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Friday, Mar 20, 2009
After exiting, I was lost as the where to go. I was in Vienna, but where? I had no map. I had no directions. I had nothing. Not an issue. It was all part of the game. Just another challenge. I asked about getting to town and a lady at a cafe said to take Train 4. (I also bought a coffee) Train 4? Um. Okay. Back to the platform I went. I at least was able to find the street where my hotel was. I had that. Man, what was I thinking? I had nothing but the name of my hotel and street, for crying out loud. Yeah, "challenges"--i.e., stupidity.
When a train came, I bordered. I had no idea where it was headed, but anything was better than not moving. I talked to a guy on the train. He didn’t speak English, but I got the feeling it was the wrong train.
Too late. Door closed.
We were moving. New adventure. Yay! (trying to smile, but nothing happens).
I did have time to check the map and finally found my street. Hey! Right train after all. Wahoo! After some time at the info booth at the next station, I was on my way to Line 3. Exiting Line 3, it was 7a.m. and I knew I couldn't exactly check in that early at my hotel, but at least I could maybe leave my bags.
I had a problem of where to go once I went up to the street level. I just chanced it. I walked about ten blocks one way and then 10 blocks back. Then down another street. Aha! Found the right street. The snow was coming down harder now. Did I mention snow? Yeah, there was snow, lots of snow. I figured I’d need my gloves pretty fast since my hands were quite cold now. After strolling down the street, I reached my hotel. The reception desk was occupied. All was well. I couldn’t check in, but I could leave my bags and that was nice.
Before heading out, I looked for my gloves. No gloves. No gloves anywhere! Thought I had packed them, but pack them I did not. My hands were not pleased. Back into the snowstorm I went--sans gloves. I now had a plan--I now knew where to go. I even had a map with places marked out by Mark, the reception desk clerk. I bought a 24-hour metro pass and went back on Line 3. Quickly after, I was downtown--smack in the middle of the crazy snowstorm. It wasn’t easy, but I managed to snap photos here and there, trying to keep the frostbite in check.
Unfortunately, I lost my map (didn’t take long, I know), so I wandered to and fro and when the cold became too much to take, I ducked into a little cafe. The hostess spoke French and German, but since the theme of the cafe was French, I I chose to speak in French. (Okay, fine. I would have spoken in French either way.)
I had a cafe au lait and a croque monsieur. A nice older lady sat across from me and I spoke with her a little, but she left and I wrote some more. Another young lady sat down and I asked her about where to buy gloves. We chatted for a while until she left. A young man and woman took her place. I asked her about the book she had with her--it was something about learning English. That icebreaker led to some talk. She was Austrian. Her friend was British and turned out to be quite a talented painted. That conversation lasted a while and they left. Finally, I did too.
I then came to nice church were I took many photos. Inside was nice, but the up front areas were closed for mass only, which appeared to be all day long. Don’t faithful Catholics want to snap photos too? I got a little warm, and then left. I kept an eye out for gloves, but found none to buy. Then I made my way back to the hotel. Drat! Still could not check in. They recommended a nearby park to the south so I wandered south. It was a long walk (“nearby” to Austrians is not “near” or “by”). At one point, I looked down at the path I had been following. Turns out there were two lanes. One was marked by occasional icons of a “man walking” and the other lane was marked with a bicycle. The funny thing was that at one point, I looked down and the sides were reversed. The icons were on the opposite side as before. Odd. I checked it again later down the street and it was back to the first way. The people who had painted the sidewalk had made a somewhat funny mistake. I wondered how many other people noticed that. I wondered if tiny frequent bicycle/pedestrian accidents occurred right at the very spot, with police investigators scratching their heads and pondering, “Why? Why? Why?” or would they ponder, “Vy? Vy? Vy?”
(Side note: In all my time in Austria, I never met anyone with as thick an accent as the Terminator. Makes you wonder.)
As I reached the bottom of the hill, I noticed the weather getting a little better. I entered a huge courtyard, which seemed like a large university. My map said the zoo was nearby. (I got a new one from the hotel since I lost the other one. The first guy, Mark, was even there too when I got the map from the other clerk. I mean how stupid does that look? Oh, look--it's that guy that needs a new map every four hours!) Around the bend, I saw a huge structure up a large hill. Wanting to attain that view, I headed up. I paused at each level of the switchbacks and turned to take in the view. The large building at the bottom turned out to be a palace. Reaching the top, I took many nice photos and then explored the back woods. I then returned to the structure and sat on a bench and listened to some classical music. The sun was even breaking through in spots and this helped me get some even better photos. Then it was time to head down. The sky was getting cloudy again and I was really looking forward to getting warm.
Up ahead, the skies were now getting very dark—not a good sign. (Is it ever?) In short time, it was snowing, and snowing hard. The snow wasn't in large fluffy flakes like that morning. This snow was round, compact and coming down hard. My umbrella was my only real protection, and it did help, though my fingers froze. Mainly, I just wanted to stay dry. Wet shoes would just not do. I had no spare.
I reached my hotel again. I could then check in. That was a relief. The room was quite nice. It had a shower, which I promptly used. It even had a nice desk. Ah, excellent. I’d be able to get some writing done and do a little web work as well. The bed was pretty large for a single, but I supposed the room could have served two people just as well. Nevertheless, there was only one of me, so I could sprawl out accordingly.
