Oct 22, 2011

Another cool day today, 3 degrees when we left for our walking tour and 10 degrees when we returned to the ship at 4pm but that didn’t stop us from enjoying the beauty of this city. At the end of the day we had an early dinner then headed to one of the Hofburg Palaces for a concert which was wonderful then enjoyed an illuminated tour of the city on the return to the ship. Happy to report my butt and legs are surprisingly comfortable after yesterday’s pushbike ride though the knees are a little second hand. Pleased overall.

The battery went flat on the camera today…...probably just as well!



Saint Stephens Cathedral is in the process of being cleaned. The façade has just been revealed nice and clean instead of black. Many of the buildings we saw were in the process of refurbishment and cleaning. Many more than when we were last in Vienna in 2008.



Our tour group enjoyed a coffee (me a hot chocolate) at Cafe Central, a traditional and beautiful Coffee house….without the smoke we remember from 2008. The exterior.



The interior courtyard where our group gathered. A beautiful space and the cakes (many choices) were sublime. No one rushed to leave.



The interior courtyard of the Hofburg Palace. Looking forward to returning tonight for the concert.



Part of the Parliament Buildings which were quite beautiful.



The Town Hall which we discovered in the distance over the tree tops on our own time exploring but didn’t have enough time to check it out fully (a third of the city is green space). There was some sort of display in there free of charge, we figured that bit out. The red under windows were geraniums. Looked great..

Bits and Bobs:



Another sign…this one for the Black Camel restaurant....the best in Vienna our guide told us. The quirky side of it is the sign under the camel. It says (basically) by appointment to the palace and there has been no monarchy in Vienna since 1918.