Edition 8 - Continuing My Obsession with Trains
We are hitting the road again and this time, covering 2 countries! Some places are getting a bit more time than others but that doesn’t mean that they don’t deserve a space to shine here in the newsletters. With that being said, welcome to Austria and Slovakia!
Austria
February 13 - 18
Vienna
I arrived in Vienna after a long train ride (about 11 hours!) on Tuesday, February 13th. I was exhausted - it’s crazy how tired you can be after doing nothing for such an extended period. The next day though, I dove into Vienna and Austrian history overall. Similar to many other countries I’ll be stepping into shortly, a large part of recent history that is spoken about revolves around World War II. When it comes to Vienna specifically, before WWII, Vienna was a big melting pot of backgrounds and 10% of the city’s population was Jewish. After Hitler announced Austria’s induction into the 3rd Reich, nearly this entire population was deported to Auschwitz. The Nazis built very few buildings outside of Germany during their reign, but Vienna is home to two of them. While the city would have preferred to rid the city of anything connecting them to WWII and the 3rd Reich, these two buildings happen to be basically indestructible. Today, they sit just outside the city center and serve as the local aquarium and a safe building for government officials in future wars or attacks (think: Designated Survivor). In 1955, the Soviet Union demanded that Austria take a neutral stance (similar to Switzerland) which is where they currently stand.
Salzburg
I took a day trip to Salzburg from Vienna on Thursday, February 15th. Salzburg is a stunning city in Austria that borders Germany and has gorgeous views of the Eastern Alps. The city itself is very well known for two reasons - it was the birthplace of Mozart and was the shooting location for “The Sound of Music”. I found a free walking guide online of the main shooting locations for “The Sound of Music” and decided to take myself around the city and explore for the day. It was really lovely to experience a different and smaller city in Austria.
Overall, here are some highlights from my time in Austria:
Meeting a really lovely woman from Brazil (who now lives in London) during my walking tour and spending the following few hours together over lunch and coffee.
A day trip to Salzburg and an unofficial hike up towards Hohensalzburg Fortress.
A really beautiful Jewish Museum in Vienna that walked through the history of the community, the time it took the city of Vienna to recognize its part in WWII, and housed some truly stunning artifacts and art pieces.
Another lovely Shabbat dinner at the local Chabad!
A spontaneous trip to the Opera after securing super inexpensive standing-room tickets (and trying to dress up for the occasion despite not having a ballgown packed away in my backpacks).
Slovakia
February 18 - 20
Bratislava
On Sunday, February 18th, I took a train from Vienna to Bratislava. I’ll continue my obsession with European train systems now - I took a 1-hour train and ended up in a different country. That’s insane! Anyway, I learned a lot of random fun facts about Bratislava and Slovakia during my short time there. Slovakia is currently the largest producer of cars per person in the world (and it is still a growing industry). Additionally, Bratislava originally had the German name “Pressburg”, but after WWI, the Slovaks wanted to rid the city of its German name. They chose to name the city after King Vratislav but someone wrote the name down wrong… and so now we have Bratislava! Overall, here are some highlights from my time in Slovakia:
Fancy-shmancy tea time (as recommended by my friend, Michelle!).
Ending up in a more low-key but really fun hostel filled with great chefs and conversationalists alike.
Impromptu Oracle decks and birth chart readings.
Walks through the Old Town at night when the streets are bare and the lights brighten up the simple yet beautiful buildings.
Coming Up Next
Where am I off to next? Well, the next newsletter will be set somewhere:
with some truly stunning castles
that is the birthplace of the renowned Pilsner beer
home to the oldest astronomical clock in the world
See you in Czechia!