I’ve been carrying around a 35mm waterproof camera the last few summers and decided I need to make a better effort at sharing all these photos. Here a some fun snapshots from a hot summer day swimming at Plage du Miramar in Biarritz last year. Can’t wait for more dreamy summer days like this… currently raining on this Saturday in late July, in typical Pays Basque fashion. Oh well. Happy Summer, blog friends!

The last few years I’ve been shooting 35mm photos during most of our travels. I’m always slow to get them developed, but when I finally do, it makes me so happy! I’m sitting on a huge pile of never-seen photos and I’ve decided I need to share more of these on this blog! So here are a few shots from our trip to Lisbon, Portugal a few years ago. Looking at these makes me want to go back to that gorgeous city!

This post is LONG overdue… I wrote it back in January with good New Years’ intentions of keeping up with this blog, and here we are – at the end of August already, and I have yet to post about any of our epic trips this year, I can’t believe it. Well, it’s never too late to get started, right? So here we go, I’m getting back at it and (fingers crossed) will keep up with this blog for the rest of the year!

Instead of flying home to California for Christmas we decided to spend the holidays in Europe so we could take the opportunity to travel and put the money we would have spent on plane tickets to LA towards seeing some new cities and countries we’ve had on our list for awhile. Madrid was the first stop on our travel adventure – we picked Madrid as our starting point because the three of us (Brent, myself, and our friend Cory who flew into town to visit) all had never been before, we could fly direct from Biarritz, and also could fly out of their large airport to many different destinations around Europe.

With only a day and a half to spend in the city, we had to be efficient about seeing as much as we could in such a short time. Brent had done his research (as always) and found a walking map on TripAdvisor to help guide us around the city. He led us to several Christmas markets that were still happening around the city and we walked through the famous plazas, past palaces, down narrow cobblestone streets, and of course we made sure to stop and taste local bites along the way. The city was alive with holiday shoppers and it had such a fun energy.

If you make it to Madrid, here is my list of must-do’s while you are there :

EAT JAMON IBERICO AT MERCADO DE SAN MIGUEL

The Mercado de San Miguel was my favorite thing we experienced in Madrid. It’s not only a market where you go to buy fresh produce, but also a place you go to sample local food like the famous Jamon Iberico, cheeses, pastries, tapas, beer and wine. The whole market is setup to encourage you to grab a bite and a glass of wine and enjoy it there If you taste something you love you can order more to take home with you, but the way they encourage you to enjoy something on the spot makes it the perfect place to stop for a mid-day snack. We enjoyed a meat cone full of Jamon, some olives and a small sampler cheese platter, with some Ribera Del Duero Reserva, it was perfect.

HANG OUT WITH GOYA AT MUSEO DEL PRADO

If you enjoy art, this museum cannot be missed. The three of us studied art history in college so it was fun to see so many famous paintings in person, like The Garden of Early Delights by Hieronymus Bosch and Las Meninas by Diego Velázquez. It was busy but didn’t feel too crowded like the Louvre in Paris, the crowds were manageable. We bought our tickets online ahead of time so we were able to bypass the long ticket line to get in – I would definitely recommend doing that if you go. We weren’t supposed to take photos but I snuck a few with my phone anyway… oops.

EAT PIMENTOS DE PADRON, CROQUETAS, AND PATATAS BRAVAS

While in Spain, these are some of the most delicious treats you have to try, and in Madrid you could find them on every corner. Almost any Spanish bar you pop into will serve them, and they all pair perfectly with a nice cold beer or glass of Rioja. Pimentos de Padron are green peppers grilled in oil and served in a big pile on a plate, topped with the chunky salt so many Spanish dishes are famous for. You can get many flavors of croquetas, but our favorite was the Jamon Croquetas, fried little bites that are filled with a cheesy-potato-like filling. Always a crowd favorite, Patatas Bravas are simple potatoes usually cooked until crispy, topped with a spicy red sauce that can vary quite a lot depending on where you eat them. They’re basically like fancy french fries and they’re delicious. We had a very delicious meal at La Casa Del Abuelo that we would recommend!

WANDER THE SMALL SIDE STREETS FOR STORE FRONTS & STREET ART

My favorite thing to do in every city I visit is to get off the beaten path and explore all the small side streets. I always love to discover hidden artwork (or sometimes not so hidden) and in Madrid there was so many treasures to be discovered on the little streets. The city had a lot of beautiful store fronts, some that felt very Art Nouveau inspired, lots of great hand painted typography, street art and colorful buildings, little nooks of surprise colorful tiles, balloons draped across the streets. It’s definitely worth exploring.

EAT CHURROS CON CHOCOLATE FOR BREAKFAST AT CHOCOLAT

If you’re in Spain for breakfast you must try this treat at least once – churros served with a thick cup of hot chocolate for dipping them in. Brent found a cute little spot that seemed really local, named after what it serves best, Chocolat. If it’s busy you may have to wait for a table, but trust me – it’s worth it!

