I Left My Heart in Vienna

The weather upon the return to Vienna had markedly improved and the sun was beginning to peek through. Regina caught up on some sleep and I hit the town. I decided to return to Stephansplatz because I loved it so much the first time. I did some window shopping, bought a currywurst recommended by Liz, bought some of the young wine at Wein & Co., and traipsed around in the twilight. Later that evening I met up with Regina at the hostel bar where we prousted with more travelers who suggested we hit the Schönbrunn the following day.

Our last day in Vienna seemed to last forever. We took the UBahn to the middle of nowhere to see Beethoven's grave in Zentralfriedhof. Three hours and snow, wind, and rain later, we found it. I was not surprised I discovered Falco's grave before I found Beethoven's though. "Rock Me, Amadeus," the relic of my childhood, forever remains. Although we covered a lot of territory, we went Schönbrunn Palace, had a lovely dinner and dessert at the cafe and explored the expansive palace grounds as the sun set. We returned to Stephansplatz for one last hurrah--I can't get enough of that place and Regina wanted to purchase some wine. Wine in tow, we returned to the swanky gelateria, only to discover in one week tht the establishment was under new management. They still had the delicious tartuffo chocolate-hazlenutty delicious gelato I'd had the previous time, so I was pleased. After delightfully decadent Viennese treats and a Campari cocktail we lingered in the streets of Vienna before retuning to the hostel to cram our belongings into our luggage once more. Upon packing, we made our last venture into the hostel bar for 1 Euro Ottakringers and shut the place down and waited for our 3 am cab to take us to the airport. The trip home seemed to last forever and when I returned, jet lagged and sleep deprived, I was bitch slapped back into reality by a life-size stack of quizzes and papers to grade and my own reading to catch up on. But every time I reached for my Starbucks refill in chilly Cincinnati, I remembered the taste of the frothy Viennese melange walking down the cobblestone streets, and smiled fondly. Someday, I shall return.