There are no kangaroos in Austria.

Quick update from Austria!

We arrived last night at around supper, and managed to find our way easily to the Wombats hostel where we're spending three nights. We met a girl about our age from Washington, DC in our cabin who happens to be living in Vienna for the time. She gave us directions to our hostel and also dropped a really big tip for us: skip out on the boat trip we were planning on taking, and instead get ourselves up to the Wassau valley to the wineries and some spectacular views of the Danube.
Thus was our day: we trained to Krems, a wee town, and walked along the Danube river to some smaller towns up the way in the sunny, warm wine region a few hours from Vienna.
Hiked up a mountain, some some lizards sunning on a rock face, walked through ruins, and finally ended the day drinking some local wine in a vineyard...on a picnic table in the sun.
I am cooked red hot. My poor Scottish skin had no idea what hit it.

Sun!

Since we're so exhausted, we're taking an easy night in the hostel bar. Tomorrow we're hitting up the Vienna city proper for all the 'cultural' Mozart-ish stuff one is supposed to do here. But most likely we'll end up in a beer garden again. Ah well.

Salut,
B.

Prague update!

Woo, Prague!

M and I arrived Thursday. We rented a flat which faces into a beautiful, lush courtyard on the West side of the Charles Bridge. It's amazing...
Just a quick update from the Czech Info Centre to say I love Prague. Sunny Thursday, cloudy and cold the last few days though...kind of Scottish. The beer is dirt cheap, the people are awesome (although they most likely don't understand us). I'm probably going to gain about 30 pounds from the beer and greasy, decadent food.
We went to the ossuary in Kunta Hora yesterday...saw a chandelier made of bones. Rad. Figured out the Czech Rail System and made it back to Prague. Today we are hanging around the Easter Market that's been set up in the Old Town Square, just walking around with pints and enjoying the festivities. We just got back from the Torture Museum, where we saw three floors of torture devices. Ah.
Now, off for more walking and tomorrow we train to Vienna!

Salut a tous,
B.

To Eastern Europe...

Tomorrow, M and I leave for our two week long trip around Eastern Europe. We've been planning this for quite some time; the same time as I took a second job as an ice monitor at the Winter Wonderland festival this winter. I took the part-time work because I wanted to save up some cash to be able to travel this year...do something big, for a few weeks, instead of the usual long weekend trips. The hours worked out so that I could work my 9-5 and start at the rink from 5-830/9. And work every Saturday...

We originally thought about a tour, but decided against it because it would be too rigid. And we didn't want to take the chance of getting stuck with a group of frat kids. We thought about Poland and Slovakia, then thought instead of going south. Then: first stop Prague, Czech for three nights. Second, Vienna, Austria for three nights. Next, Ljubljana, Slovenia for three nights. Lastly, Zadar, Croatia for four nights. M really wanted Prague, and I really wanted some sun and sand in Croatia. There just *happened* to be a lot of interesting places in between.

So then, this trip is the reward for those evenings I left work in the dark to lace up and skate outside for 3+ hours. For the cold, rainy Scottish nights when co-workers asked each other (way more than once) 'Who decided to build an *outdoor* rink knowing Scottish weather'? For the Saturdays I would have rather have slept in, but instead had to spend 9 hours on the ice telling people to slow down, get off their phones, and stop throwing snowballs. For learning how to skate with hockey skates (which I found out I like so much more than figure skates) and then breaking in a new pair. Cold, sore feet. RAIN. Bratty chav kids. Shovelling the rink (by hand with plastic children's shovels) after every shift. Too few breaks. 55+ hour weeks. And most importantly, for New Years Day when the rest of the world stayed home with their hangovers and I had to lace up for an 8 1/2 hour shift.

But for the next two weeks off to foreign lands, it was so worth it.