The continent of Europe is so wide, mein herr...

So I'm back from my Berlin trip with Mikki. I was initially ambivilent about travelling to the hauptstadt of Deutschland, not for any specific reason other than I didn't know much about the sights there. It wound up being an incredibly pleasant surprise!

We left for Deutschland bright and early on Saturday morning. First stop: Dresden, a beautiful city not far from the Czech border, where we spent the afternoon. Much of it was destroyed during WWII, but there's still a beautiful restored city center. First on our agenda was to visit the giant Ferris wheel, which is visible from the bahnhof. Talk about a posh amusement ride -- the cabins are equipped with air conditioning and piped-in music! Unfortunately, we got shoved into a cabin with a group of three people, one of which didn't seem to be wearing deodorant, so it made for a less-than-pleasant viewing excursion. After that, Mikki went off to visit some museums. Having visited Vienna recently, I'd had my fill of artistic masterpieces for the time being so I choose to cross the river to get some paroramic shots of the historic center. After that, we fought the crowds to visit the Frauenkirche, which just re-opened last year after a multi-year renovation to restore it to its pre-War spendor. It was beautiful, of course, but it felt...too "new," and for good reason. We finished up the time in Dresden with a bratwurst and beer in the local beer garden before hopping the train up to Berlin.



So that brings us to Deutschland's hauptstadt. Let me just say...it is totally unlike any other German city, and the difference is apparent as soon as you enter the hauptbahnhof, which is a stunning, multi-level combination of steel and glass...also featuring restaurants and shops. The rest of the city is similarly contemporary. There are maybe a handful of historic buildings, and even many of those had to be re-built after 1945, so they feel brand new. Some buildings are STILL being re-built! If I had to compare it to anything, it would be Los Angeles, actually. It's REALLY spread out and there's no hauptplatz or anything like that.

TO BE CONTINUED...

Steal my sunshine (and water, too)

So after what seemed like a never-ending heat spell that lasted most of July, Prague suddenly finds itself thrust into an early fall. That's what it feels like, anyway. Temperatures have plummeted and it's been mostly gray and rainy for over a week. The heat and humidity wasn't exactly pleasant, but at the same time, I'm not ready for fall weather just yet! I was hoping to maintain some semblance of a tan. Sigh! Here's to hoping that some sunshine and warmth return before the onset of autumn!

So Mikki arrived last week. One of the best things about having visitors is that it gives you an excuse to be a tourist in your own city. Having been working full-time for most of the year, I haven't seen as much of the tourist sites here in CZ as one might think. On his first night here, we hit the Letna Beer Garden, and then on Friday we left for a night in Cesky Krumlov. This was my second time here (the first being Melissa's visit back in March) and I found it a much different place than the first time. It was LOADED with tourists! Unforunately, the weather was in a rut almost the whole time.

On Sunday, Beth, Molly, Mikki and I rented a car and took a drive through the Czech countryside, which included stops at two medieval castles and Karlovy Vary. Again, the weather was totally miserable, but we made the most of it regardless. Thank heavens for the car! The highlight of our roadtrip was a stop in Loket, an adorable Czech town not far from the German border that miraculously seems to have escaped the tourist trade. The entire town is surrounded on all sides by the Ohri River and featuring adorable 18th century architecture. Of course, a gorgeous castle towers high about the river on a bluff...easily on par with anything I've seen along the Rhine and elsewhere!

I guess I should have been more thankful for the rain...because yesterday, I awoke to find the water turned off in our apartment. Thinking it was yet another of our various water problems, I didn't get too worked up about it initially. But as it turns out, it was our entire neighborhood! Why does it always seem to happen when I have guests? They already think I live in the Stone Age, not having a microwave, TV set or proper oven!

A Viennese venture...visitors, visitors everywhere!

So let me just say -- after this weekend and my previous venture in Salzburg, Austria is becoming one of my favorite European destinations! All of my travels there have been so wonderfully pleasant and serene. Again, if it wasn't for that f*&^%$, God-forsaken Euro...

All stress about bad exchange rates aside, I just spent a glorious weekend in Vienna with my friend James (who was visiting me from New York) and it was absolutely amazing! As one Lonely Planet author put it: "If New York is the Big Apple, then Vienna is the Big Wedding Cake." That pretty much sums it up, and I can't think of a better way to express it than that. The architecture is all in delicate pastels, very imperial and gilded -- it reminded me of a mix of Munich and Paris. Friends who'd visited it previously said it was very similar to Prague, but I have to disagree. I can't say I like one city more than the other as they aren't really comparable (try comparing, say, San Diego to Philadelphia, for instance).

On the first day, at James' insistance, we saw a concert composed of W.A. Mozart pieces and Johann Strauss waltzes at the Kunsalon Wien. It was a bit touristy...okay, so VERY touristy, but once you weaved yourself out of the Japanese tour groups clogging the lobby, it was a good show. Included in the set were a couple of ballet performances, and these were easily my favorite parts of the show. For dinner, I had an amazing goulash with homemade spaetzle...and you can literally taste the Hungarian influence, as it was considerably more spicy than any Czech goulash I've tasted.

The second day, we hit Schloss Schonbrunn (the famous Hapsburg summer residence palace and birthplace of the infamous Marie-Antoinette) which was absolutely gorgeous and not-to-be-missed. The interior was typically baroque (a bit on the gaudy side in certain rooms), but the gardens were just spectacular...pictures can't do them justice. A wonderful panorama of the city from the gardens was just icing on the cake (if we're keeping with the "Big Wedding Cake" analogy).

After spending several hours in the gardens, we returned to the city, where we took the opera house tour. This was equally spectacular and I'm especially glad we did this, as it was different than the usual castle/art museum/old town experiences that you can get in most European capitals. Of course, in Curtis-land, a trip is never REALLY complete without some sort of amusement park ride. So, in the evening, we rode the 100-year-old Ferris wheel in the Volksprater Fun Park.

On Sunday morning, James convinced me to visit one more museum before I departed for Prague, so we opted for the Imperial Apartments in the Hofburg Palace. With its gilded rooms, it was kind of like an extension of Schonnbrunn, albeit in the city center, but interesting nonetheless.

Of particular interest here was the Sisi Museum, dedicated to Kaiserin Elizabeth I who came to power towards the end of the Hapsburg Empire (during the late 19th century). The Bavarian-born "Empress Sisi" has a sort of Princess Diana/Eva Peron-type vibe about her: powerful woman, gorgeous looks, chic fashion sensibility, highly criticized during her lifetime by the media and peers, and a tragic death in Switzerland that cemented her icon status. Yet another of those interesting things that they never teach you about in history class (of which there are many).

Quick side note: one REALLY important thing I'm learning here in Europe: the value of a dollar...and how to budget my money (and still enjoy myself in the process). If you'd have asked me 5 years ago to travel on a budget, I don't think I would've been able to do it.

So that's my Vienna experience in a nutshell. My friend Mikki arrives today, bearing goodies from the U.S. I guess his visit in January wasn't enough (as another author said, "Mother Prague has claws...") We're thinking of renting a car and taking a day trip in the Czech countryside over the weekend.