Austria
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Gesundheit, “To your health”…
The waning days of our trip were spent visiting Heidi’s relatives, exploring Wiener Neustadt and its surroundings, and pondering the Austrian concept of good health and well-being. Heidi’s cousin Karl lived in the spa-town of Baden bei Wien, midway between Vienna and Wiener Neustadt. Spa is a key word here when it comes to health. Continue reading
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Nothing to wine about here…
There are two terms that take me right back to Austria (“Osterreich” in German). Heurigen. A heurigen [contraction of heuriger (“this year”) and wein (“wine”)] is the easier of the two to explain. For several brief weeks during wine season in the fall, winemakers (on alternating days) open up (in yesteryears it was announced by Continue reading
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So a burg, a storch, and a dorf walk into a bar…
We were wholly unprepared for our first full day of sightseeing. Apparently, if you were at the very top echelon of the royal ladder, you got to live in a schloss (“castle”). Think the Schonbrunn or Hofburg Palaces of earlier. However, if you were a step down or on a middle rung, you were relegated Continue reading
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The IHOT (International Haus of Travel)…
There is something to be said of a big fancy four-star hotel: “meh”. I can see it’s merits. Sometimes the foreignness of a place can be a bit overwhelming. The Hilton or Marriott would be considered an oasis. The rooms are air-conditioned and appointed with modern amenities. The food in the hotel restaurant probably has Continue reading
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Kaiserschmarrn, oh what a mouthful…
Someone (OK so no one) once asked why I was willing to try so many different types of food. We aren’t talking about choosing tripe Pho over chicken Pho or the lengua (“tongue”) burrito over a pork carnitas one but the tendency to order dishes from the very bottom/back of the menu. The ones the Continue reading
