What a day ....... I got up fairly early in the morning and started exploring the city. My hotel is right downtown, close to the Stephan's Dom. So I am right smack in the middle. At first I got lost a couple of times since I had some issues with the map. However, after circling my hood a couple of times I finally found my way back. Vienna is almost comparable to Prague, although Prague seems to be the "older" city, meaning the dominant building and architectural styles seem to be older. After working on my blog to finish the Prague section and some more exploring it started raining and I decided to visit one of the coffee houses for which Vienna is famous. The service was a little rough and seemed not very friendly (friends had warned me about it), but it seems a common theme and was therefore quite amusing. Especially when the guy at the table next to me returned the "friendliness" of the waiter (they call it "Schmaeh") by calling out with loud and clear voice if "the restaurant is taking any orders today". I spent several hours reading the newspaper and my travel guide, watching people, enjoying a good "Wiener Melange" (espresso cafe with steamed milk, kind of a cappucino) and waited for the rain to stop. It can be a lot of fun doing "nothing".
..... And finally it was time for the game. Germany - Argentina. Lots of people said this should have been the final, well not this time. I had found an Australian sports bar that was packed with Germans, a couple Argentineans and some Austrian Argentineans (Austrian Gauchos wearing the Argentinean colours).... I guess you wonder why they would not support Germany? It is a long story and quite frankly I do not understand the reasons myself. However, during the game some of them changed their opinion and started supporting Germany. It was a very tense game and for long it seamed that all our efforts would not lead to anything. There was one mistake on which Argentina scored early in the second half. Oh boy, then the goal in the 78th minute ..... what a noise!!!!! ...... Everybody was yelling at the top of their lungs, high fives everywhere. Cool! Then overtime, but no goals and then the penalty shootout ....... The rest is history .... we prevailed (do I sound like Bush, ha ha ha) and made it to the semi final.
How could you top this day?
The people from Vienna are crazy about music. I guess especially this year since it is "Mozart Year". Mozart is everywhere .... This night there was something special ..... There is a beautiful castle called "Schoenbrunn". In the amazing gardens they put up a stage for the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra and Placido Domingo as conductor. Behind the stage is a little hill with a smaller palace on top. It was a spectacular backdrop. Hard to describe and I did not bring my camera. Anyways, it could have been a memorable evening, but then it started raining first, then pouring. After less than an hour we (my friend Ernesto and myself) were soaking wet. Finally we decided to call it quits and skip the firework that was supposed to happen later. Too bad ..... We finished up this amazing day with a late night dinner at a small local restaurant. I had a "real" Wiener Schnitzel and potato salad. Very yummy.
..... And finally it was time for the game. Germany - Argentina. Lots of people said this should have been the final, well not this time. I had found an Australian sports bar that was packed with Germans, a couple Argentineans and some Austrian Argentineans (Austrian Gauchos wearing the Argentinean colours).... I guess you wonder why they would not support Germany? It is a long story and quite frankly I do not understand the reasons myself. However, during the game some of them changed their opinion and started supporting Germany. It was a very tense game and for long it seamed that all our efforts would not lead to anything. There was one mistake on which Argentina scored early in the second half. Oh boy, then the goal in the 78th minute ..... what a noise!!!!! ...... Everybody was yelling at the top of their lungs, high fives everywhere. Cool! Then overtime, but no goals and then the penalty shootout ....... The rest is history .... we prevailed (do I sound like Bush, ha ha ha) and made it to the semi final.
How could you top this day?
The people from Vienna are crazy about music. I guess especially this year since it is "Mozart Year". Mozart is everywhere .... This night there was something special ..... There is a beautiful castle called "Schoenbrunn". In the amazing gardens they put up a stage for the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra and Placido Domingo as conductor. Behind the stage is a little hill with a smaller palace on top. It was a spectacular backdrop. Hard to describe and I did not bring my camera. Anyways, it could have been a memorable evening, but then it started raining first, then pouring. After less than an hour we (my friend Ernesto and myself) were soaking wet. Finally we decided to call it quits and skip the firework that was supposed to happen later. Too bad ..... We finished up this amazing day with a late night dinner at a small local restaurant. I had a "real" Wiener Schnitzel and potato salad. Very yummy.
The newly renovated parliament. Mix of Greek and Roman Architecture, kind of.
The "Hofburg", the dominating castle in the city, residence of the ruling family.
1 comment:
"If the restaurant is taking orders today" ... I love it! Great writing, Ralfie ... thanks for bringing us with you!
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