New Year’s in Vienna.

 

 

I have to preface this by saying that we’re not really New Year’s Eve party people. 

If we had been anywhere else,  we probably would have simply gone to bed,  but this was a “Once in a lifetime”,  and I don’t mean that in a negative way either.

It’s already dark here well before 5:00 p.m.,  and the fireworks had already started.  Not in a big way mind you,  but just a steady blip here and there.  

Around 8:00 p.m.,  we headed down to the first district,  just to see what we could see.  I decided against public transit,  since I had no intentions of having a single drop of libation,  and had no desire to share public transit with those who had.   Returning from late night ball games from Toronto comes to mind,  and that’s never a pretty picture.

Speaking of pretty pictures,  I did manage a few.   I think.

 

Outside the State Opera,  it’s fairly normal to be able to stand outside and watch the proceedings inside.  “Die Fledermaus”  (The Bat)  was being performed.  I had guessed “The Merry Widow”,  (Die Lustige Witwe)  but some times I get mixed up.  Either way,  I knew we had seen it at some point in time,  so it was vaguely familiar back in the recesses of my pea brain.

 

Then we moved on into the fray.

The estimate was that there were something like 750,000 people hanging around Stephansplatz.

 

 

Travelling Companion decided she wanted some Glühwein,  mostly since she really wanted a cup with 2012 on it.  I had a sip.   Not my thing.

 

She’s going to complain bitterly that I’ve put her picture on here,  but I kind of like this one.

 

There were a couple attempts to take a picture of yours truly in front of Stephansdom,  and I think in this one I’m about to ask just when that’s about to happen:

If I look a little cold,  I was getting there.  So after a couple hours of wondering just what it is that entices people to be there,  I was quite happy to head off to the parking garage at around 11:00 p.m.   I know,  we weren’t right there at midnight,  but remember,  we live in a “Dachgeschoß”,  and I figured we could watch fireworks from the terrace.

Interesting to note that by then the parking garage outside the Staatsoper was pretty well full.   We couldn’t help but notice the plates from all the different countries.  Germany,  Italy,  Slovenia,  Slovakia, Hungary,  The Czech Republic…..there were even a couple from The Ukraine.   Crazy!   

 

I have to preface this next little bit by saying that we’ve seen “orchestrated”  fireworks displays before,   most notably New Year’s Eve in Vegas of 03/04.   That was quite something,  with a synchronised display that was set off from the top of something like 10 casinos up the strip for all of 10 minutes.   Impressive.  But only 10 minutes! 

Fireworks had started in Vienna just as soon as it got dark,  as I mentioned,  and I would say 90% of it is individuals setting off fireworks from their balconies or from the street.  Our neighbours must have dropped a bundle on fireworks.  I’m just saying.

 

This I know.   It’s not easy taking decent photos of fireworks!

So instead,  I shot a few short videos.   I’ll spare you by only putting up a couple of them.

This was at around 11:30 p.m.,  but this type of activity had been going on just about non-stop all night.  It was hard to know where to look….

 

 

 

The first few seconds of this one are out of focus,  since my little camera was a tad confused.   Just hang in there.

 

 

This activity kept up until well after 1:00 a.m.,  but both the battery in my camera,  as well as my own had run down by then.    Besides,  by about 12:30 or so,  there was so much spent gun powder in the air,  it was getting a tad overwhelming,  and I was getting chilled to the bone.

But truly “Once in a lifetime”.

 

 

One final blurb from the local free rag:

 

And there you have it kids.   Hope yours was just fine. 

 

Thanks for stopping by.