After Thanksgiving and the arrival of the best month of the year (DECEMBER!), we experienced my 29th birthday. As is customary, and Rebecca knows this, celebrating my birthday is a plural and not a singular experience. This year due to geographic reasons the prize gift was a cake from Julie. It tasted as good as Texas feels during the week that is Spring. Other than that I had my finals that week, but enough cake to see me through. At the end of my birthday week, we had some wonderful house guests come in from Geneva to visit during the Fête des Lumières. Chase and Allison (Allison is a Rotary scholar in Geneva from the Austin district) came for a few days and were just a hoot **slapping knee**. The fun and the Texan coming out surely filled my cup and was the perfect way to begin my last year as a twenty-something. I acted as somewhat of a tour guide showing them some of the sights during the day, including the adored Christmas market at Place Carnot here in Lyon. The night that we went out to see some of the light shows we didn't know that Paris, Rome, St. Petersburg, Beijing, Mexico City, Tokyo, Rio, Madrid, Dubai, and New York were invited, quelle madness! Du monde and their grand mère and dog were out. We did not get to see much on account of the legion that had all the avenues and squares shoulder to thoughtless shoulder. Crowds make me nervous for the particular reason that there (that I know of) has never been an instance in the history of people where a crowd of 2 million plus made the news because of their ability to act insightful and rational. The moment that first baby momma loses her temper because 'nobody puts baby's stroller in the corner of the metro car,' the domino effect of lunacy explodes with yours truly in the crossfire of the daft crowd in what can only be described as one trying to not get wet as the Leviathan spews out the lukewarm contents of the earth's seas. Besides all of that, we were freezing, at least, but we managed to escape the eye of the storm and watch the fireworks show, which was nice. See pictures and video of our night out before Chase and Allison arrived for the best shots of the lights. The night of people, after fireworks, ended with us going back to the apartment for drinks and warm air where the conversation was as good as the birthday beer Chase bought for me.
Rotary Santa's Workshop
If I were an animal, I would be a dragon made of light!
Each street had a decorative theme, this one can be called magical promenade.
The wishing tree with Julie and Allison wishing for no more rain.
Hey kids! Would you like to take a ride on the potato train? YAY!
I love riding the potato train!
Maple beer from Canada? Yes, please.
Do you know the joke about the boules de neige? Heeyyyyy!?
Some of these videos are long with random parts but these should give you all a pretty good idea about the fete and what it was like - make sure you watch the St. Jean video and Terreaux for the most dazzling of the views along with the firework finale edited to some tasty Tchaikovsky!
Place Bellecour - magic cube powered by people riding stationary bikes
Place Terreaux - Hotel de ville, Museum of Fine Arts and the majestic horse fountain
Lighted animal street parade.
Cathedral St. Jean
We ended our pre-trip festival with a short navigation through the French medical system to get some antibiotics and we were pleasantly surprised at how easy it was despite what the American media would have its audience believe about a Socialist anything. Personal medical details aside, we called (phone answered by Dr. himself), were seen that same morning, no paperwork, no pushy secretaries, no complicated insurance forms - in and out, lab work, pharmacy in under 1 hour for about 100 bucks. Meds in hand and plans made for the next ten days, we set out for Prague, Vienna and Salzburg!
Prague
As we left Lyon we thought we were getting away like bandits with our 15 euros for three nights in the hostel and our discount plane (easyjet) tickets of 90 euros, but this would prove to be myopic. Our hostel was booked for only one night online and in a 15 bed dorm for one person instead of two people in a private room ensuite bathroom for three nights...there goes the savings there. The airline experience was equally as surprising as it's 50 euros for each checked bag and only one carry on...purse, suitcase, briefcase, laptop bag, wallet, or pocket change all counted as your item before easyjet started charging you for additional items. To make the hoops a little more difficult there were these sizing bins that each carry on must fit into that would have made my favorite hide-and-go-seek place as a kid look like a walk in golf course. Turns out easyjet is only easy if you are traveling with one change of clothes and the shirt on your back. "Please remember this is a packed flight and we do not have room for smiles on board."
