I arrived in Vienna mid-afternoon, feeling a bit lost and unsure about where I was going, but saw the young people around me and instantly new it was a place I would like. It's quite different from Berlin, more relaxed, very hip and stylish. I took the underground subway to the MuseumsQuartier near the AirBnB flat I would stay at. I tried to find a way to pass the time until my meeting with the flat host. Actually, the host was out of town so her boyfriend was going to meet me.
The MuseumsQuartier consists of the Leopold Museum, the Mumok, a contemporary art museum and other museums. The central public space is like a courtyard, surrounded by walls, museums, and corridors. There are cafes and restaurants for people to relax and enjoy a drink or meal. I saw people of all ages from toddlers chasing pigeons, to children on field trips, to students studying or working on projects, and some sophisticated well dressed people that look like they are in the arts scene or have money.
I didn't have time or the energy to walk around the Leopold Museum, so I started my search for the AirBnB flat. I wandered around a maze of streets, asking people for directions, clueless about where I was going. This is what happens when you don't print a map of the area or use the maps app on your smartphone! It's back to using your intuition and asking people for directions, some of which led me down the street with me going back up the street. It was quite tiresome. Finally I found the flat and no one was home! I followed someone into the building, found the apartment and waited for my hosts boyfriend, Wlad. He shows up a few minutes later and seems rushed and perplexed that I had difficulty finding the flat. It was a nice spacious apartment in an old building. I was surprised and a little relieved that I would have the place to myself for a day or two.
Wlad gave me directions to a restaurant that served great falafels. I walked to the restaurant and found many new age shops selling crystals and buddhist meditation bowls. There were cafes, juice bars, and a variety of interesting shops. I found the Turkish restaurant and the server or host was kind of dismissive so I sat outside and waited for him to serve me. I spoke English and he figured out I American, then suddenly became more polite. I ordered a lamb dish with rice, vegetables and salad with a local beer, Pfizer. I felt strange sitting alone when everyone around me sat with someone else or in a group. I felt out of place and strange, a lone American woman traveling from city to city in Europe who couldn't speak or understand German. I missed Sharise and wished I had a companion, someone I could talk to. But it seemed that from now on in the trip, I would have to figure out a way to meet people or feel comfortable being alone. It's the feeling alone, strange and lost that gets me and I try to keep it under control, appearing confident and familiar with my surroundings. But most of the time I think I appear to look lost, alone and maybe stupid. After my meal, I walk back to the flat, exhausted and ready for sleep in a strange new place.
The next morning, I set out for the Leopold Museum to see Klimt's work and to discover a new artist, Schiele, who was heavily influenced by Klimt. I wasn't sure I would like Schiele because he drew or painted evocative very sexual poses of women, maybe pornographic. But I think Schiele must have been intrigued by women. Many of the women who modeled for him were prostitutes. Sometimes his wife modeled for him. I was surprised that Schiele was so young when he died, 28 years old I think. I didn't see the evocative pieces in the gallery for some reason, but beautiful inspiring work. I was moved and enthralled by Schiele and Klimt's work, not just of people but landscapes. This is what going to a museum is about. I found a few pieces that really made me feel emotional. Words couldn't describe how the simplicity and beauty of one of Schiele's paintings made me feel, almost giving me chills and tears. You might see so much beautiful art in a museum, but sometimes you see art that transcends, touched, a piece of the artist's soul and you almost feel what the artist might have felt when he saw it completed and perfect. That's an amazing feeling, to get what the artist is trying to communicate to the viewer, his or her vision, what's inside them or what they see in the world.
That emotion stuck with me throughout the day. It was spring time in Vienna and it was like a dream, perfect. I didn't do or see all the things in Vienna because I had little time there and I didn't want to spend my time in museums, the one was enough for me! I was content with walking around, getting lost, exhausting myself in this wonderful city because the energy there kept me going despite the painful feet. I wanted to keep going, seeing and doing more. I wished I could live there, but could someone my age just start over in a new city like Vienna, not know the language and come to feel the city was their own? It's a magnificent city full of culture, history and art, but would I be happy living there? That's what I'm trying to find, the place. Will I find it? Is place really important? We must be drawn to certain places because of the energy we feel, the people that live there, we feel like we fit or belong there. It feels familiar, like coming home.