Vienna: The feel good city
It is said of Vienna that its streets are not paved with stones but with history. Indeed, a great part of the city's charm lies in the way it transforms history into the "good old imperial days". This is why this young and dynamic metropolis in the heart of Europe, which has welcomed the high-tech era with open arms, at the same time fervently embraces its past. This makes Vienna a celebration of reverie - especially for the romantic at heart.
A famous Viennese song begins: Im Prater blühn wieder die Bäume (Trees at the Prater are in flower again). Resonating the world over, it expresses a uniquely Viennese joie de vivre. When white and pink blossoms of the chestnut trees start reaching skyward, the city begins to change. Spring soon arrives, the most romantic time in Vienna. The twittering of the blackbirds in the Volksgarten, Stadtpark and Rathauspark unfurls an inexplicable yearning in the hearts of passers-by. The fragrances of jasmine and lilac go to your head just like a glass of champagne.
In spring, coachmen crack their whips in an even livelier manner than usual. This is the best time of year to take a ride in a fiaker (traditional horse-drawn carriage). After being greeted with words of old-world charm, it is off to admire the magnificent architecture of the imperial era.
From the Albertina to the Vienna State Opera, you then continue beneath the delicate green leaf canopy of the trees lining the Ring boulevard. Passing you by on your right is the Burggarten (Imperial Garden) with its splendidly restored palm house, and on your left two massive cupola-crowned buildings - the museums of fine arts and natural history.
Mightily enthroned between them is the absolutist foremother of Baroque, Empress Maria Theresia - a monument facing over to the Hofburg (Imperial Palace) and Heldenplatz square.
As the horses' hooves clatter, a gentle breeze touches your cheek. Thoughts wander, turning back the wheel of time and transporting you back to another century. In your mind's eye, you see a group of students in heated debate in front of the Parliament building; young lieutenants in splendid uniforms high atop their horses riding towards City Hall; and at the Burgtheater a coach turns into a small side street. In it, you discern a beautiful veiled lady - maybe en route to a secret rendezvous?
The fiaker turns off the Ring into Schottengasse, passes the Abbey of the Scots and Freyung, and then continues via Am Hof towards St Stephen's Cathedral. Every stone is imbued with history. With a little imagination, you can see former rulers pulling political strings behind the walls of city mansions Harrach, Schönborn-Batthyány, Daun-Kinsky and Ferstel, or coaches conveying gentry hailing from all over the globe. And in the evenings, you can almost hear the rustling of ladies' gowns at soirées and balls. After all, Vienna has an illustrious ballroom history.
The magnificent façade of St Stephen's Cathedral is mirrored in the window panels of the Haas-Haus, a modern shopping gallery designed by architect Hans Hollein. Past and present often go hand in hand in Vienna, a fact demonstrated by a stroll through the old city. A nice cup of tea at Haas & Haas at Stephansplatz 4 is like a journey down the ages - you sit in a Biedermeier-style courtyard garden, surrounded by the massive old walls of the Haus des Deutschen Ordens (House of the Teutonic Order), and then you get presented with a digitally printed bill.
If you cross this courtyard, you arrive first in Singerstrasse, then in Blutgasse and Domgasse. These small streets are the heart of the romantic city. Narrow and dark, they are covered with cobblestones just as they were centuries ago. Somehow you would not be surprised to see Mozart turning a corner on his way home to his "Figaro House", whistling a tune from his Marriage of Figaro that he composed there.
There is no danger of getting lost in these winding streets. You always seem to find your way back to Stephansplatz, only to continue in another direction, for instance through the alleyway of the archiepiscopal palace to Wollzeile, and then through another one at Figlmüller (the inn with the largest Vienna schnitzels) to Bäckerstrasse. Do not miss the arcaded courtyard of the Schwanenfeld building at Bäckerstrasse No. 7 or the small inner courtyard at No. 12 with its mediaeval walls. Continuing past the Academy of Sciences and the austere but beautiful Jesuit Church, you arrive at Sonnenfelsgasse with the Old University and Schönlaterngasse. Time seems to have stood still in all these streets - and, indeed, you are following in the footsteps of notable personalities such as Haydn, Beethoven, and Clara and Robert Schumann.
These historical virtuosos may also have enjoyed the serenity and peace at Heiligenkreuz Court, which can be reached from Schönlaterngasse. This seventeenth-century building complex, built around a spacious inner courtyard, is of timeless beauty. The great Austrian satirist Helmut Qualtinger used to live here.
