Budapest, Vienna & Prague's Top Ten Fun Facts

Alrighty - so I wanted to save some of the funny tidbits for the Top Ten...hopefully you'll enjoy!

1) Changing currency is harder than you think. Not only are we now FINALLY used to thinking in euros (though we always convert back to the American dollar) but now we had to think in forints (Budapest) and in korunas (Prague...and yes, like the beer.) Forints are hard to calculate in your mind because 1 euro = 270 forints. When making large purchases you're handing over thousand forint bills. I was freaking out the first time, calculating and then recalculating...as I've never paid for dinner let alone ANYTHING with a thousand bill. We never got used to it and were very excited about Vienna, where we could again use our euros! But, in Prague we had korunas, which were a bit easier to work with - 4 euros was about equal to 100 korunas. Easier on the brain to calculate. BUT - in all, we were so excited whenever we could use our euros, not only was it easier, but cheaper as the money exchange places really didn't have the best rates. At all.

2) Lofts are the best way to go! As you read and saw in pictures - Budapest had the coolest loft ever. No idea why, but you feel like a little kid who won the bet for getting to sleep in the best spot at the top. There weren't any guard railings, so I was EXTRA careful as my bed was on the side of the railings. Thank goodness I'm not a roller. We would have had a problem. Carolyn is - so we made sure I was by the railing. Took one for the team! Vienna also had a cool loft - and was the coziest little nook I've ever slept in. We had little curtains to pull to hide us from below, and even the rest of the loft. Theresia and I shared one little part of the loft, and we both slept better than EVER! As did Carolyn over on her side. If Prague had a loft option - we would have taken it. Hands down. Lofts = a good time. Picture shows a view from my bed from the loft in Vienna.

3) Packing your bag for the way there should be focused on keeping it light. Not only if you have to put your purse inside your bag like we did, but because you may buy things that take up space on the way home. I actually was impressed with how light I packed - as my parents would tell you I love to bring along everything and the kitchen sink normally. BUT, not light enough. On the way home on the plane - I was wearing two tank tops, two shirts, my fleece, my biggest scarf and my pea coat...and leggings with jeans on top. I still barely had enough space and I was pretty uncomfortable and large looking on the plane. Haha - noted for next time, must bring EVEN less.

4)Helmets are extremely necessary when caving. The people in front of me and behind me could hear the loud CLANG of my helmet on the roof of the cave REPEATEDLY followed by some appropriate choice words from me. I would just start laughing eventually because I hit my head so much. And NO ONE ELSE DID! What the heck was my problem, I have no idea. But it was pretty entertaining to hear CLANGS every three minutes and me shouting at myself loudly afterward. Haha...providing humor to all.

5) Coffee is never served in a huge mug. Or even a normal sized mug for that matter. It's like each restaurant wants to compete to see who can have the smallest cup. I could have brought the cups from my old tea set at home and they would have fit right in. I must admit, the coffee is pretty potent, so it doesn't need a huge mug, but it still made me chuckle when I'd get my coffee. We also noticed, the more chocolate mixed with the coffee - the mug got bigger. (Fine by me!!) See picture, where we each got something different. Hot chocolate for me (the BIG one), a coffee and chocolate mix for Carolyn (the middle one) and a coffee for Theresia (the baby one).

6) Train conductors are not happy people. If they can yell at you for ANYTHING, they will. Do not anger them. At all! We discovered this on the way to Bratislava as we had our feet resting on the edges of the chairs in front of us. Where NO ONE was sitting. The train conductor came over and asked if we were sick and needed a doctor. Confused we of course said no. He then started yelling to sit up straight blah blah blah. I felt like I was being lectured for punching someone. We both were silent for a bit (sitting up straight as possible) before we started to giggle. To make matters worse, most people on the train heard him, and the majority of these people understand English. Not helping the 'stupid American' image with that one. Noted - shoes are not to be put on the seats. Not acceptable.

7) Food is just as cool if not cooler than walking around and seeing the sites of the city! But, I'm sure you already gathered that from my previous posts describing in detail my meals and pastries. I tried to take pictures of my meals as much as possible, and of course of as many pastries as possible. I feel like QUITE the expert on pastries at this point. If the pastry has chocolate, it'll be better. If it's frosted in something, it'll be better. If there is some sort of filling, it'll be better. If the filling is also chocolate then you're in for one heck of a pastry. And finally, powdered sugar on top does look nice, but doesn't add much to the taste, and just ends up all over your clothes. Below are some of the pastries/cakes from the trip!


