Off to a new city today! I went to the train station with my English friends but then it was time to say goodbye and I was on my way to Budapest. I'm so happy I met them, they were the best part of my trip to Vienna! The train ride consumed most of the day and I was rather exhuasted when I reached my destination. I spent an hour or two finding my hostel and all the streets I traveled were dirty and ugly and had me wondering why I came to this city. I checked in a...

When I awoke my new friends were already up and ready for the day. I grabbed a quick breakfast and then we went out to see the town. Our first stop was the Museumquarter, but we settled for walking around the grounds and marveling at a giant sand sculpture someone constructed outside instead of paying for any of the expensive museums. We crossed the street to Maria Theresien Platz and decided to visit the free Kunsthistorisches Museum. The next couple hours were ...

I packed my things, said goodbye to my new friends and took one last stroll through town to the train station. One final gaze up at the surroundings Alps and then I was on my way. Chris, Greg, Brittany and Dylan were heading out too so we all rode together for the first two hours to Basel, a welcome break from my usual solitary trips. But in Basel I had to say goodbye to them as well and then I had 10 more hours of trains to get me to Vienna. I arrived rather lat...

Feeling that yesterday more than satisfied our desire to hike the Swiss Alps (and the fact that our legs probably couldn't handle any more), we all decided to hang around Balmer's for the first part of the day. I made some breakfast in the guest kitchen and then hung out with Drew and Kristian as they whittled their walking sticks from yesterday with a bread knife. I spent the beginning of the afternoon talking with Stephanie and the boys and then met two America...

After fueling up for the day on the pitiful hostel breakfast, the five of us dropped by the co-op to pack a lunch for the hike. Stocked up on bread, cheese, meat and chocolate milk, we caught the bus to the beginning point of what would turn out to be one of the most epic days of my life. The first hour or so, we passed through little towns as we worked our way up into a valley nestled between towering mountain peaks. We followed along a river of milky blue water...