stop worrying about the potholes in the road and enjoy the journey - babs hoffman

a letter of apology to Vienna

Dear Vienna, 

I want to apologize for not enjoying my time within your city walls as much as I wanted to. I feel quite sorry for being angry and frustrated instead of happy and excited, and I wanted to let you know that it wasn't entirely your fault and I don't blame you in any way. Compared to my other travels and daily routines, it looked like I neglected you a lot. I spent a lot of time in Anne's dorm and in the 3 days I was with you, I saw less than I did in the 2 days I spent in Rome. But there were quite a few things that factored into that "neglect" and my enjoyment. I think I've narrowed it down to these:

• fatigue
• not researching; visiting with a "resident" 
• bad, sad weather
• horrible crowds and terrible crowd control
• high admission prices
• Anne's dorm had internet and was more homely than a hostel

By the time I got to you, it had been almost 3 weeks since I departed Boston. And that was right after I'd just completed stage managing a show and working as a PA on two back-to-back feature films over the previous 8 weeks. In short, I was tired. Really, really tired. And I know that's not a good excuse because I was also tired in every other city, but mixing fatigue with the other negative factors, and it's just a bad combo.

With every other place I visited, I meticulously researched for hours the best sights, museums and landmarks. I had each day planned to the hour including contingency plans regarding what to cut if one thing took more time than others. I was prepared. However, dear Vienna, for you I was not. I left it all in the capable hands of my sister. And it wasn't that she did a poor job of showing me the city. She chose great places and I really did like some aspects of them all, but because I hadn't researched them, there was no anticipation on my end because I was completely clueless as to where we were going each day. Seeing a city with a "resident" is quite a different experience than going about it alone. I wouldn't call it a phenomenon, but in my opinion, the differences in experience are certainly noteworthy.

Finally, the bad weather made me sad. The terrible crowds and lack of crowd control made me mad. And the cost of admission to many landmarks was unattractive. Though I would of loved to see more museums and other sights, I did had a budget to stick to. All these things, plus Anne having heat and unlimited internet in her dorm, made me want to stay inside.

So in conclusion, Vienna...there were a number of factors that contributed to my disappointment with you, and my lack of desire to explore your streets. But most of them weren't your fault and I certainly don't blame you. But I'm still sorry.

Sincerely,
Cecelia

PS Your Christmas Markets were amazing :)