Eins, zwei, drei. Life in Vienna is lived in triple time. The folks there don’t walk down the streets. They waltz. Ask a native Viennese to count to four, and he’ll panic. It’s true. Just as halftime follows kickoff and Conan follows Leno, in the collective Austrian psyche, the number three is invariably followed by one. Eins, zwei, drei.

There’s no Macy’s Day Parade in Vienna, but since 1956, NYC has held its own version of the legendary Vienna Opera Ball. Under the aegis of the U.S.-Austrian Chamber of Commerce, the 53rd incarnation of the Viennese Opera Ball in New York was co-hosted by born-again Stephen Baldwin, the dazzling albeit born-only-once supermodel Carol Alt, and NBC’s Chuck Scarborough.

Miss Teen USA Hilary Cruz and Riyo Mori, the reigning Miss Universe, plus their male West Point Cadet escorts, joined the swirling debutantes. That especially youthful-looking lady cavorting spryly about the dance floor was none other than MGM legend Marge Champion.

The white-tie waltzfest drew an international pallet load of diplomats, among them Austria’s Ambassador to the U.S. Eva Nowotny, Austrian UN Ambassador Gerhard Pfanzelter, and Jordan’s His Royal Prince Zeid bin Ra’ad, Ambassador to the U.S.

One, two, three, one, two, three!