Vienna

Without much enthusiasm, I packed my bag for Vienna. It wasn’t that I didn’t want to go, I think I was just tired of traveling. More than that, without an organized program, I realized that I would have to plan each day’s activities. I know that sounds like an exaggeration, but it really requires more effort than one thinks. My spirits were a little better as I went to meet my driver. I had managed to secure a business class seat during the check-in process. That took some of the dread out of an overnight flight. I also had booked a hotel in Graz for the three nights when I would have been at the course, so I was going to see something new. In addition, there was no prediction of rain in the 10-day forecast! Amazing for November.

Palais Liechtenstein near my hotel

The flight was uneventful. I may have managed to get about three hours sleep. I will say one thing, Business Class on Aer Lingus was much better. As the sun rose, we were coming in over Austria. Below I could see the green forests and the valleys wreathed in their morning fog. Then we were following the Danube into the airport in Vienna. We landed right on schedule and arrival went smoothly. I took the airport train into the city and from there I caught a cab to my hotel. I had sent a request for an early check-in, but had not heard back. It would be great, if I could take a shower. When I reached the hotel, I mentioned the early check-in request. The young woman seemed bothered that I hadn’t heard back. She said she thought my room was ready. A quick telephone call confirmed that I could have the room in about 15 minutes. That was fine. I sat in the reception area and she asked me if I wanted something to drink. “That was nice” I thought, and asked for water. Soon I was I my room and having a nice hot shower.

Autumn in Vienna

 It was still only 11:00 when I left the hotel, so I had most of the day ahead of me. I was going to meet my friend, Martin, at 3:00. There was a major Monet retrospective at the Albertina gallery. That seemed like a good way to spend an hour or two. Vienna has an amazing public transportation system; and with a pass, you can get on and off as much as you like. I took the tram from my hotel. It is a great way to get from one point to the next and still see things at the same time. The subway is faster, but there is no view! I enjoyed the leisurely pace of the tram and seeing the familiar sights of the city. It was a sunny, late fall day and the many parks were full of people. My mood was beginning to lift. This trip was going to be just fine.

At the Albertina Monet exhibit

The Monet exhibit was spectacular. There had to be at least 100 paintings in the show. Though I could feel my energy waning towards the end, the exhibit was very well organized and gave great insight into his development as a painter. After visiting the exhibit, I sat outside in the sun for a while to recharge my batteries. I had to keep going, because I needed to keep my appointment with Martin. I wandered a bit through the parks and then started to head for the café where we were to meet. I knew that Martin ate very little, if anything, at lunchtime. I was hungry, so I figured I could eat before he arrived. I ate something light just to tide me over. Martin arrived and we had coffee – he, cake with his. We talked about the week ahead. His was quite busy, but the following week had many more options. We discussed some of them and came up with something of a plan. He went back to work; I went back to my hotel to rest for a bit before going out for dinner. I used some of the time to do some online research into various options, including the theater. I had an early dinner at a place, D'Landesknecht, I visited the last time I was in Vienna - Wiener schnitzel, of course. I walked back to the hotel and actually felt remarkably good after such a long day.