Wednesday 8 September 2010

When Night Falls In Vienna


It was seven in the evening
when I came up
from the Underground station
near the opera house.
A dark, unfriendly evening,
with wind gusts threatening to blow
away my umbrella and drizzle
right in my face

The opening of the exhibition
would not commence
for another half an hour,
the warm atmosphere
at Café Frauenhuber
was quite tempting.
Alas, I decided a brisk walk
in fresh air
was what I needed

The angel
hanging above Franek's
entrance seemed
to agree

Reaching Domgasse,
all quiet in the evening glow,
I looked up at the windows
of number 5,
hoping to catch a glimpse
of Mozart or hear him
come down the stairs

Back at the opera house,
I encountered his music, though.
The curtain was about to rise
on a performance of his "Magic Flute" -
thanks to a large screen
and chairs lined up in front,
anybody willing to ignore the drizzle
was invited to sit down and enjoy
an evening at the opera,
without spending a dime!

*

Images:
- Swarovsky, Kärntner Strasse
- Café Frauenhuber
from the outside looking in,
Himmelpfortgasse
- Franek, Ballgasse
- Mozarthaus and Domgasse
- Opera House

Photographed
7 September 2010
Images and text
© 2010 by Merisi


13 comments:

  1. I love the angel. A little gilt worn but lovely.

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  2. How wonderful. Now, I love living in the desert but I have never stumbled upon a free outdoor Mozart concert, especially with a little rain, ha, sounds magical.

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  3. Lovely. I feel as though you transported me.

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  4. that feels kinda wintery already even christmas dare l say?!


    saz x

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  5. Thank you all!

    SAZ,
    oh yeah, baby,
    don't say it. *drats*

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  6. A beautiful depiction of the constellation of Cygnus (the Swan) Merisi, visible in the night sky.

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  7. So when you reached Domgasse,
    did you happen to catch a glimpse of Mozart...or hear him come down the stairs... now that would have most definitely been a treat. I am so thankful that we do have the music that he composed, for he is my favorite of the classical composers. The evening glow on the building is truly captivating. ~

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  8. I see your city is as beautiful by night as by day.

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  9. I love the lighting in these.

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  10. I'm reading a new novel, the last of the late great Jose Saramago.... my favorite author of all time, barring Shakespeare.
    It's called The Elephant's Journey, and the "journey" is from Lisbon [Portugal] to Vienna [Austria].
    On page 20, the destination is described as "the most beautiful city in the world" and I only have to visit you here at your site, Merisi, to see that it it is true! And still applicable, even though the setting of the novel is the year 1551.
    100% accurate!

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  11. I think it would be kind of romantic to sit in the drizzle with some charming gentleman and listen to Mozart ( for free ). Of course, at my age, the difficulty would be in finding the charming gentleman!!

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