Thursday 4 June 2009

Viennese Moments


Viennese Happy Hour
View of Graben from Stock-im-Eisen Square
Square or street, no one cares,
the Viennese know their "Graben" is no longer a moat
- or trench, as it is usually translated -
but gold-plated pavement to saunter along
after a hard day's work.

Seven Ladies Astrolling
and each holding an ice-cream cone!
They are walking from the Meinl building -
where Graben meets Kohlmarkt to the left
and Tuchlauben to the right -
towards Stock-im-Eisen Square
next to St. Stephen's Cathedral.

I turned left towards Kohlgraben,
not feeling too sorry for the marathon talking busymen
with their coffee and cell phone melange
at Meinl's outdoor café.

Quick, how many pairs
of sun-glasses?

The sun was sending off the day's last few blinding rays,
past the Esterhazy Palais at Wallnerstrasse,
illuminating the fashionably accessorized ladies in
the Chanel windows on Kohlmarkt.

Der Rosenkavalier
"I see bloom and bough reaching out to her,
and dancing upon the breeze ...
with her who is more lovely than the roses!
Will she gently take my hand and
walk with me through garden paths
?"
So dreams our Knight of the Rose,
in Tommy Hilfiger's window,
ready to affix in desperation a few more sheets of music
onto the unforgiving sheet of glass
that separates him from Chanel and his beloved
on the either side of Kohlmarkt.

This scene almost stops
me in my tracks:
Happy Hour by the sea,
who wouldn't rather
want to dream there?

At the end,
I am one hour late,
but luckily my friend,
a patient soul,
held out for me.

And this is where
we headed,
after putting Demel's between
a hectic day and the evening's persuit
of satiating our thirst for
knowledge of secrets of the past.

Good night, knowledge,
good night, world,
no more secrets
be revealed
today.

*

Photographed by Merisi
on the evening of June 2, 2009.

The first image - of Graben -
is a photograph of the cover illustration
of an Ernst Hausner publication,
"Vienna. Strolling Through a Beautiful City"
I took the picture at Berger's bookstore at Kohlmarkt.

17 comments:

  1. And the streets really WERE paved with gold! Such wonderful views to hold in my mind...
    Sandi

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  2. What a lovely stroll at dusk...I enjoyed it so much...thanks for letting me tag along :-) As usual, one of the highlights of my bloggie visits!!!! Gorgeous words...and images!!! ~Janine XO

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  3. The chandelier - wow! I am surprized that in the first pic the clothes of the women look so similar in fashion. It used to be that here they were 6 years behind:) A wonderful variety of daily life in Vienna in this post!

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  4. loved this series of photos...all so very lovely.
    thanks for sharing them with us.
    have a wonderful weekend.

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  5. Oh thank goodness! Those first few photos made me think we were in New York City....I come here to visit Vienna :)

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  6. Fabulous .. and that it all leads up to this last truly excellent shot makes the wait worthwhile.. were you really an hour late? I would not have waited that long, I would have called and said 'see you another time'

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  7. Seven ladies licking! Gotta love it. Perhaps we can update the Twelve Days of Christmas song.

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  8. I loved seeing the ladies with the ice creams!

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  9. Marie from Montréal05 June, 2009

    I absolutely love Vienna and your beautiful pictures help me wait until I can go back again.
    You are very talented with a keen eye for the whimsical, quirky, funny and colorful.
    I visit your blog every morning and I always go to work with a smile afterwards.
    Thank you for sharing your city with all of us. Now, I have a sudden taste for ice cream...

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  10. It is amazing to me how you capture local images, and with that click, create a global statement.

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  11. I adored the poster of the lady with the gentleman and the boat at the sea shore.

    You have a very patient friend: a good friend to have indeed.

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  12. I love how you put Demel's between the hectic day and the rest of your time. Terrific window pictures with great reflections. I love the 7 women with ice cream cones..goodness, I like them all!

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  13. Dear Readers,
    I cannot express adequately how much I appreciate your comments, you really touch me with your words!
    I am truly sorry that I am not being able to visit other blogs these days, but I hope that I can make up for it in the future.

    Best wishes for a pleasant weekend to you all,
    sincerely,
    Merisi

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  14. All I can say is "wow!"...really. ..."Wow"...Merisi, your blog is wonderful!

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  15. Oh, more delightful posts! I simply love them!

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  16. Seven ladies strolling! How interesting and inovative.

    Love the colour contrasts on the first window pic.

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