Time for part two of my
European Escapade and certainly one of my favourites..... ITALY and Vienna! My
love for Italy just grew even more from this trip. After visiting my nannas
home town with mum and having the time of my life, it was now time for me to explore
Florence, Venice and Rome. The culture, food, history, language and people are
all truly wonderful.
We set off from the French Rivera ready for our trip to Florence. We were thirty minutes into the journey when our bus broke down. After about an hour on the side of the road, with the police who were getting increasingly angry, boys from our tour helping, as well as other coaches who had stopped and a difficult language barrier we were back on the road. About three hours in we had our first service stop for some pizza!! It was good, but I knew that now we were in Italy it could only get better! Our first major stop on the way to Florence was Pisa, to visit the infamous leaning tower. The actually lean is incredible and a lot more obvious than in photos. We had our typical tourist photos and to be honest I just wanted to get out of the place. From the minute we got off the bus it was absolutely packed with gypsies and scams. It was probably the worst place I have been. We have seen them a lot on the streets begging for money all around Europe, but normally after ignoring them and a few NO's they leave you alone. We were walking back to the bus when these two Gypsy's who were holding a new born baby, ran at lady walking next to us and pushed her up against a car and within two seconds they had her handbag open. Luckily the ladies husband was there and he managed to push the Gypsy's away, but it was really scary seeing how quick and savage they were, even with a baby in tow! Let’s just say I was pleased to get out of there. We arrived at our adorable little chalets at the camp site around 6.30pm, had a quick dinner and then got ready for our first night out in Florence. We headed to the 'Red Garter' a karaoke bar that was ridiculously hot inside! They had the biggest jugs of delicious cocktails and I was clearly in my element being at a karaoke bar. Lots of people got up and sang although the song selection was pretty awful. Four of the Greek boys sang Backstreet Boys which was hilarious and Monique and I got up and sang 'Man in the Mirror' by Michael Jackson, I'm sure you can all imagine how amazing we were : )) Then a few of us headed out to a club for a dance. One thing I really don’t like about European nightclubs is that in most of them you can smoke inside, I always leave and my hair stinks, it’s awful. After being so hot inside, when we went to leave, it was pouring with rain outside and so humid! We had a great night and it is so good being in Italy.
We woke up not feeling the best this morning, but I managed to make it to breakfast for some substance before our big full day in Florence, the birthplace of the renaissance. We started our day with a Leather demonstration at Leonardo's Leather Works. To be honest it was quite boring and not many people were actually listening. I was contemplating a new handbag but never really fell in love with anything. After the demonstration we stopped for a quick slice of pizza. You have to love the copious amounts of pizza shops EVERYWHERE. You buy it by the slice (a huge slice) and it’s ridiculously yummy! We then started a walking tour throughout the city. Unfortunately the museum that houses the famous Michelangelo statue was closed so we could only see replicas in the piazza. We saw the beautiful Ponte Vecchio Bridge which is one of the only bridges that is still standing from the war, strolled past the Palatine Gallery and finished in front of the stunning Santa Croce and Duomo churches. European churches cease to amaze be with their beauty and history. After a busy morning soaking up the sun and sights it was time for lunch. A group of us found a cute little restaurant down an ally called Robiglio. One of many great things about travelling with Lis is that we both love good food and anything we order, we always go halves in so we get lots of variety. I had tomato pasta and Lis and pesto one. They were both so fresh and yum, you really can’t go wrong if you stay away from the real touristy places (yet another great lesson I learnt from mum)! Our waiter Emilio was hilarious and provided some entertainment as well as €20 off the bill and recommended the best gelato place in town. After the best lemon gelato it was time for another wonder before heading back to the campsite. Our rooms where so ridiculously hot that we decided to have a nap out on the deck. One of the boys Jeff joined us for a chat. He's a cute nerdy guy from Canada that wears Steve Urkle type glasses and works for Google, that’s right GOOGLE. He actually looks like the creator of facebook. Lis and I got on well with him and he always provided a good laugh. Time to get all dolled up again for a group photo looking out over Florence, it was a beautiful setting. Then it was time for our Tuscan group dinner, which involved 5 courses of salad, various types of pasta, meat, dessert and finished with a beautiful glass of Limonchello. It was great, but way too much food. After we headed to a club called Space, which was made famous as the cast of the trashy reality TV show Jersey Shore went there. It was huge with various levels and types of music. I took myself home about 1.30am as I was exhausted and had already had a great night. Florence was wonderful, I would love to spend more time there exploring the beautiful sights it has to offer.
