It's really hard to summarize oneself for the general public. I mean, really, what does the public want to know about me? Am I married? Yes. Do I have children. Yes, three, and they're all grown thank God. (By that I mean parenting is HARD. I'd do it again in a heartbeat, but I'm really glad our offspring have all reached adulthood.) Do I have pets? Yup. Two dogs. Since the kids are all grown, you'll read more about my dogs than my kids. Because that's what happens when you get old like me. I have three grand kids, too, so you'll read about them as well. But the dogs live with me and, when I am desperate for blog topics, they usually help me out.
Vienna is a fairly big city, spread out over a large area. There was lots of interesting stuff to see. In addition to the fun/quirky stuff I shared in my previous post, we saw two really pretty churches (or cathedrals), and a bunch of other architectural interestingness, too.
I’ll save the church pics for the next post. Here are some of the other cool buildings we saw in Vienna on day one.
The first couple of pictures were taken in the neighborhood near our apartment. The closer we got to the center of the city, the more ornate the buildings became.
Those designs are etched into the plaster.
We suspect that is a TV tower.
Fancy residence?
A small section of the parliament building.
Statue in front of the parliament building.
Another small section of the parliament building.
Hotel housed in a building dating back to 1900/1901.
That building isn’t very old (in the big scheme of things), but it has history. The hotel’s website says…
The Neuer Markt, also called Mehlmarkt (translated: Flour market) is one of the oldest places in Vienna. It’s first mentioned under the name of “Novum Forum” in 1234. Next to it is one of the most popular shopping miles in town, the Kärntner Straße. In its former times, the Neuer Markt was used as a grain market. Until the 19th century grain, flour and legumes have been sold here. In 1739 the beautiful Donnerbrunnen became the centre of the place and attracts many people now. The buildings around this place have the character of prestigious middle-class houses.
Rathaus (town hall)
Cool Sky
Random Fountain
Just some random buildings.
Statue on Building Corner
Pretty building.
Motorbike Parking Spot
Another random pretty building.
Fountain
Cool statue on corner of building.
Side street in shopping district.
Building facade in shopping district.
Ornate statue.
Modern building amidst the older ones.
Cool Reflection
Pretty Fountain
Pretty building facade.
Cool building.
Another cool building.
It really is a pretty city. The pictures don’t do it justice. The churches or cathedrals we entered were amazing, and we only entered two. There’s so much more we didn’t see, but we thoroughly enjoyed the things we did see. Wait ’til you see the churches.
The other day I realized I’d never finished sharing pics from our European road trip. A trip that was six months ago! At this rate, if I don’t catch up, my next vacation will overlap that one, and then things will REALLY get confusing.
I have lots of images to share. Vienna was a very interesting place. I’ll try to keep the explanations brief.
Very Large Sign (Czech bottled water ad)
Entering the Republic of Austria
View from our apartment balcony, on the outskirts of Vienna.
Happy-looking Bus
We didn’t ride the tourist bus, we made our way around via foot and public transit.
Signage for Priority Seating on public tram/streetcar.
Brazilian Embassy (captured from bus)
Colorful Truck
Ornate streetlamp base.
Just another scooter commuter.
Ducks!
Creative Bread
Viennese Sausage Cart
Cute pair of scooters.
The Pokemon game took hold in Europe, too.
There is a surprising amount of graffiti in the cities.
More Graffiti
Very interesting ATM at the Prater.
There’s a very large public park in Vienna called the Prater. That’s where the Wurstelprater — the world’s oldest amusement park — is located. It’s kinda cool that you can ride public transport to a full-blown amusement park right at the city’s edge, no?
Tired Feet
We did walk a lot that day. And it was hot.
Group Selfie at Lunch
Wurstelprater
Fun pic of Annelies and Yves with a giant snake.
A Wild Mouse rollercoaster!
Happy Austrians at a beer garden.
Wiener Water! Actually it’s Viennese Water.
Prater
Me and Annelies (I forget who the men are)
Dinner at the apartment.
We were all exhausted after a very long day, so we decided to have a lite dinner at the apartment consisting of various meats, cheeses, and other goodies that we had on hand. There was a supermarket on the opposite end of the same block that housed our apartment building. Very convenient (I planned it that way).
There are a lot more pics from that day. I couldn’t put them all into this one post. We saw lots of interesting architecture and two amazing churches or cathedrals that day, too. Those pics will be included in the next two posts.
I think Spring weather may actually be here to stay now. It was here in February, which was just weird. Early-March was pretty mild, too. Many of the flowers and trees bloomed early, and then it got cold. Freezing cold. So now lots of the flowering plants are coated in blooms that look half-dead. That means actual Spring days like yesterday won’t appear as bright and cheerful as they should.
