We made it to Vienna with a quick stop in Brn, Czech Republic.  Brn is the 2nd largest town next to Prague and is supposedly the next area to go for young artists since Prague is now getting too expensive.  Vienna reminds me a bit of Paris,  limestone buildings surrounded by stores and historical monuments.   We walked to an open market called Naschmarkt.  It is a very long row of both restaurants and food markets- both local and international.  There were hundred of options to choose from. We tried a local dessert called Mohnzelten.  It is a potato dough filled with poppy seeds.   The people were lively and it seemed like a cool place to just relax ( without children!).  We then walked along the center area and took in the beautiful Vienna Opera bldg.  The architect who designed it committed suicide because the king did not like it.   After that experience, the king vowed to simply say "it looks nice" after anything that was considered artistic. We went to dinner at a  typical Viennese restaurant- again the food was fantastic.  We have yet to experience any meal that wasn't enjoyable.  At dinner, Chris asked the kids what they would want to come back as if reincarnated. Alex said my dad/opa because he can "burn out a fire with his fingers" or Corey Crawford - a hockey goalie. Olivia said " a boy to see what it's like" and Emilia said " A rabbit.  But not a french one!!! Because they will kill me and eat my liver"

Naschmrkt

Inside the market

Mohnzelten

Opera house

The next day we headed into the centre.  We had breakfast at a cafe.  Cafes are considered a cultural icon of Vienna.  They are everywhere and filled with displays of pastries. The kids loved having apple streudel and small cakes for breakfast.   We then headed to the Imperial palace and the Schmetterling Haus, a butterfly museum. Alex had some kind of allergic reaction and he was all itchy and swollen.  I am trying to convince him it is all the chocolate he has been having- so Chris took the kids to the hotel pool for a break while my parents and I went on a bus tour.   We then headed to lunch at the restaurant Figlmuller.  It is home to the original schnitzel dating back to 1905.  Kids ordered their schnitzels- which are nearly 30cm in diameter.  Across the way is the St. Stephen cathedral.  It is a stunning church(in which Mozart was married)  that is surrounded by fiakers, which are horse drawn carriages.  In Vienna, the streets are filled with more carriages and bikes and fewer cars.  My parents stayed with Luciana as we headed to a tour called Time Travel Vienna which is located in a cellar vault.  This cellar vault was later used as a bomb shelter during WWII.   It is a 5D show that takes you through the history of Vienna.   At one point, Emilia was laughing so loud as we were "rats" during the bubonic plague.  The  motion, sound and visuals were an interesting way to learn the history.  We then went to Zanoni and Zanoni- which is a famous ice cream place. We had to experience the carriage ride, so we took two carriages for a tour throughout the centre .  We then stopped to get some  Saacher cakes and Mozartkuegeln- a couple internationally known Austrian treats.  We are continuing to eat too many sweets.  I think I have gained 5 lbs between sweets and sausages!

Emilia and the biggest butterfly ever

Schmetterling Haus

Saint Stephen's Cathedral

Home of the original Schnitzel

Inside the cathedral

Monument of the bubonic plaque

Our fiaker ride

Delicious ice cream

Vienna is home to famous musicians so it has many tributes to Beethoven, Strauss and Mozart. Concerts at the Kursalon were very important and no one missed the opportunity to attend a ball and dance the waltz.  They even built in birthing rooms in the hall because women were often giving birth here as to not miss a moment to dance!  We decided we must take some of that it in, so we decided to go to a concert hall.  We were approached in front of the cathedral and got a last minute deal to a show that evening.  We had no time for dinner so we stopped at a street vendor for some bratwurst- again this was actually very good.

As we entered the hall, we were a bit suspicious as we were seated in the back row with school like chairs and our row was missing seat cushions.  We laughed as we sensed we were getting bamboozled so Chris looked up the trip advisor reviews. Sure enough, the reviews were bad.  The  music was great but the environment- not so much.  Often being being described as a school room.  Since the kids were free and we paid very little, we did not mind and got a good laugh.   Olivia and Alex immediately said the recognized the music from Little Einsteins and Tom and Jerry- hey at least they have some exposure to classical music!

Our program guide- with torn edges

our not so comfortable seats

On Monday morning we headed to Munich.  We decided to stop in Salzburg along the way.  Salzburg is beautiful.  It is surrounded by rolling hills and the alps.  It is where Mozart was born and the Sound of Music was filmed.  Of course Chris and I belted into loud song - Do, Re, Mi and the children listened until the third time they were no longer amused and pleaded for us to stop.   The Hohensalzburg Fortress sits on top of Salzburg and we headed up for the long steep walk. My poor parents struggled but made it and it was well worth it. The views were unbelievable.  We had lunch at the top and took it all in. After complaining about the climb- my dad quickly changed his mind and said this would be on his bucket list for things to see.

The long way up to the castle

restaurant where we had lunch

view from the castle

this chocolate covered pretzel was eaten in 10 seconds

Opa and his new german hat

We finally made it to Munich and decided to head to Hofbrauhaus.  It was originally a brewery built in 1589 and now is a beer hall that serves 3500 people.  Even some of the tables date back to 1897.  It took us a while to find a seat in this huge restaurant but we managed to squeeze into a bench.  They served enormous beers. The boy drank 2 huge beers a piece and the kids got a chance to have a sip- how could we say no?? As the polka band played loudly, we had had our last dinner of the vacation . It was the most memorable- not for the food, but because we spent the evening laughing and reminiscing about our road trip.   Each telling stories of their favorite moments on the trip.  The kids hung in there until 10:30pm because no one really wanted to leave- we all just wanted to relish the moment!

Marienplatz square

Beer Hall 

He really only drank two!

Great dinner to end our trip!

Tuesday morning we headed back home earlier- as the drive from Munich to Paris was longer than anticipated.  Driving on the autobahn was not as I had expected.  For some reason, I had a super highway vision in my head- but its nothing more than 2 or 3 lanes along the countryside. Cars often did fly by us on the left side. We survived the long drive by eating my mom's "medicine",  listening to Katy Perry's 'Roar' about 500 times because Luciana had my iPhone and never turned it off, playing risk on the iPad and watching the same Smurf movie at least 10 times.   It was quite a memorable trip and so happy that my parents were along for the ride!

Chris and Pete took off for Chicago today and I am not getting back in a car for at least 24 hours!!!