Everyone was feeling tired and drained this morning so it was lucky we were only driving to ROME! I had been waiting for this day for a long time, I couldn't have been more excited. At our service stop Lisa and I ate €30 worth of Pasta, Salami, cheese and olives! What pigs, but hey we are in Italy. We arrived in Rome and drove around the city with our tour leader Jimmy pointing out some of the famous landmarks before being dropped at the COLOSSEUM... WOW!! It was so much bigger than I had imagined it would be. Such an ancient beauty, filled with so much history. Inside we started a tour which was great and then walked around and did our own thing. I couldn't stop touching the walls and admiring it all. Truly amazing and so much better than I expected. After a coffee admiring the Colosseum from the outside it was time for a little walking tour. We got to see the magic of the Pantheon before arriving at THE Trevi fountain... Arrghhh!!! This was probably one of the things I was most excited about seeing and it certainly didn't let me down. It was absolutely gorgeous and it blew me away. There were so many people there too. The original legend says that you throw two coins into the Trevi – with your back to the fountain, throwing the coins with your right hand over your left shoulder. The first coin you make a wish and the second will ensure you return to Rome. I made sure I threw both coins in correctly - one with my wish and the other to ensure I come back to Rome. It was such a great thing to do, I couldn't stop smiling. Then it was time for dinner at a beautiful restaurant where we ate lots of pizza and pasta and had a lovely glass of wine. Finally time to head to our campsite for an earlyish night in. The late nights and big days are starting to take its toll on us and we're feeling run down and really tired, so a good night’s sleep is just what we need. Just in case it’s not obvious enough, I LOVE ROME!
Feeling refreshed and ready to conquer Rome, we were up early and on the bus. We were dropped at the Spanish Steps - the widest staircase in Europe that separates two piazzas and has a beautiful church at the top. It was certainly a cool sight to see. We had some free time when Lis, Joel and I went and had a delicious Italian coffee and custard bombė! I’m still undecided if I prefer Italian or French desserts, but why pick either when you can have it all!! The time had come for our tour of Vatican City (the smallest country in the world) and of course the Vatican, the most famous landmark in Rome and probably Italy in general. The tour went for about three hours and was insane. Again the history blew me away and St Peters and the Sistine chapel where just remarkable. So detailed and beautiful with the most incredible artworks. I managed a cheeky snap inside the Sistine Chapel even though you're not meant to. It was really breathtaking and you have to be so quiet and well dressed otherwise you are not allowed in, which is completely fair enough and just shows respect. I couldn’t believe how big St Peters Church actually is, the inside is like a whole different world with prayer rooms, chapels and some amazing architecture. As we were walking out we saw the balcony where the Pope makes most of his speeches, unfortunately I wasn't lucky enough to see him. A good friend of mine who is also travelling visited a few days after us and just happened to be there on a day the Pope was there making a speech, a pretty cool sight to see whether you're Catholic or not. The time had come to head back to our campsite after the best day in Rome. This evening we had an 'I Love Roma' whiteboard party, where we all wore white 'I Love Roma' t-shirts and everyone from our tour signed them. It’s a great memento to keep and read all the nice things people wrote. I absolutely fell in love with Rome and cannot wait to return sometime soon to explore some more. I’d love to visit with mum one day.
This morning was one of few that Lis was up and packed before me and had to bring me back some breakfast. We got on the bus ready for our drive to Venice. After a few food stops on the way we arrived at camp on the mainland just out of Venice. We had dinner and some vino before doing some washing and making use of the free wifi. It was a quiet night tonight just hanging out which was nice. Everyone is so excited to explore Venice tomorrow.
