by Lufthansa Flyer | Mar 14, 2014 | Featured, Trip Reports |
Whenever I’m in Vienna, I ALWAYS make it a point to pay at least one visit to the Naschmarkt. It’s one of my favorite places to go in the city when I’m looking for a quick snack or ingredients for a future meal. Conveniently located only a few minutes walk from ‘Karlsplatz’ it’s easy to access from anywhere in Vienna by using ‘VIE’s efficient U-Bahn and Tram networks. It’s so easy to reach that even if you have a 4-5 hour layover at the airport, you can easily get to the Naschmarkt via the CAT train and U-Bahn, enjoy the atmosphere and head back to airport in plenty of time to catch your flight. It beats airport food by a LARGE margin!
Google Maps: It’s a 5 minute walk from Karlsplatz, or if you are in a hurry, it can be done in 4 minutes!
The ‘Markt’ dates back to the 1500’s when it was primarily a place where milk bottles (made of wood!) would be sold. According to Wikipedia, the term Naschmarkt is derived from this 16th century practice since the wooden milk bottles were made of ash, translating to Asch and was known as the ‘Aschenmarkt’. Fast forward a few centuries, move the ‘N’, lose the ‘E’ and we have our Naschmarkt! At a mile long, it’s one of the larger food markets that you’ll find anywhere.
My most recent visit was during this winter and compared to my summer visits, it was not quite as festive or ‘alive’ as it normally is in the Spring and Summer when local fruits, vegetables, flowers and ‘foodstuffs’ overrun the market. During the winter, items imported from warmer climates make up a large part of the offerings for obvious reasons.
This is not say that the Markt is not as enjoyable in the winter as it is in the summer, it’s just a bit different. The shops are all open, people fill the lanes and the smell of a diverse range of food (from Wurst to Crepes to Sushi!) coming from a variety of restaurants and vendors fills the air!
If you are looking for a recommendation, I STRONGLY recommend paying a visit to Urbanek. This meat, cheese and wine specialist has a tiny shop that can barely fit 6 people inside, but the selection of speciality meats and cheeses will rival the finest butchers. Their access to rare local wines (sometimes only 6 bottles a year from a vineyard) make the experience complete. The shop is family run and they are more than happy to let you sample anything they have to offer. My advice? Their Mangalitsa ham. Wow!
Urbanek’s offerings – A Meat and Cheese lovers nirvana!
A small sample of Urbanek’s meat offerings – I was bit too eager so the photo is a bit blurry!
My camera battery was on ‘fumes’ so I couldn’t take nearly as many photos as I would have liked, but I think there is enough to share that will give you a sense of what the Naschmarkt is about. Should you find yourself visiting Vienna or just passing through, this local landmark is absolutely worth the visit!
Perhaps a regional Lufthansa First Class Lounge??
Looks like Sushi, but tastes oh so sweet!
Spices and seasonings are a common site at the Markt.
Part cheese, part spare tire…..
Just SEE cheese please!
Even in the winter, large and colorful arrays of vegetables are everywhere.
Dried fruits, vegetables and nuts.
Besides food, the mile-long Markt offers a variety of clothing and houseware vendors.
What this you ask? It’s Hiker’s Fruitbar of course….
Cheese stuffed vegetables….BRILLIANT!
Fruits from around the world come the Naschmarkt during the winter months.
by Lufthansa Flyer | Mar 13, 2014 | Featured, Trip Reports |
Over the course of my life, I have been to Slovakia dozens of times, recently as many as 2-3 times a year to visit family which includes among all my cousins, aunts and uncles, my 99 year-old Grandmother. For the majority of my trips I arrive and shift into ‘local’ mode. I tuck the English language into my carry on and proceed to blend in among the locals. I do this so well, that one shopkeeper who was helping my wife and I purchase something during one of our visits took me aside and congratulated me for marrying an American girl, saying how hard it is for a Slovak to find a good American woman.
Because of my desire to not be a tourist or even show signs of being a foreigner, I tend to never ever do ‘touristy’ things in Slovakia. I normally spend time with my cousins and their families or grab a rifle and go for long hikes in the woods behind my Grandmother’s farm hoping to run into a Wild Boar or better yet a Bear or Wolf. However one time, just one time, with my wife on one of these trips she convinced me to leave the village enclave and go see something that tourists go see.
My wife is a fan of paranormal history and ‘strange stuff’ like True Blood, The Walking Dead etc. so it should not have come as a surprise that she wanted to visit the ruins of Čachticky Hrad, the home of perhaps the world’s most ‘successful’ female serial murderer whose legend states that she would abduct young girls from surrounding villages and bathe in their blood in hopes of eternal beauty. In some circles, due to her links to Transylvania, she was referred to as a Vampire.
This is the legend that surrounds Elizabeth Bathory. Born in 1560 and passing away in 1614, she was accused of abducting and murdering 100’s of young girls in her quest for beauty. Witnesses corroborated these claims of torture, sadism and murder but thanks to wealth and an influential family, she was never held accountable for her alleged actions. Being from the same noble family who ruled Transylvania allowed her to avoid prosecution and execution.
Elizabeth Bathory
However, her family did place her under house, or in this case ‘Castle Arrest’ in 1611 and forbade her to ever leave the compound. She was actually sealed by bricks into a series of rooms inside part of the castle thus making it a prison. The only access to her was were small openings to allow ventilation and to pass her food.
