This summer we will be traveling to Austria! I am SO SO SO excited! I haven’t been since I started PA school (so its been about 3ish years now). Hubby has NEVER been, so this will be a first for him and I am way excited. Ari has not met most of my family, so I’m thrilled to show off my new HUB! Plus I get to show him my homeland!
The majority of our short trip will be spent visiting family, but I also plan to show Ari some of what I think are the most BEAUTIFUL places ever. We are unfortunately only going for a little over a week. This seems like nothing to me, since all our family trips prior had been 5-6 weeks. I really was spoiled growing up! Being able to spend such a long time over in Europe was a blessing. And even those trips went by WAY too fast, so I already know the week will definitely fly by. Nevertheless it will be a wonderful time!
My parents still own our childhood home, so I get to show Ari where I grew up! (Well I guess not really since we moved to the US when I was 4 and prior to that we lived in Germany on and off, but to me it is and will always be home). My mom asked me recently if I will miss having our home in Pittsburgh, when they retire somewhere warm. And honestly No. To me our Pittsburgh home was always ‘temporary’ (even though we lived there for over 20 years!). I think the reason was that as I was growing up we never planned on living in the US permanently. There was always talk of eventually moving back to Austria, so I guess I never truly viewed it as ‘home’. Now on the other hand, I know that if my parents sell our home in Austria, I will be devastated. So for now, I am happy I get to go there this summer with Ari and soak up all the memories.
So what do I have planned?? Well, Ari and I will be landing in Vienna, so our first two days we will be cramming in all that we can. I will definitely take Ari to St. Stephen’s Cathedral (Stephansdom). Mainly because Ari has never understood why I always insist on going inside Churches. And that’s because he has never seen a breathtaking church like Stephansdom. When I go I will try and take as many pictures as I can, but honestly, I already know the photos just wont do it justice. If you are ever in Vienna, or anywhere in Europe, I highly recommend checking out the beautiful architecture and artwork in the churches , I’m sure you’ll be AMAZED.
We will also of course visit the Schönbrunn Palace and gardens. Another breathtaking place which I highly recommend visiting if you are in the area. If you aren’t planning on traveling to Vienna in the near future you can check out their main website and actually virtually tour the palace and the gardens on your computer! I also want to visit the Schönbrunn zoo. It is the oldest Zoo in the world! Going to zoos is one of my favorite thing to do, but I’m not sure if we will have time to go.
Lastly, we will be doing lots of window shopping on Kärntner Straße (Vienna’s famous shopping street), sipping on coffee in cafés, and eating lots of ice cream and bread!
Next, we will travel to Linz. Ari will get to see my childhood home, meet my family, and see all the places first hand that I’ve talked his ear off about. I could ramble on for pages about Linz and all the places I will show Ari, but ill just save that for when we return from our trip!
Here are a few pics from Linz! (not the greatest pics I know… Ill make sure to capture more of Linz this summer!)
And here are some mountain pics of the Austrian Alps, since I will definitely be taking Ari into the mountains! (This is actually my most favorite thing to do and I CANNOT wait to experience this with my husband)
Ill be posting lots from our trip when we return, so stay tuned! I’d love to hear about your favorite destinations! XO
45