Miss Iggy and the UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon

When Miss Iggy found out that the UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon would be at the Vienna International Centre on February 17 for the celebration of the 15th anniversary of the Preparatory Commission for the Comprehensive Nuclear -Test-Ban Treaty Organization (what a mouthful! CTBTO for short), she just had to be there. Even if it meant waking up really early. She got a nice balcony spot. 

there he is!

a closer look. 

Vienna Vixen Iggy walks around town

For the Miss Iggy photo walk on April 2, Vienna Vixen Iggy (a.k.a. Euro Iggy) armed herself with the Diana Mini camera and explored an area in Vienna's 2nd district.

Taking the U1 subway line, Miss Iggy got off at the Nestroyplatz
station.This station has been operating since 1979.

Not only did Miss Iggy enjoy the beautiful Spring day because of
the warm weather, but also because of the beautiful blooms and
cherry blossoms around the city!

She marveled at the beautiful old buildings in the area

Miss Iggy wasn't the only one enjoying the sunshine. She found
some bike enthusiasts testing bikes in front of a bicycle store.

Contributing to the relaxed vibe of the area are the many benches
around. Miss Iggy liked these ones at the actual Nestroyplatz.
There's a drinking fountain and a statue of Johann Nestroy facing them.

Miss Iggy and Mister Johann Nestroy, an Austrian author and comedian.

The old buildings made the street look like a period movie set!

Miss Iggy was amazed to find out that Theater Nestroyhof is more
than 100 years old.

Adding to the retro charm were closed/abandoned stores like this.

Closed laundry shop

Leopoldskirche

Bull's eye

Hipster glasses

the circus is in town!

Back in September, Vienna Vixen Iggy happened to pass by a huge tent in front of the Vienna City Hall and was delighted to see that it's a circus!

Circus Roncalli has been performing for more than 30 years with its first show in Bonn, Germany on May 17, 1976. It started with Bernhard Paul, an Art Director who got bored with his job and decided to follow his childhood dream. Together with André Heller, he founded Roncalli.

Circus Roncalli has been setting up tents in various German and Austrian cities, as well as other European cities like Copenhagen and Brussels. Miss Iggy was impressed when she found out that not only does Roncalli entertain the kids of all ages in its audience but also brings smiles to children in need through a close cooperation with UNICEF.

Circus Roncalli's tour:

Graz, Austria (Messeglände/Fröhlichgasse)

October 23 - November 15, 2009

Linz, Austria (Am Urfahraner Markt)

November 22 - December 12, 2009

Berlin, Germany - Roncalli's Original Weichnachtscircus im Berliner Tempodrom

December 18, 2009 - January 3, 2010

la la la

Vienna Vixen Iggy felt like singing when she saw this flowery G-Clef at the Burggarten in Vienna. What better place to sing and make music than in the center of classical music? 

PS: Miss Iggy's posed for this photo in March, when the flowers of the G-clef were still yellow. In May they were red. Now they're pink. Colorful! 

miss iggy and steffl

Miss Iggy at the St. Stephen's Cathedral

Vienna Vixen Iggy is happy to share with you a few things about Stephansdom or St. Stephen's Cathedral:

- it is the seat of the Archbishop of Vienna

- it has 23 bells, the largest one called the Pummerin, hanging at the north tower

- the south tower is 136 meters tall, while the north tower is only 68 meters tall

- St. Stephen's feast day is on December 26, a holiday in Vienna

- in the church's basement, catacombs and crypts can be found

- the Stephansdom appears on the Austrian 10 cent coin as well as the packaging of Manner wafers (apparently the church allowed the wafer company to use the cathedral's image as their logo, in exchange the company would pay the salary of one stone mason doing repair work)

miss iggy and the millennium tower

Euro Iggy posing by Austria's tallest building, the Millennium Tower.

The 171 meter-tall building has 51 floors with offices and apartments. It is also home to the mall "Millennium City." Miss Iggy likes going there to meet up with her friends, go shopping and eat at the restaurants.