This morning we had to catch the ferry across to Venice as we were staying further out. Unfortunately Venice is sinking, but not to worry it is sinking very slowly, and we will all be long gone by the time it actually sinks. There are no cars or bikes in Venice, so for clumsy accident prone people like me this is fantastic! It floods a lot in winter and all the pavement is uneven. Walking around Venice was like walking around in a dream, it was so perfect and beautiful. We started with a walking tour and saw yet another beautiful church St Marks. Venice is so interesting and filled with tiny lane ways and canals, you could never navigate your way around with a map, and you just have to lose yourself in all the wonderful streets, consumed with so many high end stores. We saw the beautiful Rialto Bridge and walked through the food markets. Pizza stop for lunch with a couple of the boys before continuing on to admire the endless Venetian marks shops. We actually brought one that was pretty and sparkly yet still affordable, some of them were €1000 plus! It’s been so great travelling through places that mum has either been to or knows about, as she often messages through good tips and places to go. She had told us about a bar called 'Harrys' which is in Venice and is the birthplace of the Bellini (my favourite champagne cocktail). We asked our walking guide earlier in the morning where it was and she was very impressed that we knew all about it (thanks mum)! It was the cutest most understated bar I have seen, filled with people whom looked like that had lots of money. We ordered our Bellini's and boy was it worth every bit of the €20. The service was outstanding with free top ups and an endless supply of olives. Lis and I were so content and happy. It was a moment I will always treasure, thanks mumma! Time to meet up with everyone and for me to fulfil yet another lifelong dream of a Gondola ride in Venice. On my gondola was Lisa, Sam, Monique, Lisa, Michael and we had a pretty cute gondolier that posed for photos. The ride was relaxing and wonderful seeing Venice from the Canals, the water on the other hand was filthy, lucky we didn't fall overboard. What a magical day!! Back to the campsite for dinner which was a BBQ, my first since leaving home and it was average! Time to get ready for our Masquerade themed party, which everyone put effort into and looked great. I love the masks Lis and I wore. It was a fun night yet the bar kept squirting people with soda taps which was highly irritating. I had a fantastic time in Venice and it really is a very unique and wonderful city. Italy in general is and always will be one of my favourite places in the world. I ate endless amounts of the best pizza, pasta, gelato and drunk some beautiful wine, it couldn't get much better!
This morning we were woken up by Jeff (the Canadian) who was beating down our door. He had caught two massive guys stealing from people’s rooms, while they were sleeping. He caught them in his cabin and called the police (lucky Jeff could speak French and so could the police). They were at our room when the police finally came. Thank god we had nothing stolen and the people who did got there’s back! After all the drama we were on the bus by 8am ready for our long drive to Vienna, Austria. We drove through the stunning Dolomite Mountains which made for a lovely drive. After the usual service stops we arrived at our hostel in Vienna around 5.30pm. Lisa wasn't feeling well today so we decided that an early night was necessary. We went to dinner at Weinerworld and had a really good schnitzel, then came back to our hostel did some washing and was in bed by 10pm... Heaven!
Most rooms while on contiki were always 4 people per room so we soon paired up with Sydney sisters Lisa and Sam. They were great roomies (except for Sam's annoying rooster alarm) and we became really close friends. A day of shopping was on the cards for today, well that was until we realised it was Sunday and EVERYTHING was closed, except for places to eat. We walked through Hero's square and the Hofburg Imperial Palace where Hitler made his famous speech to the Austrians on the balcony in 1938 (got to love history). We saw St Stephens Cathedral, Maria Theresa statue and the Minoriten Church, made famous by the Da Vinci Code. More free time equals more food and Monique, Lisa and I found a cute little cafe where we indulged in about 6 scrumptious pieces of Austrian cakes. By the time we walked those off it was time for lunch. In every country we try to eat the food that is famous and traditional in that country. So with the waitresses recommendation we had this Beef, mushroom and potato dumpling dish that was actually really tasty, even though it didn't look to appealing. For dessert we all shared Kaiserschmarrn which is a sweet pancake that looks like gnocchi served with jam... Delicious. We then decided to do something ridiculous and get a horse and carriage ride through Vienna. Our driver was a huge Austrian lady named Claudia that provided a few laughs. The three of us girls had such a fun time, it was just so random. Back with the group we made our way to a Schnapps Museum. The guy showing us around was the great grandson of the creator and I'm sure he was already drunk. The alcohol they make was originally only supplied to the royals. There was plenty of schnapps to try and we sampled chilli infused, 24 carat gold, choc hazelnut, choc banana, strawberry and absinthe. They were all really yum except the absinthe which tasted like petrol. We then stopped at the Schonbrunn Palace which once housed the Habsburg monarchs. It was a spectacle with beautiful gardens, where we just relaxed for a few hours. Then it was time for dinner at Reiglahouter Restaurant which was set in the forest. The waiters were great, they sang, made us play games and played some great Austrian music. We had another schnitzel that was nice yet a little dry as it’s never served with any sauce or anything. We all kicked the footy and swung on the swings outside, like we were 13 again, it was a great night. Vienna is a lovely city that was well worth seeing. Next stop is Munich.
Ok well that’s enough to keep you all pondering for a few days. My next instalment will include Munich, Austrian Tyrol, Switzerland, Rhine Valley and Amsterdam. It just keeps getting better.
