I WAS recently in Europe, specifically Austria and Switzerland. Vienna fascinated me, mostly because it was clean and efficient. The train from the airport to the city center was fast and easy to navigate, similar to its city subway system.
What I found odd about any of the trains and subways I have ridden in Europe, especially in Germany, Austria, and Switzerland, whether local or cross country, no one ever checked the tickets once I was on the train. I noticed some machines where you can validate your tickets, but the entry and exits are never controlled by the tickets you purchase, unlike in the United States (US).
I may be missing some critical instructions, somewhere. Nevertheless, getting from the airport to the hotel in Austria was uneventful. After freshening up, I wanted to soak in the sights and sounds of Vienna and of course, taste their famous pastry, the apple strudel.
As I was going out of my hotel room, I met Reuben on the hallway, as he was cleaning the other hotel rooms. Reuben migrated to Vienna for about 20 years ago. He originally migrated to the US from the Philippines with his family as a teenager but preferred to stay in Vienna than in the US.
I don’t blame Reuben, since the minimum monthly wage of 1500 euros (around P94,000) was recently passed in Austria. Austria has a 40-hour work week, health insurance is automatically covered upon employment, and Austrians champion life-work balance. In fact, the self-reported quality of life in Austria is a tad higher than the average life satisfaction for the entire European Union. Public education is free and compulsory in Austria between the ages of 6 to 15 years. A quick tip, it may be helpful to brush up on your German language to fully engage in the Austrian way of life.
When I arrived in the Vienna city center, I particularly was looking for a descent pastry place. I found this lovely place in front of the Vienna opera house. It was quaint and chic, with an opulent bathroom. Indeed, the apple strudel was divine. Warm with a hint of cinnamon and slathered with a soothing vanilla ice-cream, coupled with a cup of hot dark chocolate drizzled with rum. That was it; I was in sugar heaven! With a rush of sweet energy, I needed to walk it off. To fully soak in the history and beauty of Vienna within a very short period, I had to take the hop on-hop off tourist bus, to cover much ground.
The city of Vienna was grand. Merging new and old sections of town yet maintaining its romantic and historical relevance. The tour bus went to different parts of the city following the Wien River which cuts through the city. The river’s sides are almost all concrete, installed between 1895 and 1899 in order to stop devastating floods. I thought this was something we can learn to do here in Cagayan. In addition, the city has optimized the use of the river, from river cruises, yacht clubs, to night markets. There were also several running paths and bike trails.
The tour also showcased some public housing in Vienna. Vienna’s affordable housing is largely funded by federal taxes, meaning the construction, rehabilitations, and preservations of these public housings are subsidized by the taxes collected. As a federally controlled resource, housing rent are generally low; hence, it has been used as a model to solve homelessness by other cities around the world. I thought that Cagayan can learn from this housing model too-sans corruption. One of the many problems in the Philippines is that, a few powerful families control the real state business in the Philippines, just like other basic necessities, like utilities. These influential families then become legislators, tipping the balance towards their favor. Seeing these models of progress made me think, that Cagayan someday, hopefully, can be as progressive as Vienna.