Warning bells rang, doors finally closed. Thwarted again outside the Musikverein, in my last-minute scheme to find a person with an extra ticket for sale to the evening of German lieder sung by mezzo soprano Anne Sophie von Otter in Brahms Hall. Time for an adventure! I spied a few tents across the street, set up in front of the trees leading up to St. Peter's Church. (Brahms himself---his enormous Denkmal, otherwise known as a statue---was facing away from the street festivities, and toward the Musikverein.) Obviously a festival of some sort, with a couple of guys singing and prancing on a small stage (above, right). Why not join them? Walking over, I soon landed in the arms of Su (above left), a Thai masseuse who lavished fifteen minutes of intense Thai massage on my back and shoulders with heated herbal packs. Utter bliss...after missing Erin, my incredible LA masseuse, a little more each day for these past two months. The festival was everything Thai---delicious food (fish balls on a stick, a great street food treat), cheap jewelry, incense, a few dozen smiling people, and massage! After the last fish ball disappeared, I saw that intermission was underway over at the Musikverein, and managed to take in the latter half of von Otter's concert in a pleasantly altered state. All in all, a lovely way to spend a couple of hours on a Thursday evening, just a five-minute walk away from my apartment.
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