Search Results for: food

Vienna’s Old Town : Architecture + Cobblestones

June 27, 2016

Due to our flight schedule, we only had a half day in Vienna, which turned out to be not nearly enough. I’ve already posted about how much I loved this city and how hard I fell for it, but long story short, I loved it so much I would move there. The city is gorgeous, the people friendly, the food amazing. We spent our afternoon eating, wandering and taking it all in, from the architecture and cobblestone streets to the pedestrian only Old Town. It’s safe to say this won’t be our last visit to this amazing city and our afternoon there was one of my favorites of our entire trip!

Where to Stay in Vienna

Don’t Miss in Vienna:

–Figmuller: This famous old restaurant serves the best schnitzel in Vienna. It’s seriously amazing if you like German/Austrian food.

–Cafe Central: For the coffee culture and incredible desserts – spend some time here.

Traveling to Austria?

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Why Vienna Needs to Jump to the Top of your Travel List

June 23, 2016

There are very few places any more that surprise me. After seeing a lot of the world and being a perpetual planner, I usually have a pretty good idea of what to expect when we visit a new place. Whether that’s photos I’ve seen or books I’ve read or blogs I’ve perused, usually I arrive in a new place having a good idea of what’s in store. Vienna though… I had very little knowledge of the city or what to expect and it completely blew me away.

A little background first on why we were in Vienna before I tell you all the amazing reasons why this amazing city should jump to the top of your travel list… When I was booking our travels from Rome to Santorini, due to timing, we didn’t want to have to fly through Athens so I was looking for direct connections to Santorini from Rome. Our schedules worked out that we had to fly from Rome to Vienna, stay the night in Vienna and then fly direct from Vienna to Santorini the following day. I’m always up for exploring a new city so we jumped at the chance to add Vienna to our itinerary, even if only for 1 afternoon. Hence, we found ourselves in Vienna, arriving at 1:30pm and leaving at 11am the following day. And believe me when I say this, Vienna now ranks among my favorite places in the world and you should jump on a plane there at your earliest conscience and here’s why:

The Incredible Food

This makes it first on my list of reasons why I fell hard for Vienna because the food we had in our short stay there was seriously some of the best of my life. Nick and I joked with our hotel concierge that Vienna’s food is literally everything I love: meat and potatoes, sweets and incredible coffee. In our short time in Vienna we indulged in the most amazing weiner schnitzel at Figmueller, Viennese chocolate cake and Apple streudel at Cafe Central and pretzels and pastries around the city. I was so full the entire time but in the best possible way… Vienna is literally bursting with incredible food.

The Ornate but Tasteful Architecture

Upon our immediate reaction of Vienna, it reminded us a lot of Copenhagen but with less color. As we explored more, we fell in love with the ornate but tasteful buildings, the pedestrian only old town, the pastel colored streets ranging from bright whites to pale mint greens and the cobblestone roads that feel so old world. Vienna is a feast for the eyes quite literally.

The People

We kept raving and raving about how friendly the people were in Vienna. From our hotel staff to the waiters at restaurants to the locals on the streets. Not only did almost everyone speak perfect English, they were happy to oblige and offered amazing suggestions and were so kind. Truly some of the friendliest people we’ve met in our travels.

The Airport

This might seem like a weird one to include, but seriously, the Vienna airport is amazing. I’ve seen a lot of airports in my time but this one, it’s not only gorgeous (with amazing design), it is so efficient, easy to explore and has amazing bars and cafes everywhere. Grab a pretzel and coffee on your way to the gate at the Daily Roast, or grab a seat at one of the many comfortable seating areas. And to make it better, free wifi throughout the entire airport.

Another note on transportation to the airport from the city and back, the CAT train gets you into Central Vienna in only 16 minutes and is incredibly comfortable and a great price as far as airport trains go (hello crazy expensive Heathrow Express).

The Coffee Culture

The coffee culture in Vienna is a huge deal. People spend hours in coffee houses, and it’s easy to see why. Not only do most coffee houses serve incredible coffee (some of the best I’ve had) but they are also world renowned for their sweet delicacies. At Cafe Central in Vienna, we sat for an hour, enjoying coffee, Viennese chocolate cake (to die for) and warm apple streudel (amazing). Take an afternoon while in Vienna and just indulge yourself. There are also amazing cafes like Strock that we stopped into for breakfast for amazing coffee and pastries. After all, what’s Vienna without a sweet treat?

Traveling to Austria?

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Where to Stay in Vienna

Exploring Rome’s Best Neighborhood in Trastevere

June 14, 2016

When we visited Rome the first time, we had the intention to visit the ancient neighborhood of Trastevere but never made it. This time around, it was at the top of my list to see. Since this most recent trip we left most of our time in Rome just to wander and Rome’s best neighborhood Trastevere was the perfect spot to do that. We actually wandered through this neighborhood multiple times and since it was just a 10 minute walk over the Tiber River from our hotel, it was easy to get to and oh so charming. With ancient buildings, tiny pedestrian only alleyways and amazing food, Trastevere is easily (in my opinion) Rome’s best neighborhood to explore and wander!

Where to Stay in Rome

Traveling to Italy?

