Alone in Schonbrunn

My trip to the Summer Palace in Vienna was without Matt. He was tired of the visits to the palaces. I set off just after 11am, catching the Metro travelling west for about 13 stations. Upon arrival, all I saw were convenient stores and restaurants, but thank goodness there were signs directing tourists like myself to the palace. 

I must have taken the side entrance as when I entered into the walled area, all I could see was a straight gravel road lined with trees. After walking for about 10 minutes, the road opened up, and I found myself in the garden of the Schonbrunn Palace. 

The garden was immaculately kept. Flower beds were lush and the grass was green and perfectly trimmed! I suppose even without royals, this place still employees quite a number of staff to keep its look. 

Since I was alone, I found it tough to take pictures. Even though the iPad has a front camera, the quality it took would not have been satisfactory to me. The palace sat in at the end of the garden, and on the other end, some 500 metres away was a lovely fountain.

 Over the fountain was a hill, on the top of the hill was a building that was built in the style of the palace, overlooking the ground. Today, the building on top of the hill has been converted to a restaurant. 

I walked down the road that connects the palace to the fountain. Along the way, I took pictures of the palace but it wasn't until I came across this young couple did I ask for their assistance to get my picture taken. Thought it turned out quite nicely. The couple was from China. I did not know that until the woman asked the guy to take the picture for me in mandarin. I thanked them in Mandarin, and I think they were quite shocked by that. 

Side, it has been somewhat convenient being able to speak mandarin. On this trip, I have ordered in Mandarin in Paris (at a Japanese and a Chinese Restaurant), Zurich (at a Chinese food stand where I got extra food because I was speaking Mandarin and telling her how much I've missed having chinese food), and also along the way, helping out other tourists to order food (Paris), to give directions (Krakow), and to find out there was path at the end of the road in the dark (Mykonos) when I overheard the ladies speak in Mandarin. 

Anyway, the palace ground was HUGE. It must have been a few km square. I walked over to the fountain and looked back. The sight was beautiful. with the garden in the foreground, this place was quite amazing. 

When I made my way up the hill, the views just kept getting better. Not only were you able to see the palace, but you can see beyond with the city in the background. 

This palace was a gift to Empress Maria Theresa, who ruled the Austro-Hungarian Empire for 40 years. She loved the palace and stayed here during the summer. 

I bought the ticket the visit the palace as well, but this time, unlike in St. Petersburg, pictures were not permitted. I have to say the most impressive room was probably the reception ballroom, and what was also interesting was Maria Theresa's fascination with Chinese and Japanese porcelain. Within the palace, there were rooms decorated with Chinese and Japanese art. 

What was disappointing was the most amazing room of them all in the palace was under restoration work. But the amount of art work that you see on the walls, the decor of the rooms, was definitely worth visiting the palace. 

Within the grounds of the palace there was also the Vienna Zoo which had Panda bears! I didn't go in, as I wasn't sure how long the zoo would have taken me. Also, there was a part of the garden where you can pay to go into the maze made of tall bushes. If you buy the master tour ticket, you could also visit the private garden in the palace (but you could see it out the window when you are in the palace), and also, you can attend a apple strudel making class. 

It was quite the afternoon I spent there, and to top it off, I went shopping in Stephensplatz for a bit as well. 

This was the part of the trip where we stop train-ing around and start to take advantage of the cheap flights in Europe. 

Next stop, Athens Greece!

Schnitzel Me!

We are officially half way through our trip and the last couple months is now a blur to me! It was a good thing I kept this blog going to remind me of the places and things that we did along the way. I am however a bit disappointed with myself for not being quick with my posts. We have one laptop between us, and because its Matt's laptop, I have to wait my turn. At first it was a couple days behind, but that quickly became a couple of cities behind!

Anywho, our half way point city is Vienna! I have always loved the movie The Sound of Music (of course.. ) and have always wanted to visit this country! I was however, a bit disappointed that we will not be stopping in Salzburg, well at least not yet, because I really wanted to do the tour they have of the places that movie was filmed! Can you imagine, me, dancing on the mountain top like Maria did?! THE HILLS ARE ALIVE...... ahem.

We have officially used up our Eurail Pass with this leg of the trip from Budapest to Vienna, and what a train to end it on. It was modern, and clean. The only downside was the crying toddler but thank god for the amazing headphones I had. You could see the people on the train were not impressed by the mother's ability to control this kid. I don't think I have ever done that in public as a kid, but mostly because my mom probably would have smacked me before I could even reach half the volume this child did.