This castle, Čachticky Hrad (Hrad meaning Castle) was actually a gift to her from her Husband, Ferenc Nadasdy whom she married in 1575 when she was 14 years old. Ferenc succumbed to wounds suffered in war and died in 1604. The irony in all of this is that her husband had asked Gyrogy Thurzo to look after his wife and children after his death. Thurzo would wind up being asked by King Matthias II to investigate the crimes against her, which eventually led to the indictments against her. It’s quite a fascinating story and has become a popular fairy-tale throughout Eastern Europe.
History lesson not withstanding, when my wife learned that we would be near Čachticky Hrad while in Slovakia, she made it a high priority for us to visit. I stubbornly agreed but ultimately I was glad that she pulled me out of ‘local Slovak guy’ mode. This meant I had to put down my 16%/alcohol beer and smoked bacon/horseradish sandwich and be a tourist for an afternoon.
When we arrived at Čachticky , an angry mule would not have been able to kick the smile off of my wife’s face. She lit up like a little kid and raced down the path through the forest that would lead us to the castle. I was just hoping that a boar would not come out and spoil her fun…..
Once at the Castle grounds even this wannabe ‘local’ was impressed with what we saw. The castle is in deep ruin yet there is a certain beauty and sadness to her. What was once a prominent and imposing structure had been reduced to a few walls and remnants of ancient towers that allowed castle inhabitants to survey lands for miles and miles around. Sad really.
In the following photos, I hope that I captured this beauty and sadness. Since Slovakia is peppered with Castles, thanks to countless rulers over the centuries, there are many of them that are in fantastic shape and could even be lived in today. It is these Castles that most guide books and locals would suggest you go visit and tell you to avoid ruins like Čachticky because there is nothing there to see. I love this kind of advice because when we arrived to Čachticky it virtually empty and we basically had the place to ourselves which made it that much more memorable for us.
Absolutely stunning views from anywhere on the Castle grounds
Remnants of one of the last remaining towers.
More of the beautiful ruins….
My first thought, I wonder if I can drive a golf ball down into the village. Next time I’ll come prepared!
A sad but beautiful place….
Ancient Arches have withstood nearly 450 years of decay…..
An interesting flyer was attached to a post on the Castle grounds……….Translation: In our small Carpathian Forest a large Wolf was seen. Is it possible that this Myth has returned to us after 100 years??? This Wolf, as large as a human and who frightened Shepherds in our past is here again!
Index To Other Trip Reports:
Lisbon’s Baixa District
Vienna’s Naschmarkt
Slovakia’s UNESCO Gem
by Lufthansa Flyer | Oct 14, 2013 | Trip Reports |
Lufthansa may have their ‘Non-Stop You’ marketing campaign, but I’m going to be in the air enough over the coming weeks that warrants having ‘Non-Stop Me’ as my tagline for my travels.
As the year approaches its end, my procrastination had caught up with me and I find myself scrambling to put together 100,000 miles to renew status for next year.
Two weeks ago I had flown nearly 18,000 roundtrip miles to Dubai for a long weekend (trip reports coming soon!) to start off my 4th quarter rally for status renewal.
Next up is another ‘Long Haul Weekend’ that takes me to Munich and Salzburg. I’m really looking forward to this trip because of the plans that I have while on the ground in Germany and Austria.
The highlight of my trip to Munich will be joining my friends from Lufthansa Social Media and take in a Bayern Munich match when they host Mainz 05 in Bundesliga play. Friends in Munich have also offered to take me to some of their favorite food stops which no doubt will be a real treat. It doesn’t get much better than a dinner comprised of Duck, Dumplings, Cabbage and Bier!!
Of course there will also be quite a bit of time spent plane spotting from a variety of positions around MUC. After all, its not a complete trip unless I spend hours watching airplanes come and go…..
In addition to Munich, I plan on taking a day-trip to Salzburg, Austria. I’ve never been to Salzburg so I’m looking forward to my first visit. With the efficient German rail system, it’s a fairly quick 1.5 hour non-stop ride. Besides the obvious must-see places in Salzburg such as Mozart’s childhood home, Hohensalzburg Castle and the Hellbrun Palace and its Trick Fountains, I plan to take a trip up to the ‘Kehlsteinhaus’ or Eagle’s Nest near Berchtesgaden. Having studied World War II in detail, this will certainly be an interesting place for me to take in.
Wrapped around this long weekend excursion will be flights on United, Brussels and Lufthansa Cityline. The long-haul flights between the US and Europe will be with Brussels Airlines where I’ll be able to experience their fantastic Business Class product.
In all, this run will net approximately 12,000 miles which will make a substantial dent in the “Balance Due” as far as miles are concerned.
Once I return from Europe, it will only be 12 days before my wife and I head off to Hong Kong for a few days. My wife fell in love with HKG on her first trip there in May and wanted to return to finish off her to-do list from last time and get a head start on holiday shopping. She even planned ahead last time and enrolled in Hong Kong’s Frequent Visitor / e-Channel program so that we can skip the long lines at immigration this time.
For those of you not familiar with e-Channel, it’s similar to Global Entry and allows you to self-immigrate. You can enroll after 3 complete visits to Hong Kong but if you have elite status with any major airline that flies to HKG, you can apply for it on your first visit (just bring your frequent flyer card showing your status level).
My to do list on this trip? Earning a much needed 19,000 miles!…….and of course more plane spotting from one of the best place airports in the world for spotting.
Once we return from Hong Kong, its only a couple of weeks before I return to Europe over Thanksgiving with a stop in Frankfurt for a couple of days with Lufthansa and then onward to Slovakia for a brief visit with family.
And then? Yes there are more Long Haul Weekends planned. Stay tuned. I may be ‘Singing Poorly’. Get it???
Or I may be narrating my travels to Narita? Who knows….
