I had 4 days to plan and I decided to pay Austria a visit. Plus I wanted to save money so I bought a Eurail pass for Switzerland and Austria, which allowed me to hop in and hop off on any registered trains between Switzerland and Austria. I didn't forget to reserve a place on the train of course (reserving a seat costs you like CHF 5, but it's handy on a crowded train).
Too bad I only had 4 days, including the travel trip, so I decided only to visit Vienna and Salzburg. And I have to say something: I have a thing for churches, from Catholic to Christian, from Roman, Gothic, to Baroque (oh especially Baroque), I love it all. I'm not a devoted Catholic, I will say I'm an agnostic and I only admire the art and the style of the church. And I am very grateful that I can study in a place where all the magnificent churches reside.
So, let's start with the journey then. The photos here were taken with my ancient Canon Kiss X2 only, none from my phone because it was lost. I took the train from Neuchatel to Zurich directly, and change to Innsbruck, and finally arrive in Wien Westbahnhof. A total of 10 hours trip. Yes, I know, it was crazy and I should've take the plane, that's what I recommend to people now if they want to go to Austria from Switzerland.
Upon arriving, I tried to blend in with the locals (you called that blend in? LOL) and take the U-Bahn to Reumannplatz. I bought the 24-hour ticket for €7.60, and I could use it on the tram, bus, or U-Bahn. After a quick ride on the bus, I arrived in A&T Hostel, where I spent € 22 for a bed in a 4-bed shared female dormitory room. The hotel was quite nice, and it was my first stay sharing a room with other people. The location of the hostel is not that good though, a little far from the city center and you have to walk for like 10 minutes, but meh, what did you expect from a €22 accommodation. The downside of living with other people is, you share the bathroom, and when I arrived at 9 pm, they were all snoring already, and I had to use my poor night-vision eyesight to navigate myself in the room and took a shower quietly. It was hard not to make a sound especially for a girl who had to wash her hair and use the hairdryer.
Anyway, after I made the bed (yes, we had to make our own bed, put on the covers of pillow and the duvet), I went straight away to Schonbrunn Palace. Every Easter, there's an Easter market there, selling colored egg and other Easter-related decorations. Oh, and I like to explore local markets also, a trait I inherited from my father. I enjoyed a Nutella waffle, bought some beautifully colored Easter egg, and even I found vendor selling "old" parchment and feather quill pen (I'm not sure if it's really old though).
I bought a ticket to watch a concert because I had nothing to do for the night, so I enjoyed a nice little concert of opera, ballet, and orchestra in Schonbrunn Palace. I even met a lady from Japan, and tried to chat with her in Japanese, but I'm sorry, Lee Sensei, I failed you LOL. That's what you get from learning Japanese for three years and didn't practice it at all, except from reading Naruto in Japanese.
In the very next day, I went to the St. Stephen's cathedral first, and lost my way in the city. Well I think the best way to enjoy a city is to get lost in it, and there I was, lost in one of the most beautiful city in the world. Pictures stolen from my own Facebook, sorry for the bad quality :/
Stephansdom (St. Stephen Cathedral)
A roman and gothic catholic church, and it was so touristy and vendors offering concerts outside the church.
 |
| Stephansdom |
 |
| Roman and gothic style |
Peterskirche (St. Peter Church)
Probably my favorite church in this trip. Seems like this baroque roman church plans to hide itself between the buildings. It looks nothing special from outside, but once you went inside, it will leave your jaw hanging and neck pain from looking at all the frescoes.
Trzesniewski
I heard this restaurant from a guide in Youtube and tried to find it, and I wasn't disappointed. Serving many flavor of sandwiches, Trzesniewski also offer Pfiff or a cute pint of beer. I love the one with onion or paprika, I forgot, it's the green one.
Kaisergruft (Imperial Crypt)
Located under Capuchin church, this is where the member of Habsburgs dynasty rested today. A bit creepy for me, but look at those decorations, so realistic.
Haus der Musik
While enjoying the story of the greatest composers like Bach, Beethoven, or Mozart, you can also try to conduct the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra. You have to compete with the children though.
Hofburg Palace
I didn't have much time back then, because I had to catch the train to Salzburg, so I just quickly passed Hofburg Palace.
No comments:
Post a Comment