It is another beautiful day, so the shorts are making a second appearance. The weather is supposed to break tomorrow, so this is the perfect day for doing outdoor things, like walking “The Ring”, an approximately circular collection of boulevards that circles Vienna city centre and contains a staggering number of world-class buildings.
After Prague the first thing that strikes me about Vienna is how big it is. It’s a 20-minute ride into the centre instead of a 2-minute ride. The other thing that strikes me is how much newer it is. Not that it’s new but it’s like leaving the 16th century and entering the 18th. It’s a lot noisier, too!
I take the tram into the Innere Stadt and start my Ring cycle at the Votive Church. Unfortunately this is in the wrong order for my audio guide (on the free app ivie) so it keeps trying to repeat previous entries, as if trying to persuade me to turn round.
I saw lots of things, most of them very elegant and impressive. I’ll try to collect them into themes here.
Composers
Vienna is a very musical city, and it doesn’t want you to forget it.
Museums and art galleries
Some of the best in the world, apparently. I’m going to visit one tomorrow.
Buildings too big to fit in a photo
Lots of fragments here, because the scale of Vienna is insane. It’s as if they built it for giants, or at least for very anti-social people who never want to have to come near another human being.
Films
Apparently this bridge was featured in Before Sunrise (which I haven’t seen) and in a number of other films. Maybe I should watch Before Sunrise while I’m here?
And I realise this is a poor photo, but in the distance is the Riesenrad, the big wheel from The Third Man.
In the evening, after a very cheap Lidl dinner, I doll myself up (no shorts) and set off to partake of some proper Wiener culture, in the form of a string quartet. I almost don’t make it because I miss my train and there isn’t another one for 20 minutes – and then I go to the wrong part of the Mozarthaus (which is actually a complex of buildings) and have to be redirected. I arrive two minutes late all of a fluster and explain that I went to the wrong place. Apparently this happens a lot. Of course, being my jammy self, arriving late means that I get a better seat than I had paid for, with a totally unimpeded view.
I noticed afterwards that you are not supposed to take photos or videos during the concert. Oops! But I only took one – the couple next to me kept filming and taking selfies! I also didn’t clap between movements (a classical music etiquette thing). My wee sister should be proud, except she’s too busy being jealous.
The string quartet concert was held in a very old concert hall where Mozart himself played, and he lived briefly in another part of the complex. The quartet was very good, and really brought out the playfulness of the music. They were clearly enjoying themselves too!
What a lovely way to spend an evening! See you tomorrow for more artistic adventures.
K C Murdarasi 
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