We really enjoyed our time in Madrid and are already looking forward to the next time we can make it back to this beautiful city, especially for the food! If Madrid isn’t already on your travel bucket it, it should be!

Our trip to Vienna started off with an easy four hour, scenic train ride from Prague. We were pleasantly surprised when the train had free wifi, power outlets at every seat and also very clean bathrooms. About halfway through the journey we enjoyed cider beer and bratwursts from the cafe onboard. Once we arrived at the train station in Vienna we took the metro to the center of town where we checked into our hotel, 25 Hours Hotel. This hotel had been recommended by the authors of the Prague Foodie Map that I mentioned in our previous post – Brent called it the ‘hipster hotel’. I loved this hotel because of the good design, crisp white sheets, the circus mural in our room above our bed, and the photobooth (all ‘hipster’ hotel qualities, I guess). They also provided me with a running map to run my way around the city in the morning (I was still marathon training at this point) as well as had a ‘runners corner’ in the lobby providing free water bottles and towels for runners. I would definitely recommend this hotel if you ever go to Vienna!

As soon as we checked into the hotel we headed back out again to explore the Christmas markets. It was opening day for several holiday markets around the city, the main reason we decided to visit Vienna this weekend. We started at the Christmas Market at Spittelberg, recommended by the concierge to be a more ‘local’ experience. This market was smaller, spanning three narrow streets lined with vendors selling crafts, mulled wine and local bites. We sampled lots of local food – a bratwurst in a deep fried pastry bun, a potato pancake, raceltte, and also a variety of mulled wine, including hot white wine, hot cherry flavored wine, and mulled wine with fresh ginger slices (my favorite!).

Next we headed to Christkindlmarkt, the Christmas market for which Vienna is most famous. This market felt especially festive situated below the illuminated Wiener Rathaus, the Neo-Gothic city hall of Vienna. It was packed with opening night crowds, but we still managed to make our way around the vendor stalls to admire the Christmas decorations and enjoy a cheese-stuffed bratwurst with some mulled wine. The market was lined with stall after stall selling anything Christmas related, from ornaments to fuzzy snow bunnies to wooden woodland animals and hand painted glass balls, it was like stepping into a North Pole dream!

Our second morning in Vienna we woke up to sunshine and freezing temperatures, but I managed to get outside and run a lap around the inner circle of the city (thanks to the route the hotel provided, it was easy to navigate). Afterwards we headed to Café Griensteidl for a local Austrian breakfast. We both ordered the sausage and goulash, which basically ended up being a large hot dog covered in chili – this meal had Brent’s name alllll over it! Meaty and hearty, it warmed us up for a morning of freezing exploring outside. The regal-like decor of the restaurant fit perfectly with the Michaelerplatz square where the restaurant was located.

We spent the rest of the day wandering and taking in the sites and discovering new little pockets of Christmas markets tucked into squares around the city. My favorite part of town was Michaelerplatz – one of Vienna’s most famous squares. It was filled with market stalls selling ornaments and mulled wine, lined with Chrstimas trees, and bustling with horses and buggy’s waiting for passengers in front of the gorgeous white backdrops of the famous imperial palace and St. Michael’s church. This square is not to be missed if you visit Vienna!

After a day in the cold we wanted to experience a hearty Austrian meal, so after doing his usual research, Brent led us to Pürstner Restaurant. Inside was dark and cozy and felt like a hunting lodge – taxidermy hanging on the walls, dark wooden booths hand painted with folk art florals. We filled ourselves up with giant Austrian beers, warm soup, and Brent ate an entire rack of ribs while I enjoyed spätzle, a delicious type of noodle common in Austrian and German cuisine. After dinner we made sure to stop at a Christmas market on the way back to our hotel to enjoy a night cap glass of mulled wine! This city definitely had us in the Christmas spirit!

Our last morning in Vienna I had one more spot on my bucket list to check off before leaving – Disco Volante. (More eating! What else would we do?) I had come across this pizzeria while searching on Pinterest one day and really wanted to check it out – the bright white space sparkling from a massive disco ball was love at first sight! It’s famous for the giant disco ball pizza oven situated in the center of the restaurant, and of course the pizza was delicious as well. It was a bit of a trek outside of the center from our hotel, but for the ambiance and the food, I’d say it was worth it. If you’re in Vienna and in the mood for pizza I would definitely add Disco Volante to your list!

Overall I really loved Vienna – it was a little cold, but warmed us up with Christmas spirit. This trip we didn’t spend as much time learning about the history of the city, but instead spent our time enjoying local food and holiday markets, which was really relaxing and more than enough to do during the day and a half that we had there. I would definitely recommend visiting Vienna during Christmas market season – seeing the city decorated was so special! I’m sure we’ll be back again someday – thanks for a great time, Vienna!