Dec 18, 2025
A Christmas vacation worth sharing.
Day 1: Madrid to Vienna
48.2081° N, 16.3713° E
I leave the little kiddos early at 11:45 and uber directly to the airport. Easy flight to Vienna, my first stop. I would be meeting friends in the next 24 hours, but for now it was me rocking solo.
I land in Vienna, the sun has set, and I scramble to figure out how to navigate the Austrian public transport. Not my favorite system tbh and I definitely missed the train my ticket was for, but luckily the Austrian are all about the honor system, so no one even checked my ticket. The Swedes, we would learn, are a little bit stricter.
Make it to the hostel check in, and grab a bite. I thought about kebab, but I just couldn’t look myself in the mirror knowing it would be the 3rd weekend in a row. At the Austrian sausage-sandwich house, the waitress was hella rude to me! Welcome to Vienna, I guess. She looked stressed so I gave her some grace.
Back at the hostel was Trivia Night! I thought why not! Let’s meet some people. I am welcomed much more warmly by the hostel guests and find some friends to team up with. I don’t think I contributed a single answer, but our team won! Free drink on the house. Qué suerte tengo. Early night for a big day of solo sightseeing.
Day 2: Vienna
My plan was just to walk the lengths of Vienna all day, since we’d be leaving early the next day. I ended up with a guided-walking tour led by a very comedic Austrian gentleman. He gave us all the facts and history you could ever ask for, and gave me some direction on where to visit next.
I end up back at the Christmas market under the XXXXXX and for lunch I munch a Beef Goulash Bread Bowl. Probably the best meal I had all trip. Not only delicious, but functional too, as I was already freezing my ass off in the cold weather of Eastern Europe. The Nike’s might not have been the best call, but ya boy was layered up to the brim. Later in Krakow, I would end up with 12 different pieces of clothing on my body at one time. That’s how cold it was (or how much of a softy I am).
Kept walking and yes, listening to the Billy Joel song while I did. I have to say: Vienna, not my favorite. It’s cool! And maybe in summer it’s a little better. While the buildings were grand and spectacular, I also thought maybe a little boring and grey… Just my opinion.
To challenge that previous notion, I did stumble upon XXXXXX which, given the time of year, had a Christmas market in the giant plaza. That was epic. Definitely the coolest one I saw, and I caught it in the light when my camera was still functional.
I then made my way to the Schobaun Palace. I was quite excited for this since the pictures looked awesome and the Christmas market was highly recommended. I’d give it a 5/10. I don’t mean to be negative, just giving my honest feedback. The market was cool (certainly cooler than anything in the US), and I did have a fire brat, but still, eh. I got excited when I found out the garden in the back were open to the public. So I walked my butt up the hill to the XXXX to get a view of the palace, and well, I’ll let you decide.
In Vienna in December, the sun sets around 3:30. So after my garden walk, I was out of daylight. I make my way back to the hostel and meet up with Josh, who had just arrived. We decompress for a sec and plan our move, awaiting the arrival of Jake and Scott who should be shortly behind him. We had the timing completely wrong and they were not shortly behind him. Instead, Josh and I hit the same epic christmas market at night for some festivities. We had some first hot chocolate, and Josh “stole” the mug. We find a spot for dinner and eat some classic schnitzel. Those Bavarians love their schnitzel. And I get it dude, entiendo.
Scott and Jake are MIA so we hit the hostel lounge for some festivities. We end up playing cards with some girls who are hometown friends with our friends in Madrid. Small world. We chill with them for the night, and find out they are also departing for Bratislava next. Que suerte, mas friends in new places.
While we are playing cards, a girl asks for coins to do her laundry since she doesn’t have any. In an effort to repay my “Pay it Forward” from Nazaré (and be a generally good human), I help a girl out. Still a long ways to go, but do what you can.
I dap up Scotty in our 12 bed dorm while the lights are off and whisper a welcome to Austria.
