Berlin, Prague, and Vienna
“…and schnitzel with noodles.”
– Rogers & Hammerstein, “My Favorite Things.”
I love the big open squares and cafes in Europe, which we took full advantage of for people-watching (and wine-drinking) while on our trip. And I love the little blankets the cafes provide – so perfect to take a break from all the sightseeing and cozy up under a heat lamp with some nibbles, especially when it was raining. (Another favorite travel thing for me is sorting out the subway systems in different cities. Is that weird?)
My favorite things from the trip? I’d have to include hearing the church bells of St. Stephen’s in Vienna, the astronomical clock in Prague, Terezin in the Czech Republic, and the Topography of Terror Museum, the Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe, the Stasi Museum, and the Berlin Wall, all in Berlin.
Food-wise, there was, of course, lots of schnitzel, the best being that from a family restaurant in Vienna. (Which happened to be right next to a charming gin bar, with about eight pages of gins from all over the world. The lovely bartender let us sniff a bunch of different caps from the bottles and it was amazing how different the gins were. I went with a floral one, while the man’s was much more medicinal-tasting.)
And let’s not forget the Sachertorte, from the Hotel Sacher (photo below). Perhaps my expectations were just too high, but I was disappointed. I found the cake to be much drier and denser than I would have guessed, and the apricot jam was all but lost. I can’t believe I’m going to say this, but I like mine better.
