Vienna - Architectural Cosmopolitan

Sitting on the RER B train from CDG all the way to Jouy-en-Josas, I’m reflecting on my 3 day tour – vite fait – in Vienna.

This was my first weekend outside of France since arriving in my apartment in Paris. It was a weekend filled with majestic buildings and mother/daughter bonding time.

Here are just a few of the specatular buildings and tourist sites that Vienna has to offer.

First, and foremost, Viennese people love their sweets. Before noon on the Friday morning that I arrived, people were filling up on massive sundaes, gelatos, coffees with whip cream, the works. My Mom arrived and immediately started talking about the Sacher Tart and the apple strudels and the walnut cakes that I had to try. The stage was set. We checked out 2 of the most renowned cafes in the city. Café Centrale and Demel. Both offered decadent desserts and unique dining ambiances. We also made a late night stop at Café Sacher, at the Hotel Sacher. This “sacher torte” is the most infamous dessert in Vienna. To be honest, it just tastes like a flavoured chocolate cake – it is made with apricot jam and the icing is a rich layer of sticky chocolate (which was the best part).

In terms of the whirlwind of other touristy visits, I recommend the palaces. The first day, in gorgeous 20 degree sun, we visited the Schonbrunn. It was massive. The imperial rooms were fantastic and the gardens were the best of the 3 palaces we saw. My favourite was the walk through the property to the Galleria, which overlooked the back of the palace. The following day we visited Hofburg Palace, which is right near the city centre. It was the home to Empress Sisi, who is apparently very well known in Europe.  I had never heard of her before this trip. She has a fantastic story, which my Mom liked to equate to that of Diana Princess of Wales. Although I don’t really agree with my Mom’s comparison, I would agree that her disaccord with the publicity surrounding royalty is potentially similar to Diana’s point of view. The imperial apartments here were equally stunning to those of Schrunbronn. Both places had the most beautiful chandeliers, which I came to understand, is common around Vienna. The final palace we visited was Belvedere. Also in the city, but a little further than Hofburg, the Belvedere is actually 2 separate palaces, both of which are art museums. There were some amazing pieces and a great exhibit on “sleeping beauties” (or women, or something like that).

Upper Belvedere Palace

The Stattsopera house is also a MUST see. I was fortunate enough to go to the ballet with my Mom. We saw Onegin. Although I don’t think the dancing was as good as the National Ballet of Canada, the venue made up for it. My Mom even went back the following day and saw a part of an opera for 3 euros in the standing room section! Final tourist point that is worth going into is St. Stephan’s Cathedral. The main mass on Sundays at 10:15am is about 2 hours long I think, but we went to a latin service in the basement (during the main German service), that lasted about 45 mins. Either way, German or Latin, we weren’t really following what was going on ;)

Overall comments on the city – it is exquisite for a weekend. I don’t think I could ever live there though. It’s not very dynamic, and although cosmopolitan, it lacks the heart of some cities I’ve been to. I think it’s a bit of a big city, that grew up too quickly.