** I apologise now for any grammatical mistakes and the over use of the words beautiful and amazing! Truth is I'm running out of adjectives to describe how incredible these places are.
Until next time...
Xxx
We set off from the French Rivera ready for our trip to Florence. We were thirty minutes into the journey when our bus broke down. After about an hour on the side of the road, with the police who were getting increasingly angry, boys from our tour helping, as well as other coaches who had stopped and a difficult language barrier we were back on the road. About three hours in we had our first service stop for some pizza!! It was good, but I knew that now we were in Italy it could only get better! Our first major stop on the way to Florence was Pisa, to visit the infamous leaning tower. The actually lean is incredible and a lot more obvious than in photos. We had our typical tourist photos and to be honest I just wanted to get out of the place. From the minute we got off the bus it was absolutely packed with gypsies and scams. It was probably the worst place I have been. We have seen them a lot on the streets begging for money all around Europe, but normally after ignoring them and a few NO's they leave you alone. We were walking back to the bus when these two Gypsy's who were holding a new born baby, ran at lady walking next to us and pushed her up against a car and within two seconds they had her handbag open. Luckily the ladies husband was there and he managed to push the Gypsy's away, but it was really scary seeing how quick and savage they were, even with a baby in tow! Let’s just say I was pleased to get out of there. We arrived at our adorable little chalets at the camp site around 6.30pm, had a quick dinner and then got ready for our first night out in Florence. We headed to the 'Red Garter' a karaoke bar that was ridiculously hot inside! They had the biggest jugs of delicious cocktails and I was clearly in my element being at a karaoke bar. Lots of people got up and sang although the song selection was pretty awful. Four of the Greek boys sang Backstreet Boys which was hilarious and Monique and I got up and sang 'Man in the Mirror' by Michael Jackson, I'm sure you can all imagine how amazing we were : )) Then a few of us headed out to a club for a dance. One thing I really don’t like about European nightclubs is that in most of them you can smoke inside, I always leave and my hair stinks, it’s awful. After being so hot inside, when we went to leave, it was pouring with rain outside and so humid! We had a great night and it is so good being in Italy.
We woke up not feeling the best this morning, but I managed to make it to breakfast for some substance before our big full day in Florence, the birthplace of the renaissance. We started our day with a Leather demonstration at Leonardo's Leather Works. To be honest it was quite boring and not many people were actually listening. I was contemplating a new handbag but never really fell in love with anything. After the demonstration we stopped for a quick slice of pizza. You have to love the copious amounts of pizza shops EVERYWHERE. You buy it by the slice (a huge slice) and it’s ridiculously yummy! We then started a walking tour throughout the city. Unfortunately the museum that houses the famous Michelangelo statue was closed so we could only see replicas in the piazza. We saw the beautiful Ponte Vecchio Bridge which is one of the only bridges that is still standing from the war, strolled past the Palatine Gallery and finished in front of the stunning Santa Croce and Duomo churches. European churches cease to amaze be with their beauty and history. After a busy morning soaking up the sun and sights it was time for lunch. A group of us found a cute little restaurant down an ally called Robiglio. One of many great things about travelling with Lis is that we both love good food and anything we order, we always go halves in so we get lots of variety. I had tomato pasta and Lis and pesto one. They were both so fresh and yum, you really can’t go wrong if you stay away from the real touristy places (yet another great lesson I learnt from mum)! Our waiter Emilio was hilarious and provided some entertainment as well as €20 off the bill and recommended the best gelato place in town. After the best lemon gelato it was time for another wonder before heading back to the campsite. Our rooms where so ridiculously hot that we decided to have a nap out on the deck. One of the boys Jeff joined us for a chat. He's a cute nerdy guy from Canada that wears Steve Urkle type glasses and works for Google, that’s right GOOGLE. He actually looks like the creator of facebook. Lis and I got on well with him and he always provided a good laugh. Time to get all dolled up again for a group photo looking out over Florence, it was a beautiful setting. Then it was time for our Tuscan group dinner, which involved 5 courses of salad, various types of pasta, meat, dessert and finished with a beautiful glass of Limonchello. It was great, but way too much food. After we headed to a club called Space, which was made famous as the cast of the trashy reality TV show Jersey Shore went there. It was huge with various levels and types of music. I took myself home about 1.30am as I was exhausted and had already had a great night. Florence was wonderful, I would love to spend more time there exploring the beautiful sights it has to offer.
