Iron Curtain & Ironman: Paris! (and Coming Home) (Day 15)

Hola todos,

It is with an exhausted and saddened, yet satisfied, heart that I write this trip's final post. But before you can't read from the tears blurring your vision, let me tell you the story of how I got home...

The First Part

My parents were also leaving this morning to catch a train to Salzburg (the hometown of Mozart!) so we all woke up early, packed, and said our goodbyes. Their train was much earlier than my flight, so I had time for a final quick stroll through parts of the downtown area. And you know how I love my early morning empty European city walks!

I was very surprised at how many people were up and about at 6 am. Vienna was a livelier city at 6 am than some of my other visited cities were at 7 or 8 am! It was a work day, and it was quite light out already. But still... that's early!

It was time to catch the train to the airport. I was able to easily connect to the airport train from the subway and it was an entirely uneventful journey. (Which is perfect!) And because my flight had a layover in Paris, there was no passport control or customs to deal with at this point.

I got to my gate with plenty of time to spare and hung out at a cool cafe for a bit, updating the blog and catching up on emails.

Although I purchased the tickets that don't let you pick your seat for the return flight home (#BabeOnABudget!), I still managed to snag good seats on both legs. It's the little things, sometimes!

As I said, I had a layover in Paris, so the first leg of the flight home was just a quick 2-hour hopper.

Paris

Okay, so a quick story here: When I was booking my return flight from Vienna, I was given two options: I could go through Paris with a 1.5-hour layover, or I could go through Paris with a 6 hour layover. On first blush, both options seem miserable!

1.5 hours is not enough time to go through an international airport, deal with passport control and customs, find your gate, AND go to the bathroom (which is, like, the most important step). So that was a non-starter.

6 hours is almost too much time... I didn't want to just sit in a corner near an outlet to charge my devices, or sit at a coffee shop and read, or sit in a chair and try to sleep for SIX. HOURS.

But.

I thought that 6 hours might be just enough time to sprint through the airport, take the train to downtown Paris, see the Eiffel Tower, take the train back to the airport, go through passport control and security, and board my flight.

So that's what I did!

Let me first say that Charles de Gaulle (CDG, the main international airport in Paris) is massive. It took me so long to walk through the airport to the train, and there were sooo many people.

I bought my round-trip train ticket into the city center and back, got on the train, and headed off!

It took about an hour to get into the city from the airport, and I knew I wanted to budget plenty of time for the return trip to the airport, so I had limited time in the city. I successfully transferred once to get to the Eiffel Tower stop and when I climbed the stairs out of the subway, I could see it above the buildings!

 

I got a pain au chocolat (chocolate croissant) and walked to the extended lawn/park area in front of the Tower. I sat down in a beautiful park, enjoyed the beautiful weather, and at my delicious croissant in front of the Eiffel Tower! Wild.

I didn't want to cut it too close at the airport, so before too long it was time to head back. I crossed the Pont d'Lalma bridge and accidentally found my favorite view of the Eiffel Tower in Paris:

I am sorry to report that no crepes were eaten on this journey, although I did totally debate one while heading back to the subway.

I got back to the airport without any issues, but it is a good thing that I gave myself plenty of time: the passport control line I had to get through took forever (probably the slowest passport line I've ever been in at an airport) and then I had to cross the huge airport again (via internal train) to get to security, go through that whole rigamarole, and find my gate.

(I was kind of sweaty from the Tower adventure, so I also took a wipe shower before boarding. The perfume samples in the duty-free shops didn't hurt either! Subscribe for more weird travel hacks.)

The plane home was a huge jet: 3 seats on each side and four in a middle aisle. I managed to snag a window seat (the best for sleeping, in my opinion) and got settled in for the trip home.

Thanks for following along with this trip! I'm definitely feeling some travel blues, but you know that I'm already planning my next adventure. Where should I go next?

Besos,

Tina the ExploraDora

Iron Curtain & Ironman: Vienna (Day 14)

Hola todos,

Well, things were a bit cooler today, but certainly not cool. And we had a thunderstorm watch starting around 1 pm, so we needed to get going and do our outdoors stuff sooner rather than later so that we could avoid being drenched! (Packing wet laundry? Hard pass.)

As we took the subway to the city center, we accidentally got separated—I boarded a subway train right as the doors closed. Whoops! (But at least it wasn’t like the time we got separated as a family and shut down one of the main Paris subway lines during rush hour. Ask me about that later...)

We got reconnected and walked around downtown to find a cafe for breakfast and coffee. (Do you even know me if you don’t think that’s what we did first?!)

After a relaxing breakfast, it was time to find the Spanish Riding School, the oldest riding school in the world (built in 1735) and the only one in the world for the pure European Lipizzaner stallions.

We saw the stallions being transferred from the stables to their training and performance complex at the school.

