edited by Dave Collins

Once landed we have taken the "cat", a fast train, that unites the airport with the center of the city. With the road map in hand we have reached our hotel afoot, the TABOR, very satisfactory setup, relationship price / quality excellent, sideboard abundant breakfasts, personal cordial and efficient.

The first day of our brief vacation we decide to aim toward the "heart" of Vienna and we direct more precisely there toward Stephan-platz, curious to see from near the cathedral of Saint Stephen. Joints in front of this work of art, feel there without breath, perhaps

because the small plaza has some difficulties to contain indeed this stately cathedral. Entering we are stricken from its simplicity and from the silence of the atmosphere, that brings back us with the imagination in the time. Once climbed on the cathedral we admire an unique panorama, we are above the roof of Vienna, our sight has the possibility to space in all the directions, the firm gigs in the underlying plaza seem some small toys. Gone out of the cathedral we start there toward the church of St. Pietro, we pass in front of the House-Haas, place where the first house Haas was built in 1865, it dealt with a magnificent store of the enterprise Philipp Haas & Children, built with iron pillars and façades of stone.

Just from this point depart the two most important commercial roads, rich of shops of every kind, elegant and some very ancient ones, find us in the graben. To the center of the road the Column of the Plague can be admired, made to erect from Leopoldo I in sign of thanks for the 1679 plague end. In a side street really there near it catches us the church of St. Pietro, the second most ancient church in Vienna, founded by Carlomagno. From here we cross Kohlmarkt and we come in the plaza of St. Michael. On the plaza they lean out the imposing entry of the Imperial Building and the church of St. Michael. Even if the time to our disposition is limited, we decide to enter to visit the treasures and the rooms of the Imperial Building, also called Hofburg, place where

the princess Sissi spent big part of her life. Completed the driven visit we go out in the external gardens of the building, on which lean out different works of arts: the Parliament, the Commune, the Museum of the Natural History and the Museum of the Beautiful Arts. The gardens where we find us are connected with the Imperial Volksgarten, a marvelous park to whose center there is the Temple of Teseo. Crossed the Volksgarten we find us of forehead the National Theater, other work of architecture to leave without breath. To this point some unwillingly we decide to return toward our hotel to rest us to be able to go out this way the evening to admire the city at night and to taste some flat typical of the Austrian cuisine.

The following morning wakes up there anxious to visit another part of this beautiful city, is recommended us to go to see the summer residence of the royal family, Schonbrunn, situated to few stops of subway from our hotel. In the afternoon, after a substantial snack base of chocolate and cake sacher, directs there toward the church of St. Pietro where we assist to a concert for organ. The whole the notes that they dance in our minds they arouse us from immediately a pleasant sense of comfort and internal peace. Ended the representation we realize there that the time is not stopped and that by now it is time to find a restaurant whether to taste a good appetizer and a first dish (the Frittatensuppe, the Griessnockerlsuppe, the Kurbissuppe, the

Nudelsuppe-Rindsuppe, the Tomatensuppe, the Zwiebelsuppe) and then to continue a base second of meat or fish (the Gulasch, the Rostbraten, the Tafelspitz, the Wiener Schnitzel, the trouts (Forelle) or the pike (Zander) and then to end a dessert as the Sacher Torte or the Cake of Mozart.

We have reached the last day, you pack the suitcases for the reentry to house, remain us the forenoon to go for a stroll for the center to buy some souvenirs that remember us this marvelous enchanted city.