Everyone was feeling tired and drained this morning so it was lucky we were only driving to ROME! I had been waiting for this day for a long time, I couldn't have been more excited. At our service stop Lisa and I ate €30 worth of Pasta, Salami, cheese and olives! What pigs, but hey we are in Italy. We arrived in Rome and drove around the city with our tour leader Jimmy pointing out some of the famous landmarks before being dropped at the COLOSSEUM... WOW!! It was so much bigger than I had imagined it would be. Such an ancient beauty, filled with so much history. Inside we started a tour which was great and then walked around and did our own thing. I couldn't stop touching the walls and admiring it all. Truly amazing and so much better than I expected. After a coffee admiring the Colosseum from the outside it was time for a little walking tour. We got to see the magic of the Pantheon before arriving at THE Trevi fountain... Arrghhh!!! This was probably one of the things I was most excited about seeing and it certainly didn't let me down. It was absolutely gorgeous and it blew me away. There were so many people there too. The original legend says that you throw two coins into the Trevi – with your back to the fountain, throwing the coins with your right hand over your left shoulder. The first coin you make a wish and the second will ensure you return to Rome. I made sure I threw both coins in correctly - one with my wish and the other to ensure I come back to Rome. It was such a great thing to do, I couldn't stop smiling. Then it was time for dinner at a beautiful restaurant where we ate lots of pizza and pasta and had a lovely glass of wine. Finally time to head to our campsite for an earlyish night in. The late nights and big days are starting to take its toll on us and we're feeling run down and really tired, so a good night’s sleep is just what we need. Just in case it’s not obvious enough, I LOVE ROME!
Feeling refreshed and ready to conquer Rome, we were up early and on the bus. We were dropped at the Spanish Steps - the widest staircase in Europe that separates two piazzas and has a beautiful church at the top. It was certainly a cool sight to see. We had some free time when Lis, Joel and I went and had a delicious Italian coffee and custard bombė! I’m still undecided if I prefer Italian or French desserts, but why pick either when you can have it all!! The time had come for our tour of Vatican City (the smallest country in the world) and of course the Vatican, the most famous landmark in Rome and probably Italy in general. The tour went for about three hours and was insane. Again the history blew me away and St Peters and the Sistine chapel where just remarkable. So detailed and beautiful with the most incredible artworks. I managed a cheeky snap inside the Sistine Chapel even though you're not meant to. It was really breathtaking and you have to be so quiet and well dressed otherwise you are not allowed in, which is completely fair enough and just shows respect. I couldn’t believe how big St Peters Church actually is, the inside is like a whole different world with prayer rooms, chapels and some amazing architecture. As we were walking out we saw the balcony where the Pope makes most of his speeches, unfortunately I wasn't lucky enough to see him. A good friend of mine who is also travelling visited a few days after us and just happened to be there on a day the Pope was there making a speech, a pretty cool sight to see whether you're Catholic or not. The time had come to head back to our campsite after the best day in Rome. This evening we had an 'I Love Roma' whiteboard party, where we all wore white 'I Love Roma' t-shirts and everyone from our tour signed them. It’s a great memento to keep and read all the nice things people wrote. I absolutely fell in love with Rome and cannot wait to return sometime soon to explore some more. I’d love to visit with mum one day.
This morning was one of few that Lis was up and packed before me and had to bring me back some breakfast. We got on the bus ready for our drive to Venice. After a few food stops on the way we arrived at camp on the mainland just out of Venice. We had dinner and some vino before doing some washing and making use of the free wifi. It was a quiet night tonight just hanging out which was nice. Everyone is so excited to explore Venice tomorrow.
