Our trip got off to a rocky start; we couldn’t check into Austrian Air the night before so when we arrived at the air port we didn’t have assigned seats. When we checked in they had only two seats left together, by the emergency exit. We asked if they reclined (it’s an eight hour flight) and the first girl didn’t know, so she called a supervisor over and the woman assured us they could. Are you certain? Yes, she said. You know where this is going? Of course, the seats did not recline. But the cabin crew did their best and found a single reclining seat elsewhere on the plane so at least one of us could get some sleep. JT stayed back at the non-reclining seats (gallant!) content to put the arm rest up and spread out over two seats. You know where this is going…arm rest was fixed. Long sleepless flight. Are they allowed to fly planes that old? I’m talking at least 30! Not good at all. No in-seat entertainment, poor audio, no fans above seats, poorly insulated windows. Not a fan. Can you tell?
On a positive note, I used social media Twitter to convey my unhappiness and Air Canada responded immediately (A/C and A/V are partners). Wow that was a powerful tool. I doubt I would have been called back if I sent one of my famous letters! I will also go the traditional route so this doesn’t happen again to some unsuspecting soul. Lesson: don’t lie to your customers!
Vienna was as gorgeous as ever.
Vienna was a bit chillier than expected, but at least it wasn’t raining.
Our hotel the Radisson Blu Palais
This time we stayed just inside the inner ring a short 5 minute walk to the Graben at the Radisdon Blu Palais a gorgeous old building.
The view from our room.
A walk around the Graben
We were pleasantly surprised that our room was ready when we arrive at 9 am, so we were able to unpack, shower and change and feel human again. We searched around to find a place for lunch and settled at Danieli just off the Graben. It’s an Italian place inside a very old building with brick vaulted ceilings and a beautiful atrium. Food was great as was the service. After lunch fatigue hit us and we crashed for a couple of hours; we’ve been to Vienna several times and we’d already done most of the touristy things.
After a restful nap we headed out again to find a place for dinner. But first we had a cocktail on the lovely rooftop patio at Steffl Skybar.
We decided on Huth a short walk from our hotel. When we ventured out for dinner around 8ish they didn’t have room, so instead we sat at the bar. Although our host was extremely busy, he spent a lovely amount of time with us chatting and recommending their specialties. Another great meal and experience I would highly recommend.
We picked up our rented a car the next morning and started our 3-hour drive to Budapest on the M-1 highway.
Stopping once at McDonalds Cafe (sacrilege!) for a coffee which was surprisingly good we made it to my family in just over 3 hours. Garmin’s voice died somewhere along the way so we may have missed a turn or two, but we made it unscathed.
The next few days will be in Budapest. We’ll check in again in Barcelona, when I’m sure we’ll have some stories to tell!
Kitcheninspirations 