On the wall, there was a large LCD television. I could watch a number of shows, and if I spoke German, I’d even be able to understand what was going on. But at the present time (4 p.m.), I was exhausted. I had slept maybe four hours in nearly two days. It was time to rest.
At 10 p.m., I awoke. I felt much better, though still a little sleepy. But stuff needed doing. I set up my computer at the desk…er, no...the Ethernet outlet was next to the bed. So there was a nice desk, but my cord was way to short to reach it. I got to make the bed my office.
But first things first: it was laundry time. I had my mini bottle of detergent and with the help of a wet sock, I turned the sink into my own little washing machine. Worked rather well. I washed everything I had worn so far, including my jeans. Then I set to drying them. Hmmm. This would be a little more challenging.
I couldn’t use the blow dryer since that would be a complete waste of energy. I either put clothes on the radiator or hung them up to dry.
Mainly, I did a lot of writing, working, and video editing. I uploaded videos and blogged about the trip. But somehow the time flew. Before I knew it, it was 7 a.m. and time for breakfast. I had passed the whole night!
Breakfast was tasty. Aside from the hostels, I ate rather well in during my lodging nights. There was plenty of variety, so I had some cereal, fruit, an egg, bread with jam and butter, coffee, and juice. I wouldn’t be hungry for at least a few hours.
Back in the room, I did a little more work and prepared to check out. First, I took a little side trip to look for gloves. Finally, I found a shop which sold them. Well, they sold white gloves. Not exactly my first choice, but my hands were freezing. Okay, they weren’t exactly white, but more like beige. Still I was wearing all black with bright gloves. I looked like a friggin’ Mickey Mouse. It wouldn’t do. No, it just wouldn't do!
Returning, I checked the jeans. They were about dry, but it took over 12 hours for that to happen, and that was with keeping them on the radiator all night. Jeans dry slowly. Remember that. Jeans…dry…slowly. Got it? Pop quiz...how do jeans dry? Did you say slowly? Good, you're now qualified to head to Europe. Bon voyage!
I checked out and paid my 53 euros. Not a bad price all things considered. Plus, they had waived the internet fees. Even better! I gave them a great recommendation online. If you’re ever in Vienna, check out Hotel Lucia. They were nice enough to hold my bags while I explored the city more.
I walked into the main city and looked around. On the way I found another store which sold black gloves. Yay! I bought a pair (wasteful, I know, but I really did look funny in white). I also got me one of those blue collar dock-worker caps. That helped a lot too, though I didn’t see many other Europeans wearing them. I guess they have a much higher tolerance for the cold. Many people weren’t even wearing gloves! Crazy, I know.
I spotted a cozy café and went inside, mainly lured by a caramel torte I saw in the window. Inside was nice, but more importantly—warm. I ordered a coffee and the torte. In time, more people entered and it turned out to be a smoking tolerant café. This wasn’t a huge issue, but after a while, three people were smoking and I didn’t really want to smell like cigarette smoke for the next few days so I started to leave. Before doing so, I noticed someone with an iPhone, so I chatted with him about that a spell. Turns out they have many more options for iPhone carriers in Europe and their two-year plan signup gives you the phone for almost nothing.
The streets were still cold as before. To escape the weather, I found a large museum and entered. It was mainly a portrait gallery with numerous works spanning hundreds of years. The top floor had a huge gold coin from Canada that was supposedly worth millions. I made a note to look that up. (Okay, I did. The value is a few million in gold, even though it’s a one-million-dollar coin. It’s about the size of a large pizza and pretty impressive.)
Another nice thing about the museum was a long, long radiator on the top floor. I made use of that for a spell, but overall, I was getting very sleepy. I had been up since 11 p.m. the night before and it was getting close to 6 p.m. I found a nice chair in front of some large paintings and put on my headphones and shut my eyes. I was nodding off fast, but not for long. They were closing up at 6 p.m. and kicking people out. Argh! Back into the frosty cold air I went.
I walked around some more and then reached the metro station. There was still a lot of time before my train so I visited a large Ferris wheel in the city. I’d like to report that it was great, but it was rather weak. The location was in a tiny amusement park area and it was almost deserted, sort of like a bad horror movie. I had the full cabin to myself. The light was also always on, so night photos were problematic, not that there were any great views. It was interesting, but moreover, quite wasteful. I don’t recommend it, at least not at night. You’re better off filming the horror movie.
Afterwards, I journeyed back to the hotel and picked up my bags. I’d have to get used to the weight again. I’d had a nice break from carrying it all around with me. (Going on a trip? Follow the guidebook advice. Pack your backpack and carry it around for a day. The weight becoming a problem? Lighten it up before leaving the country.) Back to the train station I went. I now knew the city fairly well and had no trouble getting around. Shame to leave just when I had it all figured out. But a good reason to return someday.
At the train station, I found my night train to Krakow. I had a 3-person car, but the other seats were never occupied. That was nice. My own private car for no extra charge! I was ready to party! So I instantly went to sleep.
From 10:30 p.m. to 6 a.m., I slept on the train and got some much needed rest after being up nearly 24 hours. In the morning, I noticed a lot of snow. Yeah, I was in another cold country (in regards to the weather).