Our hotel sat just outside the city centre of Vienna, a close 15 minute walk to the main square of Stephensplatz. I was impressed by the deal we were able to find for a hotel since we were under the impression that Vienna was going to be somewhat like Zurich, super expensive. I think our room cost us only $90 CAD which was great!

On our first night, we went walking around the Vienna City Hall, which was nicely lit at night. It was incredible to see the size of the city hall, it sort of reminded me of our Parliament building in Ottawa! The city was quiet, strangely quiet especially given that we were there on a weekend. We walked around the streets near city hall and eventually got to Stephensplatz and found where everyone was. This square was packed with locals and tourists, everyone sitting around in the shadow of the grand St. Stephens Church. At night, it looked like this was the place evil lived, the dark exterior sandstone walls and the gothic architecture can be quite the eerie combination.

City Hall of Vienna

St. Stephens Church at night

As usual I was busy taking pictures of everything and anything in sight when a young girl approached me. This was how the conversation went.

Girl "Hi" 

Me "Hi"

"Are you a tourist?"

"Yes I'm visiting" (my guards were up, having heard stories about elaborate scams that people run here to steal your wallet and con you)

"Where are you from?"

"Canada"

"Oh I love Canada, I have been there twice"

"Oh cool" (awkward pause, she stares at me, which I continue to pretend to be taking pictures of the same statue....)

"Are you from Toronto?"

"No my partner and I are visiting from Vancouver"

"Oh, Canada is nice"

"Yes it is, but we are enjoying what we have seen so far in Vienna too"

"Yah my friends and I are here"

"Umm ok..." Matt comes by and asks what's going on...

"ok bye" the girl goes away and back to her group of friends.

The strangest conversation and most awkward. I wanted to turn to her when she was just standing there  starring at me and ask, "what do you want?!" But that would have been rude... Don't think she realized she was talking to a homo since I'm so butch and all. LOL

Another thing I was very excited about before coming on this trip was having the opportunity to try the Austrian Schnitzel! Oh boy, was it ever delicious!

For lunch the next day in the city square, I was craving, oddly, a club sandwich. However, along with the sandwich that I ordered, I added a side chicken schnitzel. The server was a bit confused and surprised at the order but put it through anyway. I can tell you, it was lightly breaded, juicy, and heavenly. I don't think you can go wrong with a piece of boneless breaded chicken. This totally reminded me of the episode of The Amazing Race where they were in Austria somewhere and were on a ferris wheel and had to finish eating a large schnitzel before the ferris wheel went around once. No one could do it on the show, I bet you I could have eaten for two!

We then traveled across town to visit the Hapsburg Winter Palace.

Today, it was converted to a couple of museums, a national library, and gardens transformed into public squares and parks. We visited the museum where they had all the silverware, glasses, table settings, and centre pieces of the Habsburg palace. Matt was NOT at all interested, whereas I was fascinated by it all.

What we both did find interesting was the museum in the palace that is now dedicated to the Empress Elizabeth, or Sisi as  she's nicknamed.

Her story is very sad. Born to a nobility couple, a girl who had freedom and riches was married to the Emperor of the Austrian Empire. A young woman, jailed up behind palace doors and restricted by royalty responsibilities and duties. Her life was filled with misfortune and eventually was murdered. She was deemed the most beautiful woman in the world during her time. The story reminded me very much of that of Diana, Princess of Wales. This reminded me that being a regular Joe is not too shabby, sure I have to work for money but I have the freedom to do whatever I want, whenever I want.

Interesting fact, a lot of world famous composers lived in Vienna during their time. The likes of Mozart, Beethoven, Schubert, Strauss, Brahms and Schonberg all lived and wrote their music in Vienna. This city is the capital of Classical Music but we did not get the chance to go to a concert of any sort here, given that we did not bring any proper attire to attend a classical music concert.

One of the sights in Vienna that is a must see is the Summer Palace Schonbrunn, and I was very excited about this trip, but after the Winter Palace of the Habsburg, Matt was done with seeing palaces.

Budapest In a Flash

Recall how I said I would never do another night train again in my whole life? Well I lied. We did it again, and this time it was from Krakow to Budapest. Oh and this time, it was a even worst experience!

