Trains were our mode of transportation from Prague to Vienna. It is convenient how connected Europe is by train and how easy it is to navigate the train system. We had to switch trains in Breclav, a small town in the south of the Czech Republic. The whole trip was about 6 hours. We used an app called Bolt (similar to Uber) to get from the train station to our Airbnb in Vienna.
Our Airbnb is cozy. The bathroom and kitchen are located in the hallway. There is a small bedroom with bunk beds for Lucas and Henry. Our bed is in the main room with a small couch and table. The internet is fast, and that is all the boys care about. We do not need a lot of space.
We arrived in the afternoon on our first day. Michael and I went grocery shopping. We cooked dinner and had a relaxing night. The next day we hopped on the subway to check out the Hofburg Palace. We toured the Imperial Treasury Museum that Lucas and Henry found by researching before we arrived in Vienna. We saw crowns and clothes from thousands of years ago!
We bought a small Christmas tree to have Christmas spirit with us on our travels. Although it is hard not to have holiday spirit when there are Christmas lights and holiday markets all over the city.
Henry found an amusement park called Prater. We went there on the Friday before Christmas. We saw a circus and rode several amusement park rides. Lucas and I rode a giant swing that catapulted us back and forth as we flipped through the air. I am glad I have a ride buddy who will go on those wild rides with me. We all rode on a swing ride that went hundreds of feet up in the air. The view of Vienna from the top is spectacular. Lucas, Henry, and I got our brains jostled on a ride named Break Dance (The ride should be called Break Your Neck). Henry and Michael rode a roller coaster, and we ate at a roller coaster restaurant where the food comes to you via roller coaster.
On Christmas Eve, we went ice skating at a Christmas Market in Rathauspark Park. We skated for three and a half hours. The boys do not remember ice skating when they were little. They took some falls but they kept at it and ended up having fun. Michael and I also had fun. It has been years since we ice-skated as well.
The boys ate pizza on Christmas Eve for dinner. Michael and I ate dinner at a delicious Turkish restaurant called Saphire. On Christmas Day, Lucas and Henry opened presents. They got Legos, matchbox cars, candy (all things that fit in their luggage), and some Robucks that they can use online.
We had to pack and check out of our Airbnb by 2 p.m. We hauled our luggage to the train station and stored it while we went to the park because we had several hours before our night train to Venice that did not leave until 9:30 p.m. The train to Venice was our first sleeper train experience! We were cozy in our six-person bunk room. We had no other travelers with us. We all slept as well as you can sleep on a moving train. We arrived in Venice at 8:30 a.m. ready for our next adventure.
