Gettin into the Flow of Things

So I'm finally on a real American keyboard so this should be fun. So yesterday we toured around the old part of Vienna to get a little cultured. We even entertained the idea of going to an Opera, and yes you read that right. We walked around and saw some very historical stuff and the architecture out here is amazing, very impressive. We had our good buddy Rick Steves to show us around and he did a decent job. He's not too big on Austria and so while the tour was good it was very topographical. After that we got another Doner Kobab and headed up the room. We were going to meet Meg's friend Tobias at 8 at our hotel lobby and he was going to give us a tour of the city. We also made plans to meet up with Lukas and Andreas so we knew the night was going to involve some kind of drinking. So we picked up a bottle of cheap rum, which was surprisingly good. You have no idea how nice it is to type on this keyboard. So we took some pulls while we ate our Kobabs.

We met up with our local friends and went and bought a bunch of beer. So drinking in public is huge over here, cuz its legal, and its awesome. So we picked up some beer and headed over to this outdoor hangout. It had a bunch of benches and what not. For anyone who knows or cares, Meg, we started at the Museum Cortier. Drank a few beers there. Great thing about their beers is that they are all big. They don't 12 ounce beers they do half liters which is like a beer and a half. Makes keep count of how you had a lot tougher and more fun. So we met all our new buddy's friends and talked a lot about life in Vienna and Futball and all that good stuff.

So then Tobias decided to take us to this underground hip hop club. We had to pay a cover to get in, which sucked, but it was chill. Good music and drinks weren't too bad. Overall the bar was kind of low key and we were looking for something a bit more up beat. Meanwhile I downed quite a few rumcolas (rum and cokes). We decide to leave and to the Leopold Museum bar which Meg suggested and we had to put a few checks on her list of stuff to do, thanks by the way Meg. But we decided if we were going to another bar we had to make a pit stop to our room and pick up the rest of our rum. So we got that along with the rest of our dinner and devoured everything, rum included. That hit us hard and of course we were drinking in public which is an added bonus. So after accquiring a heavy buzz / being wasted we headed over to this bar. Not a lot of people in there, I guess wasted Wed didn't spill over into Vienna, but when you are wasted with your buddies its all good. So I think we got a few drinks, not sure, maybe just a beer. Actually now that I think about it we definitely got at least a beer. We then called Meg to brag and tell her how much Vienna sucks. Andreas hung up on her I think but it was and he couldn't really hear her, and our message was delivered so its all good.

Then it was time to go the clubs. So we showed up at what appeared to be a subway station entrance but it was actually a club. So of course the locals get in then Jay walks up and the bouncer says no. He wasn't looking cool enough. I was looking good enough but I wasn't about to ditch my buddy and I was in no to be going to another club. I was nearly passing out as we were walking around. Jay got pissed off and flipped the bird to the bouncers who took it the wrong way. Lukas tried to play it off as a California way to say goodbye but they weren't havin it. I thought it was high larious and was laughing which probably didn't help the situation. By now it was like 2:30 am so we decided that a drunk walk back home would be in order.

Funny side notes though. Lukas ended up going into the club with his sister and realized that it was only dudes and then passed out in the club. Woke up and then passed out on the subway and missed his exit. Then eventually got home and passed out on his couch. Then today woke up at around 1 met us for lunch and missed a work meeting. Yeah last night was fun.

So we stumbled into our hostel and passed out. Today I woke up wasted. Jay was drunk and so was Andreas. We had a great morning laughing about nothing and being loud. Makes the mornings so much easier when you are already drunk. It also makes drinking throughout the rest of the day much easier. So Andreas picked us up and gave a tour of this huge castle. We walked around and climbed up this hill to a great viewpoint where you can see the entire city, and that's when Mr. Hangover decided to show up. We all started feeling like shit at the same time and so we sat on this bench and pounded water as we talked about how prostitution works in Austria, which by the way they have a great system. Also we decided that from an economics perspective you are better off getting a hooker versus hitting on girls at bar. Follow this logic:

You go to a bar, probably a bit buzzed, but regardless you need to buy yourself drinks which costs money. Then you buy the lady friend you acquire some drinks. Then you have to talk to her and pretend to listen for probably an hour minimum. Then you have to convince her to go back to your place. At this point you still need to make sure that all the necessary tools are in working order. Overall it can a huge ordeal. Or you can drive down some street, find yourself a nice young, talented lady, give her 40-60 euros and have your way. Obviously none of us are going to get a hooker but we thought we would lay it out in economic terms cuz we are business guys and we think like that.

We ate some authentic food today. We had a Schnitznel and a Strudel. It was all amazing. We also had this beer which was mixed with like a lemonade. Really good way to nurse a hangover. Walked around bunch. Meg gave us a dissertation on Vienna so we followed that with a little Andreas mixed in. We saw a ton of stuff and had a real authentic experience which was awesome. We also went to the Prata which is like an amusement park. Kind of cheezy but its home to Austria biggest beer garden, which is a lost concept in the states so we should get one going. So we get there and its like heaven. There are waiters running around with huge slabs of meet and trays full of beers. We looked for a table and couldn't find a single open one. The place was packed but we got to look around and smell what a real beer garden is like. The park is also conveniently located near a local hooker hang out but we didn't have time to venture over there. Also, another one of the major hooker hang outs is located near the Child Genius Schools so thats neat.

Now we are really tired and trying to decide to out or not. We will probably go have a beer or two and go from there. Tomorrow night Andreas is throwing us a party at his house in Linz which will be sweet. He promised some beezies so that should be a nice bonus.

Burger King was good the other day too in case you were still wondering. Have a good and don't get burned by the fires.

livin large,

alex