We had tickets to the horses’ training sessions, so we got to see them practice certain jumps and moves with various trainers. The horses will train for up to 8 years and are treated and pampered like professional athletes (daily massages, custom meal plans, regular trips from the city to the countryside... I could get used to that!). Riders are trained themselves for 12 years before becoming full trainers. It was amazing to see the horses move so gracefully and elegantly and to learn a little bit about all the work that goes into their performances. (My mom is a horse girl and so this was her big thing. Even if you're not super into horse performance, they have cheaper standing tickets where you can still see them practice!)

This the training center. Our seats were this close to the action! [They didn't allow pictures or videos while the horses were out.]

After the training session, we quickly buzzed by the Austrian Parliament and Justizpalast nearby.

The Justizpalast, the seat of the Austrian Supreme Court. There is even a cafe on the roof open to the public.

The Austrian Parliament building, newly renovated.

Our next stop was a bit of a walk, but we had a time deadline to meet, so we booked it through the city. The Ankeruhr clock rotates constantly and keeps (almost) accurate time, but at noon every day it has a 10-minute show with organ music that goes through the full 12-hour cycle of figures. The clock is about 5 minutes behind, so we were worried at first that we missed the show or that it wouldn’t happen because nothing was happening. But not to fear! We saw the whole thing.

We grabbed a quick grocery lunch and then returned to St. Stephan's Cathedral (yes, again!) for a tour of the inside.

The entrance to the church included a free audio tour, which was an unexpected surprise but was so helpful. St. Stephan’s was built in 1137 (!? What?!) and has undergone centuries of redesign and continual renovation. It needed a new roof after a 1945 collapse (courtesy of the war, I think) and technically the cathedral still isn’t completed. It is also the seat of the archbishop of Vienna.

After cooling off in the church for a little bit, we headed off to the Imperial Treasury, which is a collection of Hapsburg and Holy Roman Empire treasures, as well as some ecclesiastical treasures of the Catholic Church from that part of the world. We also got the audio guide, which helped us sort through the literal hundreds of objects in the collection. And I’m a fan of sparkly and shiny, so I knew this was going to be a good visit.

The Treasury has the largest cut emerald in the world, several incredible bejeweled crowns, textiles and clothing, paintings, and a ton of jewelry. Honestly, the whole thing was kind of overwhelming since there was just so much to see. But it is so cool to see part of history through the collection of those objects, like the crib for Napoleon's son or the outfits worn by emperors on their official crowning days.

After getting a bit glitz-and-glammed out, we headed back to St. Stephan’s Cathedral, this time to climb one of its two towers. (The reason we kept going back and forth was to take advantage of the different closing times of the various museums and sights...) The larger South Tower is 137 meters to the top and (allegedly) 343 steps. The North Tower has an elevator, but the views aren’t as great. So you know we climbed the big one! I counted only 340 steps on the way up and 342 on the way down. Regardless, my legs were shaking after our descent.

 

We climbed that.

Views from the top!

We had worked up appetites for our next stop! Demel Cafe is a place with cute vibes (and the prices to match), but it’s a semi-famous place to get a bite of sachertorte, one of Vienna's famous recipes. This, like the New York Cafe in Budapest, is worth a bit of an expensive coffee and cake for the experience. The service is great, you can see the bakers making their various treats behind glass panes, and their menu is diverse for those with sweet tooths (sweet teeth?) and savory appetites alike.

Sachertorte: chocolate cake (not overly sweet), with layers of apricot jam and topped with chocolate ganache. Yum!

 

The inside of Demel Cafe. Such a vibe.

On our walk home, we stopped to get dinner. My dad and I grabbed some sandwiches at a food stand, but my mom got a bratwurst and a beer. No better way to end our time in Vienna!

Yes, this was a Budweiser--but it isn't an American Budweiser! It is technically a beer from the Czech beer company Budvar in the city of Budweis (that is the German pronunciation of the name, at least), and they have some sort of copyright agreement with Anheuser-Busch (the makers of US Budweiser) to not sell their beer in the US. And if champagne is only champagne if it is from the Champagne region of France, is Budweiser only Budweiser if it is from Budweis?

Overall on Vienna

Vienna was great! One woman I had met in Budapest had "warned" me that Vienna was "sleepy" and she thought it was a good thing I would be "just" touring it with my parents. But I disagree! I didn't find it "sleepy" or boring or any similar adjectives. I'm not really into the club/bar/party scene, but I thought there was so much to do for travelers coming to learn about the city's and country's history.

Three days was definitely a good amount of time to see almost everything. They were a full three days, and we could have gone a bit slower or stretched out some activities if we had more time. But the city center (where most of the tourism is) is very accessible and walkable and, if you don't want to walk, the subway has plenty of stops and comes very regularly.

One minor complication is that Vienna is still very cash-heavy. Compared to all of the cities I went to this trip, Vienna was the one with the biggest "cash-only" culture, even in tourist spots (including some restaurants and museums). If you're prepared, that isn't a problem. But it does take a mindset shift (and keeping eyes peeled for ATMs).

