Vienna

Vienna has been on my list for awhile.  But, It hasn't been directly in the path of any prior trips and so I had to wait until a good time came to devote a whole trip.  After researching, I decided that my best bet (and least expensive) was to route via London and take a Star Alliance carrier to Vienna (Austrian Airlines).  The nighttime London flight arrived on time into Heathrow and since almost all the Star Alliance carriers are in Terminal 1, it was an easy transfer with a stop in security.  All was going well until we were all boarded.  We were then told that we were on hold because of the bad weather (thunderstorms) had caused a long queue for takoffs (we were #41).  We sat on the plane at the gate for 2 hours until we finally left.  The pilot blamed it on the nature of Heathrow.  Fortunately, I had no definite plans for the evening, so I was okay hanging out.

Vienna was a new airport for me, so I wasn't sure what to expect.  Since most of the passengers were EU citizens, the line for non-EU members was not very long, especially since I was not connecting, so passport control was quick.  While waiting for my luggage, I stopped in at the Tourist info center right in baggage claim.  I bought my Vienna Card for 18.50 euro for museum discounts and free local transportation for 3 days.  I was also able to buy the zone supplement for 1.80 euro for the S-Bahn trip into town.  There is a fast train into town called City Airport Train (CAT) for 9 euro (8 euro with the Vienna Card) that turns a 30-minute ride into a 16-minute ride, but I didn't need to get into town that fast.  I then grabbed my luggage and followed the exit signs to the S-Bahn.

The Hilton Vienna that I chose was right next to the Wien-Mitte rail station, so I did not have far to go once I exited above ground.  I was upgraded to an Executive Level Junior Suite which was very nice (with two huge flat screen TVs that I never used).  I then called it a night so that I could get an early start the next day.

I studied the weather forecast for the weekend and decided that I should visit the Summer Palace (Schloss Schonbrunn) first. However, I headed to the Opera House to see when the tours were scheduled to be offered.  Turns out none were on the calendar until Sunday morning.  Moving on, it was a short S-bahn ride from central Vienna.  I purchased a discounted Classic Pass ticket that entitled me to tour the Palace, visit the maze, go to the top of the Gloriette, and walk around the Privy Garden.  Picture were not allowed inside the palace, which in many ways was very typical of other palaces that I have seen.  but it did have some uniquely decorated rooms which were worth seeing.  The audio guide was included and helped me understand more about the Imperial Family and the history of the Habsburg Dynasty.

Palace rear

Fountain and Gloriette

Neptune's Fountain

Gloriette

Next, I headed back into Central Vienna to get acquainted with the main part of the city. My first stop would be the center of Vienna, St. Stephan's Cathedral. The Cathedral has a unique profile because it has only one completed tall spire. I rode the elevator to the top of the bell tower (a lower platform) for views of the city and the cathedral structure. I was already starting to get a nice feel for Vienna's charm.

 

At this time, it was starting to rain.  I tried to walk around a bit to continue getting oriented with the streets and sights. I popped into some shops, including one very interesting marzipan place that makes these tiny candy shapes and sells them in well-fashioned storage boxes. I even found the recommended gelato place nearby.  But eventually, I headed back to my hotel to rest and refuel.

I did go out after dark to see how the buildings looked lit up and to search for a strudel for dessert.  It was raining and most patisseries were closed.  I did find one big cafe open that sells gelato and strudel to go, so I bought the strudel and headed back to get out of the rain.

The beginning of the day was supposed to continue to be wet, so I planned to spend most of it indoors.  First stop was the Hofburg palace complex.  The Palace ticket lets you into the ground floor rooms, the Imperial Apartments, and the Sisi Museum (Sisi was the nickname of Elizabeth, wife of Emperor Franz Josef I).  The first part of the palace tour takes you through the kitchen area where there are many many display cases of tableware.  Some of the porcelain was really interesting and you could take pictures.

