So it's been a while since I last updated, because I was in Europe, and it costs like 10 euros an hour to use Swisscom's wifi. This shall document my thoughts of that lovely continent.
My trip started with an almost ending. I showed up with my family at the Air France ticket desk, and my ticket was not in their computer. Eventually that snafu was fixed and we did the whole security thing and got to the gate. While in the boarding line, I realized that I was missing the boarding pass for the trip from Paris to Vienna. That nightmare was also solved quite quickly. After a seven and a half hour flight to Paris, my legs were dead from being stuck in the small airline seats. I swear they must have been designed for hobbits.
We landed in Paris and found out we had a half an hour to get to the next gate. Normally this would not be a problem, but at Charles De Gaul, it was a nightmare. We had to clear customs and run like hell for half a day's pilgrimage to get to the next gate, going through and leaving security 3 times. During one of the security checks, they found a bike wrench in by bag that I didn't know was there, and they started yelling in French as my parents ran off towards the plane. I explained what it was and they let me keep it, and soon after, I caught up to the family. We got to the gate just in time to catch our flight. So to all the flight planners out there - Please put the gates closer together for connecting flights.
Vienna is a beautiful city. A lot of the architecture from the 15th century has survived in old Vienna and the buildings are just breathtaking. We arrived rather late in the day, so my dad and I went out to see some of the sights. Our hotel had a beautiful view of Old Vienna, and it was located next to Statdpark and the Wein Canal. We walked down the street and across the canal and saw something quite beautiful to our eyes - bike lanes. The bike lanes were painted onto the sidewalk, and you were not allowed to walk in them (unless you had a death wish). These lanes went all over the city. You could even rent a bike at Statdpark from a machine for two euros. Vienna also has a metro and a streetcar for public transportation.
The next day, my family and I set out to explore this historic city in true Lewis fashion. We saw all we could non stop until the day was done. We went to St. Stephan's Cathedral first. This building was beautiful with lots of Gothic architecture. It had gargoyles (my favorite mythical beings) on the roof and large towers. Inside , it was full of beautiful paintings, and murals, and the light from the stained glass windows made rainbows on every surface. The church was a work of art.
Later we went to the Imperial Apartments in the Hofberg. The first part of the tour was a viewing of the Imperial Silver. I never saw such grand things to eat off of. I'd be too afraid of damaging them to eat off any of the pieces. Their was a whole wing of the palace dedicated to displaying silver, porcelain, and gold plates, candelabras, and silverware. Upstairs were the apartments of Emperor Frans Joseph I and his wife, Empress Elizabeth of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. These rooms were very nicely decorated and furnished, but were surprisingly low key in comparison to the Spanish palace. Everything was beautiful and well made, but most things were not covered in gold or silver. There was no grand throne room, but just an audience chamber with some nice chairs for the Emperor.
Finally we went to the Historical Museum and viewed their fine art portraits, and their collection of ancient Greek, roman, and Egyptian antiquities. We also walked around viewing the town and beautiful gardens. It was a wonderful day.
More from the vacation as well as Weiner, road construction, and Greece financial news in the coming days.
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