Viennese Cuisine

Two iconic foods in Vienna are wienerschnitzel and the pastry strudel.

Wienerschnitzel is similar to a tenderloin. It is breaded veal and also the national dish of Austria.

Strudel is a type of layered dessert that usually has some sort of sweet filling.

Both of these foods were very tasty and I would highly recommend trying them if you ever get the chance.

Bratislava

Bratislava is the capital of Slovakia. The city has a population of about half a million people. Slovakia has been an independent state since 1993. Prior to that it was part of Czechoslovakia and before that it was part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Bratislava is extremely close to the Austrian border. I was in two world capitals today (Vienna and Bratislava) within an hour via train. On the way back I decided to take a slightly longer route. I took an hour and a half boat ride along the famous Danube River which connects these two cities.

A view of the Danube

Bratislava Castle by day

the "UFO Bridge" over the Danube

Bratislava Castle by night

City of Music

Vienna's nickname is the "City of Music." There are many theaters and opera houses in the city. One of the most famous opera houses is the Vienna State Opera. Here you can see world class productions of many famous operas. For example, when I was here I want and saw a performance of La Boheme. This is the opera that the musical Rent is loosely based on. They also sometimes do concerts here. There have been many famous musicians that were either born or lived in Vienna; Mozart, Beethoven, Brahms, and Strauss are just of few who left a musical legacy in Vienna.

the inside of the Vienna State Opera

the outside of the opera house

looking down from the gallery