Daily Life in Vienna

Before we leave the wonderful city of Vienna, Scott and I thought we could give you a glimpse of our daily life here.  Through Airbnb, we were able to rent a studio apartment in the 15th district of Vienna.  This allowed us to feel like we had a home, and provided a good location to explore the area. This is the plaza that our apartment is on, near a Catholic church with the same name called Maria vom Siege.  The church (and our building) have been under construction the whole time we've been here, hence the scaffolding you see.  We live basically at the bottom of the orange tube at right.

Our apartment was located near the Westbahnhof (train station), which became our center for shopping. The train station is very large and is actually sort of like a mall.  We were able to buy groceries here, clothes, and the occasional homesick cup of Starbucks.  This was one of the surprises about European culture, everything seems to revolve around the train station as people come home from the day, they grab food on the way home for the family, got haircuts, shopped, etc.

We also lived nearby this Wurstel stand, which became one of our favorite stops.  Our wurst of choice is a kasekrainer hot dog style.  In American terms- this is an improved version of a cheddarwurst put inside a hollowed out piece of bread, with a "hat" on top. Delicious...and just sketchy enough to be authentic (Seattle people- think taco truck).

Having an apartment made it possible for us to make dinners at home, but we occasionally ventured out into Vienna to get a taste of the local cuisine.  Of course, the most obvious Vienna dish is Wienerschnitzel.  (Wiener being the German way of saying "Viennese")  We consulted the Rick Steves and found a place known for its authentic schnitzel. [Side Note: we have yet to eat at a bad restaurant suggested by Rick Steves.]  It's called Schitzelwirt, off the beaten path and full of locals. We got to eat at a table with an Austrian couple and a Czech couple.  We had a great conversation with each other in broken German/broken English including saying "Cheers" in three languages.  And the schnitzel...well, it was HUGE and delicious. Definitely the best we've had here.

We spent our last few days in Vienna to squeeze in the things we still wanted to do.  One of those included a trip to the Vienna Woods.  Vienna Woods is a hilly, forested area  outside the city where locals go for some nature time.  We enjoyed a crisp, fall  hike through the woods. We even found one last hut to have some strudel and beer for a break!

For our last night in Vienna, we attended a Mozart/Strauss classical concert at a famous Viennese venue, the Kursalon.  Vienna is well-known for its musical past and it seemed pretty mandatory to experience this in some way.  The concert also included opera singers and professional dancers (mostly doing the waltz, which is what made Strauss famous).

We have really enjoyed getting to know this city and calling it home for this short time.  Vienna will always hold a special place in our hearts.  If anyone plans on traveling here, we have LOTS of tips! We've been in Europe for a total of two months now, and are getting ready to head to a new continent!  Africa, here we come!