Wien

At the end of December my friend Halle came and visited. I traveled to Vienna to meet her at the airport, and then she took me on a whirlwind tour of the city. (The grounds at Schoenbrunn)

First we went to her voice teacher's apartment to drop off her luggage, so we wouldn't have to drag it all over the city. Even though her teacher wasn't there, we were fortunate that the girl apartment-sitting was there, and she was willing to let us do that.


Of course we took the U-bahn all over the place, and the first real stop was the center. There were so many people there for the Christmas season, it was a huge culture shock for me! It was sensory overload to be able to understand conversations that were going on around me, and to understand all of the bilboards and signs. After a quick bite of Huehner Kabob (it's the Turkish version of gyros and so spicey!), we were off and siteseeing. She showed me Stefaner Dom aka Stefan's cathedral. (Schoenbrunn Palace)

We also did some harmless flirting with the street vendors and mimes. I guess that's what happens when you're tired from travelling. I told Halle that she needed to try some gluehwein, so we bought some from a stand. Unfortunately, it was terrible! The Slovak version, called warene vino, is WAY better! (Tree-lined lane at Schoenbrunn)

I hurried and finished my wine because then we were off for Schoenbrunn. Even though the day was gloomy and cold, the grounds were still enchanting. The long tree lined lane gave me a rather eerie feeling, but it still had a certain charm as I was imagining what it looked like in the late spring. Unfortunately we didn't have time to go visit the zoo, which is one of the first ones and one of the top zoos in the world. That's on my list of things to see when I go back! (Vienna's center)

Since the park closes early during the winter, we still had time to kill we went to see Halle's old apartment from the summer because it wasn't far from Schoenbrunn. This part of Vienna was so charming with its row houses and narrow side streets, and the people traffic wasn't nearly as congested. The street where her apartment was was absolutely adorable! It's everything you would picture living the "luxurious" European study-abroad experience. (A cathedral and Christmas lights in the center)

Halle also told me that I needed to experience coffee in Vienna, so before we headed back to Bratislava, we stopped at a little cafe and ordered wienerkaffe, which is coffee with whipped cream, and is so delicious! We were two successful American travellers because we ordered in German and paid in German without the waitress switching to speak to us in English! It was great! (Stefaner Dom)

Our adventures in Europe were just beginning. We spent the night in Bratislava, and went to church for the English service at Maly Kostol, where we got to talk to some of the foreigners and African refugees who worship at this service. Then we took an R train back to Mikulas and had fun hanging our heads out the window all the way from Zilina to Mikulas! It was cold and we probably should've gotten sick, but the crisp fresh air and the scenery were calling us!