Or, let's say you want to see some paintings by Gustav Klimt whose work is featured in countless tourist brochures. The inadequate index will take you to a two-page spread on Klimt with maybe 100 words of text. You may even guess that because the spread interrupts the description of the Lower Belvedere, some Klimts are to be found there. Close! They're in the Upper Belvedere, a mere few hundred yards away. And, sure enough, if you read the Upper's descriptions, it mentions that most of the Klimts are to be found there. Congratulations! You've won the treasure hunt!

Now it's on to finding the Lipizzaner Horses, which you won't unless you know to look for the page titled "The Spanish Riding School," which you won't find in the index unless you know to look for "Spanische Reitschule." Then, for extra credit you can choose between explaining why many pages are divided in half, with the bottom half printed upside down, or why in the section on food the book devotes two full pages to an illustrated recipe for Tafelspitz but never bothers telling you what type of food the Viennese like. Ok, there are a couple of skimpy, small-print paragraphs buried in the back under "Practical Information," but there the book manages to avoid telling us how to use the amazingly good subway system (buy a ticket from the vending machine and get it time-stamped before you enter) or that it's an amazingly good subway system. And how much should we tip? And what do the Viennese have for breakfast? And when do they eat dinner? And are stores open on Sunday? And is there really asparagus in asparagus wine?

The book is beautifully illustrated. It's got lots of information about the history and culture of the city. It just stinks if you're there and trying to use it.