Prague was a great place to start our winter trip since we have rarely seen an actual winter despite our time in Berlin in 2008. The cold and snow is all you can eat with plenty to spare. The city is a reasonable size but not too big and the sights of the west meets east architecture, smells of the sweets at the Christmas markets and the convivial attitude of the people were an absolute treat. Prague is the undisputed beer drinkers capital of Europe as more pints per person are consumed each year than any other place on the continent. Since beer is the favorite and not wanting to shun local customs, I did as the Romans would do as often as I could. Since the Czech language is one of great difficulty for us Western Europeaphones only, we were pleasantly surprised that most spoke English so there was not much difficulty getting around or ordering a yum yum anywhere.
Our first stop after our arrival was to check in to our hostel, find some grub and then make a bee line to the city center Christmas market. Julie's face lit up like 20 pounds of sunshine in a 10 pound bag as soon as she saw the lights, stalls, petting zoo, trinkets, dust collectors, ornaments, and much much more. We finished the first night at the market and with little pocket money left we went back to the hostel. Day two we decided to take a guided tour of a nuclear bunker, and it was great. We were the only two that showed (late by 15 minutes but the guide took us anyway), and so we ended up getting personal service at the public price. Our tour took us around the city to the major places of the Velvet Revolution and down down down into the bunker. Literature and propaganda straight from Lenin's desk was everywhere. The system to filter air and litter of old Communistic military supplies gave us a reminder that not 30 years ago this is where people would have had to live if the button was actually pushed. It was a great tour and we had lots of fun that afternoon around the Prague castle and around the old town. While we were wandering about, we managed to buy orchestral concert tickets in an old Renaissance chapel the next night, and we also managed to stumble upon the John Lennon wall as well. Day one was over, cold and happy tired we went back to the hostel.
View from Lyon to Prague via not so Easyjet
Mont Blanc...probably.
Love me some Illy!
Julie swept up in cute overload at the Christmas market.
Cuuuttttteeeee!
Really really cute!
Super duper cute!
So cute my face is in danger of falling off from the smile strain!
On the cute bridge with the cute wife and the cute decorations in the cute background!
Dangerously cute!
Julie after her shopping and tastings experience.
Frothy microbrew.
4 Ton Nuclear Bunker Door
Hiding from bombs? Head to the bunker bar for a satisfying communard.
Julie in the bunker.
Books required for school children to memorize containing Lenin, Marx and Trotsky's philosophies.
No smiles for Warsaw members.
Mask needed to survive some of Travis and Joey's post holiday olfactory destruction.
The pilsner was invented by the Czechs and it is their Budweiser, and it's tasty.
Nom nom traditional pork and potatoes.
No caption needed
Cathedral at Prague castle by snow and by day.
Chapel at Prague castle where our concert that we attended was held.
Away in a manger all frozen and free...
Can you say profiteroles and kaffee?!
Prague below from above.
Turning the wine like we were taught in Epernay, France in '08
Castle vineyard
Lennon wall, Julie
Lennon wall, Mark
My cup runneth over...with tastyeth!
Sheep: check, goat: check, mother: check, baby: check...lab: check!
Cathedral at Prague Castle by night after concert.
As it has become customary we attended a walking tour the next day despite the bitter cold temperatures, but only after we had woken up early enough to do some exploring on our own. We did not know that this was going to turn into 7 hours out in the wintry conditions upon setting out for the day, and it took awhile to thaw out from our trek in 12 degree F. temps. On our tour, we were given a great lesson on the history that is Prague from the defenestrations of 1419 and 1618, the origins and background of the Hussites and the wars of religion, the scoop on Bohemian peoples and culture to the more modern conflict between Capitalist and Communistic forces vying for control of the economic and political power that is this capital of Bohemia.
I really enjoyed the looks around the city where it is easy to spot the confluence of Western and Eastern thought, politics, art, architecture and style. From the rounded Baroque cupolas of the churches to the Gothic spires of the buildings and churches that surround the city center, it is easy to forget that just a few years ago this would have been one of Stalin's playgrounds. Julie would say it was the Christmas markets that were the best; I would venture to say the beer was second only to the historical timeline of architecture that is the city's skyline from Renaissance, Gothic, Baroque, Neoclassical, Avant-garde, to Communistic and International style.