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The Sisi Museum is relatively new and the intent is to delve into the myth and reality of Empress Elizabeth.  Evidently, she seemed to have suffered something akin to the Princess Diana Syndrome, but was much beloved by her husband.  She met a surprising death as the victim of an assassination by an Italian activist.

I also visited the Treasury, which is in a different part of the palace complex.  It also requires a separate entrance fee, but is worth it.  There were a lot of religious artifacts, swords and armor, and treasures like one of the last crowns worn by a Holy Roman Emperor.

I found the Globe Museum fascinating.  There were some very old globes exhibited, at least one pre





Afterwards, I took a long stroll around part of the ring road that surrounds the center.  I passed the Rathaus, the Volksgarten (with all the roses in bloom), the Parliament Building, and the Spittelburg area.



 On my departure day, I wasn't leaving until the afternoon, so it was perfect timing to catch a Sunday morning State Opera House tour. There were a surprising number of people gathered for the first tour at 9 am. The tickets go on sale 20 minutes before the tour and they divide you up by language. We were fortunate in that they were going to let us backstage to see them setting up for the next performance.



I caught the S-Bahn out to the airport (no need to take the fast train).  I checked in at the Lufthansa counter.  Even though I was only going to London, I had to show them my onward ticket home from London.  At the Vienna Airport, if you are leaving the EU, there are certain gates for that located beyond passport control.  But until then, there is lots of shopping and the airline lounges.  Security is done at the gate, which has the disadvantage that if you buy fluids, I don't think you can take them through security.  I used the nice Austrian Airlines lounge to grab some lunch, shopped a little, and then headed through passport control and security to my gate.  Once you pass through security, you are stuck inside your gate area.  Unlike the inbound flight, we were served a hot chicken panini on the flight, and after two hours, we arrived in London on schedule.  I didn't think immigration at Heathrow would be busy in the early afternoon, but it was, and no Fast Track access.  So it took awhile to get through, even though I just beat out a large school group joining the queue.  But I still made it through in time into London to pay a visit to a dessert bar and then see an early evening show (thank you 50%-off Heathrow Express advanced purchase ticket) before my morning departure back home.

Madrid, Toledo, Avila, Segovia

I don't normally go overseas in early May.  There is usually a stretch between the holiday in February and Memorial Day weekend where if I go anywhere, it will be to a domestic location.  But a friend was celebrating his 50th birthday by taking a trans-Atlantic repositioning cruise from Puerto Rico to Malaga, so I said I would join the group in Spain, which would be my first visit to that country.  They were going to work their way up to Madrid from Malaga.  I decided to stay just in Madrid, so flying in and out was simplified.  United does not fly to Madrid, so I flew to Frankfurt on UA and then connected to Lufthansa to get to Madrid.

I was fairly certain that I wasn't going to get upgraded to business class on my outbound flight to Frankfurt.  The cabin was pretty full, so I was mentally preparing to sit in coach for the 10-hour flight.  Then, about 4 hours before my flight, I received a message that my upgrade cleared!  And, I even was already assigned an aisle seat (last time I had looked, there were none that were open.  I'm thinking that someone in Business was upgraded to First, which left open a good seat for me.  This would make a good start to the trip, as I knew I could sleep on the flatbed seat and arrive in the morning in Frankfurt a little refreshed.

The connection to the Madrid flight was simpler than I thought it would be.  We arrived on schedule, which gave me two hours to make the connection.  After passport control, I walked halfway to the gate and stopped in to the Lufthansa Business Lounge (thank you Star Alliance Gold), grabbed a quick bite, and then proceeded on the rest of the long trek to the gate for the noon flight.

