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25T76 Please, Vienna: may I have a Leica?

E75, V23.

I don’t want to be a king; oh no.

But I am a man of wishful thinking, at least for the duration of this entry.

In Vienna’s 7th district on Westbahnstrasse, there are a couple of city blocks that’s essentially “camera & photography row”. Personal highlights include the Westlicht Schauplatz für Fotografie, which promotes the visual medium as an art form with key exhibitions; and next door a Leica store, one of two direct brand-to-customer shops in the city.

I have a second-hand Fujifilm X70 fixed-lens prime compact camera that’s always been fun to use, because it’s small, light, and wide. Remaining strong in its 8th year with a shutter count past 110-thousand, I’m thinking about what might be next. There are some choices, and going “fixed” again to the X100 series would be fine, but I think the model’s 35-mm focal length is too long compared to my sweet-spot between 24- and 28-mm. Leica’s exquisite quality control in all phases including parts and production has always been a key selling point, but realistically, their suggested pricing is usually beyond my limit. (That D-Lux 8, though …)

I press my nose (or in this case, mobile) against the window of the closed shop, and dream about what it’d be like to hold, carry, and photograph with one of these beauties in my hands. Fortunately, the shop is closed for the day, eliminating for today any chance for temptation.

The answer to the very first question is a solid and confident “no”. 😅

*Westbahnstrasse in the 7th district: Leica store Wien West (left) and the Westlicht Museum for Photography (right).*

*Didn’t I just see in person here in Vienna* *a print of this very famous image?*

*Leica M6 10557P “PROTOTYPE-like”: 5700€.*

*The shop has other products, including the Rolleiflex Tele: 1560€.*

*Ducati Sogno “Per Collaboratore”: 1560€.*

*The word “Leica” is an amalgamation of the company name **Lei**tz and the word camera.*

I made all images above with an iPhone15 on 22 July 2025. This post composed within Jetpack for iOS appears on Fotoeins Fotografie at fotoeins DOT com.

25T66 Vienna: concrete flak towers in the 6. & 7.

E65, V13.

In the 6th and 7th districts stand two massive flak towers, each over 40-metres (130 feet) in height. Including the cities of Berlin and Hamburg, the Nazis ordered construction in Vienna 3 pairs of flak towers. One pair (“pair number 5”) was completed by mid-1944. In each pair, one tower is the “Leitturm” or lead/control tower, and the other tower is the “Gefechtsturm” or gun tower. “Flak” is an abbreviation for the German word for “anti-aircraft gun”: Flugabwehrkanone.

Because of their near-indestructible nature, all 3 pairs or 6 flak-towers today are incorporated into the modern urban landscape of Vienna. The former Leitturm in the city’s 6th district is located in Esterházypark, and is home to the aquarium Haus des Meeres (Home of the Sea), including a historical description of the towers. The “partner” Gefechtsturm is located in the 7th district about 500 metres to the northeast within the Stiftskaserne complex, now in use by the Austrian federal ministry of defence and closed to the public.

*“Haus des Meeres”, former Leitturm or control tower for “pair 5” in Esterházypark. The height is 47 metres (154 feet).*

*“Haus des Meeres”, as seen from below on Gumpendorfer Straße.*

*At the back is the former Gefechtsturm or gun tower for “pair 5”, now located in the Stiftskaserne. The tower height is 45 metres (148 feet).*

*The view east of the Gefechtsturm (gun tower) at upper-centre is from Lindengasse towards Stiftgasse.*

I made all images above with an iPhone15 on 12 July 2025. This post composed within Jetpack for iOS appears on Fotoeins Fotografie at fotoeins DOT com.

25T58 Vienna’s Eisfuchs: ice fox, ice cream

E57, V05.

Yesterday, I had lunch at one of my favourites at Yak+Yeti. Today, I revisited another favourite that’s Eisfuchs for their homemade ice cream. Nowhere as toasty as yesterday’s +35°C, today’s +25°C is plenty warm for a sweet cold treat.

Similarly to Yak+Yeti, I also discovered Eisfuchs for the first time in 2022, when I made the short walk up Neubaugasse from the 6th into the 7th district. I’ll always try something new, but every year since, I’m gonna have my two scoops: “Cheesecake Marille” (apricot cheesecake) & “Tarte Zitrone” (lemon tart).

There’s no inside seating, but there are benches on the street outside, as Neubaugasse is essentially restricted to buses, taxis, and service vehicles. I’m in the city for a month: multiple visits to the fox are an essential requirement.

