Diana Pereira (1983)

Vienna has many public swimming pools; in the summer many of them also offer an outdoor area for enjoying the sun and sunbathing! Kongressbad, an outdoor swimming pool in the 16th district can be enjoyed only in warmer months – it opens between May and September!

The pool was built on the 20′s, although some things have changed (for example the original pool was 100 meters long and nowadays it is divided in 2 pools!). Still the beautiful main building with red and white stripes was kept and is nowadays considered a monument!

You have the choice between two swimming pools, (there is even a third one a little bit further hidden by the trees but is mainly for kids). For those who like and can swim long distances then the main pool is just perfect! The other pool has several water attractions, a fun slide, currents and bubbles; this one does not have much depth. On a hot summer day a flair of seaside resort is in the air, even though the it is surrounded by big grey housing blocks.

The large green area around the pools is awesome for relaxing or getting tanned in the city! Unfortunately the sunbathing area on the meadow sometimes has too many people. But there are also other nice spots half shadowed by the trees for reading a book! You can play beach volleyball and when you get hungry there is as well a restaurant where you get warm food or just French fries!

Vienna is the city of music. Once you are in Vienna a visit to the State Opera is mandatory!

When the State Opera (Staatsoper) was built, it was severely criticized by the people due to its simplicity for the mid-nineteenth century, it was said it was an ugly building to represent the so dignified art. Nowadays the Vienna State Opera is one of the symbols of the city and is one of the best addresses in the world where you can enjoy an opera or a ballet from great names such as Mozart, Beethoven, Strauss and others… performances are daily (except for the summer break).

The building is fabulous and the main room is simply unique. It is magical to watch a performance there. If you are traveling on a low budget it is no more an excuse to not go to the opera. The Vienna state Opera offers the possibility of buying tickets at a very low price (between 3 and 6 Euros) for the performance at a side entrance of the building. These are called “Stehplatz” and are sold about 2 hours before the beginning of the performance. Basically you get a ticket to attend the act standing. It’s a good deal as long as you don’t mind standing the whole time!

High above Vienna and somewhere in the forest you can find a little magical restaurant.

I like this place rather due to the atmosphere. Besides the extraordinary location this little hut has its own style. The whole house is designed in a kind of retro modern look. Each room has its own design and the waitresses are dressed in a kind of fantasy dirndl which imitates the traditional clothing from Austria.

In the garden there is also a bar! You can sit outside all year round, also in the Winter as blankets, hot wine and little heaters are provided to keep you warm! From time to time a little market takes place in the garden around the house where you can buy different home-made products like jam, cakes or even mustard.

One of the dishes they serve is “Flammkuchen” which is prepared in a nice old wooden stove. “Flammkuchen” is similar to pizza but comes originally from Alsace.

This place is good to visit when you are on the Kahlenberg (a 10 min walk from the bus stop) or when you have a short hike through the Wienderwald.

Located in the inner districts, it can be a good choice if you don’t want to meet (other) tourists on the neighbor table. Wratschko is a local old style pub/restaurant where you can have a plate of good tasty food.

It is quite traditional and probably not appealing if you look for something hip or trendy! The inside is rather simple but very nice and cozy. The worn wooden tables, the low ceilings, the lamps, the white translucent glass panels and the simple decoration makes you believe that you are in the countryside in the 50′s! Menus are written by hand which I think is also pretty charming and fits the picture of being a traditional and a unique place.

The dishes are of course also traditional. They are cooked with local and fresh bio products. It can take a little longer to be served but you can be sure it is all carefully prepared. The Wratschko is a proper Wiener pub, the way you can imagine it!

The name says it all, experience a bit of the French flair in Vienna. In fact the concept and inspiration were based on a small cafe from Toulouse. After years of living in France the owner returned to Austria and took his favorite place with him to Vienna!

The main dish in Cafe der Provinz is undoubtedly crepes. Unlike the traditional French recipe, in this cafe the crepes are made of a mixture of 2 different flours (Spelt and Buckwheat) which makes a darker and healthier version as it contains higher protein and nutrition substances. The same dough is used for the sweet and the savory crepes! So it is the filling what gives the sweet or savory “character” to them!

Saturdays and Sundays there is a brunch where you can eat as much as you want while you watch your crepes being prepared. The down side of it is that the place gets crowded quickly. I advise you to reserve a table as the place is quite small. Otherwise you might be waiting a long time!

Most of the time, outside of the weekends busy brunch hours, you can sit there enjoying a book. In the summer they also have outside seats which are very nice as it is a quiet area. In the back of the store books, teas and other small products can be found for sale.