Friday, August 28, 2009

Today, Briana and I took the train to Vienna! It took between two and three hours to get there and was a nice ride. Once in the city, we walked to our next hostel. This hostel was much larger than the one in Salzburg, and we had a two-bed room with a bathroom and shower and lockers. We bought lunch at a little sausage stand and ate sausages with cheese in them. It tasted good. During the afternoon, we took the train to the Schoenbrunn Palace, the Habsburg’s summer residence. The palace has 1441 rooms! We only toured 40, but they were spectacular. I was in awe at details and the elegance. One of my favorite rooms was the ballroom. Outside the palace, the grounds included beautiful gardens and walkways. The flowers were planted in baroque-style designs (like at the Mirabell gardens) and all the plants and bushes were trimmed to perfection. Quite the sight. The day was hot, and we were exhausted after so much walking, so we spent the evening at a little café and wine garden near St. Stephan’s Cathedral. We tasted a local Riesling wine.