Vienna redux

After a week of sampling the treats at the Bratislava Christmas Market, I visited Vienna today to compare their Markets. It seems all of Central Europe features these popular outdoor bazaars, with local food specialties and holiday gifts and crafts. With clear, sunny skies and balmy temperatures in the 40s, Vienna was jammed with tourists and shoppers everywhere I went.

The train from Bratislava to Vienna seemed to have a lot of one-day visitors, like me. My round-trip ticket, including a one-day travel pass for Vienna public transportation, cost only 402 SKK (about $16.00).

This is the pedestrian shopping area near St. Stephen's Cathedral in the middle of Vienna. In all the cities I've visited so far, large pedestrian-only shopping areas in the middle of the city are vibrant and alive, just the opposite of so many American cities that have abandoned their city centers in favor of suburban malls.

In the morning, I visited the Christmas Market by the Rathaus (Old City Hall) on the west side of the Inner Ring. It's an easy trip by the D tram from the south train station, where I arrived.

The stands for food and gifts were much larger than those in Bratislava -- but also much more commercial. Many seemed to be selling mass-produced souvenirs available in town. Some also accepted credit cards.

The big attraction here seemed to be the ambitious programs for children. Here's the entrance to the winding sidewalks in the park in front of the Rathaus.

Charming structures along the paths in the park housed puppet shows and other entertainment.

Pony rides, with attendants for every child, were available on the north side of the park.

They even had a train that trundled around all the paths in the park.

More traditional horse carriages are available across the street at Joseph Meinrad Platz.

This blog entry has gotten so long, I'll do separate entries for other things I saw today in Vienna.

NOTE: Click on any image in this blog to see it full-size.