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24 Hours In Vienna

November 5, 2020 Leave a Comment

Unlike some of my trips, I hadn’t planned this one until I arrived in Austria. Spending time in Vienna had been on my list for forever, in fact I was meant to do Prague, Vienna, Bratislava and Budapest in June before COVID-19 cancelled my trip, and until the last possible moment I was convinced this one would be cancelled too. Despite my usual organised nature before I fly to a new city, I couldn’t bring myself to plan how to spend 24 hours in Vienna until I knew for sure I’d get there. I was going to do it on the train from Prague but I ended up mostly doing it from the apartment in Vienna on my first night, after deciding not go to out for a couple hours due to the weather.

I actually only spent a day exploring the city as halfway through the trip, my Fibromyalgia was flaring up, but I saw enough and did enough to do this post justice.

I ended up staying very near Spittelau, and honestly I only knew about this place when I googled after wondering what the big Golden Tower was I could see from my window. It’s actual an incenerator, but it’s designed by Friedensreich Hundertwasser, and it’s pretty cool on the outside. I actually didn’t get to right in front of the building, it was taking a lot of time to figure out how to get there so I settled for the photo above. I’d recommend not giving up when I did though, as from what I’ve seen online, the front of the building is spectacular.

My second stop was Hundertwasserhaus, a colourful block of flats also designed by Hundertwasser. You are no longer able to go and look inside this complex of colourful houses (but honestly why would you, people live there) but there is a Hundertwasserhaus Museum, and just across the small street there is a mini shopping complex with lots of little gift type shops and a couple of places for snack food. Honestly, it’s just a cute, colourful place to sit and enjoy a hot chocolate and spend a few minutes taking photos. Even if you were eating here and looking round the little shops, you’d only need about an hour.

Prater Amusement Park is somewhere you could easily spend a day if you had the budget and the time. I went over on the tram as it was a bit of a walk from where I was, and then walked then 10 minutes from the tram stop to the Amusement Park through a very pretty tree lined street. I passed a playground, a nice pond and a skate park so if you have kids, there’s lots for them to do on the walk alone. Prater Amusement Park is free to enter, you just pay for the rides, and I only did two-the Ghost Train, and my reason for visiting Prater Amusement Park, the Wiener Riesenrad (their giant Ferris Wheel) with it’s gorgeous views over the city. This was pricy, about £12, but worth it for the 20 minutes on the wheel taking in those views. I was here about an hour, from getting off the tram to getting to my next location, so if you’re picky about rides or just want to do the Wheel, you won’t be here long.

Republic of Kugelmugel at Antifaschismplatz was on my list but I decided against it on the morning I set off into the city. Then when I was on the Ferris Wheel I realised it was right next to Prater Amusement Park so I added it back to my plan. The wooden, circular house is actually a micronation, which declared itself independent from Austria in 1976 after the artist, Edwin Lipburger had a dispute with the authorities over building permits. Pretty cool, I just wish you were able to look inside the ball shaped house but it’s surrounded by 8 foot barbed wire fences. Imagine if this was rented out via Air B n B though, such a quirky place.

Rathaus, the City Hall, was, like every City Hall when I visit a city, under construction! Turns out it’s not just me though, it’s been under constriction since 2012 and will be until about 2023. Despite the scaffolding though it was a gorgeous building, and nice to see the Neo Gothic style and appreciate the building where the City Council, Mayor of Vienna and the Vienna Assembly are. Despite the scaffolding it’s a striking building and I’m glad I went, even if it did mean I ended up running later than planned.

I found the Rainbow Crossing completely by mistake as my tram went past it, it’s between the Burgtheater and City Hall and it was painted in June 2019 for Vienna Pride. It’s pretty cool and if I’d known it existed I would’ve gone to find it on purpose…

At this point I ran out of time for my planned list, although I’d done the things that were most important to me, because I was heading off for a photoshoot with Lora. I paid for a two hour shoot which ended up being a mixture of a shoot and a mini tour, and felt more like two hours with a friend in the end. I’d definitely recommend seeing if Lora is free if you want some professional photos when you’re in the city, she knows all the best spots.

We first met outside the Albertina Museum to shoot outside various different locations. Fibro meant I couldn’t be as flexible as many would be able to in terms of poses, but the shots Lora got and the locations she chose made the shoot an incredible experience. It felt less like a shoot I was paying for and more like time spent exploring with a new friend-if I’m lucky enough to be in Vienna again, I’ll definitely be asking Lora is she’s free to shoot again. Most of the photos from this shoot will pop up in my future posts and I’m not going to share Lora’s usual route, but I did want to share a couple of my favourite shots in this post.

