Tropicana Paradise Beach - Mykonos

The Travel Channel voted Tropicana at Paradise Beach the best beach bar in the world.  It is set in a perfect bay with clear calm water (above), and every day in the late afternoon the party starts around 5 with Sasa - the King of Mykonos leading the charge. 

The wheels come off a bit, and I imagine that it would have been a great and horrible place to supplant a 19 year old Justin Delaney.  Should we ever meet via some kind of time travel worm hole, I will be sure not to bring this place up.  Kristin and I people-watched for a few hours and then literally drove our ATV off into the sunset. Check out the pictures.

This Guy - King of Mykonos Edition

This guy is some kind of celebrity DJ/MC in Mykonos at Tropicana Paradise Beach - which is considered the best beach bar in the world (maybe a bit of a stretch).  Check out that bathing suit!  There were some guys from Abu Dhabi at the club and he shouted Abu Dhabi every 3.5 minutes into his mic.  Good times.

This Guy - Mykonos All-star Edition

 I don't know who this guy is, or where he came from, but for the better part of an hour, Kristin and I fixed our gaze upon him.  He had the moves of a nimble sex-crazed ogre.

Fleeing Central Europe for Mykonos

The winter came to Vienna, and we fled.  We boarded a plane early on a cold morning with what appeared to be flurries hovering in the sky and flew straight for Greece, where the temp doubled, and we traded clouds for sun.  All around, it felt like the right thing to do.

The horse who loved me - Lipizzaners in Slovenia

We visited an area of Slovenia known for their Lipizzaner horses.  The horses are just incredibly beautiful and the breed began in the Karst region of Slovenia in the 1500's.  The horses are typically used for dressage, which is pretty boring to watch, but once you get into it, it is nearly impossible to think of anything else.  Or so I am told.  The horses are rare and expensive.

Anyways, we were passing this small farm, and for whatever reason, this horse saw me, got incredibly excited, and sprinted over to say Hello.  It was as if he had waited all of his life for me to arrive at his gate. He looked that excited.

Furmonsters of the day - Showdown edition

What you lookin at punk

Exploring the tiny town of Rovinj, Croatia

Rovinj is a small fishing port in northenr Croatia that has been a part of just about everything from the Byzantine Empire to Venice, Austria, and Italy.  As such it is a colorful outpost, surrounded by the sea with an old church tower as the centerpiece and narrow lanes for getting lost.

The goodness of Demel

Demel makes the best sweets in the world.  We stopped by and ate a few things, and it did not disappoint.  Earlier in the trip I promised an older Austrian man that I would visit Vienna for a year, but I had to also promise that I would never look at a bathroom scale.  Now I know why he said that.  The desserts here are exquisite.

Le Cru Champagne Shop in Vienna

This is a cool little shop in Vienna that only sells champagne.  That's it.  They specialize in single grape small-batch "microbrews" from estates in France.  We were a little intimidated to enter in our rain suits, but we found warm service and were even offered free tastings, even though we insisted that we were leaving Vienna to soon to drink any champagne.

Figlmüller's perfect schnitzel in Vienna

On the recommendation of numerous people, including my grandparents and an Austrian man with a perfectly curled grey mustache and a penchant for British racing, we decided to try Figlmuller during our visit to Vienna for a heavy lunch. 

After riding the subway all over Vienna for free, we saddled up next to these meaty disks the size of generous pizzas.  The schniztzel was served simply with a lemon.  The schnitzel has been served here for over 100 years and every serving is violently pounded to a thickness of 30mm.  The Austrian emperor roll is used for the bread crumb breading and is perfectly crispy and light.

Furmonster of the day - Crap my pants Rovinj edition

This Black Russian Terrier looked really sweet and cool, so Kristin and I approached the owner and dog. That is when the dog left out a growl and we realized it was possible a death eater.  "He no like people."  Indeed, indeed. 

Greatest travel guide store ever - freytag & berndt

We stumbled upon this store in Vienna.  It was all travel guides, travel books, and maps.  It was like some kind of mecca for Kristin and I.  We did not even know such places existed.  At one point a sales associate came up to me and asked, "Can I help you?"  I just stared off into space and replied, "No."