We made it! No thanks to Austrian Airlines, which gave us quite a few challenges on this trip (including a mix-up with our upgraded seat assignments — upgrades for which I had paid, mind you — and a three-hour delayed departure of our connecting flight from Chicago). But we are here in Vienna and spent our first day just taking it slow and easy.

Mom and I agree: From now on, any trip to Europe will have to be at least 14 days long to make up for the entire day you miss farting around to get here. But one good thing about our delay was that we got to our hotel at noon and were able to get into our room right away. We you can see from the selfie I snapped at the baggage claim, we REALLY needed to get in and freshen up after our day of travel.

After short break (and I will admit it, there was napping), we took an Uber from our hotel next to the Lower Belvedere into the Inner Stadt and spent a couple of hours strolling down Kaertnerstrasse, the main pedestrian shopping area in Vienna’s old town.

The place has many of your typical upscale and touristy shops: Chanel, Gucci, Microsoft, Pandora, etc., plus an array of fabulous confectionery stores and pastry cafes. Since Easter is only weeks away, there were plenty of window displays featuring bunnies, lambs and chicks. Adorable.

Since we are trying to acclimate to the new time zone, we decided to do a light and early dinner this evening and save the Weiner Schnitzel for later. So we enjoyed a bowl of soup and split an order of genuine Viennese wurst, served with a delicious roll, freshly grated horseradish and spicy mustard. Even better than the food was the ambiance; the Cafe Slutka dates back to the late 1800s, and the decor reflects that Imperial elegance with crystal chandeliers, plush red velvet chairs/banquets, tuxedo-clad waiters and a GORGEOUS stained glass ceiling. It is pure Viennese elegance!

After a bit more walking we realized that we needed further sustenance before heading back to the hotel. So it was time for quick stop at Cafe Aida next to St. Stephen’s cathedral for some authentic Viennese hot chocolate and one of the city’s famous pastries. Total yum.

Then it was back to the hotel via a very friendly Uber driver, and off to bed. We are both completely wiped out and need to recharge for tomorrow when we plan to hit the Albertina Museum to see a special exhibit on loan from the royal family of Liechtenstein…and have more pastry.

Good night, everyone!