An Autumn sojourn in Austria

Fall in Austria – opera season is in full swing, hillsides of woods and vineyards are splashed with vibrant autumnal colors, museums are not crowded, and it is the perfect season to hike off the excellent cuisine.

We have lived in Vienna for several extended periods and return to visit often. Last fall we took a nostalgia-filled trip with friends to introduce them to a country we know well and whose Kultur und Kuche (culture and cuisine) have so captivated us.

We started in Salzburg, the city of Mozart. Our wonderful hotel, The Goldener Hirsch, is located in the center of the old town. Décor is the height of Austrian charm – country-style antiques with carved wood furniture and hand printed fabrics in local designs. Their restaurant features contemporary takes on traditional Austrian cuisine – the Salzburger Nockerl dessert with its meringue peaks mimicking the nearby Alps was the best we’ve ever had.

Our first stop was the Hohen Salzburg, the hilltop castle fortress which dominates the town. Its tourist facilities were once dingy and cramped. Exhibits are now well labeled and displayed so the visitor gets a real understanding of its colorful history. The Mirabel Palace, whose gardens were famously featured in “The Sound of Music”, is another treat. And, of course, one needs to visit the childhood home of Salzburg’s favorite son, Mozart. I wonder if he ever got to taste those delicious chocolate/marzipan confections, Mozartkugeln, named for him. On Sunday we went to church.

You can enjoy beautiful music in spectacular settings for free in Salzburg and Vienna by checking out the Sunday church programs. We had the glorious experience of a Mozart Mass in the Salzburg Cathedral. You can also do what we did and ask your concierge about hiking trails. A bus will take you to any number of local trailheads where you can enjoy the hills and wooded landscape of the Salzkammergut.

It was then on to HallSatt, a scenic village tucked in next to sheer cliffs on the fjord-like HallStattersee. It is a calendar-perfect village of cobbled streets and luscious gardens – and a great base for some hiking or relaxing boat rides on the lake. We did not have time on this trip, but in the past have enlivened our stays with visits to the nearby salt mines and ice caves.

We drove east along the Danube (gray, alas, not blue) to the Wachau, the Danube river valley just northwest of Vienna. Here terraced hills are lined with vineyards which produce some of Austria’s finest vintages. Romantic little towns nestle beneath historic old castles and castle ruins. From our base in Durnstein, a tiny town on the river in whose hilltop caste Richard the Lion -Hearted was imprisoned on his way home from the crusades – and from which he was rescued by his loyal minstrel Blondel – we were able to do some wonderful touring. First, of course, we had to climb up to the castle to marvel at the astonishing view of the mighty river coursing through the verdant hilly landscape. A must for any visit to the Wachau is the magnificent abbey at Melk, one of the finest examples of Baroque architecture in the world. One of my favorites, a place most tourists miss, is the Renaissance castle of Schallaburg with its unique courtyard lined with terracotta statues.

Then it was on to Vienna. As the song says, “Wien, Wien nur du allein” – Vienna City of my Dreams. Indeed, Vienna has a special place in my dreams and my heart. We could not decide which hotel to use so divided our time between the gorgeously elegant Imperial and the hotel which for me defines Viennese hospitality and glamour, The Sacher. Someone once asked me what I would do if I had only one day to spend in Vienna. I think that is easier to explain than to start listing my favorite museums, churches, cafes, etc. I would begin at the Art History Museum and make a beeline for its extraordinary collection of paintings by Jan and Pieter Brueghel. I would then zip over to the Upper Belvedere Palace (with a walk through its charming garden) to admire its astonishing collection of paintings by Gustav Klimt ant Egon Schiele. If I had time I would visit the Leopold Museum in the new MuseumsQuartier Wien to sample more Schieles plus other works in its amazing collection of 19th and 20th century Austrian art.

I need a break for lunch. Will it be the simple Café Heiner on the mid-city pedestrian street? Café Sirk with its wonderful collection of salads? No, it must be that most classic of Viennese cafés, Demel, whose array of cakes and confections is unrivaled anywhere.

I would devote the afternoon to wandering. I would visit favorite churches like the Michaelerkirche with its marvelous Baroque altar, the Jesuitenkirche with it’s tromp de soleil ceiling, Maria am Gestade with its crooked nave. I would meander through the streets of the old quarter of Vienna with its tiny cobbled lanes, surprising courtyards (one must not be afraid to push open a door and peek inside), innovative galleries and shops, the haunting Holocaust Memorial. When walking through the massive courtyards of the royal palace, the Hofburg, would make a mental salute to the last emperor Franz Joseph (I still hear some old timers refer to “the emperor” as if he still lived there). Of course I would have to make time for a stop at a café for the traditional afternoon Viennese Jause of cake and coffee – perhaps at the historic Café Central or Café Landtmann, a University hangout. I would stroll through the City Park to gaze at the golden statue of Johann Strauss. If I have timed my stroll correctly, it will be the end of the afternoon and I will hear the Viennese melodies floating out from the daily concert in the nearby Kursalon.

And what to do with my evening? If there is an opera I want to see that is where I will certainly be with a light snack afterwards at the Café Imperial or the Café Sacher. No opera. Where should I dine? Will it be my very favorite restaurant in the suburbs, one of the few places one can still get traditional Austrian dishes like Wiener schnitzel, veal gulasch, zwiebelrostbraten (steak with fried onions)? Or will it be The White Chimney sweep where one can get traditional dishes served with a modern flair in a series of charming Alpine rooms? Or will be be Oesterreicher im MAK, (the fascinating Applied Arts Museum), the newest “in” restaurant in the city. For me it must be the Restaurant Anna Sacher in the Hotel Sacher for an iconic meal of tafelspitz and Sachertorte. No visit to Vienna is ever complete without a piece of Sachertorte!

For people with more than one day there is so much more to see and do. Plus Vienna is a perfect place from which to start a tour of Eastern European gems like Budapest, Prague and Krakow.

As the song continues, “Where I am happy and blessed is Vienna, Wien mein Wien!”

Margery Coen - Travel Consultant