30 Aug: The Real Vienna

Okay tonight is the time to blog from the bar. Wombar has got a pretty good deal of 10 Euros for 4 jagerbombs. The 2 fellas are actually arguing over something i shall not digress here at this point of time  across me at the moment. haha. i guess what stays in europe stays here eh. 

I would really recommend you to stay at Wombats if you're the budget student traveller. It has pretty good customer orientated service and you even get a free walking tour of the city. Vienna is a powerhouse for the cultural and arts scene, but its history is also quite fascinating. We were lucky to get a good guide today, on top of learning about the different buildings, cultural and historical background, he introduced us to many eating places around the city. We ventured into the part of the city which we missed out on our first day. Vienna is made of many districts, each surrounding the next with district 1 consisting of the state opera house and the hofburg palace in the center of everything. Sadly we didnt have time to visit the Albertina today cos we are reaching the state of being burnt out from travelling. The Albertina houses one of the largest art collections in europe with works ranging from Da Vinci to Andy Warhol. Entrance is 8 Euros. 

As mentioned, Vienna is a powerhouse for culture in arts and opera. Opera is a big thing for the Viennese with families queuing for 6 years to get a season pass. It was unfortunate that we missed the Opera during our trip because the season will only start on Monday onwards. Couldn't see the the Vienna Boy's Choir too because they only perform at the church on Sundays =/ Oh wells. 

Today was the arrival of Yao Yang, the 2nd last member of our jolly crew on the trip. Felt guilty that we left him wondering around the Naschmarkt alone while we were on the walking tour. Came back and brought him out for some good lunch at Zur Eisernen Zeit (Am Naschmart C7). Its the oldest meeting place (can't rmb the german name but its inbetween a bar and a restaurant) in Vienna and serves pretty good Gulasch (beef stew). After that went back to the hostel and while the rest were having their siesta, it was time for some research bout caving in budapest and tours. Was so tired that when I  hit the bed i knocked out immediately for half an hour.

At night, we brought YY, around for a short city tour. St Stephans Cathedral (pronounced steven by the Austrians) was a really impressive building. Mainly Gothic style as you can identify with the standstone, a base shaped as a cross, exterior decor with statues and the large massive tower which represents the close relationship with god. It's massive design is to make one look insignificant in the face of god. However, because it was restored (after the great fire) inbetween the changing times of gothic and Baroque periods, it had 1 tower with the traditional cone shape and another with a cupula. 

okay enough with the sights. time for dinner! I'll really recommend this place to anyone who comes to Vienna. According to our guide, it has the best Schnitzel in Vienna besides the one that his mum cooks. And it was indeed true! It was better than the one we had the first day and the portion was huge! a Weiner Schnitzel not only is gigantic here it comes with a generous serving of salad. We had problems finishing it. Another must try is their rum soup and champigons (friend mushrooms in bater). really good! the mushrooms just ooze in your mouth. This place is called Reinthaler’s Beist (Dorotheergasse 4) a definite must go to try austria's infamous Schnitzel. Walking back through the Hofburg castle which is even more impressive at night we headed for some free opera okay not really opera but an orchestra concert at the film festival hosted at city hall. It was really an impressive setting where they have a big screen infront of the massive city hall. a real sight to behold. Managed to catch the last piece and it was really good. see video log for more. 

and finally  im here typing this blogpost up. tmr we head to Budapest. quite happy that the company replied my email saying i could go caving on say when most of them only operate on mon, weds and fris. we'll see how that goes eh. 'll just leave the video log to say the rest of the story. 

note: to book trains dep/arr from Austria, www.oebb.at is the website to go.

somehow i couldnt embed the right youtube link so here here's the link

ciao guys! 

infront of the Albertina

excellent Gulasch

superb weiner schnitzel dinner

inside St Stephan's Cathedral

Hofburg palace really looks different at night

film festival at city hall 

29 Aug: A glimpse of the eastern European sights (iukwim)

Today we visit the 3rd country of our trip, Slovakia. Kinda left the hostel at noon, took the U4 to Pilgramgasse changed to bus 13A to Sudbahnof train station. Finally figured out how the transport system in the city works. A single trip ticket is valid from point A to point B, no matter the means of transportation or how many times you change, ie you can take a train and bus together in 1 ticket. Going up ticketless is possible but the 70 Euro fine is quite a deterrent. 

