Sorry for the lapse in updates, I promised myself I would post on here for the devoted followers, Brett, My Mom, and perhaps a few others so here goes nothing! As you all would expect I have been spending all my time going to class and doing homework so I haven't been able to update for a bit, but I hope you forgive me and enjoy this anyways...







So after the Super bowl I needed to take it easy before I headed out to Vienna, we left last Friday and returned home Sunday night late. I honestly went not knowing much, but thanks to Joey, a dorm neighbor-turned-Vienna guide, we got a lot of sight seeing done nonetheless. We set out from Hostel Ruthensteiner at about 9ish am and hit the city all day long. I have several pictures of St. Stephens Cathedral in the center of town, but I was a bit disappointed with them because it is in the process of being restored so there is quite a bit of construction going on. During the tour perhaps one of the best photos I have ever been a part of was taken. Zach, trying to avoid an awkward pose because his arm wasn't around the person to his right, decided he could switch positions in time for the picture to be taken. His attempt was either brave or horribly stupid, but the picture will always give me a good laugh; it is known only as the "awkward arm". In the background is the Pestsaule Statue in Graben Square.

After seriously the longest day of walking around in bitter cold, windy weather we ventured in to Cafe Central, a bit of a touristy cafe but definitely the "Vienna Cafe/Pastry" experience. It wasn't too expensive and everyone got a coffee to wake up a bit and fight off the freezing arctic climate that I have become so accustomed to here. These cafes were home to many of the intellectuals of past times, in Jan. of 1913 the cafe was host to such names as Sigmund Freud, Adolf Hitler, Leon Trotsky, and Vladimir Lenin (the last two being regulars). So after warming up and touring the city for a few more hours we finally metro'd back to the hostel to get ready for a taste of the nightlife.

But before going out we had to get some famous Austrian food, and a professor had recommended a certain Shnitzel restaurant that specialized in waiters who are rude, loud, and cause an overall atmosphere of anarchy. As we walked in and sat down our waiter walked up and looked at me and said "Beer?!?!" I looked up a bit suprised and nodded, and he looks around at our group of 5 and simply yells "Okay five beer!" and proceeded to walk back to the bar. Everyone kind of looked around at each other and began to laugh, but little did we know things would get more interesting. After delivering the drinks our boisterous waiter returned and a similar process was used to order the food; "Shnitzel?! ok five Shnitzel!!" But hey for 6 Euros it was a hefty meal not to mention the cheapest thing on the menu, a huge plate with two huuuuuge pieces of fried meat (it remains a mystery what exactly it was). I know my plate isn't quite empty, but I will tell you that only one of us succeeded in conquering the Shnitzel feast, and all five of the group proceeded to go straight to the hostel and fall into a 1 and 1/2 hour food coma before awakening to go out that night. We hit the town and went to a pub and club etc. and the next day we again woke before 9 to get out of the hostel at the ungodly check out time of 10am. We checked out Museum Hundertwasser, a sort of tribute to the philosophy and artwork as well as architecture of Friedensreich Hundertwasser, I recommend checking him out a little bit. He was really into bringing natural elements back into urban cities, if your a hippie, peace-lover, or even an architect looking at some new ideas, this guy is legit.

Afterward we walked over to the summer palace, yes ironically it is the middle of winter here, but there are some awesome views of the city and we tried to sneak in the tour of the building with a big group of German speaking tourists (whether they were Austrian or German, I'm not quite sure), only to be caught and turned around. We made due and headed back outside around the gardens in the back and got some good pictures of snow-covered Vienna.
After this we headed back to our bus stop to get ready for the ride home, exhausted but we all had a great trip that I doubt I will ever forget. Back in Prague this week I have just been doing school and hanging out, yesterday I checked out Petrin Hill on the west side of town. An awesome park and obviously a hill, on top there are some fortifications and also a tower that Czech architects designed after the Eiffel Tower in Paris. For a mere 50 czk you can grab one of the best views of the city around, and you also get a nice workout on your way up the hill and up the tower stairs as well.

As I'm sure you can tell, I'm gradually working on my photo-blog feng shui, but bear with me because I am no designer, let alone on an internet blog...


Before I head out tonite I want to give a few shout outs for some people who I know would appreciate these pictures.
First off, Mom, in Vienna you will be delighted to know that next to a sort of kids/teens rope course/playground there is a special playground just for dogs! Yes I know you will most likely be switching your visit from Prague to Vienna, and ditching Jessie to bring your beloved Annie and Zoe...


Also at the neighborhood grocery store, similar to super target or wal-mart I suppose, Miles Berry will be glad to hear that the 1.5L format of Pepsi is fully stocked on "Action Alley" so don't worry Miles, the Czechs have Pepsi readily available to consume in massive quantities, as long as they choose it over the beer...



Until next time! Let me know if you want me to keep lookout for something and I will take a pic and post it in here along with me making fun of you...Na Shledanou!