Vienna
After three very exciting and cold days in Prague, we hopped on the train for Vienna. Arriving just a few hours later, we set out to discover a new city just when we had figured out the transport system of Prague. It didn't take us long to find an adventure in Vienna, as most would know that this is most often referred to a close #2 to Paris in the whole of Europe, and the city did not disappoint. Our first day we took the free walking tour from the hostel and saw the following: the old street flea market, Hofburg Palace, Chapel of Vienna boys choir, Spanish riding school, Opera where Mozart and Beethoven got their start and claim to fame, St. Stephens Cathedral, the art school that kicked Hitler out before he took up genocide as a hobby, and a few Christmas markets. The guide was fun and informative giving inside info. on what to eat, what not to eat and what not to miss during our stay. Rain followed us to each sight and only seemed to pick up its pace when I tried to take pictures.
Vienna was the seat of the Hapsburg family for many years, and their family crest and baroque styles cover the city, as the super catholic family used their power and wealth to show the world that the RCC reigns supreme. As Vienna used to be part of the Holy Roman Empire, there is plenty to see and do as far as history, art and architecture are concerned. If Prague is known for it's beer, then for Vienna it would be coffee. We dropped in several coffee shops and markets to increase our cultural exposure and so Julie could continue her Christmas market mug collection...that is, after the hot wine was consumed.
Day two in Vienna we stumbled upon an orchestral rehearsal in the St. Charles Church and dropped in on yet another Christmas market and petting zoo. After our fill of the market we set out for the Schloss Schönbrunn, which was the summer palace of the Hapsburg dynasty. As far as size, I think it is second or third only to Versailles. To make things interesting, there was about an inch of solid ice on all of the walkways to keep us on our toes. It was a nice walkabout, and once again I was forgetting that I am just a kid from Wichita Falls who paid for state college by mowing lawns, driving forklifts and folding burritos instead of heir to the throne. It's easy to get lost whilst walking amongst the private gardens and statues of Joseph II and Maria Theresa. Leaving the palace, we found ourselves back at the St. Charles market and then hit the sausage stand that all the locals frequent. Upon filling ourselves full of tasty sausage, we needed coffee and stopped in another joint for Sacher Cake, coffee and apple strudel. After our break, we walked up to the Belvedere (yet another bombastically decorated plaything of the Hapsburgs), and strolled as though I happened to be the Duke of Savoy and Julie was the Duchess of Valois. Our dreams ended the moment we stumbled upon yet another Christmas market and Julie went all 'cute-Texan' on me again, "Oh these are sooooo cute and we'll never see them again can I have five please oh please?!" With our legs and market eyes fatigued we were still feeling a little 'froggy' so we decided that we couldn't miss the fine arts museum back in the city center. The online collection was said to house over 60 Caravaggios which made this a must do. The museum was really nice. The building itself matched all the greats from the Dutch Renaissance to the mighty, emotional Baroque pieces. At the end of our time at the gallery (just to mention we were fish hooked by one more Christmas market before making it back to the hostel), we retired for the night and were very happy to say that our schedule of this day would make any royal feel jealous.
Train from Vienna to Salzburg
Known as the Golden Cabbage - the art school to rival the traditionalist during the Romantic period...also, the reddish building is the art school where a Jewish professor kicked out Hitler because of his lack of talent.
Vienna Opera - In my opinion the best designed building ever!
Opera 2
Opera 3
Hofburg Palace
Slapping hands with the Hapsburgs
Christmas market shenanigans
City hall market
City hall market 2
One of the cups acquired on the trip...I think there were a total of 7
Phone in the hostel and its weird operating notes
St. Charles Church
St. Charles Church nativity scene
Schloß Schönbrunn
"I wish I lived here!"
Yum nom sausages
Over the lips and through the gums, lookout stomach here she comes!
Belvedere in our sights
Belvedere 2
Belvedere 3
Fine arts museum
Julie playing docent amongst the awesome
Fine arts museum 2
Fine arts museum 3
City hall Christmas market
"Ladies and gentlemen, we have a very happy shopper on our hands."
