This weekend I was off to Budapest and Vienna. Initially it was just going to be Breana and myself but Jaclyn and Hailey decided to come along to; the more, the merrier!
When I got out of class on Thursday, I headed to the printing lab to get all the studying supplies I needed. Midterms started Monday so I wanted to at least bring my study guides with me....although let’s get real, I wasn’t going to glance at them at all over the weekend. Hannah and I then ventured to look for a jacket for me to wear this weekend since I cannot stand the sight of my brown puffer anymore. We ended up getting the same one too! I hurried home, packed and was off to the train station at around 8 where we would be meeting our group (the trip was through Florence For Fun). We then boarded the bus which we’d be on for the next 12 hours. No, that was not a typo. It’s actually a 12 hour bus ride to Budapest. Luckily, we were each able to snag our own seat so we could stretch out and sleep on the overnight drive.
We arrived in Budapest at about 8am in which we checked into the hotel, although of course our room was one of the 3 that weren’t ready yet, aka no nap time for us! We used our time to freshen up and grab some breakfast before our tour of Budapest began. I’m not normally a huuuge fan of walking tours but I was quite excited for this one since there isn’t much I know about Budapest. However, the tour guide that they hired was literally whispering so there was no chance of me hearing her or understanding what she was saying. i.e. I just took a million pictures of whatever looked pretty, especially the parliament building.
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| the building is absolutely gorgeous if you can catch a view from the other side |
We ended our tour in the Jewish Quarter outside one of the largest synagogues in Europe; it was beautifully decorated. After some free time of walking around and shopping we decided to grab some delicious Hungarian Pizza (I’ve now had pizza in every country I’ve visited since being here. Yes, I’m fat and no, I don’t care) and head to the other side of the bridge. The Danube River divides Budapest into two side: one side is known as “Buda” and the other side is “Pest.” Hence the name. When we got to the other side we hiked up to where there was a gorgeous church that kind of reminded me of Gaudi’s Sagrada Familia in Barcelona. After that we were running out of steam so we headed back to the hotel. Walking around from 9-5 is tiring and our feet were killing us.
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| this one's for gram |
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| Hungarian pizza. delish!! |
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| reminds me of gaudi! |
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| Buda AND Pest in the background |
After the much needed 2 hour nap, we were woken up to our alarms letting us know it was time to get ready for dinner. The tour guides arranged a dinner for us at a local restaurant where we paid 18 euro for a night of all you can eat and drink (beer, wine, champagne). We ate probably about 4 plates of food each and drank a ton of champagne (I swear it was 5-6 bottles but everyone else says it was more like 9). Regardless, it was well worth the 18 euro since we have #obesegirlproblems. After dinner we headed to a local bar that kind of looked like it was in a cave from what I can remember. We didn’t stay long though because we were all still exhausted and knew we needed to be up extra early the following day.
Saturday: woke up at about 7:30 (ughh) and ate a speedy breakfast before boarding the bus for our departure to Vienna at 9. I passed out on the 3 hour bus ride and woke up just as we were entering Vienna. We quickly checked in the hotel and met downstairs to go to the center of Vienna where they gave us free time before our tour. Our first priority was obviously eating and I was in luck today. We found a restaurant where they had falafels and humus and cabbage and so much yummy stuff! I was so happy to be eating humus a. because it’s impossible for me to find it in Italy, and b. because I love jew (middle eastern, whatever) food and will eat it all day every day.
After lunch we obviously felt the need to be super American and headed straight to Starbucks. In Vienna there are tons of Starbucks and in Italy there are none. So one can understand the withdrawal I’ve been going through.
