We arrived in Vienna this morning at six am. The sleeper car on the train was quite comfortable, but I stayed up too late editing and the result is about four hours sleep. The geniuses at Eurorail printed Wien Westbahnhof Station on our tickets and the train stopped at Wien Meidling Station, a few kilometers away. It's like buying a Via Rail ticket to Union Station in Toronto and being dropped off at Greenwood without being told.
I feel like I shouldn't be complaining, but really! It wouldn't be a big deal if we were in a city we knew, but when you come out to the street in the dark and don't know where the hell you are it is not very pleasant, especially at six am on four hours sleep. We found a coffee shop near the station, waited for it to open and eventually figured out where we were and where we were going.
We are now about half way to our hotel, and have entered the Twilight Zone. It started to rain so we've stopped at the old restaurant that happened to be next to us when the rain began: The 'Cafe Westend'.
I can only describe this place as vintage. The waiters are in full black suits with bow ties, and the place looks like it hasn't been redecorated since sometime around 1944. There are velvet green banquettes built in with black marble topped tables and large chandeliers overhead.
I'm half expecting Humphrey Bogart and Lauren Bacall to walk in at any moment. The smoking section adds to the ambiance, and poor air quality, by the way I have stopped smoking again, for those of you keeping track. The Cafe opened in 1859/60. The breakfast of bacon and eggs was mediocre, but my cup of tea is perfect.
I can see the Westbahnhof station out the window. It is being rebuilt which explains our rerouting. Too bad they could't have told someone at Eurorail. You can be sure they will be receiving a very strongly worded letter from me in the near future.
Update: When we left Vienna, we had to depart from the Westbahnhof station. It is open and I have no idea how Eurorail managed to screw up on our arrival, but we will let them know.
David had a flyer from a nearby restaurant so we went out to see what it was like. The place looked nice enough but it was empty and a bit posh for the mood we were in.
, had a beer at a cafe and took lots of pictures. By mid-afternoon we were both exhausted. Our travelling had caught up with us. We headed back to the hotel, got some beer and stayed in and watched BBC Entertainment and rested. And as the CBC news loves to say; "There was a Canadian Connection". I watched my first ever episode of 'Casualty' and was tickled to hear a reference to the iconic Canadian CTV show "The Littlest Hobo"
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concert at the Wiener Konzerthaus from the hotel tonight. The players all dress in period costume and play selected Mozart tunes. The idea is for the audience to experience the concert as it would have been during the Baroque period. And you know what they say; "If it's not Baroque, don't fix it!" (that was for you honey).
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