Everything was fine for the flight.  I was surprised by being offered a hot lunch in coach on the 2+ hour flight.  I also was surprised when we landed at Terminal 2 in Madrid.  I had expected to land at Terminal 1, where the international flights land.  But I forgot that I was coming in from a Schengen country to another, so no need for passport control.  This saved me the walk to Terminal 2 to get to the subway station for the ride into town.  Since I was staying in a centrally located hotel (The Westin Palace), I opted not to buy a transit pass for the stay and instead just purchased a 10-ride ticket (with airport supplement).  Public transport is cheap in Spain, and the airport is not that far from the city, so even with a train change, It was easy to get within a few blocks of my hotel using the subway in about 25 minutes.  One thing to note:  even though the subway is fairly new, there are still steps to negotiate when traveling though stations.

I arrive d at the hotel around 3pm.  Unfortunately, my room was not ready.  I was offered to take a room that was ready which was of the type that I had reserved, or I could wait about 45 minutes for my upgraded room (a junior suite) to be cleaned.  I opted for the latter and went to sit in the rotunda area bar.  They even paid for a drink, which was very nice, and then came to get me when the room was ready.

Once settled, the first thing I did was head over to the Prado Museum, which was just across the street.  The last two hours are free on days they are open, so I took advantage.  It was not too crowded and I think I managed to see every painting within that time.  The next day would be my only full day in Madrid for the trip.  I walked across the central part of the city to the Royal Palace via the Plaza Mayor and toured the palace interior. I also visited the Reina Sofia to see Guernica and walked by to see the Living Wall (a sideways garden).  I tried to have lunch at the Mercado de San Miguel, but it was too crowded.  So I opted to seek out a vegetarian restaurant I had picked out.  Finally, I wanted to get a picture of the Puerta de Europa buildings.

That was pretty much going to be it for sightseeing in Madrid.  The next day, I scheduled a half-day tour of Toledo, and then I would meet up with my friends who were to arrive in Madrid later that day.

The Toledo visit was short but enough to see most of the highlights.  The only major site I did not see was the interior of the cathedral.  I also did not have time just to wander around the city for a bit.  But it was a nice introduction.  I know I will go back some time to explore further.

 

I met up with my friends after getting back from Toledo.  we walked over back to the Mercado de San Miguel, where I finally did get to grab some bites to eat. 

The next day, we planned a full-day private tour of Avila and Segovia.  For some reason, most tour companies do not run the big bus tours on Tuesdays to Avila and Segovia, so we hired a private driver/guide to take us to both cities.  Avila is a city with Spain's best preserved, complete medieval city wall.  but it seemed that for the most part, one comes to see the wall and the cathedral.  The one thing we didn't do was walk on the wall, but we were running short on time if we wanted to get to Segovia, have lunch and see the sights there. 

The drive through the countryside from Avila to Segovia was very interesting.  We went from a very rocky and dry terrain (reminding me a bit of Southern California) to flatter and softer land, where the cathedral of Segovia seems to rise like an island above the landscape.  Segovia has the best preserved Roman ruin in Spain, the Roman Aqueduct, a cathedral, and the Alcazar (said to be one of the inspirations for Walt Disney's Cinderella Castle, along with Neuschwanstein, which I have also visited).

We returned in the evening to Madrid and wandered into the  Plaza de Santa Ana  near our hotel for a nice outdoor tapas dinner on a great night to be out.  Afterwards, I debated whether to sleep or not, as I had to get up to catch a very early flight.  I finished packing and then slept for about an hour before leaving the hotel to catch a nearby 24-hour airport bus at 3:25am (at Plaza de Cibeles).  The subway doesn't run all night and starts at 6am, so finding out about the airport bus (costs 2 euros) was great.  I was surprised at how many people were taking the bus at that time of the morning. There was no traffic, so it was only a 20-minute ride.  I knew I was upgraded on my flight home already, so I was counting on sleeping on the plane, which I did. The counters at Madrid Airport opened at 4:00 am, Spannair has a lounge in Terminal 2 that opens at 5:00am.  One thing I didn't expect was not to go through security in Frankfurt (I swear I've had to do that every other time I've connected in Frankfurt) but I did not have to. I'll have to keep track now.  

I anticipate returning to Spain sometime soon, if UA/CO continue the routings that CO currently operates.

London

Just back from a quick trip to London.  It's a nice trip to do for a number of reasons.  The 7 pm departure from SFO is a great time to leave to minimize jet lag because I sleep after the meal because it's the right time to sleep, It's easy to get into Central London, and there's always something to do.  On this trip, I had the chance to experience one of the updated 777 United planes.  I was upgraded to business class, so I had one of the flatbed cubicles.  It pretty much is the same as the equipment used on the 747 flights.  It seems a little denser than before because the configuration is 2-4-2 (used to be 2-3-2).  And because the 777 is smaller than the 747, it just feels a little more tightly packed.  A nice thing with the configuration is that there is a mini-cabin between the business galley and first class of two rows (just like the old 777).  These rows (6 and 7) are the ones to select.  I sat in row 8 on the outbound and it was right next to the lavatory and galley with much more traffic (especially if you are trying to sleep).  On the return, I had row 7 and it was much nicer.

London was great.  It turned into a group thing at the last minute.  I had the shortest stay of everyone, but it seemed like a longer weekend.  The first thing I did was try out a dessert bar (the only one in London, I think).  Londoners haven't figured out dessert bars, so they are still experimenting with offerings.  I was the only one ordering at the time, so the young guy who was the chef explained what he was doing as my desserts were being assembled.  The place was called William Curry Chololatier, located in Belgravia.  It was a nice experience.

I also fit in a brief visit to the Tate Modern, to see part of the Great Turbine Hall covered with sunflower seeds, or what look like sunflower seeds.  They are actually made of porcelain, individually crafted by several artisans.

I also visited the reconstructed Globe Theatre.


After that, I met up with my friends at a floating pub, then off on a little self-guided Harry Potter walk.  The day ended with a nice dinner.  ANd then back to SFO the next day.  Other than a two-hour delay on departure, a very nice short 10k-mile trip.

Singapore -- Crossing the 2.2 million mile mark

As I've indicated earlier, the Singapore run on United is one of the longest in their route from SFO (I think SFO to Dubai might be longer).  It is both easy and hard.  I like it because there is a very long segment giving you enough time to eat and sleep before landing.  They use the 747 planes on the route, so there business class is relatively large (although smaller with the newer seats).  The tough part of the route is that it is not a non-stop flight (there used to be a non-stop from LAX), with a stop in Hong Kong.  Also, the way the plane routes work, the SFO plane continues on to Vietnam and the plane from Chicago heads to Singapore.  So, an on-time connection is dependent upon another plane.  There are sometimes delays waiting for the Chicago plane to come in, especially during the winter.  And any delays just make the arrival that much later (scheduled arrival time into Singapore is 11:45pm).  But, I still do it, as Singapore has grown more interesting over the years.

This trip was scheduled to proved some relief from the cold weather.  This year has been especially cold, even in the Bay Area just prior to departure.  Surprisingly, while it was warm in Singapore, it was not stifling hot as it usually is.  It was nice enough that you did not always break into an immediate sweat walking around.  I was even okay wearing long pants outside during the day.

There are a number of things to do in Singapore if you have never been.  It's a very culturally diverse country, the crossroads of Malay, Chinese, Indian, and British cultures and a major trade and financial location.  All these elements make for mixture of experiences.  It is easy to get around.  The public transport is inexpensive and everything is in English.  There is still much evidence of the past British colonialism, but also areas distinctly representing the many Asian cultures that have settled in Singapore.  The stately Raffles Hotel, the Arabian, Indian and Chinese sections, and the slender skyscrapers are all part of today's Singapore.  And, of course, there is shopping and there is food.

New Year's Dragon of ceramic plates

Infinity pool on the Skydeck

Chinatown

Shoppes at Marina Bay Sands

Orchard Rd. at Christmas

Singapore continues to try and attract tourists from around the world.  Among the sites to see are:  Sentosa Island Resort, Singapore Flyer (largest observation wheel in the world), Orchid Gardens, Night Safari Zoo, Marina Bay Sands Skydeck and Casino, Fountain of Wealth (largest fountain in the world), as well as various events and festivals.  There are very nice hotels of every size and shape (I am partial to the Conrad at the moment) and a truly world-class airport (and national airline) with flights that can take you anywhere.

Strasbourg, Leipzig, Berlin, Dresden, Worms

When you are constantly on the go, sometimes a short trip seems like a much longer vacation.  Over the holidays, I flew in and out of Frankfurt, away for about 7 days (5 nights).  I guess I was lucky in that I avoided any flight problems.  The snowstorms had already left Central Europe, but it was very cold most of the time.  After landing and checking into my hotel in Frankfurt, I rushed to the main train station to travel back to Strasbourg, France.  I had visited there over the summer and wanted to return to experience their Christmas markets since they were still going on after Christmas.  What should have been a 2+ hour trip turned into a 4+ hour journey one way.  The planned trains were running late (I'm guessing due to the weather and abundant snow still on the tracks and ground).  I was traveling on a German rail pass so I was not stuck with specific trains, except for the short train ride from Offenburg to Strasbourg.  Thanks to my trusty iPhone and the Deutsche Bahn (DB) app, I found alternative routings based on what trains were running on time.  Unfortunately, instead of taking the nice and fast ICE trains for part of the trip, I had to take multiple regional trains, hence the longer journey out.  Fortunately, my return back to Frankfurt that evening was much smoother and shorter.

It all worked out in the end.  I did get to Strasbourg much later than planned, but it was a good thing.  Since it was just getting dark by then, the lights came on and I could experience the festive atmosphere with all the light decorations.

After one night in Frankfurt, I moved on to Leipzig for three nights.  It was another rough time with the trains.  The train I chose to take ended up being half as long as normally run, and I had to stand for 4.5 hours (we were an hour late).  Even in First Class, the train was packed.  What was nice was that once I arrived at Leipzig station, the hotel I selected was easily found right across the street.

I settled in very quickly, grabbed a quick bite and drink in the Executive Lounge, and then took a walk around town to get oriented.  It was a little tough since many of the sidewalks had not really been cleared from the snow.  It was nice to be conveniently located in the old town section. 

I decided that my day trip the next morning would be to someplace I was already familiar with getting around -- Berlin.  I had a couple of agenda items I would try to do:  the Neues Museum and the Prenzlaurerberg area.  Train problems again prevented me from getting to Berlin as early as I had planned (it's only an hour away, but the train was an hour late).  It was also very cold (significantly below freezing the entire day, causing suburban train problems in Berlin as well).  I bought my timed ticket entry for the Neues and toured their fine collection of antiquities, including the amazing bust of Nefertiti.  By the time I was done, I did not feel much like walking around in the cold and snow, so I skipped P'berg and took train back to Leipzig.

Next day was dedicated to Dresden.  Trains were running better and not quite as cold outside.  It's a little bit of a walk from the Dresden station to the old section of the city.  The old section is very picturesque.  I went first to the Zwinger and enjoyed listening to the glockenspiel in the main courtyard (unsuccessfully tried to upload the video).

I then went into the Porcelain Museum and saw a very fine collection of Japanese, Chinese and German pieces very nicely displayed.  Unfortunately, no photos allowed, although I did sneak one from the outside. I saw a bit more of the town and then headed back to Leipzig.

I returned in time to tour Leipzig while it was still light outside, before any New Year's Eve festivities started.  Leipzig is a city of passages or Hofs, so it was fun exploring these areas all over the old section of the city.  As soon as it became dark, I discovered how much the Germans like to celebrate the evening with fireworks.  The sparklers, Roman candles, rockets and very loud fireworks started well before midnight.  To preserve my hearing, I decided to stay in for the evening.

For the next day, which would be my last full day, I traveled back to Frankfurt in the morning, checked in, and then traveled to Worms to check out the hybrid Romanesque/Gothic cathedral.

For the last day, I boarded an afternoon flight back home.