Vienna: Part 3

A blizzard hit Vienna today - so perhaps a museum day? Otherwise, save the museums for Italy, and continue the outdoor activities to experience a true European winter day!

Yup, the latter, and no cycling.

I headed far away from the Innerstadt to check out the Schloss Schönbrunn Gardens. The Lonely Planet guidebook suggested that the gardens would be appealing no matter what the season - I think after my visit today, I'd hazard a guess that summertime beats wintertime hands down. Granted, the stone sculptures were beautiful - stark figures standing tall in the snow-covered grounds - but all the greenery was brown except for those hardy, coniferous trees.

Did I mention it was snowing and cold? Luckily, there were two cafes open - and I warmed up in both! The first was the Hofbackstube Bakery, where they run a "Strudelshow" every hour, demonstrating how to make the traditional Viennese Apfelstrudel (apple strudel). I thought the baker was extremely enthusiastic and really hammed it up for the crowd, which was entertaining. Of course, getting to taste the apfelstrudel was good too - though I would have preferred if it was served warm. Bonus: I found a free outlet to charge my phone during the show!

The second cafe took a bit of a walk to get to - Café Gloriette. It sits on top of a hill and offers a pretty nice view of the Schönbrunn palace (and supposedly Vienna in the distance, if the weather cooperates). I had lunch here and tried their Erdäpfelpuffer mit Räucherlachs und Senf-Dillsauce (German potato cake with smoked salmon and mustard-dill sauce), which was a wonderful way to pass the time as the snow swirled around outside.

At night, I relaxed at the Musikverein - although, the Vienna Philharmonic wasn't playing, the alternative (Philharmonia Schrammeln) was alright. The venue was different from what I expected - I guess there are different auditoriums within the Musikverein, and this one might have been one of the smaller ones. Regardless of size, the acoustics were as promised - spectacular, to the point where any rustle was amplified. The ensemble was comprised of 2 violins, an acoustic guitar, an accordian, and a horn I'd never seen before (sounded like an English horn but higher-pitched) - and they played more traditional German folk music.

To complete a very Viennese day, after the performance, like a European, I had a late dinner. I went back to Glacis Beisl for their Reisling (2011 Koglberg, Kirschner, Kamptal) and a traditional Viennese schnitzel. I don't think I'd ever had schnitzel before today - so when it was served, the first thing that came to mind was, "Tonkatsu! Where's the tonkatsu sauce?" Served with the schnitzel was a lemon wedge and a salad of potatoes, pickled cabbage, and beets topped with mixed greens.

A correction in my earlier analysis of the Reisling - the key to enjoying this wine is just to drink it without thinking too much. I found that when I tried really hard to taste the wine (i.e. probably held it in my mouth longer than normal), it wasn't as spectacular as I remembered. But throughout dinner, as I was drinking it normally, it was as refreshing as the first time I tried it.