Miss Iggy and Wolfgang, part 2

"Guten Tag, Sie kommen mir bekannt vor," (Good day, you look familiar) Euro Iggy said to the statue. It wasn't a pick-up line, she met a statue of the same man last year during her visit to Frankfurt, Germany. Why, it's Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, one of the greatest German writers!

miss iggy at the austrian parliament

Euro Iggy is happy to share a few facts about the Austrian Parliament in Vienna:

- the Parliament is guarded by Pallas Athena, the goddess of strategic warfare and heroic endeavor
- the building was designed by Danish architect Theophil Hansen
- it was damaged during World War II and the restoration was completed in 1956
- it was only in 1919 that women were represented in the Austrian parliament. Currently, women are still underrepresented
- in 2008, Austria celebrated the 90th anniversary of the establishment of its Republic

what's your favorite ice dream flavor?

Vienna Vixen Iggy in front of Vienna City Hall and the Vienna Ice Dream

Cold winter days are great for staying indoors and drinking hot chocolate, but they're also perfect for ice skating.

Vienna Vixen Iggy went to the Rathausplatz (City Hall plaza) to check out the Vienna Ice Dream 2009 because it promises pure amusement on ice. Where once was the Christkindlmarkt (Christmas market), now is an ice-covered path of over 400 meter in length, just for ice skating. Cool!

For beginners in need of a little practice before stepping on the ice, there is a small practicing area. Children & beginners of all ages may use this area in the afternoon.

Hungry skaters need not worry as there are cabins selling food and drinks, as well as as a sidewalk cafe nearby.

Skaters can move and groove along (a great way to fight the cold!) to music played by Radio Wien DJs.

While the Vienna Ice Dream assures us that they never run out of rentable skates and have a wide range of sizes (sizes 26 to 50), they don't have Miss Iggy's size!

The Vienna Ice Dream remains a reality until March 8, 2009 and is opened from 9 AM to 11 PM.

By the River Vienna She Sat and Laughed

Here's Euro Iggy freezing chilling by the Wienfluss (Vienna River) by the Wiener Stadtpark (Viennese City Park). The Wienfluss is 34 kilometer-long river that flows throught the city of Vienna. When this photo was taken, the "edges" of the river were frozen, but Miss Iggy reckons that by now, all of it must be ice due to the temperature drop lately (as cold as negative 7 degrees Celsius!)

tickled pink

While Euro Iggy was hanging out near St. Stephen’s Cathedral, she spotted this cute pink carriage. Carriages are quite a normal sight in Vienna’s city center; these tourist attractions give tours of the city proper the old-fashioned way. This pretty carriage is sponsored by Manner, an Austrian brand of confectionery, most famous for Manner Schnitten or Manner Neapolitan Wafers. Manner Wafers are hazelnut cream-filled wafers. The hazelnuts were originally imported from Naples, Italy, thus the name “Neapolitan wafers.“

Fun fact: Manner wafers are actor governator Austria’s most famous import Arnold Schwarzenegger’s favorite snack and even made a cameo appearance in his movie Terminator 3!

Euro Iggy thinks they’re lecker (German word for yummy), but they’re oh-so-messy to eat!

miss iggy and the giant

The Vienna Riesenrad (giant wheel) is the biggest Ferris wheel in Vienna and located in the amusement park Prater. Following Englishman Walter Bassett’s design, it was built in 1897 to celebrate golden jubilee of Emperor Franz Josef I. It originally had 30 gondolas, but after being damaged during World War II, the Riesenrad was rebuilt with only 15 gondolas.

The Riesenrad appeared in several movies, among them the action-packed James Bond installment The Living Daylights, as well the romance-filled Before Sunrise (where Ethan Hawke and Julie Delpy kiss in the gondola).

For a romantic evening, experience and adventure planner mydays.at offers a candlelight gourmet three-course dinner for two in one of the gondolas. Sehr romantisch (German: very romantic)!

