Flight ✈ 38 VIEnna / CITY GUIDE ✈ 49 CALIFORNIA / CLASSIC HOTELS ✈ 58 ETHIOPIA / ADVENTURE ✈ 66 MARGARET RIVER / PROVIDORES ✈ 75 MELBOURNE / BLAKE EXHIBITION ✈ 82 NOOsa / FOOD & WINE FESTIVAL ✈ 84 KIDS’ CONCIERGE / CaNBERRA ✈ 87 CHECK-IN / SEASIDE LUXURY ✈ 90 RIO DE JanEIRO / PERFECT DAY a view to Sunset over Stephansplatz, Vienna Confidently blending old and new, Austria’s riverside capital embraces its rich imperial heritage while fostering innovation and cultivating a cool cutting edge. WORDS RACHAEL WATTS PHOTOGRAPHY anna ROSE 38 QANTAS MAY 2014 VIENNA CITY GUIDE NCE THE CENTRE OF POWER of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, ruled by the Habsburg dynasty, Vienna has long been recognised as a bastion of Mittel-European high culture, from opera and classical music to fine art and architecture. Some of Europe’s great composers have called the city home, Franz Schubert and Johann Strauss among them. The work of architects Adolf Loos and Otto Wagner, and of artists such as Egon Schiele, Oskar Kokoschka and Gustav Klimt has left a powerful legacy that continues to inspire. But this is no historical chocolate box. Modern Vienna has much to offer beyond horse-drawn carriage rides, palace tours and the Sacher Torte coffee-house experience. Over the past decade, in particular, Vienna has emerged with a fresh image thanks to its progressive technology, design, fashion and arts industries. Award-winning design studio Mischer’Traxler (mischertraxler.com) exemplifies the multi- dimensional face of the new Vienna. Katharina Mischer and Thomas Traxler produce a range of innovative products including kitchenware, multi-use furniture and conceptual installations. Meanwhile, ­Delugan Meissl Associated Architects (dmaa.at) are right at the forefront of global architectural design thanks to a series of spectacular commissions including the Porsche Museum Bold statement: in Stuttgart, EYE Film Institute in Amsterdam and Tyrolean Festival Hall in Erl. Petar Petrov suit; left-field fashion at Park (left) Museumsquartier is Vienna’s artistic hub VIENNESE FASHION is represented on the Paris catwalks by Petar Petrov (petarpetrov.com). Recognised for an aesthetic that melds sporty cuts with striking blocks of colour, the Vienna-based Ukrainian designer of ready-to-wear for men and women is gaining fans around the world. On the visual art front, light artist ­Victoria Coeln (victoriacoeln.at) creates installations that intersect with some studio Vandasye (vandasye.com), which produces utilitarian DIY of the city’s historic buildings including St Stephan’s Cathedral. furniture and solar-powered clocks, and Eva Blut, who fuses fashion ages As the second-largest German-speaking city in the world, Vienna with product design in a range of handbags and other accessories. M remixes its past in an exciting variety of contemporary permutations. Venues include designforum (designforum.at) and quartier21 During summer, weekly DJ performances on the historic Albertina (quartier21.at) in the Museumsquartier, and the Himbeer & Soda Museum’s Terrace open up the museum’s precinct for a younger (himbeerundsoda.at) showroom is not to be missed. generation to enjoy while drinking cocktails under the watchful gaze MQ Vienna Fashion Week (mqviennafashionweek.com) is a of the statue of Archduke Albrecht. platform for Austrian fashion designers to present their work to an Several annual festivals are changing the city’s image and setting international audience. The city comes alive with runway shows, new trends. Vienna Design Week (September 26-October 5, pop-up showrooms and after-parties each September. Beyond avant- viennadesignweek.at) showcases homegrown products, furniture garde menswear fashion dignitary Carol Christian Poell and graphic design as the city transforms into a creative showroom (carolchristianpoell.com) – arguably Austria’s best-known designer Model photography: christoph pirnbacher; stephansplatz (previous page): getty i with workshops and exhibitions. Notable participants include design after the retired Helmut Lang – is a bright new wave of talent. 