Blogs from Vienna, Vienna, Austria, Europe - page 2

David finally landed on Friday (June 6th). I wouldn't let him sleep and took him golfing with my grandfather. Although he fell asleep every time we sat down and lost more balls than there were holes he made it through the outing. After that we walked around Guntramsdorf and went to dinner with my grandparents and some friends at a local authentic Austrian restaurant. After eating our wienerschnitzel, we went home, topped the night of with a grappa (night cap) and finally let David go to bed. On Saturday we went and checked into our first hostel (Westend City Hostel) and spent the day with my brother visiting the major tourist sights in the center of Vienna. David was still pretty jet lagged so we took it easy and went home to rest a little before ... read more

A quiet day today as it is pouring with rain, so we slept in and then later caught the train to Schönbrunn Palace, the summer palace of the royal family from around 1700 until the very late 1800. Again it’s an enormous complex with gardens stretching for literally miles in three directions, we saw the large statue of Neptune where the sea goddess Thesis is pleading with Neptune to bless Hercules with a safe sea journey in his attack of Troy. We got absolutely soaked today and being Sunday much was closed so back to the hotel and out later for dinner.... read more

It is off to Vienna today and the day dawns the worst of the lot, freezing around 7 degrees and pouring with rain, Pam wanted to see the ‘Sound of Music’ gazebo and Hellbrunn Castle, another film site but at 10e per head I flagged it and sat in the car and listened to a great Austrian radio station, playing Led Zep, Genesis etc. Pam saw what she wanted to and thoroughly wet and cold we headed off on the 300k drive to Vienna. The drive went well enough but the rain was so heavy and the spray off the cars visibility was about 100m at best so we missed most of the lovely scenery on the way. We have to drop the car off by 4.30 today and after lunch on the way we arrived ... read more

Final Observations on Vienna I decided to enjoy my last morning, and yes, I slept in. Work has put me through the ringer and I just wanted to make sure I was not tired on my return journey. I took my time waking up, showering, packing, and strolled up for my last free breakfast. Of course I got more ham to savor before heading back to the middle east. So, nothing much exciting happened on my last day. Instead, I'll leave you with a few photos and some observations. 1. I absolutely, positively could NOT leave without at least glimpsing the Danube River! I don't know why, but as a student of history, especially European history, I would have felt incomplete without at least seeing this historic trade route. I took the U1 to Donauinsel - ... read more

I had originally planned to travel to Bratislava for the morning, but found myself fully enjoying my vacation by lying in bed instead. I had another delicious ham breakfast, then found myself heading toward the Belvedere in the southeast portion of Vienna. There is a Christmas Market there called Weihnachtsmarkt Belvedere and it didn't' disappoint. It is located directly in front of the palace. I got a mug of Baileyspunsch which was pretty strong and strangely, I didn't feel so cold anymore... (The "punsch" is actually hot). I wandered around a bit and found a stall selling christmas ornaments that show Vienna - I figured I would probably return here, but first I got another drink, orangepunsch, and continued wandering. Finally I came back and got the three ornaments for my mom and sisters. I then ... read more