It is true that Vienna is at its most beautiful in the spring - but only if you gaze away from summer, fall and winter. One thing is for sure: Vienna is a city for all the seasons. This has something to do with the fact that nature reaches deep into many parts of the city. Take the Prater, for instance. Around the turn of the last century, at the time of Freud, a ride to the Prater was very much a social occasion. On Sundays, carriages drove out from the inner city along Praterstrasse, the former Jägerstrasse, into the green Prater. These days, in the mornings, the Prater is jogger territory. Later in the day, it is horseback riders you will see, followed by walkers, day-trippers and the Viennese with their picnic baskets. And then there are those who want to enjoy the constantly changing faces of the Prater throughout the year: the morning mist and the enchanting green of the month of May, dense foliage and heavy thunderstorm drops during the summer, the blaze of colour during autumn and finally, in the winter, the white frost and bare trees picturesquely zigzagging into the air.
Old Austrian charm is what awaits you at Lusthaus in the Prater. Built at the end of the eighteenth century as a hunting lodge, it is now a charming café-restaurant.
The Vienna Woods are the green belt of the city, bordering on the Austrian capital to the north, west, and south. Covering 1,250 square kilometers, the area provides the Viennese with refreshment for the soul. It boasts miles of footpaths and trails, and beautiful meadows, as well as welcome places to eat and drink such as Häuserl am Roa (Little House on the Slope) and Häuserl am Stoa (Little House near the Stone).
The classic and traditional way to conclude an excursion to the Vienna Woods is to visit a heuriger. The word heuriger refers to both the wine of the last harvest and the taverns where it is served. Whether in Grinzing, Neustift, Nussdorf or Salmannsdorf, a charming time is guaranteed with special wine tavern music contributing to the romantic mood.
Tourist information
The Vienna Tourist Board is happy to be of service to Vienna's many visitors. City maps with a list of museums, hotel guides, a monthly calendar of events, gastronomy tips and other information in many languages are all available free of charge by e-mail: info@vienna.info. Hotel enquiries and reservations are also taken. The website www.vienna.info features an extensive database of events and many useful hints for your stay in Vienna.
The Vienna Card costing €18.50 is a 72-hour rover ticket granting not only unlimited travel on Vienna's public transportation system, but also a number of discounts (valid on the day of issue and three following days). It is available at Vienna hotels, the Tourist Information Office, travel agencies and public transportation sales counters. Holders of the Vienna Card can take advantage of over 210 price reductions and special deals, from discounted museum admission to shopping offers.
The central Tourist Information Office of the Vienna Tourist Board is located just behind the Vienna State Opera at Albertinaplatz (corner of Maysedergasse).
The Vienna connection
Air Malta currently flies to Vienna three times a week - Wednesday, Friday and Sunday. In summer the airline will increase its operations to five weekly flights with additional frequencies every Thursday and Saturday.
http://www.airmalta.com
In spring, coachmen crack their whips in an even livelier manner than usual. This is the best time of year to take a ride in a fiaker (traditional horse-drawn carriage). After being greeted with words of old-world charm, it is off to admire the magnificent architecture of the imperial era.
From the Albertina to the Vienna State Opera, you then continue beneath the delicate green leaf canopy of the trees lining the Ring boulevard. Passing you by on your right is the Burggarten (Imperial Garden) with its splendidly restored palm house, and on your left two massive cupola-crowned buildings - the museums of fine arts and natural history.
Mightily enthroned between them is the absolutist foremother of Baroque, Empress Maria Theresia - a monument facing over to the Hofburg (Imperial Palace) and Heldenplatz square.
As the horses' hooves clatter, a gentle breeze touches your cheek. Thoughts wander, turning back the wheel of time and transporting you back to another century. In your mind's eye, you see a group of students in heated debate in front of the Parliament building; young lieutenants in splendid uniforms high atop their horses riding towards City Hall; and at the Burgtheater a coach turns into a small side street. In it, you discern a beautiful veiled lady - maybe en route to a secret rendezvous?
The fiaker turns off the Ring into Schottengasse, passes the Abbey of the Scots and Freyung, and then continues via Am Hof towards St Stephen's Cathedral. Every stone is imbued with history. With a little imagination, you can see former rulers pulling political strings behind the walls of city mansions Harrach, Schönborn-Batthyány, Daun-Kinsky and Ferstel, or coaches conveying gentry hailing from all over the globe. And in the evenings, you can almost hear the rustling of ladies' gowns at soirées and balls. After all, Vienna has an illustrious ballroom history.
