09 October 2011

Vienna and Zurich

One bad thing about living in Houston (as opposed to New York) is that I can't fly direct to Vienna....boooooo connecting flights!

Looking down at Austria....Hallo Osterreich!

To start the trip, I flew from Houston to Amsterdam...then from Amsterdam to Vienna....ahhhhh home!

I didn't waste anytime getting back into the groove either. Richi picked me up at the airport, we hung out at his house (my home away from home in Vienna), then we went out to Schloss Neugabaude.


Schloss Neugabaude is a mid-16th century imperial hunting lodge/castle within walking distance to Richi and Anita's house. Kelly and I have been there many times with R and A....there is a great beer garden and good food!


Richi and I had some chicken, potato salad, cabbage and beer....we caught up and discussed our plans for the weekend. A great first night in Vienna.


...did I mention September is also the Sturm season? Oh yes....young wine, rapidly fermenting giving it a slight carbonation.......yummy. Nothing goes better with hearty, rich or savory food like a cool mug of Sturm!


Over the weekend, I had National Team camp, got to see a lot of old friends and, as expected, I spent a good bit of time at the pub of friends Gary and Inge.


On Sunday night, I hopped the overnight train for stop #2.... Zurich!

Its been a year or more since I have visited cousin Michael, Gabi and the kids, so I was looking forward to this leg of my trip.


As everyone knows, they are no fun and very, very boring.



I spent 3 days with the Swiss Haltigans enjoying every minute of their company. I always enjoy sitting and chatting with Michael and Gabi....and eating all the good things coming out of their kitchen.


...and of course, playing with the kids...holy cuteness with their little swiss accents.



Michael and I got to spend a lot of time together which was nice.


Goodbye Zurich and Swiss Haltigans...hope to see you soon!

Next up were two countries I had never been to! Stay tuned.


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