Blogs from Wiener Neustadt, Lower Austria, Austria, Europe

Oh, Austria! The birthplace of Mozart, Hitler, and Schwarzenegger just to name a few. With its magnificent views of the Alps and a deep cultural love for dogs, who are all very well-behaved and are allowed in most public places such as grocery stores, restaurants, trains and other areas where you normally wouldn't see pets. Kebabs, cigarettes, and coffee were the other weaknesses of the local community. Being at the crossroads of Europe, Austria has a long history of being a multicultural country. It has one of the highest standards of living and statistically is much safer, compared to its neighbors. We arrived in Vienna in mid-February. It was still fairly cold outside, with snow covering most of the ground like a blanket. Coat, gloves, and a hat were a necessity. We were picked up at ... read more

The train ride to North Burgenland took us two transfers to do as the service is mostly one train car. North Burgenland had several train routes which have a one car service which we were often stopping for on the next two days. The train conductors on our trip to Mattersburg (formerly Mattersdorf) were very friendly and helpful. If you like friendly people, go to Burgenland. Friendliness can have its drawbacks as we were very hungry in Jennersdorf having waited to near 2 p.m. to have lunch and the lunch specials always end at 2 p.m. An older guy enthusiastically talked about cycling in Burgenland and Vienna and our bicycles, especially Ray´s new touring bicycle. As we sat down, we ordered the lunch special just as the church bells for 2 p.m. sounded. We had ... read more