vienna, day 2: mozart day

Greetings again from Osterreich! Today was our day to honor Herr Mozart's legacy in this city. We spent the morning touring the Mozarthaus, which is a museum dedicated to "Wolfie" on the spot of the largest and most expensive apartment he rented in Vienna. The museum was interesting, if not a little dry at times. It was awesome (in the non-California sense of that word) to be in the space where such a timeless genius worked his magic. Seeing original manuscripts of his music, and notations he made in the practice sheets for his piano students was really great.

Our gracious hosts Mel and Gabe joined us for the outing, and we all had lunch at a place they called "the potato restaurant", probably because it states on the menu that they use potatoes and/or apples in all of their dishes. Its "Spargel" (Asparagus) time here, so lots of restaurants are featuring asparagus on their menu. Per Mel and Gabe's recommendation, I took advantage of this and enjoyed a dish that involved asparagus wrapped in bacon, stuffed inside some sort of potato batter, then deep fried and smothered in hollandaise sauce. It was fantastic. As was my first experience with Austrian beer.

Krysta and I then went off to wander through Stephansdom, an old gothic cathedral that serves as one of the central landmarks in Vienna. Its really an amazing building. My favorite features were the carving of the man who looks like he's crawling through the wall, the dazzling roof, and the intricate staircase carvings. The organ was pretty impressive too. After the church, Krysta and I wandered a bit, stumbling across a few fountains and statues, and then stopping for some Viennese coffee and people-watching.

The evening's activity, as I mentioned yesterday, was a night at the Staatsoper to see The Magic Flute. Mel came along as our guide as we negotiated the sometimes confusing customs of seeing the opera from the "stehplatz" (standing place). The chief advantage of this is getting to see a fine opera for a mere 3.50 Euros. The chief disadvantage is, as you might expect, standing up through an entire opera. This was only the second opera I've attended, and I enjoyed it immensely. It was a very visually interesting staging, the singing was first-rate, and of course the score is one of the best. It was well worth the sore feet to see such an important work in the city in which it was born.

After the opera, I enjoyed another bratwurst "hot dog" and came home to some beer I'd picked up at the market earlier. All in all, it was a fine day full of more good food, and remembrance of W.A. Mozart. Tomorrow looks to be a full day of museum-type activities, so I'm off to bed.