate and cream (just imagine it!) and David had some kind of yeast rolls filled with vanilla cream served on a bed of vanilla sauce. Really?
On the walk back to the hotel we came across yet one more tree for me to take a picture of David standing in front of. That's all for Vienna!
More from Russia soon!
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