November Abroad: Vienna

We spent a few days in Vienna for our annual go-abroad-in-November trip. The xmas markets were open all around town and we had a lovely time sampling the glühwein, punsch, wurst, kartoffelpuffers, and brezels.



Maria-Theresien-platz and the Kunsthistorisches Museum



Rathaus-platz, Vienna's largest xmas market















It was also my first real attempt to use my new Canon PowerShot G11 and overall I was very pleased with the results. It handled low light much better than I remember my old camera doing (and considering the shorter daylight hours, this was a good thing). For something different, I tried taking stealthy pictures of people.



Feeding ducks in the Stadtpark



Selling concert tickets to tourists in Stephansplatz



Chatting in the Hofburg



Mid-morning business meeting ... with Schnapps?



Horse carriage ride



Accordion player in Resselpark, Karlsplatz



Hungry (bored?) xmas market vendor



Awaiting others for a meeting in a smoky cafe



There were typical Viennese treats.














I can't help thinking that he looks like he has just been goosed...



We visited Karlskirche, which features a 'panorama-lift' to the dome. What looks like temporary scaffolding is actually a fairly permanent elevator. Being that high up allowed close-up views of details usually just seen from the ground.












To restore our sense of wonder at, and curiosity about, the amazing world/universe we live in, we also spent the better part of an afternoon exploring the Natural History Museum and exhibit on 'Darwin's rEvolution'.






Loved the elephant outside the Naturhistorisches Museum




















As usual with these trips, it was over far too soon. Although we managed to see most of the inner city, it felt like we barely scratched the surface. Maybe we just needed more glühwein...