Ambling Ramblings #16-Vacationing in Vienna

A highlight of our stay in Vienna was having a kettle and teacups in our hotel room....needless to say, we had many cups of tea each day we were there (I think I averaged 4 cups of tea per day!). Finding our hotel however, was no cup of tea (if you'll excuse the pun) and it was only thanks to the help of a very kind stranger who showed on her map where we should go to find our hotel. The directions that we had acquired from the tourist information centre at the train station did not get us where we wanted to go and this lady obviously noticed our very bewildered and 'lost little girl' looks on our faces and offered her assistance and set us in the right direction. We have been constantly reminded of God's care and protection over us throughout our trip, but it is especially clear that He is watching over us when we arrive in a strange city when it is already dark, and He sends someone to help us find our way. We have truly been blessed and are so very thankful for having the protection of the creator of the world and to know that Someone who is greater than every situation we find ourselves in is watching over us. We certainly appreciate all the prayers of those of you who have been praying for us.
Our stay in Vienna was relatively relaxing (once we got our bearings and figured out the underground metro system, as well as the trams, above ground trains, buses and long distance trains) and we both enjoyed bubble baths in our hotel, along with the many cups of tea (I'm very glad that Marnie appreciates tea jut as much as I do and therefore can join me in sampling new kinds of teas!). We were also finally able to find a bandage for my ankle (something that was quite a feat to find as they aren't very easily available!) as well as mail home some postcards (finally! Hopefully they will beat us home and not get lost in the mail).
As a city, 'old Vienna' is encircled by 'new Vienna' and most train lines and trams take you right into the heart of the old section where many of the main sights are located (and where I, being a history teacher and therefore interested in all the 'old stuff', am more interested). There is a change from paved streets to narrower, cobblestoned streets lined with old buildings and with spire of cathedrals and bell towers marking the skyline. Vienna is a very modern city, and yet they haven't diminished the richness of their past, but built upon it and incorporated it into the city. The sights of Vienna were well worth seeing and we enjoyed St Stephens Cathedral, the Rathaus and the Hofburg as well as Schonbrunn Palace (the previous residence of the Habsburgs-the imperial family of Austria) where we spent quite a while wandering in the extensive gardens. In our wanderings in the city, we stumbled across quite a few lovely little antiques shops in which the antiques are really, really old (at least by Australian standards) and beautifully preserved as well as being exquisitely beautiful!
Something that made me giggle was a lot of tourist paraphernalia promoting 'no kangaroos in Austria!' (I assume that Austrians must have problems with tourists expecting to find kangaroos and other such Australian icons there!) As Australian tourists, Marnie and I were very much amused at seeing signs, posters, shirts and a big, yellow plastic kangaroo all with 'no kangaroos in Austria' emblazoned across them!
Another highlight of our stay in Vienna was a visit to the Spanish Riding School (somewhere I just had to go on behalf of a certain little sister of mine!) where we watched a morning exercise routine which was accompanied by classical music. The Lippizaner horses are truly magnificent and beautiful animals and their riders have such control over their every move. I think my favorite part was when they had the horses skipping!
It was then time for us to load ourselves up like packhorses and make our way to the train station to move on to our next city. We only have a few weeks left of our nomadic lifestyle but I'm sure there are still many adventures awaiting us!