The Travelling Life of Silvan Colani
July 2007 – Vienna
With the risk of insulting the Austrians right at the outset of this report I must confess: I’ve never been to Eastern Europe before! In fact, I haven’t been anywhere east of Munich and west of Colombo. One big empty blotch on my world map! Now, Vienna isn’t exactly Eastern Europe, but it’s close. And I readily admit: it’s a fantastic city, not to be missed. In fact, better than over-hyped London or over-Frenched Paris! It’s a clean, beautiful city full of history, art and music, countless grandiose buildings and a relaxed, laid-back charm. And more Wiener Schnitzel and Goulash than you’ll ever need in your life…
We spent four days in Vienna; four very, very hot days, with temperatures soaring to 38 degrees and not a cloud in the sky. We stayed at the Hotel Sacher (of the torte fame!) which provided a bit of air-conditioned respite during our long, hot days of exploring the city.
Lonely Planet in hand, we started off with a walking tour of the inner city, to the gothic Stephansdom and around the many charming side alleys. What impressed me the most was the architecture: building after building was of grandiose style, all superbly clean and well-maintained, housing banks, hotels, restaurants and the like. Then there are countless churches, again in meticulous condition and, of course, the big palaces like the Hofburg, Schloss Schoenbrunn and Schloss Belvedere, all built by competing emperors and noble families (motto: “mine’s bigger than yours!”). I’m not going into the history of Vienna here, but it was of course the Habsburgs that reigned here for almost 800 years to the very beginning of the 20th century.
But the best palace of the all – and here I’m slightly biased but perfectly honest – is the Palais Liechtenstein, belonging to the family of the same name and my humble employer. But not only is their palace more magnificent and its frescos more stunning, it also houses one of the world’s most spectacular (and most valuable) art collections. Being the Admiral and Commander of the Liechtenstein Princely Navy, we were treated to a private tour of the castle and its exhibits. I’d be lying if I’d claim to be much of an art connoisseur, but even for a color-blind guy like me it was impossible not to be awed by the beauty of Waldmueller’s “Roses” or be rendered speechless in front of the Badminton Cabinet (the world’s most expensive piece of furniture!)
Above all, Vienna is of course famous for its music, Mozart in particular. Therefore – I’m told – you must see a concert or an opera when in town. The main venues like the Staatsoper, however, are closed in summer, but there are plenty of programs in other, smaller places. Thus I attended my first opera at the cozy Oper and der Wien, a setting that reminded me of the Muppet Show! The Vienna symphonic orchestra was playing Mozart’s 'La Finta Semplice', a light and humorous tale about two sisters wishing to get married against the will of their two elder brothers. Although I prepared myself to be bored stiff for two hours, to my surprise I very much enjoyed the performance. The fact that they had ‘sub titles’ in German helped me to follow the story. Mei was less lucky and suffered in the heat of the auditorium.
Visiting Schloss Schoenbrunn is also on the ‘must do’ list of Vienna. The good thing about Vienna is that crowds, even at the most prominent sights, are always quite light. No long queues, no hordes of tourists. Thus you get to enjoy the palace and its gardens in relative peace. The best part, surprisingly, is its Tiergarten, or zoo, which is the world’s oldest, founded in 1752. I always thought zoos are boring (like opera!) but I was wrong again. It was a delightful little zoo with every imaginable animal present – from pandas to penguins! And best of all – the animals were active and moving about despite the 38 degree heat! Even the crocodiles were cruising around whereas everywhere else I’ve seen them before – even in the wild – they were always totally immobile. Best was the feeding of the tigers, whereby one of these huge cats was devouring a large piece of meat right at a glass window with me watching from less than an inch away. I guess that’s as close as you get to watch a tiger have lunch without being on the menu yourself!
And speaking of food, Vienna does not come short on the culinary front. Wiener Schnitzel are everywhere of course, with the biggest and best at Figlmueller, a cozy place tucked into a side alley. It’s busy and full of tourists, but definitely worth a visit. We made the mistake of ordering one Schnitzel each, whereas we could easily have shared one. My second favorite dish was Goulash, which was always tender, chunky and yummy. Tafelspitz – boiled beef – is another Viennese specialty, but I found it rather boring. Of course you also have to eat a piece of Sacher Torte at its namesake hotel. The local coffee houses – like Café Hawelka or Diglas – are also famous but it was way too hot to drink coffee. Instead, we settled for a Vogelbeerschnaps at the Zwoelf Apostelkeller, a cool and cozy cellar tavern on several levels deep below the ground.
And then there is Heurigen, which are restaurants selling their own wine and weird snacks like Schwarz Wurz Salat (black root salad). We went to Sirbu up on the Kahlenberg from where you have sweeping views over the city.
My final recommendation would be to visit the Naschmarkt (market) on Saturdays, where delicious olives, juicy fruits and tasty kebabs are offered in a very multi-cultural environment.
My perception of Vienna was obviously completely wrong (frankly I didn’t know what to expect apart from Wiener Schnitzel) and I believe the fact that we Swiss always make jokes about the Austrians may have had some lasting effect on me. I’m glad to finally put the record straight: Austrian – the Viennese in particular – are polite, articulate and highly cultured people. And that’s something I can’t say about my fellow Swiss in general! Four days in this city is sufficient time to soak up some culture, enjoy its great history and architecture and eat plenty of Schnitzels. If you miss it, the joke is definitely on you!
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