8) Hershey doesn't exist in Europe. What does, is Milka. Milka bars come in a variety of delicious flavors and are a snack of choice when a pastry isn't possible. Our go-to flavor is chocolate and hazelnuts, and it's the perfect size to split btwn three people. We had more Milka bars on this trip than I dare admit, but since we all LIKE them, why not?!?! I may have to take a few for when I come back to see what you all think. You would like that right?? :)

9)Ear plugs ARE a good idea. We dealt with a fair share of snorers this trip as well as people who were banging around at 4 AM when they got back from a night out. Carolyn DID have ear plugs and rarely heard any of these noises. Theresia and I could describe them for you in DETAIL. My favorite was when someone dropped the lid to a metal trash can in our room in Budapest at approximately 4:18 AM. That was a lovely sound to jolt awake to. So fun. I had my iPod on blast a couple of time to block out the noise, but the iPod juice had to be rationed, as I don't have a wall plug-in to charge it. ANYWAY - ear plugs for next time will be a worthwhile investment.

10) You know when we are all infants, we cry when we're hungry and when we need to go the bathroom. Well, not much changes when you're old. No tears, but mood swings DEFINITELY. I am guilty of this, ha, as my fellow travelers will note. When one of us would start to be snippy, it meant they either need food or the bathroom 90% of the time. Mood swings through-out the day truly followed how often we ate, plus, as you eat you're usually sitting down - so it's a foot-resting time as well. Either way, found that to be hilarious, especially with myself. Cranky until fed. And I think I'm okay with that. I DO like to eat, remember?

Well friends, that's all the fun tid bits from our big trip. There are always things to learn - things to remember to pack next time or that you DON'T really need. Always things to remember about planes vs. trains vs. the metro. Always things to remember about hostels. And biggest thing learned from the trip, which is actually...

11) Always give your parental units a detailed schedule of your entire trip. Including train rides, plane rides etc. with exact times. That way, when there is a HUGE train crash, they will know you were not involved. Also - make sure your phone works internationally so when the above happens, you can contact them. I had one of those completed and one not...so for next time...must make sure both things are covered. Always good.

I will write either another later today or tmrw to catch up in total with a summery of the last week and this weekend for you all. Then I'm no longer behind. FINALLY!

Sending love from to Holland to everyone back home!

The Musical City: Vienna

It's been a crazy week of travel recovery and homework, but I want to try to pick up where I last left off with Vienna!

Our train from Budapest was early in the morning, so we weren't up too late our last night. Up early (...which we got quite good at...and those that know me well know that it's not my favorite thing to do. At all.) we found the bus that would take us to the train station. Our train left from a station of the far East side of Budapest...but we arrived earlier than anticipated thanks to the bus. We wanted to get rid of the last of our forints (Hungarian currency...will be explained in the Top Ten to come...) and bought some fresh fruit and snacks for the train. And of course pastries! (You should know by now that pastries and I have a SERIOUS relationship.) We found our train, and climbed aboard. Much to my delight, you sat in compartments on this train! For all you Harry Potter fans out there...you know what I'm talking about. It was a long train ride...about 3 and half hours, but thanks to some naps, it didn't take too long.

Once we arrived, we followed the directions to our hostel. All of us were uncomfortable with our HUGE backpacks...and not from the weight, but the awkward pull backpacks seem to have on your shoulders. Anyway...it was wonderful to get to our hostel. We were a bit concerned at first...as we had to buzz ourselves in, then walk down this dark hallway with renovation happening on all the walls...up this little staircase...down another hallway with tiles that weren't all secure in the floor...and found our hostel. At this point we thought we were in for a crappy hostel...but once the door was opened - SURPRISE! It was lovely! All the walls were white, with natural, light furnishings to make it seem hip, comfortable and homey all at the same time. The hostel owners greeted us warmly, showed us our room (another loft! YAY!!!) and around the hostel. She even had laminated maps for us with all the best spots highlighted and explained. I was blown away. We all were completely rejuvenated from the train ride after chatting with her and hit the streets of Vienna!

First on the list was lunch..as we had only our snacks and breakfast. We found a Cafe on the edge of central Vienna, right across from the Volkstheatre. The waitress was extremely kind, very smiley, and very helpful. We all orded some form of schnitzel...mine was swimming in gravy. And it was awesome! We also tried some Radler beer, at the suggestion of Theresia. It's half beer and half pop, so it tastes very light and almost sweet. Was quite refreshing and worked well with the heavy meal.

I was also able to get the cell working after we crossed into Austria, so called the parental units to let them know my whereabouts and that the cell was working. After the train crash in Belgium, we wanted to make sure phones were working internationally!

Full and content we headed out to see the sights. We walked by the National Museum, which became a point of reference as it was on the way back to the hostel each night. We headed in the direction of the Austrian Parliament. The building was very much Parliament looking and had a beautiful statue in front. We admired the statue more than the building itself! We briefly glanced inside before heading over to Town Hall. Town Hall is a HUGE building, and much more stunning than the Parliament building. We were in awe and took lots of pictures. Out in front of Town Hall was an outdoor skating rink! It was also huge, with lots of rinks connected by paths. It reminded me of a lazy river that connects different pools. We planned to go ice skating the next evening after seeing the neat layout! (This sadly didn't end up happening as our poor feet needed a break before we went to Prague.)

We wandered away from Town Hall and the rink towards a huge church we saw towering in the distance. It was Votiv Church and we realized once we got close that it was undergoing a renovation on the entire front facade. Not a lot of great picture opportunities, but I was able to take a few of the sides and the towers on top.

