District Six

I MANAGED to do something today that only a few visitors to Vienna ever achieve.

I turned my back on the centre of the Austrian capital, crossed the Ringstrasse and the tracks that carry the iconic red trams, and explored one of the neighbourhoods outside the city's medieval core.

It wasn't because I ran out of things to do in District 1 -- I don't think that's actually possible with so many palaces, galleries, museums and shops inside the Ringstrasse -- but I wanted to see Vienna's big market.

The Naschmarkt, which has been around since the 16th century and in its current location since the early 1900s, occupies a narrow patch of land between the two of the city's main arteries and stretches from the Karlsplatz to Kettenbruckengrasse subway stations.

Tourists often pass the Naschmarkt as they sit in their oversized coaches for the journey out to Schonbrunn Palace, but from the street all you can see are the back walls of the stalls that face into the narrow pedestrian arcades.

Not that long ago this was the place to buy everything from meat and vegetables to cheese and herbs but, as restaurants and bars have moved in to accommodate the cafe set that now live in the 6th districts low-rise apartment buildings, many of the original tenants have gone.

There are still a lot of fruit and veg stands with the produce arranged in neat rows and all marked by a small sign advertising the price, and a few butchers had various cuts of meat displayed behind glass.

There were also a number of delis with tubs of colourful dips, pots of olives, plates of jamon and wheels of cheese on sale and often with someone pacing outside offering samples to passing shoppers.

Naschmarkt means "to have a bite" and the locals go from one stall to the next sampling the goods on sale, buying a little package that's handed over carefully wrapped in paper and they often stopping to linger over a coffee during their excursion.

I gave the coffee a miss and instead bought a handful of fresh strawberries, which were as big as a baby's fist, and sat opposite the famed Secession building to enjoy the golden dome of the architectural masterpiece for a few minutes.

Every Saturday the Viennese shopping experience is doubled when a flea market sets up in a car park at the far end of the Naschmarkt.

I arrived just before 9am and crowds of people were already rummaging through the stalls of bric-a-brac which appeared to be selling everything from old clothes and bags to jewellery, crockery and cutlery, vases, toys and musical instruments.

This is the Flohmarket, or flea market, and while it was anything but glamorous I expect there were some treasures hidden below the piles of junk.

The 6th District is also the place for lovers of architecture to go to see some beautiful Art Nouveau and Secessionist buildings.

While many of the buildings around the market were destroyed during World War Two, there are still dozens of dwellings constructed during the last days of the 19th and early 20th century when Art Nouveau was all the rage.

At the time the locals didn't like this brash new style, but 100 years later the Viennese love the decorative buildings that survived the Second War's bombs.

There are two more Otto Wagner designs beside the market, and I joined a couple of other people to gaze up at the facades of the beautiful structures.

Wagner was the founding father of the Secessionist movement -- the group of artists, architects and designers that emerged in the 1880s to challenge the traditional idea that the functional didn't need to be ugly -- which also counted Gustav Klimt as a member.

The Majolika Haus and Wagner House are two Art Nouveau apartment buildings that sit side by side, but they look very different.

The facade of the Majolika Haus is covered by colourful tiles that are arranged as a floral spray with garlands of green leaves, red roses and blue blossoms, while next door the Wagner Haus has golden medallions and peacock feathers set on the white stucco facade.

Wagner was the man who designed Vienna's subway system and not far from the Secession building I saw the Wagner Pavilions which were built in 1897 as the twin stations for the Vienna City Train.

The Wagner Pavilions lost their original function when the modern underground replaced the original horse-drawn and steam-driven predecessors in 1901, and today these quaint steel-and-marble structures serve as an exhibition space and coffee house.

Otto Wagner had so much to do with the way modern Vienna looks and, as well as the houses and public buildings, he designed 34 stations and bridges for the subway network that are still being used today.

After doing a Wagner tour of Vienna these past couple of days I have decided this fellow would have got on well with Charles Rennie Macintosh and Frank Lloyd Wright, they appear to be kindred spirits.

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