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| gotta love starbucks! |
Now that we were late thanks to our dire need for Starbucks, we ran back to St. Stephen’s Cathedral where we met our tour guide who would be showing us around Vienna for the day. We saw a bunch of churches, the house Mozart lived in during his twenties, something that looked like a Palace, and the Spanish Riding School. We got to walk into the courtyard where there was a gorgeous open field in which we could see the Rathus from afar. I would have loved to go back with a glass of wine and just relax all afternoon but we had more important things to do– Such as going to Demel, an amaaaazing pastry shop and eating, yet again. Seriously, #obesegirlproblems
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| inside of the spanish riding school |
After the tour we did what girls studying abroad (or girls in general) do and headed straight to the main shopping street where there were tons of stores. The streets were lined with designer shops but since we were feeling American, Forever 21 was our place. I hate to admit this but I ended up buying a couple things, just so I have my reminder of home hanging in my closet.
We then made our way back to the hotel and rested up before dinner. Our meal that night was at a traditional Viennese restaurant that claimed to have an asian fusion, but I didn’t notice, Leopold. We ordered traditional Austrian dishes and split them- Schnitzel, a meatball dish, and a noodle dish that had egg and potato. I also ordered a drink call the Leopold and it was scrumptious and fruity and perfect. Once we were so full that we could no longer breath, we went across the street to a bar and hung out for a little. We had planned on going to a club called Flex but that obviously wasn’t happening because the food come I was in was quickly taking over.
Sunday morning marked our last day in Vienna. We checked out of the hotel and got onto the bus to drive outside the center of Vienna to Hundertwasser Haus, which is a residential block of apartments that was designed by a Viennese architect. The buildings were very unique and I was once again reminded of Gaudi upon seeing it.
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| outside the giftshop. The interior was all decorated as well! |
We then hopped on the bus again and went to the Schonbrunn Palace, home of the Hapsburg monarchs. We had some free time before the tour but it was rather cold and rainy so we went into the cafe and got tea and cake. I would make another remark about how fat we are, but I’ll spare you.
Anyway, we weren’t allowed to take pictures in the palace which is such a shame because it was beautiful. We got to see about 30 different rooms, each with its own purpose and character. Quite possibly one of my favorites and it just made me love Vienna even more. It’s such a cute city and has the perfect mix of history, architecture, and modernity.
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| The outside of Schonbrunn. |
After the tour we decided to try the healthy route and get salads for lunch which was very refreshing. We then all piled on the bus at 2, for the 10 hour drive back. I would love to say that the drive was quick and easy, but since we’re dealing with the queen of back luck, you’re all in for a treat.
We were still in Austria at about 5:00 when we pulled over on the side of the road in an open field. I was extremely nauseous for some reason so I was actually a little relieved to stop. I got off the bus and overheard the drivers talking; obviously something was wrong and being the nosy person I am I tried to listen. No such luck. About 2 hours later they finally fixed the problem and we were back on the road. We drove for a few minutes and then stopped at a rest station. It was a nice rest station and I figured we’d stay here for a while so the drivers could fix the bus for good but they insisted everything was fine– yeah, right. We drove for another 15 minutes when the bus completely stalled out. At this point it was dark and we were in the middle-of-nowhere, Austria. I knew we should’ve stayed at the rest stop!
Luckily there was a pizza place across the street so we all get off the bus to go get food. I’m walking, turn me head, and BAM! I literally walked right into the glass of the hut at the bus stop. Not to mention I obviously made some overdramatic sound effects which caused EVERYONE to look at me. Like I’ve mentioned before, my life is a stream of awkward and embarrassing encounters and this one did not fall short. I had an egg on my forehead (which has now turned black&blue) and everything (my glasses also got all bent out of shape. wah).
After getting the pizza and waiting another 3 hours for maintenance to come fix the bus, we were on our way. At midnight. The day of midterms week. 5 hours from Florence. We were supposed to be IN FLORENCE by this time and we were still stranded in Austria.
We eventually made it back to Florence at about 5 although Monday I was delusional running on hardly any sleep while still studying for midterms. But let’s be honest, is anyone really that surprised?
It was the shittiest ending to a great weekend. I’m so glad we did this trip– definitely one for the books!
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