Hi there,
In October 2019, a promotion came out with Ryanair to buy cheap flights within Europe for January 2020. When we went to see, almost everything was sold out. We decided to go to Vienna even though we knew it was going to be very cold.
We arrived at the airport and that was already so different from Valencia. We went to the machines to buy the train ticket to go downtown and there was a girl helping people (with perfect English), things started off well. Train and metro, both impeccable and fast. It took us less than 30 minutes to get to our hotel. We left the station and the first thing I noticed was the cleanliness, the streets were impeccable. After living in Spain, the difference is enormous.
Our hotel was close to the subway. The Kolping Hotel is a giant complex that also functions as a student residence.
We had lunch at an Asian restaurant that was close to the hotel and had a vegan menu for 4 euros. The whole area around our hotel was full of Asian restaurants.
Around 3:30 p.m. we set out on the road to the center and the little sun that there was was already beginning to go away. By 4:30 p.m., it was already night. When we got to the hotel we were exhausted from the cold and Diego immediately felt sleepy.
I spent that first day saying that it was too cold. In fact, my face began to peel completely from so much cold.
The next day we had breakfast super early, we bundled up as much as possible and we went to see the center following the itinerary that Diego had made. Sun was out and you could already see more people.
The city center is beautiful and super clean; In addition, the streets are very wide. You don’t have the typical smaller streets that there are in other cities.
In Vienna the museums are not free and almost all cost 16 euros.
We also went to see one of the Danube canals and I stopped to take pictures at a wall full of graffiti, there a crazy looking man stood right next to us watching us and then came walking behind us until we went up the stairs and left the channel. We were saying that he was a serial killer and he had already chose us as the next victims.
It seemed curious to me that the bars there make like a kind of beach in summer.
In Vienna we did the same as in London, we had lunch at 12h and dinner between 6 and 7 pm, which is what I normally do at home, but in Spain it would be impossible if you go to a restaurant because they eat very late. In addition, the food seemed cheap to me and, for example, a giant plate in the Asian restaurant cost between 6 and 7 euros. Typical restaurants weren’t that much more expensive.
The third day was much colder than the previous two and it was like “let’s see which museum we get into because you can’t be on the street.” Luckily that day we visited Belvedere and we were inside for a few hours looking at paintings and sculptures.
When I go to very cold places, I don’t know why it happens to me that when I enter museums and with the warmer temperature, I get very sleepy, to the point that my eyes close while walking. So, I have to sit down and sleep for 5 minutes to continue.
That night we had booked to go to the opera, and it was a 45-minute walk away. A challenge with those temperatures. On the way we saw the ice rink that they put in the square in front of the Rathaus. There was a beautiful atmosphere, and it was full of locals.
That night we had dinner at an “all you can eat” Pakistani restaurant where you paid what you wanted. We left 10 euros per person since we ate two dishes each and dessert.
We also visited the Naschmarkt and other places that were further away. Despite not being the best time because everything is very grey, I liked that horror movie look that many places had. We visited the Stadtpark and crossed the Danube to go see the Donau Park; everything was filled with mist.
We took a bus to go to Bratislava, which is two hours away. The ticket cost us 5 euros and the bus was new and clean, plus you had free coffee during the trip.
On the last day, since we had the flight in the afternoon, we took the opportunity to go early to Schönbrunn, which is another huge palace in the Belvedere style. I liked this one better because the gardens were gigantic, and everything was greener.
I loved Vienna because everything is impeccable and the services work. The people are polite and wonderfully civic. Almost everyone speaks English and even if they don’t have perfected it, they try hard to explain things to you.
What I liked the most, and what I completely fell in love with, is that people know how to talk without shouting. While in Spain it’s a scandal because they scream instead of talking, walking through the streets of Vienna was an absolute pleasure, you didn’t even hear the people around you. Also, the cars didn’t make any noise.
Another positive thing is that in all the restaurants there are many vegan and vegetarian options, which speaks well of the mentality of the Austrians.
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