a rare sight in Vienna

I slept really bad last night. At first I had problems with falling asleep in the first place. Our neighbour had an argument with another woman, whoever that was. They screamed. They laughed. The chatted. And then they screamed again. Eventually I fell asleep. Only to wake up two hours later as rain was pouring through the open window in our roof. Too bad that our bed is right underneath it. I closed the window. I went back to sleep. Only to wake up three hours later. Don't know why. Had troubles falling back asleep.

At 5:30 in the morning I had enough and got up. I had breakfast, took a shower, drank two coffees (and many more to come that day) and decided to drive to work early. Starting early means leaving early. And so I was in the city centre of Vienna at the ungodly hour of 7:30 a.m. I'm sure that's a time where a lot of city-folks go to sleep!!! Anyway. When I get out of the subway I stand in the middle of the square in front of St.Stephens Cathedral, probably the town's most famous landmark. And it looked like this:

the square in the morning. And it has been raining for three days straight. hence the loomy picture.

Absolutely deserted! I have never seen it this way. I usually go to work at 9, where a lot more people are around. People on their way to work, people going to the bakery, buying breakfast, the early-bird tourists that want to visit the cathedral before it is stormed by hundreds and hundreds of people who want to tick it off their sightseeing list.

the cathedral's entrance

Just look at this place. There's no one. There are no horses. Usually at this place there is a line of carriages, called "Fiaker" which have the one and only purpose to drive the masses of tourists around the famours "Ringstraße". 

walking without stepping into ... well ... "manure" the horses left behind..

When I got out of the office 8 hours later, everything went back to normal. People. Tourists. Horses. It was loud and hectic and smelly. 

I have to admit, I preferred the early-morning-version. Just because you rarely get to see that.

the cathedral. just for you to admire.

left tower

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