Day 3: Vienna to Bratislava
48.1478° N, 17.1072° E
The boys are still on a varying schedule. Josh and I are off to Bratislava, Slovakia early, while Jake and Scott still have their day in Vienna. Quick bus into Bratislava. We tried to do some less popular activities so tomorrow we could do the big ones as a group and finally get in sync. Which was hard, because Bratislava is not a big town. Day trip at most. But Joshie and I had a day, arguable one of my favorites. We found a tower to get a view of the city, which was a epic since it was so foggy. But we did see a random assortment of coins below us on the roof, so of course, we added to the pile. It appeared as though we neede to get the coin in the drain pipe. Which is interesting because that leads the coin directly into the pathway below where there are hella people and were about 4 stories up. Josh nails the drain pipe and then almost nails a woman walking unexpectedly below. Like real close I try and miss, but my coin still goes wild, and well, almost hits the crowd below us.
Christmas market brats.
Then off to a lake that was recommended by our new friends from Vienna. Definitely a summer spot, and when we got off the tram, we thought what the fuck is this place. We entered in a weird spot and the whole place just seemed eerie. But still pretty and I can see the summer’s here being awesome. We walk around the lake, almost fight a little girl for the park swings, and then noticed the cold plungers. We thought: wow that would be so cold but wow i wish we could do it, but we dont have towels or clothes. But you know who does? The random Slovakian people doing it. So we ask. Porque no.
At first, they are super confused. Like you want to do this? Do you know how cold that is? 4 celsius. I have no idea what that is in fahrenheit but it’s getting close to 0 so i assume it’s cold. But they let us use the towels, and even keep count for us of 2 minutes. We strip, wade in, and yowza that was a cold plunge. I never would have done a full 2 min if josh wasn’t there, or our new spectators counting down. But we sat our ass in the water and waited.
When we emerge, the couple we asked is so sweet. They give us the towels, clear the space, and the woman even gave us tea to warm us up. It might have been circumstantial, but that was absolutely some of the best tea I have ever had. We chat with them for a little while we warm up, and bid them a thanks and farewell. I hope we made it into their dinner table chatter that night. They certainly made ours.
Lay time to recoup before the boys get in. When we link, we grub at the Bratislava Flagship Restaurant. Massive facility. Delightful food. Lots of sheep cheese. Like, lots of sheep cheese. Not the best pre-pub crawl, but we made it work.
We head straight to the crawl at the sister hostel. A few things about our hostel set up: two hostels, the Wild Elephant & the Urban Elephant. There are some rumors regarding a certain aesthetic of the Wild Elephant that led us to stay at the Urban Elephant instead. We made the correct choice, but lucky us, they did the crawls as one. Classic crawl shenanigans. New friends and new experiences.
Day 4: Castle ...
Our new friends arrive in Bratislava. Guided walking tour around the city. Unfortunately, we had some less than visible weather. We were robbed of the view of the Danube from the XXX castle. But we had a blast! Definitely more fun with a big crew. We also came across a guy in lovely garb holding an XXXXX and the only way to get a picture with him was to buy a sausage and give him a piece. What a business plan.
Lots of fun facts that I won’t remember but enjoyed learning at the time. And isn’t that the whole point!
We also went to the church and I got to light the candles! Mi cosa favorita. Que divertida.
Much anticipated warm lunch in a warm place. Waitress laughs at us when we ask to seat 7. Boys & girls tables. Classic.
Downtime.
Back to the Christmas markets for some chimney cake! Never thought I’d taste that delight again but boy am i happy i did. Walked around a little, did our obligatory sight-seeing and then played cards in the local pub for about 3 hours. Great company, great vibes, one of my favorite nights. Kebab. THEN, the craziest part. En route home, we decided we had to stop at our sister hostel to see what was going on. Nothing worth staying for, to be honest, and we were out of there in 10 minutes. No gracias para nosotros!