Miss Iggy would have to wait to see the city from the Riesenrad – the Prater season starts in March!

globe - connecting people

Miss Iggy says Servus to all her followers around the globe! This year will surely be filled with more travels and adventures. Happy 2009! 

Dancing with the stars

The Zeiss Planetarium Wien is one of the most modern planetariums in the world. Its Multimedia shows take spectators to breathtaking galactic journeys through space and time.

Carl Zeiss Jena’s Universarium Modell IX is one of the most sophisticated starprojectors in the world, picturing the stars in their original colors, may they be white, red or blue. The planetarium’s dome ceiling projects over 9,000 stars.

Did you know that 2009 is the International Year of Astronomy? This year marks the 40th anniversary of man’s landing on the moon as well as the 400th (!) anniversary of the first time the Italian astronomer Galileo Galilei aimed at the sky. What big steps for humanity!

Miss Iggy can only say reach for the stars!

Dinner at Tiffany's

While Kohlmarkt literally means cabbage market, this shopping street in the Vienna city center has anything but cabbage to sell. With premiere jewelers and high-end fashion labels, it is Vienna's address for luxury goods. 

A special store there took Miss Iggy's fancy:

Miss Iggy channelling Holly Golightly, Aubrey Hepburn's Breakfast at Tiffany's character

How charming!

How lovely!

take my wreath away

While Miss Iggy has a small Advent wreath at home, she was excited to see a gigantic one on the Wiener Rathausplatz (Vienna City Hall plaza) at their Christmasmarket (a.k.a. Christkindlmarkt):

Miss Iggy by the Advent wreath. The building in the background is the Hofburg Theater.

"The Advent wreath is a Christian tradition that symbolizes the passage of the four weeks of Advent in the liturgical calendar of the Western church. It is usually a horizontal evergreen wreath with four or five candles. Beginning with the First Sunday of Advent, the lighting of a candle can be accompanied by a Bible reading and prayers. An additional candle is lit during each subsequent week until, by the last Sunday before Christmas, all four candles are lit. Some Advent wreaths include a fifth, "Christ" candle which can be lit at Christmas. The custom is observed both in family settings and at public church services." 

More on the Advent wreath on Wikipedia.

Miss Iggy goes shopcrazy

Being the savvy shopper that Miss Iggy is, she's excited to score some bargains at the year-end sales. In Vienna, the year-end sales start two days after Christmas (St. Stephen's Day is celebrated on 26th of December and is an official holiday). While most stores offer 30% to 50% discounts, some stores' prices even drop down to minus 80%. 

At fashion boutiques like Mango and H&M, you can expect long lines at the dressing rooms AND the cashiers. Patience is key in getting good bargains. For Miss Iggy, it's worth the wait.

Miss Iggy in front of H&M on Am Graben

While finding a the perfect purchase can be stressful, just walking on Vienna's festive shopping streets at night is entertaining.

Am Graben where Miss Iggy usually goes to the H&M flagship store for fashion finds, Tchibo for nice practical stuff and Accessorize for accessories

Rotenturm Straße, where she likes going to Lush and B Never Too Busy To Be Beautiful (but never really buys stuff, haha) and in the summer gets her ice cream fill at Zanoni & Zanoni

Kärntner Straße, where Miss Iggy loves window shopping

season's greetings

miss iggy and the ladies behind her globe-trotting adventures (namely fortuitous faery/conniechiwa, gingmaganda, princess ody and zj/sreisaat) would like to greet you all a happy christmas...or to be more politically correct, happy holidays!

miss iggy is wishing you a merry christmas in filipino, although she is also tempted to say "happy hanukwanzaamas."

the native christmas lantern called "parol" above was recently acquired from quiapo's souvenir shops in manila to bring comfort and joy in miss iggy's jersey home.

may your holidays be filled with warmth, laughter, and love wherever you may be and no matter how you celebrate!

art jam

Miss Igorota in front of the Museum of Art History in Ringstraße, Vienna. Quite interestingly, the museum is right across the Museum of Natural History, which looks exactly the same from the outside.


Miss Iggy decided to jam a little with some musicians on the street.