Our train left Krakow at 10:00pm and not having been told there were options of different types of cabins, we found ourselves in a frat house! We shared our cabin with three other guys, all of whom have probably been travelling either not showering, or travelling without bothering to find a laundromat ! The cabin reeked!

I was lucky enough to be at the bottom of the three level bunk beds and was able to get a decent sleep.

We arrived in Budapest in the morning. We quickly found ourselves a bit shocked by the state of the city outside the train station. The country seemed a bit "messy", and the metro seemed like it was beaten up and ready to be decommissioned!

We settled into the hotel and quickly went about exploring the city.

We walked to the St. Stephens Basilica and went in for a visit. Like all other church we have seen so far, it was quite grand. This is really making me wonder just how much money goes towards building these sights. The artworks on the walls and ceiling, the sculptures, it all seemed so extravagant, to the point where it seemed a bit wasteful. I mean if the people of the country had tons of money to throw around, then great, but I definitely did not get that sense walking around Budapest.

We then went over the Chain Bridge and walked up the hill to visit the old Hungarian Palace, which has been converted into museums since the end of the monarchy. The view you get from on top of the hill is very impressive.

One of the most interesting meal I have had on this trip was in Budapest. The dish was fried eggs and pasta. Tasted delicious, very light, but was definitely filling!

Our second day was spent shopping and visiting the Szechenyi Thermal Bath. The place was huge! It was in the centre of the city park, which we easily accessed by metro. The bath was interesting. First, you change into your bathing suit in a co-ed change room. These changing rooms had stalls in which most people changed in, but what was tricky was figuring out how to lock it! There were two indoor large thermal baths and a few large outdoor pool like baths. I suppose it is typical for people to feel healthier after an experience at the thermal baths? I sure did!

We also did some tanning, but on the concrete ground, not wanting to pay for the lounge chairs. I guess that's what you have to resort to when the city does not sit on the coast eh?

Budapest went by quickly, and to be honest, probably would not consider visiting it again any time soon.

Next stop, Vienna!

Krakow's Hospitality

Krakow, Poland was a great surprise. Coming in I was a bit anxious and hesitant about the visit, but was met with great food, and some very memorable sights.

Let’s begin with the Krakow Old Town. The city is beautiful and very tidy. The town square was once the largest in all of Europe and the long building in bisecting the square is home to stalls of souvenir shops. This was the place of trade back in its days, somewhere around the 13^th and 14^th century.

Our first night was spent in this square, having a traditional Polish dinner. I have had perogies before, but I was not prepared for just how good Polish cuisine was going to be! My first meal I had a Zurek, traditional soup served in a bread bowl, and some perogies. Honestly, after the first meal, I fell in love with Polish food! No more baguettes, no more non-filling food! CARB ME UP!

Like any other city, we visited the major tourist sights. One of the most popular was the Wawel Castle south of the town square. The castle sits on top of a hill, overlooking present day Krakow.

Within the castle are a few more museums, and a church that houses the tombs of kings and queens past of Poland. They said you could not take pictures, but I guess once you are physically out of the church, you can always turn and take a picture through the door? Matt was not happy with me about this.. but hey, I paid to get into this place, at the very least I should be able to take ONE picture!

By far the coolest sight at the Wawel castle was the “Dragon’s Den”. Sitting under the castle, this cave was said to be where dragons were kept, but really, was a cave probably carved out by water over time. It was said that the formation occurred two million years ago. Pretty neat.

Now speaking of going low into the ground, our next day we spent visiting the Weiliczka Salt Mine. The tour takes you down into the mine, walking through networks of tunnels. At one point, we were about 360ft deep. This tour was also the first time I realized getting an actual camera would have been a great idea, instead of relying on my iphone and ipad!

The walls of the mine were salty as my taste buds verified that during the tour. The most amazing sight was the church that the miners built. In this church there were statues carved from the stones, and here, a replica of the Last Supper carved into the wall of the church. The chandeliers were made out of salt crystals as well. This just shows how religious the Polish people are, and their dedication to their god.

Krakow was great, and we could not have found a cheaper place for great food! Our last day was spent waiting for a train that leaves at 10pm, so the whole day, we tried to keep ourselves busy. For lunch, we sat at a local deli and I ate almost EVERYTHING there is. I went back twice to try more food! The assorted perogies, the cabbage rolls, the tripe soup… I don’t know which I am carving more right now!