We have packing to do tonight and trains to catch tomorrow. We're definitely all sad to be leaving Vienna (and, for me, concluding this trip) but we've had an amazing time in this spectacular city!

Besos,

Tina the ExploraDora

Iron Curtain & Ironman: Vienna (Day 13)

Hola todos,

This morning, we were all pretty tired from the long day before, but we still had a lot to check off our list! We didn’t know it yet, but we were in for another hot and sweaty day. Lots of sun!

After a quick breakfast at the Airbnb, during which we sketched out our plans for the day, we headed back to the Hofburg Palace to see the Sisi Museum.

Empress Elizabeth, or Sisi, was the wife of Austro-Hungarian Emperor Frank Joseph I. They were married in 1854 when she was 16, and they were first cousins (she was Bavarian royalty).

She had an unusual temperament and lifestyle for a woman of her era (too independent! we love to see it.) and rejected traditional court duties. That combined with her eventual assassination created a sort of mysticism and cult of personality around her. The Hungarians were quite fond of her when I was in Budapest; she visited Budapest quite frequently and had a special place in her heart for Hungary.

The Hofburg Palace tour (came with an audio guide! super helpful.) went through her quarters at the palace and other royal apartments, as well as a mini museum with her art, belongings, and clothes.

 

These are the only pictures I was able to get at the Sisi Museum since the museum itself didn't allow any pics. But you can still see the elaborate interior design and decorating of the palace!

The royal apartments are beautiful, designed in neo-Baroque and Rococo styles. Emperor Franz Joseph I also received citizen petitions and meetings in that part of the palace, and you can see where he did his work. He saw around 100 citizens a day during his busy seasons!

My favorite fact about Sisi, though, is that she loved ice cream! I’m sounding even more royal now.

We picked up some quick lunch makings at a local grocery store and went to the Burggarten, beautifully green gardens open for picnicking in the Hofburg complex.

Our next stop was the Hapsburg summer palace, Schonbrunn Palace, about 30 minutes by subway out of the main city center. As a side note, the subway is great here. We’ve been using it a lot, and it’s quick and clean with lots of stops.

Schonbronn Palace tour tickets came with our Sisi Museum tickets, and the gardens are free. The gardens are gorgeous and worth exploration in their own right if the weather’s nice.

 

 

 

Schonbrunn was redecorated by another famous Hapsburg Empress, Maria Therese (who ruled a few generations before Sisi and had, like, 16 children while ruling), almost entirely in the Rococo style. That woman had style! I’m a fan of the glitz and glam. Schonbrunn also came with a helpful audio guide, though some of the information was the same as the Hofburg apartments/Sisi Museum.

 

I hope these pics can give you a sense of the size of the Palace. So much for a smaller summer residence...

As a fun fact: the Hapsburg royal family often at French food for official meals, but Emperor Franz Joseph I preferred traditional Viennese food for family dinners.

Schonbrunn also holds:

• the room where 6 year old Mozart played for Empress Maria Therese for the first time
• the ballroom in which Kennedy and Khrushchev officially conferenced during the Cold War
• the rooms of Napoleon, who married an Austro-Hungarian princess, and stayed at Schonbrunn twice during his conquests of Europe

Can’t keep track of who is ruling over where and who married whom? Yeah, me neither. Throughout the tour, the rooms and audio guide kept bouncing between rulers and their children and their legacies. It would have been helpful to have mini-family tree in hand!

After finishing the tour, we walked through the gardens and up the (very long, but not that steep) hill to the Gloriette. It was a portion of the Palace and is now a cafe. You can pay to get to the top of the roof for some amazing views, but even the view at the top of the hill is amazing!

The Gloriette. (Sorry the pic was crooked-- I was winded...)

 

The Schonbrunn gardens and Palace are visible behind us, as well as much of Vienna itself!

After we got some water, it was time to head back into town and go to Karlskirche (or St. Charles’s Church). We had briefly seen the Karlskirche exterior yesterday in our whirlwind tour with Brett, but we wanted to see the interior. It was beautiful inside—maybe one of the more gilded interiors I’ve seen at a church. And all of the interior walls seemed to be either covered by a painting or marble/granite.

 

To conclude our exploring, we headed off to Ferrari Gelato, an ice cream place that had been independently recommended by our tour guide yesterday and my cousin Brett.

It was delicious, albeit a bit expensive compared to other gelato shops.

Then we decided to walk back to our Airbnb instead of take the quick metro ride. We walked along Stadtpark, a beautiful green park, and searched for some dinner spots along the way.

We ended up at Eduardo, an Italian place in the neighborhood of our Airbnb, for dinner. [And before I get too much shade for going to an Italian place in Austria, I’ll note that 1) we were really hungry, 2) it was really good, and 3) it was reasonably priced! And don’t forget—Austria shares a border with Italy!]

It started drizzling toward the end of dinner, but the thunderstorm passed through quickly. Hopefully the storm will cool things down for tomorrow’s final day of touring!

Besos,

Tina the ExploraDora