Vienna is a city I’ve already decided I’ll be returning to and I’m working on my must visit list for the next trip. Have you seen the city before? What would you recommend I added to my list?

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When A Travel Blogger Can’t Travel
Next:
Travelling During A Pandemic

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About Me

Welcome to my little corner of the Internet! I'm Laura, a 33 year old Yorkshire girl aiming to see as much of the world as I can, usually by myself. I'm a big fan of animal print, bright lipstick, gin liqueurs, cocktails, photography, writing and booking flights. I'm in love with a Lhasapoo called Buster and if I don't have my phone, laptop or a camera in my hand, you probably need to ask if I'm feeling okay. I blog about short city breaks, usually solo, on a budget without a hostel in sight. I also cover food reviews, life with Fibromyalgia, and there's a bit of lifestyle content thrown in when the mood takes me. I'm aiming to have visited 40 different countries before I turn 40, so I have 7 years left. Coronavirus has slightly changed my plans for 2020 but so far I'm 17 countries into the challenge and as long as September and October remain safe to travel I'm adding Czech Republic, Hungary, Austria, Romania, Serbia and a couple of others to the list before this year ends. I love working with brands on sponsored/collaborative content and if you're a travel or food related company, or just someone you think I'll love, please do get in touch.

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Went on a lovely sunny walk with @busternoodlehalf Went on a lovely sunny walk with @busternoodlehalfapoodle today. Look at his smiling face
I absolutely haven't taken Instagram or the blog a I absolutely haven't taken Instagram or the blog all that seriously in 2020 and barely posted on either. That's fine, obviously, but I miss both, so for 2021 I want to be back to daily Instagram posts, finding people to follow that bring me joy, learning the best hashtags to use and trying to make a bit of progress on here. Hoping I'll get a fair bit of travel in in the second half of the year to help with this too. Happy New Year, Instagram!
Walking quickly out of 2020... This year has been Walking quickly out of 2020...

This year has been a bloody weird one hasn't it. Not just with the Pandemic, although obviously that's been a big part of it, but dealing with the hangover from a breakup, trying to make my new house a home, maintaining friendships when I can't see anyone and I'm not good on Zoom, and A LOT of overtime at work. Work has been going really well though and I'm excited to see what 2021 brings me there. I do know that I miss properly using Instagram, and writing on Inside Laura's Head, and I'm currently writing my 2021 goals post as we speak. What are you looking forward to in 2021?
Vienna, after only 24 hours in the city, has becom Vienna, after only 24 hours in the city, has become one of those 'I really need to go back to....' places on my travel list. On Thursday I posted over on the blog about what I did during my day in the city, I wasn't sure whether to post this so close to the horrible events they've had this week but actually, I think sharing how amazing the city is is a very positive thing. Link to the post is, as ever, in my bio, if you want to go and have a read
I've spent today working overtime and listening to I've spent today working overtime and listening to a new audiobook, 'The Year Of Living Danishly' by @mshelenrussell. Ive finished it in a day, loved it and want to go back to Copenhagen now as well as exploring more of Denmark. But for now, I will stay at home, be sensible, and add Denmark to my plan for if things work out for next year. 📷: @fordtography
I'm missing travel, adventure, and sitting watchin I'm missing travel, adventure, and sitting watching the world go by drinking hot chocolate outside pretty houses
I've been home from my trip for 48 hours now and I I've been home from my trip for 48 hours now and I've got that never been away feeling, as well as over 300 photos to edit and at least 6 blog posts to write. I wasnt sure how I'd feel about Vienna and I only had a day there but it turns out it's a city I'll definitely return to, as there's so much more I want to see now. Have you been? 📷: @loras.clicks.photography
My last stop in Vienna (maybe, depending on how I My last stop in Vienna (maybe, depending on how I feel in the morning!) was St Stephens Cathedral where I tried Chimney Cake (yum) and Schnitzel (meh) before heading back to my apartment and collapsing onto the sofa. Tomorrow I have an hour ish to the train, 4 hours on the train, a 2 hour flight then an hours drive home, after maybe 30 mins to get to my car. I suspect Monday is going to be a flare and a half 😑
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