*Eisfuchs, on Neubaugasse just south of Westbahnstrasse.*

*Sweet, creamy, tart, plus the crunchy bits.*

I received neither support nor compensation for this piece. I made all images above with an iPhone15 on 4 July 2025. This post composed within Jetpack for iOS appears on Fotoeins Fotografie at fotoeins DOT com.

Vienna: Armenian Mekhitarist Community (since 1810)

From outside, the buildings don’t look particularly special. But they tell a tale of extraordinary migration: beginning in Armenia and ending here in Vienna’s 7th district, by way of present-day Turkey, Greece, and Italy.

At the corner of Neustiftgasse and Mechitaristengasse is a set of buildings for the Armenian Mekhitarist Congregation.

If I’m in the city for a month, my curiosity demands to learn more. Through e-mail and by phone, I inquire with the monastery’s contact person about a visit, and I’m instructed to join a group of Americans for a guided tour.

Armenian Mekhitarists

The Mekhitarists are an order of Benedictine monks of the Armenian Catholic Church founded by Mekhitar Petrosean from Sebaste (now Sivas). Since 1810, the Mekhitarists established (a second) headquarters in Vienna, whose modern presence includes monastery, church, museum, and a library containing the world’s third largest collection of Armenian manuscripts.

Understanding the sustaining power of the printed word to a fragile culture, Mekhitar and the order’s monks created a complete dictionary of the Armenian language. The first volume of the “Dictionary of Classical Armenian Language” (ԲԱՌԳԻՐՔ ՀԱՅԿԱԶԵԱՆ ԼԵԶՈՒԻ) was published after his death in 1749, and the second volume appeared in 1769. In 1837, the New Dictionary of Classical Armenian Language was published, whose contents have now been digitized.

With my love of books since childhood, I’m regularly on the look for (sources of) old manuscripts, which is obvious in the images below.

By tour’s end, I have a few quiet minutes for a couple of questions.

Q1. How many Armenians are there in Austria?
A1. With a total population of almost 9 million, Austria is home to about 8000 Armenians, of which about 5000 live in Vienna.

Q2. Who was Deodat/Diodato?
A2. Diodato was an Armenian merchant whose birth name was Owanes Astouatzatur. He is credited with opening Vienna’s first licensed coffee house in 1685. Today, that location happens to be occupied by another café with a memorial plaque inside.

Mekhitarist Timeline

• 1701: Mekhitar of Sebaste (1676–1749) establishes congregation in Constantinople (now Istanbul).
• 1706: Move to Greece’s Methon; new monastery established.
• 1717: Move to San Lazzaro, one of Venice’s islands.
• 1773: 2nd group breaks away from Venice, establishing monastery in Trieste in the Habsburg empire.
• 1775: Habsburg Empress Maria Theresa’s “Privilege” guarantees Armenian colony with permanent status.
• 1805: Napoleon seizes Trieste as French territory; Trieste’s Mekhitarists flee to Vienna.
• 1810: Habsburg Emperor Franz I grants Triestine Mekhitarists permission to settle in Vienna.
• 1811: Mekhitarists establish presence in Vienna’s St. Ulrich.
• 1811–1873, 1889–1898: Book printing press by the Mekhitarists in Vienna.
• 1837: after 1835 fire, new construction designed by Josef Kornhäusel begins in Neubau.
• 1874: Site expansion includes new church, also by Kornhäusel.
• 2000: The Venice and Vienna chapters reunite into single Mekhitarist order.

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Eisfuchs, Eis, ice cream, Neubau, Wien, Vienna, Austria, Österreich, fotoeins.com

My Vienna: Eisfuchs ice-cream in the 7th district

Above/featured: Eisfuchs, at Neubaugasse 31 – 1 Jun 2022 (X70).

I’m on a 4-week stint in Vienna in late-spring/early-summer. Days are getting warmer, and I’m search of “Eis”. There are no shortage of ice cream shops in Vienna; trick is finding a really good one.

Out of their many recommendations, my host has pointed out Eis-Fuchs (“ice fox”), a small ice cream shop in the 7th district, known to residents local and across the city, but little recognized outside of Vienna.

That’s my kinda place.

All of their ice cream is made “in house,” and while they’ve got a list of favourites, they have a selection of “seasonal” varieties, which are made in small batches which last from a few days to a week or two. My favourite flavours are “Cheesecake Marille” (apricot cheesecake) and “Tarte au Citron” (lemon tart). The dessert is rich and creamy, and the fruit provides a refreshing tart edge.

With the 2nd visit, I promise the woman behind the counter I’ll visit more regularly. At the next visit, she nods at me in recognition and we chat a little about the ice cream: the variety of flavours and their production. With my final visit, I announce with some regret that my time in Vienna is ending, and I must return to Canada; I leave the shop with a double scoop of deliciousness.

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