The magnificent façade of St Stephen's Cathedral is mirrored in the window panels of the Haas-Haus, a modern shopping gallery designed by architect Hans Hollein. Past and present often go hand in hand in Vienna, a fact demonstrated by a stroll through the old city. A nice cup of tea at Haas & Haas at Stephansplatz 4 is like a journey down the ages - you sit in a Biedermeier-style courtyard garden, surrounded by the massive old walls of the Haus des Deutschen Ordens (House of the Teutonic Order), and then you get presented with a digitally printed bill.
If you cross this courtyard, you arrive first in Singerstrasse, then in Blutgasse and Domgasse. These small streets are the heart of the romantic city. Narrow and dark, they are covered with cobblestones just as they were centuries ago. Somehow you would not be surprised to see Mozart turning a corner on his way home to his "Figaro House", whistling a tune from his Marriage of Figaro that he composed there.
There is no danger of getting lost in these winding streets. You always seem to find your way back to Stephansplatz, only to continue in another direction, for instance through the alleyway of the archiepiscopal palace to Wollzeile, and then through another one at Figlmüller (the inn with the largest Vienna schnitzels) to Bäckerstrasse. Do not miss the arcaded courtyard of the Schwanenfeld building at Bäckerstrasse No. 7 or the small inner courtyard at No. 12 with its mediaeval walls. Continuing past the Academy of Sciences and the austere but beautiful Jesuit Church, you arrive at Sonnenfelsgasse with the Old University and Schönlaterngasse. Time seems to have stood still in all these streets - and, indeed, you are following in the footsteps of notable personalities such as Haydn, Beethoven, and Clara and Robert Schumann.
These historical virtuosos may also have enjoyed the serenity and peace at Heiligenkreuz Court, which can be reached from Schönlaterngasse. This seventeenth-century building complex, built around a spacious inner courtyard, is of timeless beauty. The great Austrian satirist Helmut Qualtinger used to live here.
It is true that Vienna is at its most beautiful in the spring - but only if you gaze away from summer, fall and winter. One thing is for sure: Vienna is a city for all the seasons. This has something to do with the fact that nature reaches deep into many parts of the city. Take the Prater, for instance. Around the turn of the last century, at the time of Freud, a ride to the Prater was very much a social occasion. On Sundays, carriages drove out from the inner city along Praterstrasse, the former Jägerstrasse, into the green Prater. These days, in the mornings, the Prater is jogger territory. Later in the day, it is horseback riders you will see, followed by walkers, day-trippers and the Viennese with their picnic baskets. And then there are those who want to enjoy the constantly changing faces of the Prater throughout the year: the morning mist and the enchanting green of the month of May, dense foliage and heavy thunderstorm drops during the summer, the blaze of colour during autumn and finally, in the winter, the white frost and bare trees picturesquely zigzagging into the air.
Old Austrian charm is what awaits you at Lusthaus in the Prater. Built at the end of the eighteenth century as a hunting lodge, it is now a charming café-restaurant.
The Vienna Woods are the green belt of the city, bordering on the Austrian capital to the north, west, and south. Covering 1,250 square kilometers, the area provides the Viennese with refreshment for the soul. It boasts miles of footpaths and trails, and beautiful meadows, as well as welcome places to eat and drink such as Häuserl am Roa (Little House on the Slope) and Häuserl am Stoa (Little House near the Stone).
The classic and traditional way to conclude an excursion to the Vienna Woods is to visit a heuriger. The word heuriger refers to both the wine of the last harvest and the taverns where it is served. Whether in Grinzing, Neustift, Nussdorf or Salmannsdorf, a charming time is guaranteed with special wine tavern music contributing to the romantic mood.
Tourist information
The Vienna Tourist Board is happy to be of service to Vienna's many visitors. City maps with a list of museums, hotel guides, a monthly calendar of events, gastronomy tips and other information in many languages are all available free of charge by e-mail: info@vienna.info. Hotel enquiries and reservations are also taken. The website www.vienna.info features an extensive database of events and many useful hints for your stay in Vienna.
The Vienna Card costing €18.50 is a 72-hour rover ticket granting not only unlimited travel on Vienna's public transportation system, but also a number of discounts (valid on the day of issue and three following days). It is available at Vienna hotels, the Tourist Information Office, travel agencies and public transportation sales counters. Holders of the Vienna Card can take advantage of over 210 price reductions and special deals, from discounted museum admission to shopping offers.
The central Tourist Information Office of the Vienna Tourist Board is located just behind the Vienna State Opera at Albertinaplatz (corner of Maysedergasse).
The Vienna connection
Air Malta currently flies to Vienna three times a week - Wednesday, Friday and Sunday. In summer the airline will increase its operations to five weekly flights with additional frequencies every Thursday and Saturday.
http://www.airmalta.com