Waltzing through Vienna

So, with the Brno adventure over, I made my way to Vienna. Martin, from Brno, had emailed me the day prior, very serious about meeting up on my first evening there. We agreed to find our way to the main church in Vienna (St. Stephan's) at 19:00 and head off to find beer. So, after dropping my stuff, I headed off to do a little sightseeing on my own (for those who are interested, the Hofborg Castle is one of the best museum's I've visited on this trip and made me want to grow up to be a Hapsburg), munched on finger sandwiches at an open bar and then met Martin. We drank our beer by the Danube, talked more politics and the headed off to meet Julia, a German teacher in Vienna who Martin had met through the internet, at a little bar way outside of the tourist district.

And thus began the glory of Vienna.

Martin and I were inseparable for my three days there. We would meet up at noon or 13.00, grab a bite to eat and then start strolling. We swung by the Opera house, strolled through Naschmarket (an open air food market), swam in (more or less) the Danube, walked, chatted, drank coffee, watched open-air concerts projected on huge screens and met a huge number of Viennese. Martin is part of an online community called Hospitality Club, a way for travelers to meet locals and those not traveling to meet travelers. Julia invited us to a few get-togethers with her friends, so I had the chance to meet up with teachers, professors, journalists, college students, humanitarian aid workers... a whole slew of Viennese who spoke perfect English and were eager to chat. Our last evening was spent with Julia and her friends at a horror film festival (they were showing King Kong with subtitles, thankfully), riding on a huge Ferris wheel and then sipping cocktails at a beach-side bar and chatting late into the night.

Now, perhaps my experience of Vienna is not as true as it could have been. I missed most of Rick Steve's recommended sights, failed to check out Freud and Mozart's apartments, didn't make it to a wine bar (although I drank lots of good wine) and probably couldn't give you very good tourist information about Vienna. But, for all the tourism and sights I missed, Vienna is, perhaps, my favorite stop so far. Martin, Julia, Daniel and everybody else I met are amazing people who shaped my Vienna beautifully. I got to meet people, savor Viennese food, sip the wine and develop a sense for what it means to be Austrian today. Plus, my European address book is now filled with email addresses of people I am eager to keep up with.

And that I wouldn't trade for anything.