My alarm was set half an hour later that morning, since Nicole and I were getting increasingly efficient at getting ready to leave in the morning. Despite that, we still had plenty of time to linger over the enormous buffet breakfast under the pyramid of the hotel. Absolutely everything was available to eat, from pastries and breads, to bacon and eggs, cereals, fruit, cold meats and cheeses, and so the list went on. I was actually getting somewhat tired of eating (apparently it's possible) so I just had some bacon and some frittata with my orange juice. I snuck some oranges to snack on later, since we probably aren't even getting two out of our five a day at this point.
We headed into town with a half empty bus again. It had been pretty empty the night before as well when we'd gone on our walking tour. The allure of the heated indoor swimming pool and naked sauna were obviously proving to be too tempting for most people. Also, of course, by taking the tram into town, those that missed the bus could sleep later.
Sleeping late wasn't an option for me, though. Mostly because I didn't want to waste money on public transportation or miss out on anything that was included in our tour. Also, I wasn't sleeping through anyway, thanks to my stupid cough. On top of that, I had my list of things to do that day!
Before we got off the bus, Joey gave us a quick driving tour around the city, and Jen gave us a bit more history. She pointed out the world's oldest Ferris wheel for us and showed us where the old Jewish section of the city was before World War II. We actually spotted quite a few Jewish people heading back that way from the synagogues, so it seems to still be home to at least some brave souls. There are a lot of Jewish memorials around the city but especially in that area.
When the coach finally dropped us off, our first stop was the Swarovski flagship store, where even their toilets are covered in crystals. Yvette, one of the other South Africans, who had been dying to get herself something sparkly from the home of the famous jewelry brand. We headed down to the bottom floor where the first thing I saw was binoculars, of all things. That is something I didn't know Swarovski made! Very plain, non crystal covered binoculars.
There was also jewelry, of course, and lots of it! On the bottom floor, it was beautifully displayed behind glass and you needed the sales assistant to take it out for you if you'd like to try it on. On the upper floor, though, the jewelry was hanging on display racks the way they present cosmetic jewelry in clothing stores, making it seem like cheaper options. Some of that jewelry was cheaper, but a lot of it was just as expensive as some of the stuff that they had tucked away behind glass on the lower level. Anyway, we did some serious damage to my credit card there, walking away with earrings and a ring each. Swarovski even gave us a small thank you gift as we left.
I'd hoped that we'd get to a pharmacy or post office after that, but we kept getting distracted by the sales being advertised along the shopping street. Since it was the weekend, I was worried the post office would close early, so I left Nicole to browse a store while I quickly headed to get some stamps. Quickly is not the right word. The post office was a lot further than it seemed, and once there, I needed to stand in quite a queue before I was served. I rushed back through the immensely crowded streets, but by the time I got back to the store, Nicole had been waiting over half an hour for me. She was NOT impressed!
I made it up to her by taking her to Burger King for lunch, one of the few places in Vienna that sold food we could still afford. On our way, I noticed that the pharmacies had started closing, so I left her at the fast food place while I quickly ran to get cough syrup. Luckily, the lady at the chemist knew exactly what I needed, but she didn't give me instructions and I didn't think to ask. It's only when I was back with Nicole and wanting to take some medication that I realised the dosage had been written in German! I did what I could to figure it out and hoped for the best.
After lunch, we headed back to the bus where we met up with the members of our tour that would be joining us for our visit to the schnapps museum. There, we were met by one of the gentlemen of the family that are one of the oldest schnapps producers in Europe. Back during the days of the Hapsburg Empire, they were the sole suppliers of Schnapps to the palace. Nowadays, they are visited by prestigious guests and celebrities, as well as by us lowly tour groups.
The tour began with the youngest generation of the family, Frederick, who is only in his 20s, in one of the oldest working offices in the country. Tv and movie producers often use the office as a set when filming period pieces. In an adjacent room, we were shown how schnapps is made and the lowdown of what they have available. We were each allowed to try three samples.
The first one I tried was distilled with chillies that they call rocket fuel, which is disguised by the high sugar content, making it potent! It's supposed to take away your cough, which it didn't in my case. Apparently, though, if it doesn't work the first time, you are encouraged to try again. And again. And again... The next one I tried was absinth, which no longer has much of the hallucinogenic compound wormwood in it, making it a lot less fun to drink than I'm sure it was back in the day when it was killing people. Now it's just awful. Bleh. The last is a liquor, of which I bought a bottle, that has 24 carat gold flakes in it, so you become worth more with every sip!
The Aussies were amused that Nicole and I sipped our tasters rather than shooting them. The reason we do this is pretty simple: it's too yummy to rush. We savor it instead. We did shoot the absinth, though, because that was not the least bit yummy. Shooting, in our case, is for the unpalatable stuff. The Aussies love to shoot, though. At some bars we've been to where they gave us very sweet and not particularly alcoholic shots (tasted like cordial), they'd shoot them back without a second thought. I think the bars that serve you these (seemingly) low alcohol shots are probably counting on you not to bother tasting it.
Needless to say, we were all feeling pretty jolly as we boarded the bus to head back home. Nicole and I had a quiet evening planned so that I could catch up my blogging and photo uploads while she watched some super entertaining German tv (the latter was sarcasm - tv is far less entertaining in other languages, even after you have been drinking schnapps). For dinner, we headed to the McDonalds across the road, which may cost more than it does in South Africa but is a LOT cheaper than anything else you can buy to eat in Austria! I'm so over fast food now, though. It's a pity local cuisine in Vienna is so pricey! We have been able to buy clothing for less money than our meals have cost!
While everyone else was off to dine in the gorgeous town hall, which looks like a castle from a Disney fairytale, and listen to a Mozart concert in the heart of Vienna, Nicole and I took the opportunity to get to bed early and catch up on some sleep. I swallowed my meds with a big swig of cough syrup to ensure a peaceful night for a change!
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