This morning we had to catch the ferry across to Venice as we were staying further out. Unfortunately Venice is sinking, but not to worry it is sinking very slowly, and we will all be long gone by the time it actually sinks. There are no cars or bikes in Venice, so for clumsy accident prone people like me this is fantastic! It floods a lot in winter and all the pavement is uneven. Walking around Venice was like walking around in a dream, it was so perfect and beautiful. We started with a walking tour and saw yet another beautiful church St Marks. Venice is so interesting and filled with tiny lane ways and canals, you could never navigate your way around with a map, and you just have to lose yourself in all the wonderful streets, consumed with so many high end stores. We saw the beautiful Rialto Bridge and walked through the food markets. Pizza stop for lunch with a couple of the boys before continuing on to admire the endless Venetian marks shops. We actually brought one that was pretty and sparkly yet still affordable, some of them were €1000 plus! It’s been so great travelling through places that mum has either been to or knows about, as she often messages through good tips and places to go. She had told us about a bar called 'Harrys' which is in Venice and is the birthplace of the Bellini (my favourite champagne cocktail). We asked our walking guide earlier in the morning where it was and she was very impressed that we knew all about it (thanks mum)! It was the cutest most understated bar I have seen, filled with people whom looked like that had lots of money. We ordered our Bellini's and boy was it worth every bit of the €20. The service was outstanding with free top ups and an endless supply of olives. Lis and I were so content and happy. It was a moment I will always treasure, thanks mumma! Time to meet up with everyone and for me to fulfil yet another lifelong dream of a Gondola ride in Venice. On my gondola was Lisa, Sam, Monique, Lisa, Michael and we had a pretty cute gondolier that posed for photos. The ride was relaxing and wonderful seeing Venice from the Canals, the water on the other hand was filthy, lucky we didn't fall overboard. What a magical day!! Back to the campsite for dinner which was a BBQ, my first since leaving home and it was average! Time to get ready for our Masquerade themed party, which everyone put effort into and looked great. I love the masks Lis and I wore. It was a fun night yet the bar kept squirting people with soda taps which was highly irritating. I had a fantastic time in Venice and it really is a very unique and wonderful city. Italy in general is and always will be one of my favourite places in the world. I ate endless amounts of the best pizza, pasta, gelato and drunk some beautiful wine, it couldn't get much better!
This morning we were woken up by Jeff (the Canadian) who was beating down our door. He had caught two massive guys stealing from people’s rooms, while they were sleeping. He caught them in his cabin and called the police (lucky Jeff could speak French and so could the police). They were at our room when the police finally came. Thank god we had nothing stolen and the people who did got there’s back! After all the drama we were on the bus by 8am ready for our long drive to Vienna, Austria. We drove through the stunning Dolomite Mountains which made for a lovely drive. After the usual service stops we arrived at our hostel in Vienna around 5.30pm. Lisa wasn't feeling well today so we decided that an early night was necessary. We went to dinner at Weinerworld and had a really good schnitzel, then came back to our hostel did some washing and was in bed by 10pm... Heaven!
Most rooms while on contiki were always 4 people per room so we soon paired up with Sydney sisters Lisa and Sam. They were great roomies (except for Sam's annoying rooster alarm) and we became really close friends. A day of shopping was on the cards for today, well that was until we realised it was Sunday and EVERYTHING was closed, except for places to eat. We walked through Hero's square and the Hofburg Imperial Palace where Hitler made his famous speech to the Austrians on the balcony in 1938 (got to love history). We saw St Stephens Cathedral, Maria Theresa statue and the Minoriten Church, made famous by the Da Vinci Code. More free time equals more food and Monique, Lisa and I found a cute little cafe where we indulged in about 6 scrumptious pieces of Austrian cakes. By the time we walked those off it was time for lunch. In every country we try to eat the food that is famous and traditional in that country. So with the waitresses recommendation we had this Beef, mushroom and potato dumpling dish that was actually really tasty, even though it didn't look to appealing. For dessert we all shared Kaiserschmarrn which is a sweet pancake that looks like gnocchi served with jam... Delicious. We then decided to do something ridiculous and get a horse and carriage ride through Vienna. Our driver was a huge Austrian lady named Claudia that provided a few laughs. The three of us girls had such a fun time, it was just so random. Back with the group we made our way to a Schnapps Museum. The guy showing us around was the great grandson of the creator and I'm sure he was already drunk. The alcohol they make was originally only supplied to the royals. There was plenty of schnapps to try and we sampled chilli infused, 24 carat gold, choc hazelnut, choc banana, strawberry and absinthe. They were all really yum except the absinthe which tasted like petrol. We then stopped at the Schonbrunn Palace which once housed the Habsburg monarchs. It was a spectacle with beautiful gardens, where we just relaxed for a few hours. Then it was time for dinner at Reiglahouter Restaurant which was set in the forest. The waiters were great, they sang, made us play games and played some great Austrian music. We had another schnitzel that was nice yet a little dry as it’s never served with any sauce or anything. We all kicked the footy and swung on the swings outside, like we were 13 again, it was a great night. Vienna is a lovely city that was well worth seeing. Next stop is Munich.
Ok well that’s enough to keep you all pondering for a few days. My next instalment will include Munich, Austrian Tyrol, Switzerland, Rhine Valley and Amsterdam. It just keeps getting better.
** I apologise now for any grammatical mistakes and the over use of the words beautiful and amazing! Truth is I'm running out of adjectives to describe how incredible these places are.
Until next time...
Xxx
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