Salzburg
The third day we grabbed a cup of coffee and apple strudel after checking out of the hostel. Still feeling exhausted from the awesomeness the day before, we went on to the train station for our next destination of Salzburg. The hills, the markets, the Christmas carols, and the train ride were alive with the sound of awesome. "Do(e) a deer, a female deer; Ré, a drop of golden suuun; Mi, a name, I call myself....." and so on. For those that don't know, Salzburg was the location of the Sound of Music filming and the views have only become more majestic.
That night, we hung around the hotel and went to bed early for a full schedule the next day. Everything was super easy with the booking and the planning, even though we only had one full day in the city. We went to sleep around 10 or so and were really surprised at 1:30am when another couple unlocked our door, turned on the lights and walked in laughing and gwaffing about. They soon realized that the room was occupied and quickly vacated the room. After this happened, I was certainly awake, and the more I thought about it, the more angry and confused I became. I decided to walk down to the reception and ask, "Just what in the crap was that all about!?" The clerk/bartender/dude chuckled and said, "oh yeah, sorry about that, I thought that room was empty; I can offer you these two bottles of water to make up for it?" I declined the water and asked who else was given a key to our room, and the guy said nobody that he knows of. Newly dissatisfied, I headed back up to the room knowing that I would be getting no sleep for the low price of 90 euros that night. I was angry, and I mean the special type of angry where one can't seem to find words (in any language) of adequate expression. After awhile, I began to get sleepy and managed a few hours before rising early to speak with the manager and eat our now 'free' breakfast.
After eating, we went to the castle for a nice tour and some amazing views that seemed to make the lack of a restful night more bearable. We decended via the funicluar to visit the Dom (church) and stopped at a tasty Bulgarian grill for some delicious sausages. Full with yums and satisfaction, we snapped a photo of Mozart's birthplace and took the trail to the Mirabel gardens (many parts of the Sound of Music were filmed here) to look for our own adventure. After riding our high amongst the musical elites of Judy Garland and Rockin' Amadeus, we were newly humbled as we paid a visit to a Renaissance graveyard that was located secretly in the city center. Seeking something to lift our spirits, we sipped another Austrian caffeine treat and found a small hill that offered nice views of the city. It was the perfect time of day to look out over the provincial town. Ascending the hill as the sun fell to sleep was a delight. As we came down from the hill, we spotted a family that was living on some of the old ramparts that made up an abbey. This is the part of the day that God tells me not to be so angry about trivial things and to really open my eyes to what discomfort and struggle really are. Stopping at the city center Christmas market, our day came to a close. There was a small choral concert and plenty of Mozart Punch to erase any misgivings about the night before. On our way back to the hotel, I spotted a bowling alley, and just to keep things sporadic and awesome, Julie and I took part in a two game lack of talent. Very tired and happy, we settled in for our train ride back to Prague the next day.
Train from Vienna to Salzburg
Cutes and the Cute
" Is that yet another adorable Christmas market?"
" I want all of it!"
"No seriously, I'll take one of each."
Cute overload
Rotary booth and the accordion playing Rotarian
Salzburg castle
City panorama
On top of the world
Julie here is opting to ride the reindeer/unicorn instead of sitting in the sleigh
Sitting in the sleigh like a Claus
Working the artillery
"Why yes, that is Sir and Madame Felts!"
This is a lot like teaching teenagers as I am the puppet and the parents pull the strings.
Background...pretty; Foreground...pretty
King of the cannonball hill
View of city from castle
I think the scarf matches the very real looking wooden sword
View from castle 2
View from castle 3
View from castle 4
View from castle 5
View from castle 6
Queen of the castle
View from castle 7
View from castle 8
Julie in the Mirabel gardens
What do you drive? I ride a unicorn.
St. Peter's Cemetery
One last strudel that tasted as good as she is cute.
Mountain man...more like hillbilly
( /\ )
Julie working the zoom
Hilltop night view
Yay! I broke 100!
Like this?
Our trip was full of blessings, fun and excitement. With our bucket lists a little lighter, we caught the plane (not so easyjet) back to Lyon for some Christmas skyping with family and friends. Since this post is entirely too long, I will leave it there and bid all of you a very Merry Christmas and the Happiest of New Year's!
