VIENNA’S DIFFERENT – ISN’T IT?!

Vienna calling! I wake up to this somewhat different alarm clock in one of the cities with the highest living standards in the world, but which also has a slightly morbid preoccupation with death … but not me, and so I head out to discover why Vienna is supposed to be the greatest city in the world…      9.00 a.m.: Shabby chic of the first class in an enchanting setting that could not be more original. The place simply enthralled me, both the interior and the artful garden, while the scent of the beguiling delicacies lured me into the heart of this treasure trove. And the best thing about it is:  not only can I spoil myself with a fabulous breakfast and admire the location furnished with a great love for detail, I can also buy bits of the furnishings to take home. What a great idea!  More information available at: www.purelivingbakery.com   10.30 a.m.: Now that I am in the mood for shopping, I have no choice but to give in to this internal urge. Always follow your nose, and I definitely have a sense for some extraordinary shopping destinations. Vienna’s 7thdistrict awaits me with a range of unique and incomparable stores. I’ve obviously already done my homework. And my favourite is Gloom.  More information available at: www.gloom.at 1.00 p.m.: Time for a breather and some country-air feeling right in the heart of the city: Villa Aurora is the key to this type of happiness. Somewhat hidden between trees and shrubs, the gateway to freedom is there if you look closely: culinary delights, up on high. That’s all I’m saying. Classy: a picnic basket complete with blanket for a well-earned rest on the grass nearby, and a breath-taking view over Vienna, but you can also just drop in to the restaurant.  More information available at: www.wien.info/de/orte/villa-aurora   3.30 p.m.: Now from this wonderful, heavenly place to another heavenly place, with a slight difference: “Death must surely be a Viennese!”: “A Banklreißn”, “die Patschnstreckn”, “die Bock aufstön” … the Viennese dialect has a variety of colourful ways to express that moment of passing away. It is generally believed that the Viennese have a particularly loving relationship with death. And since I’m here to tread some new paths, the following destinations will round my day off: Cemetery of the Nameless:www.friedhof-der-namenlosen.at  Funeral Museum: www.bestattungsmuseum.at  Morbid city tours:www.wienfuehrungen.com/morbide-fuehrungen.html