Auf Wiedersehen Vienna, Ahoj Praha!

On our last morning in Vienna, we woke early in order to take in the sights and sounds of our neighborhood one last time. We walked to St. Stephen’s Cathedral, or Stephansdom, a gothic masterpiece that was literally a 3 minute walk away from our apartment. We reveled at the stained glass windows, original paintings that adorned the walls, as well as its high arched ceilings. We spent some time within its walls and bade farewell to the massive structure as we made our way to get some breakfast. 

We ate one last meal at our neighborhood Mc Café and bid adieu to the overly sweet barista (we’re being sarcastic), who made the made the mistake to of giving Mary attitude a little too early on, “No-it’s wid mil!”  Ok, ok, we got it. A mélange just means coffee with milk! 

We walked back to our apartment, grabbed our luggage, and took the metro to the train station. We boarded our train, found our seats, and prepared ourselves for the six-hour ride to Prague. We were riding in first class compartments and were hoping we’d have a compartment to ourselves so we could ride comfortably but we found ourselves sharing the compartment with an Australian couple and their 18-month-old daughter. The ride wasn’t so bad, especially when you have a restaurant car that serves beer! Needless to say, the six-hour ride was very enjoyable. 

Our arrival in Prague was smooth; too bad we couldn’t say the same thing for our walk to our apartment. One thing you must know about Prague: it has cobble stone streets. So, be advised and wear comfortable shoes. It’s a medieval city; in fact, it’s one of Europe’s best preserved medieval cities.  Sore tootsies are worth it when you’re walking through a historical feast for the eyes. 

Check in was a breeze and we didn’t waste any time before we made our way to the Old Town Square. Upon arrival, we were happy to find that the city had set up a fair of sorts, an Easter market, complete with performances, vendors, and crafts. The smells of warm nuts and cider, and baked goods filled made the cold air bearable. We took in the sights- the old buildings, belfry, and clock tower. We did some light shopping and enjoyed a traditional Bavarian dinner. We watched the astronomical clock strike eight and watched as Death rang the bell, while the figures of Saints blessed all who watched from the tower. Old town square and its surroundings have a fairy-tale feel, it’s surreal. You could get lost in its narrow streets and not mind it one bit. 

We walked toward Charles Bridge in the evening, a structure that was begun in 1357. Its towers are well preserved and stand at both ends of the bridge and flank the thirty sculptures of Saints that sit along the bridge. Beyond the bridge, atop one of the highest peaks, sits Prague castle! Everywhere one looks, there’s something else that leaves an impression. This medieval city surely knows how to take one’s breath away.

Salzburg!

We must have been super-excited for our Salzburg day trip because we were all up bright and early and getting ready to make our 7:30 a.m. train; somehow, we ended up losing track of time and ended up nearly running to catch it. We had 11 minutes before our train left when we were buying freshly made sandwiches for an early breakfast.  Talk about racing the clock!

We arrived in Salzburg even colder weather and more snow, but it didn’t matter, we were going to explore a new city! We hopped on the city bus and made our way to Mirabell Platz, home to Mirabell gardens and palace. We checked in with our tour company and deciding to brave the weather, we explored the town as best we could on foot. Trekking through light snow and cold makes one a hungry adventurer!  Kristen, an ex-pat living in Salzburg who worked for the tour company, had suggested a restaurant offering a substantial breakfast. We decided to take her suggestion and made our way to Fingerloos.  Fingerloos offered a very different dining experience, where the food was beautifully presented, gave you the feeling you were at a tea house. The food was delicious to say the least!

Having explored and filled our bellies, we made our way back to Mirabell Platz, where we met our tour guide,  Helmutt.  It really is a small world, as we found out very quickly, Helmutt, it turns out, lived in Pasadena before moving to Salzburg.  Helmutt gave us a tour of Mirabell gardens and palace. He even showed us the doorway leading the Mayor of Salzburg’s office. ‘The Sound of Music’ tour was off to a great start, as Helmutt was very descriptive and knowledgeable. He took us to all of the locations where the film was shot. We got to see the two homes that were used as the Von Trapp family home and were given a special treat- we were taken to the real Von Trapp family Villa! The Von Trapp Villa holds a lot of history. It turns out that after the Von Trapp family fled Austria, the Nazi’s seized the Villa and Hitler allowed Heinrick Himmler- the monster responsible for instituting the gas chambers in the concentration camps- to live there.  Himmler made changes of his own to the villa and even had Russian P.O.W.s build a wall surrounding the villa; unfortunately, those Russian soldiers were later executed by Himmler himself.  Many meetings between Hitler and Himmler took place there, even Benito Mussolini is said to have stayed there. 

