Hallo from Vienna

I made it! It's been a fantastic three days in in beautiful Vienna. Thank you all so much for your recommendations on what to see and do here; it's been immensely helpful.

As soon as I got to my hotel, I saw a lovely dirndl in the lobby. It really is the land of dirndl!

This one is by Dirndl Herz, and I really love the unusual fabric and the way the apron is draped on the mannequin.

After a nap, one of the first things I did was visit Lena Hoschek's boutique. It's quite tucked away in the MuseumsQuartier, on a little side street.

The shop is cozy but packed with beautiful things.

Here's the adorable salesgirl, who spoke perfect English and even gave recommendations on vintage shops.

I might have left with that blue dress and a couple other things too.

Next up: cake! Cafe Landtmann came highly recommended from a commenter, and it was every bit as wonderful as anticipated. In fact, I've gone three times in three days.

I cannot get enough of this gorgeous cake, the Landtmann Feine Torte.

 And the coffee!

The next two days were a Sunday and a National Holiday, so all shops were closed. This got me to do some cultural things like visit the Sisi Museum.

I took some pictures of the wigs that showed her hairstyles and one beautiful dress, before I was rebuffed by a guard (whoops).

I also went to MAK and saw this gorgeous piece of embroidery.

But perhaps my favorite thing I saw was this giant pink bunny near the Opera House.

After posting it on Instagram, I learned from a helpful commenter that it's a big 3D representation of Albrecht Dürer's Hare made to promote last year's Dürer exhibit at the Albertina. So much better in pink! (If you ask me.) It was also mentioned on Instagram that it's available in smaller form in the museum gift shop, so . . .

It's perfect for my sewing room shelf! I did go through the museum as well, of course, including the Munch exhibit, which was so perfectly dark and pained. Wonderful!

The city bike system here has been really handy (aside from the fact that the stations can fill up so it's hard to return your bike sometimes). But I highly recommend using a bike to get around Vienna. There are great bike lanes and beautiful sights all around.

It's even fantastic at nighttime since all the bikes are equipped with lights. I got to see this amazing light show at the Natural History and Art History museum, which projected colorful patterns onto the facades on the buildings.

 The next day is all about fabric, fashion, and dirndls, so I will have much more to report!