1980 Wien/Vienna (7/11/1980)

Friday, July 11, 1980

Arrived in Vienna about 06:45; went to check the schedule. Found that a train would go to Venice from the Vienna South station, so we hiked down to the tram stop, and took the #18. The driver didn't have change, and asked the passengers in the bus if they did. One young girl gave me change for a 50 Schilling bill, and then added 2 single schillings I needed for the 12 schilling fare. I thought the 12 schillings included all 3 of us, but it turned out only to be for myself. Terry and Kathy rode "free."

Tram ticket

At the Sudbahnhof/South train station we checked the bags in a locker, then walked across the street to the Belvedere Palace grounds where we ate our breakfast of orange juice and cookies, and bread with jam which came out of a tube. 

Kathy and Tamiko at Belvedere Palace (TAT)

We explored the gardens a little, then walked up a pedestrian shopping street to St. Stephen’s Cathedral.

St Stephen's Cathedral

We went down a little street behind the Dom/cathedral to see a house where Mozart lived and wrote “Figaro." It was still closed, so we decided to try to go to Kahlenberg in the Vienna Woods. According to our maps, and maps of the Wiener rapid transit system, it looked possible to get there by train. We went first to the U-Bahn, and you needed exact change to buy the tickets from the vending machine. Got it by buying a postcard. Took the U1 train from Stephenplatz to Schwedenplatz, then changed to the U4 to Heiligestadt. There we planned to take a G-train to Kahlenbergsdorf, but we found no train stopped at that station. We wandered outside the Heiligestadt station with map in hand, and an elderly man asked where we were going. He explained that you had to take a bus to Grinzing, then one to Kahlenberg. He showed us which bus to take to Grinzing, and apparently it is a new service.

Bus ticket for Grinzing

In Grinzing we changed to another bus which took us up on Kahlenberg.

Bus ticket for Kahlenberg

We got a hazy view of Vienna because the sun was shining at us.

Kathy and Terry in the Vienna Woods

View of Vienna and the Danube River

We used our round-trip ticket to return to Grinzing where we caught the #38 tram into Vienna. A lady conductor was checking for tickets, but completely skipped the three of us, so we rode free. We got off at Berggasse and went to visit Freud's house. It was almost totally a photographic exhibit, with the furniture from only his waiting room. The examination couch is in London. We did see his wallet with calling cards.

Freud's House ticket

Then we walked up to the Hofburg to visit the huge treasury with the miscellaneous stones glued together with gold, and the Popes’ capes, and the reliquary containers with saints’ bones and hair and who-knows-what-else kept on display.

Hofburg Innenhof

Hofburg Treasury ticket

We also went through the Imperial Rooms which included a table set for dinner with about 6 glasses per setting, We went to check the time for the Spanish Riding School stalls, and went into a church which supposedly had tombs in "the basement," but we couldn't go down. While waiting for the stalls to open, we went for a walk completely around the Hofburg in search of a bathroom. We paid about $1 each to see the behinds of most of the Lipizzaner horses.

Hofburg Stables ticket

In overhearing conversations, it seems the dark brown horses will turn white in about 7 years. It did seem all the young horses were brown to varying shades of grey, and that the older ones were more on the white side. We then went in search of a cheap restaurant recommended by the $10 book, but it no longer existed. Another recommended restaurant was on the premises, but they didn't serve Wiener Schnitzel. We found a restaurant that did, and Terry ordered the schnitzel, Kathy ordered chicken with rice (they had soy sauce on the table), and I had fried dumplings with eggs. The schnitzel was just like the deep-fried pork Mommy makes (i.e., tonkatsu!). We then hiked over to the Schönbrunn Palace.

Schönbrunn Palace

Their imperial rooms and coach museum were already closed for the day. So we just wandered around the grounds and found the greenhouses.

Schönbrunn Palace Gardens

Kathy at Schönbrunn Palace Gardens (TAT)

Schönbrunn Palace Gardens

Terry at Schönbrunn Palace Gardens

From Schönbrunn we took a tram-train to Karlsplatz where we transferred onto the ultramodern subway U4. We took that to Wien Mittebahnhof/Middle train station where we transferred to the S-Bahn to the Prater. The Prater is a decent amusement park, and we went to ride the Ferris wheel, the "grandest" in the world. We went up in little wooden cabins that swayed whenever all the people in the car moved to one side. Again we saw all of Vienna in a mist since the sun was shining the wrong way.

View of Vienna into the sun

View of Vienna suburbs

View of the cabins

View down (TAT)

Sidewalk art (TAT)

Riesenrad/Giant Wheel

Postcard of Vienna

We returned to the Sudbahnhof via the S-Bahn, and proceeded to explore the neighborhood for Sachertorte, but found none. Soon we discovered that our train was already in the station, so we boarded. We managed to find a compartment with three empty seats which we grabbed. We were joined by a group of three ladies apparently off to the Italian shore, and a fourth lady off to visit her grandchildren in Milano. All were Austrian, and had only bad things to say about Italians. Then there was the American guy speaking German who lived in France and was on his way to Italy. The women jabbered most of the night, so we didn't get much sleep while sitting upright.

Vienna Map cover

Map of Vienna

Next: Venezia/Venice.