The Characters of Vienna...

Vienna, Austria

September 11, 2007
N48°12.245
E016°22.728

Four days in Vienna consisted of stumbling over miles of cobblestone streets, navigating yet another public transit system, witnessing spectacular architecture, people watching from the comfort of cafes as rain fell outside, and, of course, sampling the local beer and wine.

Vienna’s population is more diverse than many of the cities we’ve visited in our travels so far. Although the city is saturated with Catholic symbolism, people of many different religions and ethnicities stroll through the streets. A serious contingent of Punk Rock and Gothic teenage youth hang out in Metro stations and on sidewalks; all trying to make their “statement.” Women in full length mink coats, staying warm on a cold day, saunter by the Punks impervious to their “costumes.” Musicians and businessmen sit next to each other in pubs after a hard day, or night, at work. It became very apparent when seeing the cars, clothes, restaurants and culture there’s massive wealth in the city; at the same time there’s a working-class artistic vibe.

I enjoy making up stories, or simple observations, about each of the people that pass the window as we sit in our café or wander the streets. Maybe the Punk Rock kid was disinherited by his parents for doing drugs and lost access to his trust fund. This requires him to live on the streets with his dog, begging for money for his next fix, or at least another beer. Probably not a far fetched story, but I don’t know about the trust fund!

Or, maybe the lady sitting in the pavilion, with her arms firmly crossed, wearing a pout on her face, a mink coat, and red fedora, is upset with her lover. The boyfriend, who bought her the coat, tells her he doesn’t love her anymore… it’s not you, it’s me. The hat and sunglasses cover her eyes; hiding her tears as she hears the harsh words from his lips. She’s better off without him.

A young Spanish tourist snaps pictures of herself in the garden with a big smile and a peace sign; holding the camera as far from her face as her arm can reach. She takes another, apparently not happy with the first, but leaves out the peace sign this time—only a big smile. I’m sure she’ll be sending the snapshots home, letting her mom know she’s having a wonderful time touring Vienna by herself.

A man in his early 30s is relaxing on a park bench in the sun, reading a book. He started digging deep for a big one up his left nostril. He excavates a nice crunchy boog and without hesitation pops it into his mouth, smiling with pride—I kid you not. Marc swears he heard the crunch as the guy munched his prize! Marc turned to me and started to say, “Did you see…” I quickly responded, “Yes” trying to hold back my laughter as we passed.

As our time in Vienna comes to a close, we’re sitting in our apartment trying to decide where we’re headed tomorrow. No, we do not have a solid plan. The only thing we know is we’re going east—towards Hungary.

We’ll smile as we say goodbye to Vienna and the characters who reside in this lovely city.