Oh well. Even if the days are not visually appealing, I’ll take the Spring temperatures. Yesterday, the highest reading I saw on my thermometer was 78.8 F (26 C). There were lots of clouds in the sky, but they held their moisture, so we had a dry, warm day for riding. There was no chill in the air at all. It actually felt a little weird at first, feeling warm wind through the mesh of my jacket.
Hubby planned a circuitous route for us to get a late lunch at our favorite fast-foodish burger joint in Front Royal, Spelunkers. Part of that route involved the northernmost third of Skyline Drive, from the Thornton Gap entrance on US 211 to the start/end of the road in Front Royal. So we got to twist the throttles a bit further than we should have and enjoy our favorite local twisties as we climbed Thornton Gap.
It can be a dangerous stretch of road, as evidenced by the warning signs specifically addressed to motorcyclists at the top and bottom of the mountain that say “High Crash Area.” There’s a 35 MPH speed limit, too. But that’s because of the descending radius turns that catch many riders off-guard. We’re used to the turns, though, so didn’t think twice about having some twisty fun before hitting Skyline Drive.
Line of vehicles waiting to enter the park.
Our enjoyment didn’t go unnoticed. One man was so impressed, he decided that I deserved a performance award in recognition. In truth, he said we both should have been similarly recognized. I was the one in the rear, though. So I’m the one who got to sit on the side of the road, admiring that line of vehicles, while the man from the Rappahannock County Sheriff’s Department recorded and then presented me with physical proof of my not-so-prestigious award.
He was nice, though, and used the lowest speed he’d recorded. And that’s a good thing, because Virginia has some hefty fines for speeding. Exceed the posted speed limit by 20 mph or exceed 80 mph no matter the posted limit, and that’s considered reckless driving. That’s a criminal misdemeanor. You could be sentenced to as much as a year in jail, have your driver’s license suspended for six months, get assessed up to $2500 in fines, and have a criminal record that could follow you around for the rest of your life. Also, the points stay on your driving record for 11 years, and we all know what that does to insurance premiums.
I really need to keep that law in mind. I don’t feel bad, though, because I know I was riding cautiously and well within my comfort zone. Plus, I’ve been riding for a lot of years and that was my very first “award.”
It didn’t spoil the mood even a little bit. It really was lovely. People were out in droves enjoying the many attractions Shenandoah National Park has to offer, such as the scenic views, hiking, cycling, waterfalls, bird-watching, etc. The parking lots near the most-popular trailheads were literally overflowing. There were lots of motorcyclists and bicyclists out, too.
A large portion of the northern section of the drive appears to have been recently repaved, too. Another plus.
We topped the day off with a fabulous lunch at Spelunkers in Front Royal.
Yes, it was as fabulous as it looks.
It was a co-worker of Mike’s who clued us in on the deliciousness at Spelunkers.
The burgers are always fresh and perfectly cooked, as are the fries. They’re so good, we’ve never eaten anything else. The Philly cheesesteak is supposed to be their signature sandwich. Sadly, we’ve never have room for ice cream. That’s a “first” I can happily look forward to.
I’ve got a trip coming up in May. For me, part of the fun of upcoming trips is the anticipation. The planning. Plotting fun routes to things I’ve been wanting to see. Imagining visits to places I’ve never been.
Virginia is a really big state.
This trip is different though. It’ll be like the trip I did in 2015 down the Blue Ridge Parkway (BRP). I’m going to set out with a general idea of direction/destination, armed with all my favorite maps, and my smart phone, and see where each day takes me. Hubby will be staying home.
He’s got a trip of his own in the near future. He likes to cover long distances in short periods of time, speeding right past all sorts of interestingness on his land yacht. I like to meander from place-to-place, enjoying the natural landscape, capturing interesting images, doing what I want to do when I want to do it.
I know I’ll be going south and west, I just don’t know how far. I’ve been toying with the idea of going to Louisiana, Alabama, and Mississippi, the three states in the contiguous US I have yet to visit. But they’re pretty far from Virginia. And if I ride back roads like I enjoy, it’ll take FOREVER to get there. If I visit those states, I’d kinda like to take time and enjoy the foods I want to sample in New Orleans, the beaches I want to explore in Mississippi AND Alabama.
Besides, there are LOTS of roads and places in VA, NC, TN, SC, GA, KY, and WV I have yet to experience. Not to mention roads and places I want to revisit, like the Cherohala Skyway. There are a couple of personal checklists I’d like to complete, too. Or at least add some new tick-marks.
What kind of checklists? I’ve been to about 90% of the counties in Virginia. I’d like to make it 100%, and five of the counties I have yet to set foot in — Russell, Dickenson, Wise, Scott, and Lee (if I remember correctly) — are in the far southwestern corner of the state. Silly? Maybe. But I bet I’ve covered more ground in Virginia than most people reading this.