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Paris by the Season (and why to go)

June 6, 2016

I’ve been very fortunate to visit Paris at least once in every season of the year now and the city definitely has a very different feel during different times of the year. From Winter to Spring, from Summer to Fall, the city seems to take on different versions of itself as the seasons change… so if you’re wondering when to go to Paris, here’s what to do in Paris per season for the best version of your visit to this amazing city!

Paris in the Spring

When to Go: April

Be Sure to See/Do:

–Flowers blooming

-Spring greens in all the city’s parks

Perks of this Season:

-Less crowds than Summer

-Cooler temperatures

Paris in the Summer

When to Go: July

Be Sure to See/Do:

-Take a river boat cruise

-Eat outside at cafés and sip Rosé

-Find shade and solace at the Luxembourg Gardens

Perks of this Season:

-Warm weather

-Long daylight hours

Paris in the Fall

When to Go: Late October

Be Sure to See/Do:

-Changing leaves at the Tuileries and Jardin du Luxembourg

-Explore Île St. Louis and St. Germain with quiet streets

-Wander through the Champs de Mars and see the Eiffel Tower among Autumn colors

Perks of this Season:

-Few crowds

-Cooler temperatures

-Gorgeous Autumn foliage

Paris in the Winter

When to Go: Late November/early December

Be Sure to See/Do:

-Christmas decorations along the Champs Elysees

-Warm up with café au laits and long lunches in cafés

-Wander the Tuileries with no one around

Perks of this Season:

-Hardly any crowds

-Most Local feel of Paris

Headed to Paris?

Here are all my posts on the city.

Where to Stay in France

The Truth About Traveling : Thoughts on Globalization

May 27, 2016

When we were living in Saudi Arabia in the 80’s and 90’s, we felt like a fax machine was the best invention ever made because we could communicate almost instantaneously with family back home in the US. And back then we’d have to buy boxes and boxes of stuff when we’d be home in the US over the Summer and ship it all back home with us because there was so much we just couldn’t get outside the US. I’ll never forget those hours upon hours we would spend in customs in Saudi upon arrival, with all the airport guys going through our boxes – boxes upon boxes – as the Saudi desert heat was wafting through open airport doors. Those are some of the most poignant memories that I have of living overseas, of them going through and finding VHS movies and taking sharpie to any skin that the actress on the front might be showing or my dad trying to be buddy buddy with the guys and sharing his limited knowledge of Arabic to try to get it going faster.

That might seem like a strange story, but it’s something that goes to my larger point here today. Back then, we lived our day to day lives in Saudi Arabia with no instant communication with people back in the US, we didn’t have Amazon to ship us whatever we needed in the moment, we didn’t have email, we didn’t have worldwide shipping for cheap prices and short wait times.

The world isn’t like that anymore.

And while yes, technology has improved so much for our lives, I do wonder often what it’s taken as well. In Paris this most recent trip we stopped by Laduree for macarons, one of our go-to’s in Paris. And I don’t know if was just us, or Laduree that day, but it sort of hit me… the magic of the Parisian macaron has worn off for us. We can now get pretty genuine Parisian macarons here in Portland at any number of places, we can get homemade Italian pasta at any of our genuine Italian restaurants, we can get amazing Thai Iced Teas and Won Ton Soup from our Thai place up the street that tastes straight from the markets of Thailand. And I wonder, has globalization overtaken that experience in a foreign country? Do we have everything at our fingertips all the time, whether in our own cities or with overnight Prime shipping from Amazon that some of the magic of travel experiences have been lost?

Sometimes I wonder has the world become too small? Is the shrinking network of this planet causing us to not have to go to Thailand to experience incredible Thai food? Is it allowing us to bypass Laduree in Paris because we’ve had so many Parisian macarons at home?

Of course, it’s obviously really nice to have those things at home. And it’s great that the world is collecting more and more together to share everyone’s own cultures, foods and experiences in different places. And of course, who of us hasn’t ordered something overnight on Amazon Prime instead of searching five million stores to see if we could get it somewhere else locally. But I think as travelers and citizens of the world, it’s also important to think about what we’re giving up for this trade off, what that truly authentic experience in another country is really worth.

I don’t have any idea what globalization will continue to expand into in the years to come or how it will fully affect us, but I do know that sometimes I wish the world was a little bigger, that sometimes everything wouldn’t be so easy because sometimes, just sometimes, I’d love to know that to get that incredible Thai Iced Tea and Won Ton soup, I’d have to jet off to Thailand, because at the end of the day, that rush, that drive, that’s what makes us learn and that’s what forces us to see more of the planet we call home.

Vienna’s Old Town : Architecture + Cobblestones

Don’t Miss in Vienna:

Why Vienna Needs to Jump to the Top of your Travel List

The Incredible Food

The Ornate but Tasteful Architecture

The People

The Airport

The Coffee Culture

Exploring Rome’s Best Neighborhood in Trastevere

Paris by the Season (and why to go)

Paris in the Spring

Paris in the Summer

Paris in the Fall

Paris in the Winter

The Truth About Traveling : Thoughts on Globalization

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Travel Reviews

Search Results for: food

Don’t Miss in Vienna:

The Incredible Food

The Ornate but Tasteful Architecture

The People

The Airport

The Coffee Culture

Paris in the Spring

Paris in the Summer

Paris in the Fall

Paris in the Winter

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