Journal tuxette's Journal: Trip Report - Vienna Day Five 2
Day Five - 5th of April
A walk in the park: I started the day by walking in Stadtpark, where, among other things, I saw the golden Strauss. There were lots of busts here and there, including one of Franz Schubert. I also saw these cool statue-fountain penguins and had to take several pictures
You could tell spring was in the air. Some of the trees in the park was starting to bloom, and the birds were really chatty. The ducks were also pretty hyper too... though these seemed to be relaxed...
Afterwards, I spent quite a bit of time at the Mozart exhibit at the Albertina Museum. It showed everything you wanted to know about Mozart from birth to death and then some. He was quite a character. One interesting thing to point out is that "the more things change, the more they stay the same" - it seemed like the "music business" back then was a lot like it is now. Trying to make the breakthrough, going on tournaments, gaining acceptance, etc., even politics. There were certain royal family members in Europe that weren't too keen on Mozart and had the power to ensure he didn't go far...
Interesting discovery: visit cards have existed as early as the 1700s. They showed examples of various visit cards from, among others, the upper class in Prague...
This was the only thing I was allowed to take a picture of. It was outside the general exhibition area but inside the museum. It says Nikolaus Harnoncourt referring to the five-year old Mozart - "the parents then sat in front of the crocodile."
Lunch: Palmenhaus at Burggarten. "Exotic" with all the tropical plants, but kind of nasty and smoky inside, so I ate in the outside area, since it wasn't too bad weather out (though threatening rain). I had some roast beef and potatoes (daily special - the other stuff was on the expensive side for lunch and I wasn't really that hungry). It was quite good though...
Shiny things: next stop Schatzkammer, where they keep a lot of old Wappenrock, crowns, scepters, and the such. A lot of the old royal costumes, especially the capes, look like they would have been a royal pain in the ass to wear. And most of the jeweled stuff looked really gaudy.
After that, I did a little shopping. I bought some jeans (when you find something that has an inseam that works with your short legs, you buy!) and 2 skirts...
I also bought this poppy seed pastry (will probably edit the German name for this later) for a snack. It was good but quite filling (more savoury than sweet), so I only managed half of it, much to the chagrin of the Ring of Fat...
Bath time: I have finally taken advantage of the fact there is a bathtub in the hotel room! Oooh, my aching legs feel sooo much better!
Dinner: A return to Zum Leupold, with some others boyfriend of tuxette dragged with him from the conference. I had tender roast pork with sauerkraut and bread dumplings. Yum! This was washed down with Weissbier, followed by a really tasty unfiltered beer. I wish it were possible to get beer like what I've had over here in Oslo... (we have Mikrobryggeriet, that's not enough)
Boyfriend of tuxette and I shared a portion of Topfenstrudel for dessert. It was served with both strawberry and vanilla sauce. I wish we had a picture of this. It was quite a sight, lying on the plate like that... and the taste? Creamy cheesey, with just the right amount of flaky pastry. Yummmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm...
btw - have I mentioned how much I hated all the smoking that was going on there, in restaurants, cafés, etc.? Yuck...
During the time we were eating, three different groups of people came in with each their dog, of the same species. It is a breed I have never seen before - large like a St. Bernard but grayish (I think?) and shaggy. And very cute! I asked one of the owners what the name of the breed was (while shamelessly compimenting her dog) but I don't remember what it was other than it being some kind of Balkan breed...
I had to try looking it up...and succeeded! It's a Sarplaninac...
Number of steps: 12186
Kilometers covered: 6,0
RoF perspective:
Finally! You're taking some of the pastries for your breakfast! Hey wait! Why are you spitting it out? You're wasting good food! Come on! Eat more!
Cheeeeeese... what? That's not real?
Why are you getting such a light lunch? You ate too little for breakfast! Order more food! And more beer!
Mmm...tasty poppy seed pastry! Hey, why are you only eating half? Eat the rest! And get some more!
Aaaaah, resting in the bathtub!
Pork! Feed me with pork and dumplings! Hey, what's this? Cheese strudel? OK, I'll forgive you for all that walking... but only if you give me more. More, more, more!!!!
Yum (Score:1)
Re:Yum (Score:2)