Helmutt took us into the Bavarian Alps and showing us the lakes, as well as historic locations such as Mozart’s childhood home, a castle, and a palace. We ended the tour in the lakeside town of Mondsee, where we visited Mondsee Cathedral.  The beautiful and grand Mondsee Cathedral is where the wedding scene was shot for The Sound of Music.  One does not need to be a fan of the film in order to appreciate such tour, as all of the locations used in the film are part of what makes the city of Salzburg so special, the film just shared the picturesque city with the rest of the world.

Vienna Day 2, More Snow and More Fun!

After yesterday's super long day and still trying to recover some lost zzz's from the long journey to get here, we were all happy to rest our heads and snore like lumber-jacks. Unfortunately, some inconsiderate moron decided to ring our doorbell at 2:30 in the morning. Of course, Pox didn't hear a thing, but Cindy and Mary thought it was a storm warning or the coming of the third world war. After being startled half-to-death, we all woke up ready to take on the day with itinerary in hand.

We made our way to McCafe again. You would too if you could taste the deliciousness. This time, we were far more prepared for the 24degree weather. After eating our breakfast we made our way to the Belvedere museum, which holds some of the most famous works by Gustav Klimt: The Kiss, Judith, etc. Although we seemed to be prepared to walk a short distance from the metro station, we were informed by a local that a tram could also take us there. We took his advice and rode tram "D", however, we jumped the gun and exited far too early and had to walk the rest of the way, in the slippery snow. As we made our way throught the beautiful wall which surrounds the museum, we were greeted by a winter wonderland (even though it's officially spring). This was a perfect photo-op. The Belvedere's surrounding gardens looked even more picturesque covered in crisp, white  powdery snow.

Inside, the Belvedere staff were extremely alert and vigilant , which means, we were not able to take any photos, good ones that is. Cindy tried her darnedest  to capture the gold-leafed embrace that is The Kiss, but was only able to manage a blurry blob of an image. Although the museum consists of three levels, it was a manageable size and we walked through it comfortably in about 2 hours, it's no Louvre.

After browsing through the gift shop and retrieving our outerwear from the cloak room, we made our way out to the tram stop. First, however, we stopped to play with the snow and took a few more silly photos. We sat in comfort all the to the famous Mozart Cafe. Here, we waited for an open table and browsed the pastry selection in the display in front of us. We all tried something new and different. Mary ordered the Goulash soup and chicken schnitzel, Cindy had goulash and dumplings and Pox had heck fish on a bed of vegetables.  Everything tasted like JESUS!!! We made sure to leave room for dessert. We tried a hazelnut torte, apple streudel and a 3 cake sampler including a Mozart torte, a berry torte and the famous Sacher torte. Yes, we were the envy of the cafe. After 98 euros worth of food damage, we decided to walk it off.

We made our way to the Capuchin Church, only a few minutes walking, where some of the most famous Austrian emperors and empresses are interred, including Franz and Joseph and "Sissi". After exploring the Capuchin Church, we hopped on the metro and headed to the Berg Theatre, which houses two Klimt murals along its grand staircase.  Along the way, we encountered a lovely cathedral where we contemplated in silence and relished in its late gothic style and art.

Fighting off the cold and snow, we finally arrived at the Berg, where we were disappointed to discover that we had missed the last tour of the day.  Our only option was to pay for performance tickets to get a glimpse of Klimt’s masterpieces.  Seeing as it was our last night in Vienna, we left the theater in pursuit of something that would brighten our mood- retail therapy. We did some light shopping and closed the stores down, not really, stores in Vienna close very, very early. The snow started picking up and the night was still young, We walked around and got lost in our neighborhood looking for anything that was open late.  We stumbled onto a small Italian restaurant called “Genaro’s” where we munched on pizza and washed it down with some Moretti beer. With full bellies, we returned to our apartment and prepared for our next adventure- our day trip to Salzburg.

