It feels like I’ve been caught in a whirlwind, it’s been so busy, but I’m finally sitting down to write about VIENNA! Last Friday night, Tiny and I caught a (almost) midnight train from Graz to Vienna. I think this was the first time I had been on a train for actual travel …crazy, isn’t it? Subway, bus, tram…but not a train! It was amazing. My preferred mode of travel from now on.
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| Train ride! (Guess who's tired?) |
We stayed with family friends of Tiny’s, who were so generous to meet us at the station and make us feel at home. Thank you! On Saturday, we volunteered for a couple of hours at the Canadian booth at the UN Christmas Bazaar. While one half of our table had assorted baked goods, the other was completely taken up by maple syrup and beer. ;-) You could pinpoint the Canadian buyers almost immediately – as soon as they spied the baking, they’d rush over and squeal, “Nanaimo bars!” We opted for the maple fudge. :-D
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| The Canada booth...see the Mountie in the back? ;-) |
Afterwards, we had some time to browse the tables. Of course, since this blog is now universally considered food-themed (though peppered here and there with other non-culinary details), I have to mention that we tried Kenyan and Armenian food, along with Australian pavlova and Brazil’s signature drink, caipirinha! Delicious.
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| Kenyan food! |
After buying lots of Christmas gifts and feasting our eyes on all the beautiful displays, we went to Karlsplatz to see the traditional Austrian Christmas markets, and then headed to the opera. I’m not really an opera fan, but I absolutely love Puccini’s “La Boheme” and I’ve always wanted to see it live. Where better than the Vienna State Opera?! It was incredible. Beautiful sets, powerful singing, and jealousy-inspiring playing. We had seats right over the orchestra pit, and I could see the violists. J
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| Traditional Christmas markets at Karlsplatz. |
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| At the opera. |
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| We were in a small booth really close to the stage! |
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| The orchestra pit. |
A final note on a perfect day: I could definitely live with Vienna’s public transportation system. :-)
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| Chandelier. |
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| The elegant seating to the right of us. |