Purchased the 14 Euro return trip ticket at Sudbahnof. It consists of a return trip ticket valid for 4 days from the date of purchase and unlimited usage of public transport in Bratislava. Its the capital of Slovakia and is just a 65min train ride away from Wien. 

The only thing to visit there as a tourist is the old town center which isn't really big. However, you have to take a bus (93) which runs quite frequently down from the train station. Alight when you see the big castle on your right or you will end up like us. 1 more stop and you'll cross the bridge with the iconic UFO thingy, arriving at their shopping center. Here, we got a taste of how cheap food is in eastern europe and did some shopping! Their shopping center even has wifi! haha. 

wow. i must truly say that the girls here are really pretty and have good figures. They're like the main sight man. The old town doesnt really have much to do except just walking around and absorbing the ambience of being in one. I think Prague will be much better. But as i said, sightseeing there has another meaning even to them with their iconic 'men at work' symbol that is even being sold as keychains. Shearn totally went crazy here man with all the 'sights'. 

I must say things here are so much cheaper compared to Austria and Italy. Stopped by in the evening for some pastries and it was only like 1 Euro per cake! and to our surprise, wine made from strawberry was also 1 Euro! what a deal man! 

Caught the 2046 train back and tried finding dinner back in Wien. Sadly the shop we wanted to find was closed by the time we reached there so had to settle for some kebab. I think im getting more tired as the days go by man. im already falling asleep typing this. till another time.. ciaos!

the gate

this 'joke' originated from mine workers who come up for air, rests on the surface of the town to 'work' if you know what i mean.

 where francis go when he get sick

moonrise over Bratislava

28 Aug Some Schnitzels?

okay so we arrived in Vienna kind of really tired. finally met up with Justin for the long awaited Euro-trip. Walked around the ring area. Vienna is really big compared to the other Italian cities. The city is more spaced out and massive. Dont know if the Austrians have to work or anything but they were all out in force in the festivals outside city hall and the Hofburg palace. 

Came back for a short snooze that lasted a couple hours before heading out for dinner at italian time (italians eat dinner after 8). Finally settled at this Schnitzel shop claiming to have the best schnitzels in vienna and it was really good! the price too was really good, amounting to be the most expansive meal so far. kind of really tired right now so will be ending here. got to read up on bratislava which we're going tmr. cheers!  

really good breakfast at phil (Gumoendorferstrabe 10-12). that cafe reminds me of one of those cafes where writers come for their next epic novel.

walking through city hall

 carnival tents outside the Hofburg Palace

got bored of buildings so found cars instead.

film festival 

mixed grill for 2. 

27 Aug, Walking the trail of San Marco

So.. today’s our last day in Venice. As I type this post,I’m on the train enroute to Vienna. Hopefully I wont be out of Italy before Ifinish this post. 3G here sucks really bad. As I mentioned earlier, we didn’tmanage to get the couchette and ended up lan lan in the seated cabins. It’s a 6person cabin and from the board, it says another fella should be joining us butso far no one has come haha. Means it’s the cabin to ourselves! Cross yourfingers! :p But the aircon here machiam like no aircon and we have shearn andVernon complaining much bout the heat. Hopefully it gets better throughout thenight. 11hrs to Vienna 0.0

Today was a rather chillax day, checked out at 10, left ourbackpacks at the hostel and set forth of explore the rest of Venice. But first,we needed fuel! Couldn’t board the bus to Ca D’oro so we had to set forth byfoot. Found a café and chilled there till noon. Today was cooler compared tothe other days (with the exception of the storm yesterday). Was around 20ish.Under the shade, it was pretty cool but once you’re under the sun, you canreally feel the heat. Great weather to walk about!

