Travel: Winter in Vienna is the season for music and fancy balls

It started like most of my trips do, by coming across a cheap airfare. I’d only been to Vienna once, decades ago, loved it and always meant to go back. But did I really want to go in winter, when it’s bone-chilling cold, even if I could fly there for only $400 roundtrip? I’m a California girl, after all.

The answer was yes, of course it would be worth it. I pondered going for the elaborate Christmas markets for which the city is famous, but it’s too hard to get away in December, what with the holidays and all.