Tourist @ MindSay

Hi,

 

Does anyone know of any good hostels in the city centre of Vienna? A.k.a. close to the main attractions. I'm only there for two nights and would like to make the most of it. I don't mind paying a bit more if I can get a place that is available for the nights I'm there and I can walk to the main attractions.

 

Anyone who has any tips, that'd be appreciated.

 

I've booked for everything except accommodation in Vienna.

 

:) thanks

A few news items from here 'n there:
 
In the last month our li'l town has seen a long running encampment of "homeless" moved out of their tents by the railroad that owns the land. Homeless, maybe. Some of the campers had lived there over a year. The railroad claimed it was for safety and to stop the crews from being panhandled.

In an unrelated affair, a nearby park where "homeless people" gathered and often snoozed away on park benches was closed for renovations. It's reopening with snooze-proof benches. I'll post a photo next time I go down there. The benches have dividers every 2 feet or so. No more stretched-out snoozin'.

This same town has a plan to install obsolete parking meters as objects-d'art in touristy areas, not to collect parking fees, but to solicit donations that will go to help fund social agencies that help the homeless. A concurrent PR blitz will urge folks to feed the meters instead of donating to panhandlers. The panhandlers, being fairly shrewd business types, (they aren't payin' taxes) will go where the pastures, and handouts, are greener and leave our downtown tourists alone.

"Hey bud, spare a buck or 2 so a man can get a decent meal?"
"Umm, sorry. I gave at the meter."

And yesterday they ("they") announced that Jesus would not be welcome in the Christmas parade, which has been scheduled as the ultimate finale to the opening day of the holiday shopping season. The parade and festivities have been renamed to omit the word "Christmas," to make the event inclusive to all. Specifically they tossed out the live Nativity float a local church planned to enter.

Santa is still invited, but his reindeer will be in violation of the animal ordinance.

And the city, which doesn't allow its citizens, homeless or not, (can you be both?) to keep goats in their yards, is using goats to munch the kudzu from a local hillside. The goats are contained by a fence that has mostly kept them  inside and curious children out. Mostly.

Well, what do y'all think about all this? Will the homeless guys stop snoozin' in the park? Will the panhandlers give up on on the tourists? Will Jesus show up at the Holiday Parade? If he does will anyone notice?

Update flash: Due to a deluge of protests, they are letting the scene depicting the Nativity back into the Christmas, ummm, holiday festival. Well, sort of. Jesus still can't be in the parade, but the church can set up their living Nativity in a nearby area that will be open for groups of any faith to have a presence.

did the tourist thing here The Westwego Swamp Tour rocked

After this past week I now know that visiting a country as a tourist prevents a person from truly understanding the culture of the country that one is in.  The southern excursion not only allowed me to see the beauty of Wadi Rum and Petra, but also it gave me the chance to see the perspective that an average tourist visiting Jordan would have as these are the main areas that foreigners visit when traveling to Jordan.  Taking them through urban streets lined with shops and restaurants typical of any Jordanian community, driving them by rural semi-bedouin communities in the desert, the routes to get to Petra and Wadi Rum without a doubt give tourists a good glimpse of the people and culture of Jordan; however, these glimpses are only superficial ones as traveling to Jordan’s main tourist sites allows foreigners to observe but not interact with the Jordanian culture and people. 

For example, observing women outside on the street that are wearing abayahs provides a tourist with a first hand anecdote about the place of women in Arab society, but yet at the same time this sight -usually from a tour bus- can not allow a foreigner to understand the great variety of causes that compel women to don either the abayah or hijab.  In reality, it is no different than seeing it on TV through the lens of a CNN camera.  Getting past that state and gaining a real understanding for a foreign culture can only come through conversation and living the culture rather than simply visiting it.  Being in a foreign country is an amazing opportunity for anyone, and it should not be wasted by only visiting the most popular sites and restaurants.

Here are a few Spanish phrases, very useful for your every day tourist. Or someone with a poor sence of direction like myself.

I'm lost:        estoy perdido (a) - a for female, o for male

We need directions:               Necesitamos que nos indique el camino

Do you speak English?            ¿Habla usted inglés?

Hasta luego