Brown's in Vienna

Brown's in Vienna, Dec '07

We hopped on a train and went to Vienna! Easier said then done, believe me. We walked out our flat>jumped on a tram>got on a train to Budapest>took not 1 but 2 subways, including a transfer station to a different train station>got on a train to Vienna (Wein, as the locals call it.) Took a subway to the happening part of town. Checked into our hotel. Keep in mind, we were carrying Carter most of the time, along with our backpacks. Not bad for a car loving American family (we never were in a car, the whole trip.) But, the trip was amazing. We really got into the Hapsburg dynasty history. Quite a royal family. We loved the fact that English was widely known (not spoken, German is spoken....but if you ask someone, they will break into English.) The architecture was beautiful, the city was bustling and really decked out for Christmas. Brad thinks it is his all time favorite city.

We had a great "Pension", which is really like an apartment. It is a no frills hotel, no fancy lobby. But the room was great, had a kitchen (which is good for Carter and reheating pizza.) The location was fantastic. 1/2 a block from the Opera House, which is the center of all things happening. They take their Opera very seriously in this Mozart town.

We do have one funny lunch story. We pushed Carter a little too hard one day. I had read about a really great lunch in a tourist book. Somehow, I mistook "great" for "value". The location was the 5 star Imperial Hotel. But the recommendation was for their cafe, so I thought, great... how much can a cafe lunch be? Carter was asleep in the booth before we ordered. So we thought, what the heck, this is our time to have a nice meal. The food was out of this world. The atmosphere was very European, with travelers from everywhere. Needless to say, the Euro kicked our American asses and we had a three figure lunch. But it was worth every bite. Carter did not wake up until we finished dessert. How cool is that?

Hope you enjoy a few photos: