Smack dab center of the city, this prominent cathedral has a commanding presence in Stephansplatz.
Our full fledged Viennese dinner at Restaurant Pürstner.
Austria
I was not expecting to be swept off my feet by Vienna's beguiling architecture, warm people and delicious food, but I certainly was. I visited this gorgeous city twice and both times, I was enchanted by everything the city had to offer. Although I only visited Vienna, I can confidently say that Austria is one of the most underrated places I've been.
Mariana and I arrived to Vienna on a beautiful Friday afternoon. After taking a small coffee break at the airport, we found ourselves aboard the metro on the way to our hostel. We stayed a bit outside downtown Vienna at A&T Hostel in a 4 bedroom dorm and ensuite bathroom. Luckily we were the only 2 in the room for both days. After dropping our bags off, we decided to venture into the heavily populated part of the city near Stephanplatz Square. Shortly after, we found ourselves smitten with Vienna, blown away by the city's beauty and kindness of its inhabitants.
As the sun slowly descended, we wandered around the city's winding paths and stumbled upon too many beautiful buildings to count. Around that time, offices were letting out and we were soon caught up in rush hour foot traffic. While we sat on a bench and decided where to eat dinner, we couldn't help but envy the sophisticated Austrians strutting around their charming city on a gorgeous Friday night.
My best friend Lindzi, studied abroad in Graz, Austria for a year and urged us to have the renowned Viennese schnitzel for dinner. There was no need for arm twisting when I learned that their famous delicacy is essentially fried breaded meat. We wanted a non-touristy restaurant and settled on at Restaurant Pürstner after a bit if research and wandering. We sat outside amongst the strolling pedestrians and devoured our incredible schnitzel and potato salad (I swear they put drugs in this because it is divine) while washing it all down with a Puntigamer, an Austrian beer. Tummy full and slightly buzzed, we walked around Stephanplatz a bit more after dinner before heading back to the hostel for the night.
TRAVEL TIPS: AUSTRIA
Download the Vienna Metro map (or whatever transit you're taking) on your phone.
Next time I was in Vienna:
Day 1: Bike tour around the city with Tommy, cooked dinner and hung out
Day 2: Missed bus but explore more of the city, awesome thai food, and left for Berlin that night
DAY 1: VIENNA ENCHANTMENTS
The next morning, we awoke to a warm and sunny day. There seemed to be a cluster of interesting places where we were the night before so we decided to venture back to Stephanplatz Square and explore that area. We were following a Tripadvisor walking tour on their Cityguide App, but soon got too distracted by the amount of beauty we were surrounded by. We soon found ourselves at the famed Albertina Museum, and paid a €12.50 fee to wander around Vienna's prominent art museum. We weren't allowed to take pictures in the museum but it was worth seeing if you're an admirer of the arts. I, myself, get often confused why some artists make it so big when I've seen street artists who are more talented that remain anonymous. But in any case, the Albertina was an impressive place to visit and the exterior was majestic.
After the museum, we strolled through the university area near the musuem and to our wonderment, it was straight out of one of those idyllic college movies. The ones you watch and wonder if such a quaint and perfect campus even exists. But there it was, groups of students clustered around the quad while trees and greenery hugged the edges of the space. Everyone was picnicing, drinking, and smoking with huge smiles plastered on their faces. It was at that point, Mariana solemnly sweared to love Vienna forever.
I had read one of the treasures in Vienna was delighting in the illustrious sachertorte at Café Sacher Wien. As described on their website, "The basis of the entire confection is a chocolate cake, thinly coated by hand with best-quality apricot jam. The chocolate icing on top of it is the crowning glory. It tastes best with a portion of unsweetened whipped cream." As you can imagine, I completely indulged in this sumptous treat with a glass of Prosecco and felt utterly blissful. Again Vienna, how you delight me. Marianna spent the rest of the day roaming the streets of Vienna before finding a delicious Mexican restaurant by the name Taqueria Los Mexikos (Tripadvisor Link).
DAY 2-3: MUSEUMS, CAKE & ZOOS, OH MY
Exit to the adjacent street from Albertina.
Erected after the great plague in 1693, this 69 ft gilded column pays homage to the many who lost their lives to the infectious disease. It is covered by a net to protect from bird dropping. We saw many pieces protected by this netting and realized that was what kept Vienna looking so spotless.
Hells YES. -- Sachertorte at Hotel Sacher Wien
After the museum, we strolled through the university area near the musuem and to our wonderment, it was straight out of one of those idyllic college movies. The ones you watch and wonder if such a quaint and perfect campus even exists. But there it was, groups of students clustered around the quad while trees and greenery hugged the edges of the space. Everyone was picnicing, drinking, and smoking with huge smiles plastered on their faces. It was at that point, Mariana solemnly sweared to love Vienna forever.
I had read one of the treasures in Vienna was delighting in the illustrious sachertorte at Café Sacher Wien. As described on their website, "The basis of the entire confection is a chocolate cake, thinly coated by hand with best-quality apricot jam. The chocolate icing on top of it is the crowning glory. It tastes best with a portion of unsweetened whipped cream." As you can imagine, I completely indulged in this sumptous treat with a glass of Prosecco and felt utterly blissful. Again Vienna, how you delight me. Marianna spent the rest of the day roaming the streets of Vienna before finding a delicious Mexican restaurant by the name Taqueria Los Mexikos (Tripadvisor Link).
The next day, we journeyed to the edge of the earth (end of the Vienna metro) to visit Schönbrunn Palace. When we got to the palace to buy tickets, I realized I was kind of over seeing how the ultra rich lived in the whatever-th century so I told Marianna I would visit the Vienna zoo and we could meet up later. I walked about 10 minutes and was soon surrounded by rowdy children and exotic animals at the Vienna zoo, which is the world's oldest zoo. As much as I've always adored zoos, it pains me to see animals trapped in petty enclosures, which aren't even a tenth of the size of their natural habitat. But in any case, it was a delightful visit and I saw my first panda bears and koalas. A couple hours later, I met with Mariana and we headed back into town. We had one last dinner and bade farewell to Vienna the next morning. We journeyed onwards to Prague, but always treasuring our perfect visit to Vienna.
And um, that means zoo. Spotted my first Pandas!
DAY 1-2, PART 2: BIKE TOUR & GREAT NEW FRIENDS
After my last week in Copenhagen, I wanted one last unforgettable adventure before I jetted off to Thailand. My flight was out of Berlin in 3 days but decided to spend the remainder of my time in Vienna with a new friend instead of killing time in Berlin alone. On my bus ride from Lagos, Portugal to Seville, Spain, I met a charming Austrian named Tommy and we bonded for the entire 6 hour ride on our cross-border travels. Tommy invited to host me in Vienna, so that pretty much sealed the deal. Though it was a exhausting journey from Copenhagen to Vienna (essentially an overnight 12 hour bus from Copenhagen to Berlin then another 8 hour bus ride from Berlin to Vienna), it was worth it to hang out in one of my favorite cities with my new friend one last time.
When I got to Vienna, I spent the first night in the hostel and met up with Tommy the morning after.