the cafe of the day's cafe demel.
it's one of the few grand regal places that have been around since the days of the empire, and are by appointment to the imperial household - as they say, könig und kaiser (k u k: king and emperor, essentially the same person). it's really quite a nice place, spread over 2 levels, different salons and rooms (smoking, non smoking, n the like) with nice displays of the cakes & pastries where u can order from (while most others insist u order from the menu nonetheless).
it's one of the few grand regal places that have been around since the days of the empire, and are by appointment to the imperial household - as they say, könig und kaiser (k u k: king and emperor, essentially the same person). it's really quite a nice place, spread over 2 levels, different salons and rooms (smoking, non smoking, n the like) with nice displays of the cakes & pastries where u can order from (while most others insist u order from the menu nonetheless).
the atmosphere's really lively and spriteful, and it felt really light and refreshing, cafe sacher was a tad stuffy and too serious, while cafe sperl was plain lazy and as if from the turn of the century (the interior has remained the same since it opened in 1880). plus, it was on kohlmarkt, their main pedestrainised shopping drag. i thought the melange wasn't as good as cafe sperl's though, and the 'eduord' sachertorte just didn't cut, with an intensely sweet (and dry) single chunk of sponge and a mere outer chocolate icing hinting of citrus. THE 'original' sachertorte is multilayered, and every layer is moist with a deliciously 'plummy' taste. haha. o well. i think i've become quite a cake and coffee counessiour after so many cafes of fine cakes n coffee! :P in fact, i fear i may be getting sick of them! (no more fine cakes n pastries till the end of the year, except under special circumstances!) :S
o yes, (window) shopping in vienna's really fine. but everything's so EXPENSIVE!!! the things they sell are really very classy and desirable no doubt, n the variety and magnitude of things are just amazing! i'm very glad i got to go to a berguet speciality store and oogled at fine berguet watches. n boy r they expensive! the cheapest starts in the range of tens of thousands of €, and the one i really like is in the range of hundreds of thousands of € :S the watches r really very very nice and i was very glad just to admire them.
females' fashion was all the rage throughout the entire shopping district, and my mom n i had a hell of a time rushing into all the interesting shops and browsing through clothes. n the trinkets were so exquisite and adorable! i simply SO ADORE them. i really do have a very soft spot for trinkets, but i've sworn off buying any of them, in a bid to prevent wasting money. sigh. the little animal ceramic figurines r SO CUTE!
i'm also very very glad to have visited the 'monet to picasso' exhibit at the albertine museum, where they display the evolution of modern art from the impressionists to the cubists/ fauvists/ avant garde crap, which all all very nice. there were many works that i loved, but pity they didn't allow photography and we were too law abiding to steal snapshots. i was particularly enthralled by kischner's 'naked youth and girl on a beach'. they had another exhibition by kokoschka, which was absolutely marvellous and inspirational. it's my first time encountering kokoschka so intimately, and i was completely blown away, really really very impressed and awed. things really come so alive and so animated, and it's simply amazing how he does it. yup yup, so i m very very happy to have visited the albertine and it now counts among one of my favouritest museums :)
females' fashion was all the rage throughout the entire shopping district, and my mom n i had a hell of a time rushing into all the interesting shops and browsing through clothes. n the trinkets were so exquisite and adorable! i simply SO ADORE them. i really do have a very soft spot for trinkets, but i've sworn off buying any of them, in a bid to prevent wasting money. sigh. the little animal ceramic figurines r SO CUTE!
i'm also very very glad to have visited the 'monet to picasso' exhibit at the albertine museum, where they display the evolution of modern art from the impressionists to the cubists/ fauvists/ avant garde crap, which all all very nice. there were many works that i loved, but pity they didn't allow photography and we were too law abiding to steal snapshots. i was particularly enthralled by kischner's 'naked youth and girl on a beach'. they had another exhibition by kokoschka, which was absolutely marvellous and inspirational. it's my first time encountering kokoschka so intimately, and i was completely blown away, really really very impressed and awed. things really come so alive and so animated, and it's simply amazing how he does it. yup yup, so i m very very happy to have visited the albertine and it now counts among one of my favouritest museums :)
we ended our day by visiting a heuringer (wine garden) at grinzing, a tiny town on the outskirts of wien (read 'veen' - how the austrians call vienna). the heuringers are actually little country estates that make their own wines and serve them in a little 'tavern' like manner with (a very limited) marche styled spread. the heuringer we chose (recommended by 'timeout' which has got very good eat, drink, shop n entertainment sections) is in the outskirts of grinzing and up a steep hill, n required quite a trek, which my physically challenged mom found excruciaiting. but the view and the atmosphere up there was definitely worth it - we had an unobstructed view of the whole of wien, and grinzing right below. it was simply marvellous and really so so pretty, that we didn't really feel like leaving. i must say their reisling was very good. i had tried the reisling from another vineyard, and it tasted horrible (comparatively). of course, it was more expensive too @ €5.30 glass.
i must say i've had a good time drinking on this trip. i'm still particularly found of bikaver from eger, hungary, and kekfranchos from villany, hungary, and hope i've gotten more, while HBH beer from this little eger pub is among the best i've had. regrettably i haven't had any czech wines (not that i can remember) and czech beers r just sort of forgettable.
anyway, the earlier part of the day was spent in the emperor's apartments in the centre of the city and the 'imperial & eccelestial' treasury, which i find r just as splendid as russia's or any prominent imperial/ royal househould of immense significance. n i had also ascended the tower of the biggest (and most important) church in wien, and the spiral stairs just continue all the way non stop from the ground to the stop. it was really very tiring and scary going up and down the stairs. i had felt like tumbling down!
anyway, the earlier part of the day was spent in the emperor's apartments in the centre of the city and the 'imperial & eccelestial' treasury, which i find r just as splendid as russia's or any prominent imperial/ royal househould of immense significance. n i had also ascended the tower of the biggest (and most important) church in wien, and the spiral stairs just continue all the way non stop from the ground to the stop. it was really very tiring and scary going up and down the stairs. i had felt like tumbling down!
tonight's my last night in vienna for the time being, and i shall b leaving for slazburg in the west tmrw, and later to hallstatt, a little town i nthe mountains by the lake. till then!
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