Sophia & Michael in Vienna

Just hanging around in Vienna!!!!! ~ Sophia

Day 11 - Train Travel

We left the stunning city of Vienna yesterday for Budapest.  We purchased our train tickets upon our arrival into Vienna and the agent assurred us that seat reservation was completely unneccessary; also, we would also save 14 Euro by going with an open ticket which the kids thought was fantastic. Something inside told me this was a terrible idea and I became a bit OCD about it; asking anyone who I thought may know their opinion on the subject.  When I asked the man at the front desk of our hotel the night before his eyes kind of bulged and he said in a heavy accent, 'Yes, if it were me, I think I may reserve seats'.  Apparently the trains to Budapest did not originate in Vienna and they could get full. I of course set my alarm early for the next morning and crept out to the train station to take care of it.  

I have never been happier when we boarded our train later in the day--every seat was taken (including ours so I had to be the bearer of bad news to a couple of young men) and there were dozens of people without seats sitting on the floor, between cars, in the bathrooms, it was crazy!  We could barely move through the crowd it was so full; in all of my travel through Europe I have never seen a situation like this. On top of that the train stopped ~20 minutes to pick up more people. We were fairly comfortable until we spotted an elderly woman get on and with no place to sit was left standing on the stairs that led up to the car.  We of course talked about what the right thing was to do, and alhough Michael felt she looked fit enough for her situation he did the right thing and gave up his seat to her, squeezing in next to his sisters.  The woman did not speak a word of English but called her daughter to have her translate to me her appreciation of the gesture.  Her daughter told me that she makes the trip often and no-one has ever given up their seat for her. 

  

Day 10 - Giving up on the hostel...failure?

The hostel stay did not go as well as I hoped.  At 1:00 AM there was a horrendous storm forcing us to close our windows to the already oppressive heat in the room.  At 2:00 AM, after realizing the storm was over, I opened the windows and soon witnessed a fight between 5-6 Australians and many Austrians (or some group that spoke German)...they were doing that really funny slap fighting that looked a bit weak to say the least.  I was leaning out of my hostel window rooting for the German group because it was clear that the Australians were starting it...and and continuing it.  After some more lame slapping and kicking the police wandered up and the fight was soon over.  I was not too relieved to see the hooligans all come into our hostel door.  I layed there listening to some techno music from the 'game room' below and finally fell asleep.

I woke multiple times through the night, the last being when I found the pillow case off and got a sniff of the actual pillow...so gross.  A couple hours later the kids starting waking and Sophia was feeling really ill.  I have never been so happy to have a reason to upgrade in my life.  We were packed, in a taxi, and to the Marriott (I love those points) within 15 minutes; we have not moved that fast in the whole trip. I sufferred about 45 seconds of guilt for abondaning our 'backpacking trip' but spent the day justiifying my decision as I ate the Sunday brunch, viewed the pool, liesurely walked to the sites, and took a great shower which ended with me wrapped in a fuzzy robe (seriously, my weak spot).

Tomorrow, we are back on budget and on track...but I have to admit today was joyful!

Day 10 - Michael in Vienna - A Bit Inappropriate

Sexy tiger spotted near Vienna Marriott, try to resist its looks and do not feed him your phone number.~ Michael

Day 10 - Sophia & Melina In Vienna

 We feel like we are on the top of the world!  Biggest swing in the world--here in Vienna! ~ Sophia & Melina

Day 9 - Trouble in Paradise

As most of you are aware this 'backpacking' trip through Europe was a result of our desire to teach our kids a more resourceful and budget conscience way of traveling.  So far the trip has been extremely fun, well within the budget, and our accommodations have been better than any of us expected.  Until today.

We left for Vienna this morning via bus.  The bus was packed full, the A/C didn't work and we hit a traffic jam/accident that caused the trip to take about 6 hours.  When we arrived in Vienna Sophia had a headache, I was car sick, and it was 99 degrees.  The train to our hotel broke down so we were going to have to take several connection buses to get to the location.  I made the executive decision that I would pop for a taxi ride--the kids were elated.

When we arrived at our hotel it was quite apparent that this was going to be our first real hostel experience.  When I researched this one it boasted a conveniently located family atmosphere hostel.  We pulled up on some back alley street across from an 'Exotic Dance' bar and walked into a beat up lobby with the song 'I'm sexy and I know it' blaring in some back room.  There were flyers for free tours and a list of clubs in the area along with home made posters with phrases like 'Your mom doesn't live here! Clean up after yourself!'.  I immediately started wondering how many Marriott Reward points I have...thinking it wouldn't be cheating if The room was free.  I was informed that there was a free laundry in the kitchen downstairs which we could also use to prepare meals,  when we went to check it out we gagged from the smell and quickly retreated to our non air conditioned  room with bunk beds.  After a heated argument over who got the top bunk, we decided to head out.  We dragged ourselves past the local 'clubs' and found a tram to take us to the center of town--only 11 stops away.  By this time the kids were fighting, I was crabby and we all were just a bit miserable.  Considering our room was about 105 degrees I knew we couldn't find comfort there..so I made yet another executive decision and took the kids to the Hilton--I can't believe the joy in their faces when we walked into the lobby. We sat at the bar watching the olympics, drinking virgin (for the kids anyway) piña coladas and eating cheeseburgers.  A couple of hours later we felt revived and had a lovely evening in the city going to the Vienna Film Festival in the Park--it was a beautiful event that we all enjoyed.   

We're back at the hostel now....what does it say about me that I keep looking at the available hotels on Expedia?

Day 8 - Michael Joining Other Tours

We keep losing Michael to Chinese tourist groups.  Considering his Chinese is rudimentary at best, I can't figure it out.