Our trip to Krakow also included a day in Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration camp. I cannot believe that murder at this scale occurred only some 70 years ago. 

The next post will be dedicated to those that died, that lost loved ones, and that suffered. I think the pictures will be enough to show you the living conditions of millions of innocent Jewish people during the Second World War, and here is hoping that we all learn from history and will never see it ever repeated. 

Just Enjoying Prague

So a whole week in Prague.

What I ended up doing is getting in touch with some locals to play some tennis. I knew that on this trip I had to get some tennis on European red clay in, but the first day playing in Prague, I was honestly going to throw up after a half an hour! The heat got to me. I think with the amount of travelling and not drinking enough water did me in. Hitting on clay is extremely tiring! Not only do you have to make a ton of adjustments to get into the right position to hit the ball, but also the bounces are so slow that points last a LOT longer!

The guy that I first hit with played like a backboard. He was consistently getting the ball back in play, without any pace, therefore it was a nightmare of a match up for me, the counterpuncher!

Needless to say, he won. He was more consistent and without any pace, I was doomed! I guess this just informed those that play with me what he or she can do to throw me off my game, but honestly, who thinks tennis without any pace is fun?! If that's your game, may I introduce you to the sport of curling?

The second guy that I hit with had a bit more pace, but without much consistency. His tactics to throw me off my game is to place me on the side where there was a puma cat in a cage behind me. For those that was as confused as I was, yes a puma by definition on wikipedia is also a cougar!

The guy casually informs me, "oh do you see that puma cat there?" I replied "Excuse me?", not quite understanding what he was saying with his accent. This went on a few more exchanges until he walked over to my side of the court, points out that theres a cougar sitting in the tree growling every few minutes watching our game. I guess the Czechs prefer cougareye to do the reply and make the calls.

Aside from enjoying some tennis here in Prague, the food was also quite enjoyable!

My favourite here is the garlic soup! What's not to like?! Garlic, good. Cheese, good. Croutons, good. Soup..... GOOD!

Our next stop, Krakow Poland!

Paying My Respect; Auschwitz-Birkenau

Free Tour of Prague

Our trip in Prague was for a week. The week started as how usually we start our tours of all the cities so far, sightseeing.

After having explored the Old Town Prague area the first couple days, we for whatever reason went back to that square AGAIN. This time however, we decided to tag along a free walking tour of the city! I guess this kind of tour is offered in many cities across Europe, and I would highly recommend it. Note, even though it is advertised to be free, most of the time you'd give a nice, generous tip.

We caught the trip while the tour guide was explaining that they used to execute and behead people in the square where the red Xs are marked. What is great about joining these tours is that you get the stories of the place, definitely adds to the experience.

Recall the Astronomical Clock? Now in the picture below, right by the clock you see two statues on each side? From the right, you see a guy in green, he resembles the threat of the Turks. Beside him, a skeleton, resembling death. To the left of the clock you have two more statues, the one on the outside is a guy looking into a mirror, resembling vanity. Lastly, the fellow on the inside, resembles greed. Without the guide, we probably would have never read into these statues.

She then took us into the "Ghetto" of Prague, the Old Jewish Quartre.

Apparently, the Jewish people arrived in the Czech Republic in the late 1200s, and was, under the command of the king, placed into this area of the city where they must live. If they were to leave the Jewish Ghetto to work or for whatever the reason, they must wear a yellow star to identify themselves. So the king chose this specific area, northeast of Old Town Square, because it was the lowest part of town, geographically, therefore highly exposed to floods. This remained the home of the Jewish people in Prague for 600 odd years.

The picture below is the old synagogue.

The tour took us to cross the Charles Bridge to the other side of town. The construction began in 1357 on September 7th, at 5:31am. Apparently the king was superstitious.

The bridge is lined with statues of Saints. The oldest statue standing today that is the original, not replaced by a replica, is the Statue of St. John Nepomuk. This statue was placed on the bridge in 1683, and it is said rubbing the bottom of the statue will ensure that you will at some point come back to Prague.

The tour led us to the hills under Prague Castle.

The windy cobblestone streets led us up to the castles where the kings and queens reside and also, where the current President of the Czech Republic works out of.

Along the way I found this delicious bakery stand. Its like a cinnamon roll but without the sticky syrup. Could definitely have eaten this all day long!

The castle was nice. By now, they are all sort of blending into one. Sorry.

But what was impressive on the ground was the old gothic church.