We wandered back down towards Town Hall, but on the other side of the rink to see the Imperial Palace! We found it, and also found out that it's really a bunch of different museums now. We weren't in the museum mood, so glanced around the lobby and pressed on.

We had planned on going to the Opera that night, so headed to the Opera House to buy tickets! We were bummed to find out the Opera wasn't performing that evening...but the Ballet was! It was pretty cheap, so we decided to get tickets. We didn't recognize the title: Dies Flandermaus, but figured we'd understand as the Ballet happened. We needed to kill time until it started, and we needed a little caffiene, so decided to head to a tradional Vienna coffee house! (Note: coffee house means something completely different in Holland, this was an ACTUAL coffee house. Just to clarify)

We found the perfect place just a few blocks from the Opera House. As our hostel owner had promised, it was a classy place! The waiters are wearing tuxes and the decor makes you feel like you should be in an fancy dress! But - the prices are really cheap and the food and coffee is to die for. We intended to just get some coffee, but after reading the menu, decided the cimmamon and nutmeg flavored hot chocolate sounded divine. We also were in full view of the cake display. Well, we all know what happened there...but the fun part is my cake was called the Mozart Bomb! Haha...I thought that was hilarious, and didn't even care what the flavor was (pistachio and chocolate). It was actually quite tasty, as was the hot chocolate. Warm and full we decided to wander around for another hour until the ballet.

Wandering involved looking at souvenirs and we found scarves! I had really wanted to get one in Paris, and regretted not. So, once we found this shop with the scarves on display, I halted the group and started browsing. I ended up buying two...a pretty red one that matched my coat, and a classy looking black and white one. Carolyn and Theresia also bought scarves and we all wore them as we headed to the ballet!

We felt a bit underdressed in our tennis shoes and fleeces (under the coats) but no one said anything...so we wandered upstairs to take pictures and find our seats. The Opera House was beautiful, with paintings and sculptures everywhere! We had seats in the 'partial viewing' area...which we didn't fully understand until we sat down. We couldn't see Stage Left, really, at all. We all got really good at craning our necks and leaning forward to try to see what was going on if the dancers happened to be on our blind spot. The ballet itself had wonderfully talented dancers...but the story was a bit strange. The Reader's Digest version is that a couple is unhappily married and for some reason, the husband turns into a bat at night (don't ask me why...NO IDEA)...the husband goes out to bars basically looks to cheat on his wife...his wife is being seduced at the same time by their children's tutor who wants to show the woman what her husband is doing so he turns the women into a beautiful enchanting stranger...the tutor takes her to find her husband at this bar and the husband is completely head over heels with her...the tutor gets jealous that she didn't fall for HIM and has her husband thrown in jail...in her disguise the wife cuts visits him in jail and cuts off his bat wings (again...NO IDEA)...the ballet ends with the husband happily with the women he thinks is a stranger but is really still his own wife. The End. Confused????? SO WERE WE! The above synopsis was only able to be regurgitated because of Wikipedia. Moving on...

We headed home to rest up for Day #2! Carolyn and I headed to Bratislava, Slovakia for what we thought would be a cool day trip. (It's only an hour away!) We thought it would be easy to find a train there...or a bus...but spent almost two hours on the city's metro, trying to find the train station and then trying to find the RIGHT train station. It was exhausting, but we eventually found a place to get tickets. We set out on the train...with a pastry of course! We arrived in Bratislava and were greeted with a very dirty train station...unhelpful people...very little English speakers who could figure out what we wanted (directions to the downtown) and we soon felt very uncomfortable. Sketchy would be an accurate word. We didn't go far from the train station...as we didn't know where we were going and our train back was in a hour. (We had been told that we could see all of Bratislava in an hour or two). We saw only the area next to the train station. We then walked back...we tried to find lunch in the station (a microwaved hamburger for me...which was not real meat I don't think) and then were overjoyed to be back on our train to Vienna! Our summed up thoughts about Bratislava...we came...we saw...we left. (The picture above captures how ready I was to leave...after being there 10 minutes.)

Once we arrived back in Vienna we met up with Theresia (who chose to hang out in Vienna that morning and skip the Bratislava trip. Smart girl!) at the Hall of Music. It's an interactive museum all about music and the famous musicians of Vienna. We were all a little fried so we didn't really retain a lot of what we were doing. We enjoyed the museum, but I wish I had been a bit more mentally aware to take it all in. There were lots of creepy mannequins that represented the famous musicians. Above is one of Mozart.

We grabbed some grub afterwards...as well as some souvenirs...and then headed home to the hostel. We caught up with some Olympics that night, some emails and then hit the sack. Our train to Prague was early the next morning...overall Vienna was wonderful! A very classy, cultured city that I'd love to go back to. Budapest I saw as an adventure and full of history. Vienna was also full of history but had this class in the air. I discovered you can love two cities...in two different ways. Bring on Prague!