Our European morning routine continued with a truly Continental Breakfast at the hotel. We were not rushed as we were not on a schedule. So after breakfast we took the tram to near the city center for our own walking tour of the city.
Our self-guided city tour began near the Staatsoper. We scouted out coffee houses and restaurants along the way. The Hapsburg Palaces are a large complex that we only saw from one side. That included St Augustin church, where we plan to attend Mass tomorrow morning.
We then headed into the city center to Stephansplatz, and spent some time in and around St Stephen’s Cathedral. Using our Rick Steves book, we took a self-guided tour of the cathedral. The center was blocked, but we could see most of the things noted. Then I climbed the south tower, some 400+ steps to an observation level about 60% of the way to the top. As usual, the views from the tower were wonderful. That afforded me a new perspective on the city, and good views of the tile roof, including its Hapsburg coat of arms.
A highly recommended coffee house, Café Bränerhof, was a good spot for lunch: a cheese plate, rolls, coffee (of course), and pastry. Boy, do they know how to make apple strudel!
We planned to next take the tram around the “ring,” but had trouble making sense of the maps. So we decided instead to go out to Stammersdorf on the outskirts of Vienna across the Danube, another non-tourist spot recommended by Lynne. There are many areas of heuriger around Vienna, but this one is not well known by tourists. It was a long tram ride to the end of the line, and then a several blocks walk to the recommended heuriger, a wine tavern. We only had a glass of wine, plus a bottle to take home. A neat experience we only knew about because of a “local” connection.
On the way back into the city center we combined the tram with a commuter train and the U-bahn. We then walked to dinner at Gösser Bierklinik, a restaurant named for the town where the beer is made. Again with Lynne’s recommendation, we tried some new (to us) uniquely Viennese dishes: Blunzengrösti mit Sauerkraut, (blood sausage with potatoes, sauerkraut and fresh horseradish) and Kalbsbeuschi mit Knoedel (Veal lung, made like gulasch, with a dumpling). Sounds strange, but they were very good. And at least we tried some truly local food.
On the way to the trains, we finished the meal on the street with a lemon gelato. As usual, we found a city with much more to offer than time allows.
No comments:
Post a Comment