Wayne
I liked Vienna. It is a robust town, easy to get around, loaded with history and the people are very pleasant. They speak German but English was not a problem for us. Several times on the public transportation we were offered help and advice without having to ask for help.
We found this was the first city we have been to that has some consideration for disabled and handicapped people. All the subways have lifts with good signage to them. You may have to walk a ways but you avoid many flights of stairs. Sandy was very appreciative of this. Meredith and Jesse also were helpful in pointing out signs around the city to us. Considering many buildings are 500 years and older, having some ramps in them to avoid the stairs was very appreciated.
The prices in Vienna were reasonable. Gas was 1.38 Euros a liter (so you can compare with the other countries).
We had an excellent location for our apartment. It was only a block from the subway and tram stop, a block from the post office, a block from a grocery store and just a few blocks from a great pastry shop and the Gummy Bear Store. Many restaurants of good quality were near by. We had a lift to our room, although small and could fit only 3 people, 2 comfortable. Our room was spacious and a little hot but that helped dry our clothes. We had only a washer but we used it several times a day and Meredith and Jesse used it also.
The weather was very good. It was an adjustment for us going from 103 degree days to 42 degrees that first morning and highs of 60 to 66. The last day it got almost 70. We only had rain one day, a Sunday and most things were closed then anyway. We did pack for the very hot and the cold weather so we were comfortable. We are using all the clothes we brought somewhere. But I have told Sandy I might just “retire” them when we get home. They have been used and used but they have held up and done their job. Sandy says we should wait two weeks after we get home before making that decision.
We really enjoyed seeing Meredith and Jesse here. We enjoyed being able to celebrate her birthday and caught up with them about their experiences and challenges to date and their listening to ours as well.
The sites were amazing. We have several other places we could visit. We did not get out to Slovakia like they did and that would be something to do next time as well as some of the museums.
Sandy and I would like to come here again. We thought the same about Singapore. India was nice the one time and our only time. Australia was fine but we liked New Zealand better.