Headed over to Chiesa di Santa Maria della Salute, a churchthat dominates the entrance to the grand canal. It was built by the survivors ofVenice’s 1630 plague and has an unusual octagonal church design. Unfortunately,we couldn’t enter the church as it was closed, but its cool sheltered marblesteps cooled our butts down haha. Walked around the area in search of lunch andshelter from the now blazing sun. Ended up having some pizza at a random pizzashop in the alley near to academia. Intended to head back to the hostel area tochill, took the Vaporetti but while I was taking pictures, it left the Ferroviabus stop, leaving me stranded on the boat.

Oh wells, I guess breaking contact means another opportunityfor me to explore Venice alone again. I dropped off at San Marco’s, andproceeded to walk back. Like what the venetians would say to tourists, forgetthe map and get lost in Venice and you’ll find wonders. There were many hiddentreasures which we missed the past few days walking around Venice, littlehidden alleyways which shows yout he subtle side of Venice, away from thecrowds and the many churches, some plain and some with beautiful interiors andfacades. There were also couple of free museums open to the public! The mostinteresting one was the Musuem of Music, where the displayed the instrumentsmade by the Venetians throughout the centuries even during the dominance of theVatican Catholic church (they actually banned the fabrication of certaininstruments during certain period of time, but the venetians were gangstashaha). There was also a showcase on Vivaldi! Pretty interesting stuff there.The irony of the day was that I signed a petition supporting a clamp on druguse in Italy when I actually intend to try some (soft drugs) during my stint inEurope. Whopps. Shhhhh! Well, I guess travelling alone has its perks on justwalking where the wind blows you. But before you know it, It blows you back tofamiliar faces.

Its our last evening here in Venice and what better way tochill on the square than to down a bottle of Italian Peroni beer! And to add tothe ambience of this cultured city – some soft instrumental music. Scumbaggg musicians!!Only come on our last day! But I must admit the feeling of just chilling in thesquare with beer, cooling weather and the nice soft light is truly relaxing.But oh wells, all this has to end eventually and as the chapter of Italyfinally closes, we bid farewell to Italy with a glass (actually plastic cup) ofMoscato….

On hindsight, besides the cultural and artsy things thatVenice has to offer, Venice is a very beautiful place. Get lost in it, sit onthe little steps and soak your feet in the water. Its actually not as dirty orsmelly as many claimed it to be. Prolly only some parts… there are some prettybig fishes living in the waters. If you’re into the artsy stuff, you’ll getlost in the countless of galleries spread out around Venice.  The only down side bout it, is that it ispretty expansive. Attractions can be ridiculously priced at 10 euros each,leaving you to eat grass the whole day if you’re on a budget.

Note:

For studentstravelling, or if you’re under 26, do get the rolling card. It providesdiscounts for many shops and enables you to get a 72hr pass for 18 Euros (+10euros if you want the Vaporetti Grand canal tour which I think is not reallyworth unless you just want a more comfortable ride). The rolling card costs 4Euros and you can get it from the ticket office at the Ferrovia bus station. Itusually lasts till the end of the year.

Its hard to find freemaps of Venice. Camp at a Vaporetti bus stop and ask an alighting Vaporettipassenger to give you one. Ear phones and maps come free everytime you boardthe Vaporetti.

Seafood is a musthave here on venice. Especially their vongole and seafood spaghetti.

Do avoid going nearthe bigger bus stops (to Murano, Burano) if you foresee likely rain for you’llget really drenched. 

chillax bfast, watching hordes of tourists past by

drop the map and get lost

alone on the vaporetti

view of ponte di railto

lazy uni senior

Venezia S. Lucia, ready to head to Vienna

toady like a fierce

totally knonked out