40 QANTAS MAY 2014 MAY 2014 QANTAS 41 CITY GUIDE VIENNA Art nouveau, Karlsplatz Stadbahn Station Known for their striking and imaginative designs, left numerous emblematic architectural examples Hartmann Nordenholz (hartmannnordenholz.com) such as Karlsplatz Stadbahn Station by Otto Wagner, have caught the attention of Björk. Susanne Bisovsky the gold-ornamented Secession building by Joseph (bisovsky.com) melds traditional costume with con- Olbrich, and the Adolf Loos House on Michaelerplatz. temporary couture for a unique Wiener-chic style. Postwar offerings include the Hundertwasserhaus, Vienna Art Week (viennaartweek.at) presents built in the early ’80s by architect Friedensreich exhibitions, performances, lectures and open-studio Hundertwasser, and the futuristic Learning Centre tours each November. Alongside icons such as Franz at the Vienna University of Economics and Business, West, significant Austrian artists such as filmmaker designed by Zaha Hadid Architects. Mathias Poledna, photographer Dorit Margreiter, On the south bank of the Danube Canal, Vienna’s and collaborative performance group Gelitin (gelitin. old town centre has been a UNESCO World Heritage net) continue to impact the world stage. During the site since 2001. Traversing this historic area with its week, the Museumsquartier is a hive of activity. cobblestoned streets and stone fountains, Vienna’s The forward-thinking impulse of the new Vienna charm and cultural significance are hard to ignore. is also represented in Sound:Frame every March- Meanwhile, the Ringstrasse, so named because April (soundframe.at), a festival investigating the it encloses the Innere Stadt, is lined with grand boundaries of sound, music and visual art. It has monuments and ostentatious buildings, including collaborated with the Museum of Applied Arts on a the Vienna State Opera, the National Parliament and wide range of digital art and light installations the Natural History Museum. com plemented by electronic music. Of Vienna’s 23 districts, the developing hip zone Vienna’s architecture reveals its storied past, from of Neubau, in the seventh district, is most worth the inner-city Romanesque St Rupert’s – one of its exploring. Away from its busy shopping strip of oldest churches – to the Gothic Revival City Hall and Mariahilfer Strasse can be found streets filled with the grand baroque Belvedere Museum. Art nouveau local design boutiques, stylish cafes and bars. 42 QANTAS MAY 2014 CITY GUIDE VIENNA STAY EAT & DRINK Do & Co Mraz & Sohn 12 Stephansplatz. 59 Wallensteinstrasse. (01) 535 3969. docohotel.com (01) 330 4594. mraz-sohn.at opposite st stephan’s, in the the father-and-son team behind centre of old vienna, do & co’s this restaurant strive to inspire modern, design-led interiors offer with the most innovative and a stark yet engaging contrast to creative cuisine in vienna. While the historic surroundings. the sometimes challenging, the views from onyx cocktail bar are culinary adventure deserves its a welcome reward after a hard Michelin star. the “no risk, no day’s sightseeing. From ¤249 ($371). Fun” degustation is a highlight. Hotel Altstadt Hollmann Salon 41 Kirchengasse. Spittelberg. 3 Grashofgasse. (01) 9611 96040. (01) 522 6666. altstadt.at/en hollmann-salon.at/en/eating this boutique hotel in newly blending old and new without gentrified spittelberg marries diminishing either, this eatery sits the romance of yesteryear with within the cobblestone courtyard a sensuous modernism. rooms of the heiligenkreuzerhof. the and service exude a civilised yet small yet balanced menu brings affable air, much like the city itself. a modern energy to regional and it lies near the volksgarten, the organic produce. Museumsquartier and shopping district of Mariahilfer strasse in Steirereck neubau. From ¤120 ($179). 2a Am Heumarkt. Stadtpark. (01) 713 3168. steirereck.at Sofitel Vienna at this Michelin-starred restaurant Stephansdom in a charming art nouveau building 1 Praterstrasse. within the pristine stadtpark, head (01) 906 160. sofitel.com chef heinz reitbauer elevates the conceived by architect Jean principles of regionally focused nouvel, this glass monolith is cuisine to dizzying heights. perched close to the danube local ingredients feature heavily, canal. the development includes including those from the chef’s design shops, two restaurants and farm. signature dishes include the sofitel, above which le loft braised and roasted milk-fed veal bar & lounge affords a panorama with fermented white asparagus of vienna’s cityscape as well as and elderflower. ceiling frescos by swiss artist pipilotti rist. From ¤225 ($335). Puff Bar 10 Girardigasse. Fine food and wine at Schreiners (01) 581 0931. puff-bar.at Hollmann Salon (top and above); hand- 42 Westbahnstrasse. Neubau. named after local slang for crafted light fitting at 676 475 4060. schreiners.cc a brothel, this hip new bar is Woka Lamps (left) a family-operated oasis in the situated in a former red-light trendy neighbourhood of neubau, district. Well-executed drinks are schreiners merges classic and served to a diverse mix of locals, contemporary influences. the partygoers and the occasional five spacious guestrooms are local celebrity in an intimate and simply furnished. the courtyard swanky interior. the quality of restaurant is open to guests and service, while first-class, never casual diners. From ¤101 ($150). feels too exclusive. 44 QANTAS MAY 2014 CITY GUIDE VIENNA Egon Schiele Self-portrait With