I’d also like to see Breaks Interstate Park. It straddles the border between KY and VA, hence the name “interstate.” Hubby and I were very close in late 2010, but close doesn’t count. It’s been nagging at me ever since.
And we can’t forget all those new LOVE signs.
I was hoping to meet-up with a Motoblogger pal and her hubby, but they’ll be off gallivanting around the desert southwest.
There’re lots of roadside oddities I have yet to experience, too. Those are important. Maybe I’ll even grab a burger and fries at Pal’s this time.
Pal’s in Kingsport, TN
I may not be planning in the technical sense, but I do have lots of fun, pleasantly distracting ideas floating around in this old brain.
How many of you would rather make a long quick jaunt to the Gulf Coast than spend a week or so poking around in the mountains? Just curious.
Tuesday was the first day in a long time that my workday ended with no future deadlines hanging over my head. After hitting SEND on Tuesday’s final deliverable, I pushed my chair back away from my desk thinking, “tomorrow, I have nothing due.”
Nothing.
It was awesome. It’s been a crazy-busy few weeks.
Nothing really does feel good.
Thats not to say I don’t have anything to do, just nothing that MUST be done Wednesday or Thursday. Working under tight deadline pressure can be mentally exhausting. And I’m finding that the older I get, the harder it gets. Yes, I can still do it, but it’s draining. All-consuming.
Here’s an example of just how consuming. Last week, I was supposed to pull a homeless nine-month-old Brittany puppy named Gus from the local SPCA shelter. I was supposed to do it on Thursday, to be exact.
Thursday morning, out of the blue, two important work deadlines shifted. That meant I really had to hustle to get several things done much sooner than anticipated. I was working away Thursday afternoon, so focused on meeting those new deadlines, that I completely FORGOT to go get the puppy.
Okay, I didn’t forget, I lost track of time. But still. That’s just forgetfulness with a good reason.
What kind of person forgets a puppy!?!
I was mortified. What if he was handed over to someone else? His new family would have been devastated!
Luckily, he was still there on Friday. I showed up 30 minutes before they opened so I’d be the first person in line. All worked out, thank goodness. I really would have felt horrible if I hadn’t been able to bring him home. His new family had already planned to come pick him up Friday evening.
He was a cutie, but a handful. He weighed 40 pounds (same as my K), but was about eight inches taller than K, and about 10 inches taller than Belle. Both of my girls are petite Brittanys, and Gus is tall for a Britt. The difference was quite amusing.
He may have looked like an adult, but he was all puppy. He rarely sat still, and was quite mischievous.
This cracked me up. Accidental pic that looks like one of my selfies!
Belle was like, “WTF? Get this crazy boy out of here.”
K just stayed under my desk. LOL.
I picked him up at noon, and had a deadline to meet by the end of the day. Talk about adding a little extra stress.
Frog Legs!
Thank God I had a deer antler handy.
Seriously, giving him something to chew saved the day.
What a cute face!
Orange and white is the most-common color pattern for Brittanys. My girls are less-common.
He was much taller than my girls.
He really wanted to play, but my grumpy old ladies were having no parts of that.
Grumpy Old Ladies
It made for an entertaining afternoon, but I wasn’t sorry to see him go. Especially since he went to a young, hunting family with a two year old Brittany sister for Gus. It’s a match made in Heaven for Gus.
You know it’s hard to keep track of how many LOVEworks there are to visit when even the Virginia travel folks can’t pin down the exact number!
In this blog post from February, the travel folks said “more than 65.” That’s technically true, but the number is now higher than 70! I’ve physically visited and captured pics of at least 50 LOVEworks.
The two latest I saw are here…
Mineral, Virginia
Lake Anna
It’s really hard to keep track of how many I have yet to see. Why? They keep adding more!
I’m in the process of planning (sorta) a May getaway. So I figured I’d make a list of sculptures I need to visit. There are 22! Even I was surprised at how many are on that list.
Some of them are really far away, or at least hard to get to, like the one new one near Chincoteage on Virginia’s Eastern Shore. That would either involve another trek through Maryland or a journey to Norfolk/Virginia Beach then across the bay bridge tunnel. The one in Gate City, in the far southwestern tip of Virginia, is reported to have reappeared, too.
I might see some on my upcoming adventure. Then again, I might not. This is another of those trips where the plan is NOT to plan. I’ll just head out with my maps and a general idea of direction and/or destination. I may end up on the Gulf Coast. Or I might have so much fun in the mountains that I’ll end up staying there.
It’s fun for now trying to imagine where my bike might take me.
