Nächster Halt: St. Pölten Hbf
Fast jog on the platform, down steps/up steps, across tracks, next train awaiting.
Day start in Vienna. Van to Hauptbahnhof, train travel west to Krems (via St. Pölten Station).
Run-weather arrived day early. Cooler temps, misty rain. Taxi UP UP to Steigenberger Spa, our pre-race digs. Mountainside resort. Hot tub, pool, fancy robes & slippers – Sis did us right.
Retracked down to Town Centre. Pasta lunch, my second Wachau EXPO this trip (Vienna 3 days prior), then a scenic walk-about UP UP UP past cathedrals, vacation villas & hillside vineyards. Weingut (the local word). And a lot of ‘em. Packet pick-up included 2 BOTTLES of white.
SPA DAY. Indoor swim, sauna, outdoor tub. R-E-L-A-X 😊
Watched an over-achiever trail-run up the vineyard mountainside. Accompanied by a cyclist, far far in the distant. Much more entertaining watchin’/kickin’ back in a tub of warm alpine bubbles. LOL>
Dinner, sleeps, morning marathon. Emmersdorf to Krems, race route an-der-Donau. Flat trek along Europe’s iconic flume. Every day (3 countries, 4 cities) same constant, die river Danube. Perfect!
Tomorrow: 42k in Austria’s Wachau Valley. YODEL on!
…meanwhile in Colorado
Wachau EXPO (Krems)
3 sleeps at Hotel Urania, first day exploring Europe’s glam capital.
7:30 Start, shoes laced. Run day w Sis’ Fleet-Feet posse. Zip-zag tour of early-morning city. 4 easy shake-out miles. Riesenrad, giant Ferris Wheel on the Danube. Gotta/hafta/must. Bratwurst/cheese/boiled egg breakfast – it’s VIENNA day!
State Opera House, City Centre statues, Albertinaplatz. Landed at the Hofburg (former Palace, now doubles as Austria’s Presidential residence). Half-of-us watched the Spanish Riding School (Lipizzaner horses). Other-half toured Habsburg Castle.
Downton Abbey-snooze of cupboards & silverware. Winter-residence walk-thru of everything Sisi, one of the Empire’s last Duchess greats. Headset facts in stereo, self-guided block-n-tackle tour. So many tourists, so much to see. French en masse, sea of Chinese, slow-moving Germans. push, PUSH, push. Gift shop exit. SUCCESS!
City Centre eats & my second St. Stephen’s Dome this week. No climb-to-the-top today, just a brief architectural stroll (while Sis, Swarovski-shopped). Metro transfer, afternoon @ Schönbrunn Palace. More Kaisers, ‘nother tour &… STRUDEL 😊
Train travel west, wiedersehen Vienna. Vineyards & pre-race pasta await.
Krems an-der-Donau. Saturday EXPO, fancy hotel digs. Getting my YODEL on — AUSTRIA!
Vienna, Austria
Uber for 4 to Vienna’s Haupt Bahnhof, first-class train stubs to Budapest-Keleti. FIRST CLASS. Yep, that’s how this family rolls. Day 2. Hungary. Land of the Magyar & Zsa Zsa Gabor.
BUDAPEST. Warmer day temps, no head-to-toe apparel. Jacket/scarf/sweater (Austrians love to bundle). Goulash & paprika, swarmy & humid. More litter, less cookie-cutter colour.
Day’s all-star player: Sis’ husband, Paul. I’m a good navigator, this dude’s a GPS pro. Metro traffic, foreign language, street-signs pasted sides-of-buildings – EU’s 10th largest city. Notta problem.
Hop-on Hop-off bus pass, all the city sights. Gotta/hafta/must: Buda Castle, St. Stephen’s Basilica.
BUDA CASTLE. Rode the vernacular UP. Castle indoors, renovation-closed. Outdoor walk-about? BESTEST views of the city. Parliament Building & St. Stephen’s high across the Danube.
Day’s all-star climb? Thin spiral staircase UP UP inside St. Stephen’s dome. Life memory ❤️
5 o’clock Hop-off & a fast-paced city-mile jog to Keleti. Got a train to catch? Paul’s absolute your guy. On-time/early with 10 minutes to spare. ‘Nuf time for a Hungarian Mickey D’s heart-attack. Truth. Menu-pointed, language-struggled but SCORE – little taste of USA for the train ride home 😊
Tomorrow: VIENNA, Austria’s capital gem. St Louis in da house! Morning Fleet-Feet run planned to Riesenrad (city’s skyline Ferris Wheel). Sisi Museum. Schönbrunn Palace. The Hofburg.
More Americans, more laughs, even more adventure.
St. Stephen’s Basilica
Budapest, Hungary