The Cities of Europe!

These past three weeks I’ve been traveling with my family around Europe: seeing castles, churches, family and taking lots and lots of pictures!

On our adventures we visited four countries and stayed in about 7 different hotels! Because there is so much information to cover, I’m going to write a little bit about each place we visited and maybe tell you all about some things I liked (or didn’t like!) about each city.

1)   Vienna, Austria

Vienna was probably one of my favorite cities, but just happened to be the first we visited. It was fantastic to be there with my grandfather who had learned his trade in Vienna, and was there when war broke out in 1939. He showed us the street he used to work on, the places he remembers and the best of the city. As an 88-year-old man, it was really impressive that he could make such a big trip to Europe, much less walk all over the city! Hearing his stories made me proud of all he accomplished in this city. During the war he and his family lost everything and afterwards came to America with a debt of over $1,000 dollars. In the US he made a living, starting from scratch. It’s an amazing story, and inexorably intertwined with the great city of Vienna.

Best of: Schönbrunn (the palace); Staatsoper (State Opera); Stephansdom (cathedral)

2) Prague, Czech Republic

Before I left, people often told me that Prague was the most beautiful city in the world. To this I’d say – yes and no. In the tourist district that is made up of the Astronomical Clock, the expensive shopping zones, the Charles Bridge, as well as the castle, everything is almost surreal! All the buildings are so incredibly beautiful, and the views are amazing. However, much of Prague (and the Czech Republic) was scary at points. You can really tell that communism did quite a number of the country. We drove from Vienna to Prague, and driving through the Czech Republic was significantly different than driving through Austria. If you stay in the nice areas of Prague, there’s really nothing to be worried about – just be careful, would be my advice.

The food here was hit or miss. A lot of the food is very dense, and we did have a few mediocre meals. However, there was one restaurant, where we had a fantastic meal! The name of the restaurant escapes me, but it was good enough to warrant a trip back to Prague just for that dinner!

We also met up with my aunt and uncle in Prague, so even though it wasn’t my favorite place, it was really nice to see them!

Best of: Astronomical Clock; Charles Bridge; Castle

Not so great: Sketchy areas; Haggling for everything; Lots of tourist traps

 

3)   St. Johann im Pongau, Austria

My family and I stayed in St. Johann for a week during our trip. And as opposed to the big cities, I have to say that staying in a small town in the Austrian Alps was one of the best experiences we had! St. Johann is a big vacation spot for Germans and Italians, but we didn’t see any other Americans around. The views in the mountains were so incredible, and the shopping / dining was awesome (mainly because we were getting sick of doing touristy things). My brother and my dad ended up buying some Lederhosen and “traditional” clothes. It was a lot of fun! We also took a few days to go visit Munich and Salzburg, which weren’t too far, but those stories will have to wait for the next post!

Best of: Dom (cathedral); Shopping; Food; Family!; Hiking

In the next post I’ll tell you all a little more about our time in:

4)   Munich, Germany

5)   Salzburg, Austria

6)   Heidelberg, Germany

7)   Zurich, Switzerland

8)   Tuebingen, Germany!

 

Until then! Tschüß!