Vienna

Ok...I arrived in Vienna around 3:30pm on Sunday via the best bus I've ever taken. It was like being on a plane, only without tha hassle of check throughs and my ears popping. There were leather seats, it was warm, I actually had to wear a seat belt, there were free warm beverages and even had movies to watch! The 5 hour ride went smoothly and quickly. It was a drizzly overcast day, so the view wasn't top-notch unfortunately. Found my hostel with the help of a very nice Austrian who spoke perfect English and settled in for the night. Finished uploading photos and then ran into 2 others at the hostel, an american and an aussie. Nice guys. Had an "Austrian" dinner of sausage dumplings. Was good but the proportions were huge! Should have went for the one ball...;). Then had a couple drinks in the really nice downstairs bar before an early night. I was exhausted!

Started around 10am on Monday due to the drizzly weather and travel fatigue. Walked all over. Basically did Vienna in a day. Started out at the Schonbrunn Palace. Loved it. There was a Christmas market out front playing Christmas music and beautiful gardens to explore. Spent 2 hours easy there. Then ran around trying to see everything else before it got dark at 5pm, a bit better than Prague in that area. Colder though! Returned to the hostel with Subway for dinner and met up with a few people before heading out to the Christmas markets with the Aussie. Was fun. You can get mulled wine as well as blueberry cider, apple cider, raspberry cider, and a few others. And for 2 euro you can even keep the mug! There are 11 markets in Vienna and each one has their own unique Christmas mug design.

Tuesday I woke up early to get everything out of my room and went to watch the Lippizaner horses do theire morning workout set to music. It was really nice. I really wanted to ride one of these amazing creatures. Watched the horses play for about an hour then went to the Belvedere Palace. It was ok. I much preferred the Shunbrunn Palace and even went back so I could take the tour of the inside. The rooms were amazing. After which I met up with my Austrian friend. I hadn't seen her in about 3 years, a long time. She drove me out of the city a little so I could see Vienna at night from the foot of the Alps. Was so cold! Had dinner of yummy pastries from an Austrian bakery before meeting up with a few people for a night exploring more wonderful Christmas markets. Overall a great night. Decided to keep my mug from the Nashmarkt. A beautiful blue cup wit Christmas symbols on it. Had the most delicious hot chocolate with Baileys, :). Went to a club for a little bit but none of us wanted to pay the cover.

Then I stayed up until 2am, took an hour nap, and then a taxi at 3am to the airport! Had an early flight at 6:30am and Vienna public transport to the airport stops at 11pm. Checked in with no problems and made my Barcelona flight just fine. Fell asleep before we even took off. I was so tired! Slept most of the flight, landed and got my bag just fine. The smoothest flight yet of this trip. Got on a metro and found my way to the apartments we rented these past 3 nights, all very easy.

Well, very tired now and lots to pack for the cruise tomorrow! I'll post a blog on my Barcelona adventures soon!