Vienna, Day 1: Let It Snow, Let It Snow, Let It Snow...

We woke up to snow on our first day in Vienna! It was like waking up on Christmas morning! Pox and I have never seen or been in snow before but Mary, however, is a veteran snow bunny. We were so excited to get our first day going, that we quickly got ready and made our way to the neighborhood Mc Donald's for some breakfast. If you've never been to a European Mickey D's Mc Cafe, you don't know what you're missing! Fancy desserts, plenty of coffee choices, and a fancy atmosphere, make for a happy tummy and even happier wallet!

We walked to the metro and experienced 28 degree weather like true Viennese locals and boy, was it COLD. We visited Schonnbrunn Palace, home to Emperor Franz Joseph and the mythical Empress Elizabeth, or "Sissy," as she was affectionately known. The abundance of Rococo Baroque architecture and furniture was endless. Needless to say, we had a full day of Austrian and royal history. We toured the Palace apartments and glimpsed into the lives of Austrian aristocracy.

The gardens had a life of their own. Covered in blanket of white snow, the garden had a mysterious intrigue about it. It snowed as we lost our way in the garden labyrinth, cold air and tiny snow flakes hit our "noses and eyelashes" as we laughed our way through the paths and a few dead ends... alas, no goblin king was nowhere to be found. We found our way out of the maze safely and made our trek up the hill to the Gloriette. Sitting majestically atop a white hill, like the royal crown of the garden, the Gloriette was originally a memorial to another famous Austrian, Maria Theresia. The monument now houses the Gloriette Cafe. All that walking made us hungry, so it was only a matter of time before we made our way into the opulent cafe atop the hill, where we had lunch and sampled the Mozart Torte, Black Forest Cake, and the famous Sacher Torte- known as the world's first cake. The Sacher Torte, follows the world's first chocolate cake recipe and has a layer of apricot preserves and chocolate ganache. It was delicious!

After lunch, we made our way down to the Easter market that was taking place on the Schonbrunn grounds. The smell of warm chocolate, hot spiced wine, and freshly, fried potato chips filled the air. Pastries, Easter crafts, and traditional Bavarian fare filled booths. It was a feast for the eyes and the senses!

We continued our tour of the Habsburg's by going to the Imperial Apartments and the Sissi Musuem. The Imperial Palace holds the silver, china, and personal items belonging to the family. The Sissi Museum delves into the mystique that surrounds the elusive Empress of legendary beauty and ankle-length hair.

As we made our way through the city and back to our apartment, it became evident that Vienna has a lot more to offer than it's waltz, Mozart, and strudel. Vienna is a city so rich in history, that anyone lucky enough to explore it, will most undoubtedly be left wanting to know more. 

Vienna by way of Moscow

We're back in Europe, our second home, once more and this time, three's company. We are joined by our sister(in-law) Mary and having her with us has been pretty merry. To say that this trip started of pretty eventful is an understatement. Our first flight was delayed for FIVE hours. Needless to say, we lost our first evening in Vienna. We were supposed to go out and explore our neighborhood, but instead we explored airports and airways for about 24 hours. Aeroflot made up for the delay with food vouchers and even better, an extra seat. That's right, we got a full extra seat to relax on and stretch out in. Although, as a compliment to the airline, there was plenty of legroom for the Chavez Glamazons.

Upon our arrival in Vienna, we were greeted by our driver, John, who was patiently waiting for us with a sign which read, "Mr. and Mrs. Oliveros". That's us. He led us to a black Mercedes and sped us off to our centrally-located apartment in Vienna. On our drive, he provided us with several tidbits of information. This is perhaps the best money spent. After traveling for almost a day, having a reliable local guide is really helpful and definitely beats trying to manage the metro on only a few hours of sleep.

We were dropped off at our doorstep and we made our way to our little apartment. We checked in, got settled, and then it hit us- were were just steps away from Vienna's largest Cathedral, Stephansdom.Our celebration was cut short, though, as we arrived later than originally planned, we got ready for bed and what would be an early, fun-filled, first day in Vienna.