Vienna and Bratislava

Vienna was beautiful. I feel kinda bad saying this, but I'm so glad I got out of Italy for a weekend. I almost felt at home in Vienna. Maybe it's my German heritage, but I didn't feel like I stuck out like a sore thumb like I do in Italy. All the people there were so nice too. It was pretty much freezing the entire time we were there, and snowing. I really enjoyed it, though, since we haven't really had winter here in Florence, just rain and 40 degree weather.

We got into Vienna Wednesday afternoon and pretty much just wandered the city for the whole day. I saw the Succession building, Opera House, St. Stephansdom, MODERN BUILDINGS, and other Gothic Cathedrals around town. I was so happy to see some buildings that were built less than 50 years ago, and not classical, classical, classical. It was a nice change in scenery. We also went to a pub and got a beer called EKU 28. Really good, and really strong. I was seriously slightly drunk after only having one bottle. We also went to see a tower at night that lights up and changes colors.

[Sorry for my friends, this was after we had the beer..]

The next day, we pretty much did the same thing over again. We went to the Town Hall and park - located directly in front of the Town Hall. The park was so awesome! They put ice skating rinks in and had music and food all over the place. It really just put me in a Christmas-y mood. Everyone was enjoying themselves and the food. I also got to see some of my favorite architects work, which was awesome to see in person. Later that night we had an Austrian-style dinner.. weiner schnitzel, potato salad, and beer. It was freaking delicious. I actually had a lot of good food while on the trip, a lot that didn't cost a whole lot and tasted amazing.

Our last day in Vienna we went to one of the Palaces outside of the city. It was so pretty, but I wish I could have seen it in the Spring or Summer with the gardens in full bloom. We also headed back to the city center and hung out until it was time for us to go to Bratislava.

Bratislava was much more than I expected. I knew I was going to see a church and some older, along with newer, buildings, but the atmosphere was great. Everyone was so friendly, and pretty - honestly I wasn't expecting that at all. We saw all the main attractions, and had some traditional Slovakian dishes, such as roasted pork and dumplings.

It was really a great weekend, even better than I expected it to be. A lot of the culture was German, obviously, and it makes me want to go to Germany so much more now. I can't wait!