Day 5: Bratislava to Krakow
50.0647° N, 19.9450° E
Bus back to Vienna for our flight to Krakow. We made sure to get in as soon as possible not to explore Vienna more, oh no no. We were getting to the lounge asap. Europe #1 lounge 2024 and it did not disappoint. Probably my favorite part of Vienna. Sola broma, but definitely a good rest time halfway through the trip.
Easy flight to Krakow. We arrive in Krakow and it was a different level of beautiful. Vienna and Bratislava, cool yeah, glad we went, but Krakow? There’s a place I would recommend anyone to visit. Early sunset again so we rushed around while we could get the light.
End up at a burger joint for dinner (can only eat so much schnitzel) and the place was just bumping with sing alongs.
Our hostel was a 6-bed, and aside from the 4 of us, we had 2 South African guys with us. They were awesome. Super fun, nice, and good energy. They were on a badass road trip around Europe for their break. Yada yada.
On a different note, I wonder where the best place to take a phone call is around here? Better ask the receptionist.
Day 6: Auschwitz
Today we had an early morning for our guided tour of Auschwitz. Very heavy. One quote really stuck: “Those who do not remember the past are condemned to repeat it.” One of the more powerful, and certainly important experiences I’ve had while traveling. Not for the glam, not for the Instagram, but for the pure remembrance and respect giving of a historical event. Being there is a lot different than seeing the pictures or reading about it in a textbook. Lots of reflection.
A rather solemn vibe for the rest of the day, and the crazy cold did not help. I was wearing twelve articles of clothing; four of them being: underwear, long johns, and sweatpants under my jeans. Still cold.
We warmed up with some traditional dumplings for lunch. I felt bad for the worker since it was packed and she was working solo. I think we picked the wrong spot. Happens.
I went solo to a walking tour of the Jewish district in Krakow and it was fascinating. Lots of hechos divertidos and we even ended up at the main food hall that the receptionist told me to go to. I split off from the group to grab a pizza-esque mushroom dish. Absolutamente fuego. I walked around a little bit longer, but it was dark and it was starting to snow! Not the type that sticks but certainly feels magically as you’re walking around.
We end the night with some karaoke with the South Africans. Scott brings the house down yet again. Some guy almost proposes on stage. And Jake and Josh have an auxiliary dancer for their performance.
Day 7: Krakow to Copenhagen
55.6761° N, 12. 5683° E
Christmas Eve flight to Copenhagen. Sad airport goodbye as Josh continues his journey to Warsaw. Down to 3.
When we land in Copenhagen, the sun is already setting, but we catch a crazy sunset as we get off the train into the city. We arrive at the hostel, and it’s the definition of a compound. This place has 100’s of rooms in this giant building. There’s 3 bars, karaoke room, gym, indoor futsal field, and cafeteria. The rooms are hilariously small and eachp person has a personal pod. It’s how imagine if I was every traveling through space my dorm would look like.
Since it’s Christmas Eve, the streets are dead. All of the Danish people are celebrating and there is very little still open. So we grab some 711 wraps (actually fire, they do 711 diffy), and walk the streets. We try to find a place for drink to no avail, until we stumble upon the Nyhavn canal street. We grab a drink on the canal next to a hilarious British couple and enjoy the heated seats and blankets.
Quick reset at the hostel. I talk with the fam a little and hang out in the common area. I pull up a seat and start chatting with this Irish girl who was an Irish traditional dancer. It’s that dancing that you see where the people literally don’t move their arms at all. Honestly pretty impressive.
We met a few others and Scott put on his final performance in the karaoke room. His best and final. Who would have thought it worked out so well.
Day 8: Christmas in Copenhagen
Christmas! As a Christmas present to myself, I woke up for sunrise on the Nyhavn Canal and gave myself some pictures that I’ll keep forever. Qué buen regalo! The lighting was rather incredible and while sometimes it’s hard to tell if the shots turn out, ya boy had a feeling that these would turn out well. Y salieron bien, de verdad. I spent about 45 taking photos, offering photos to others, and frankly galavanting around this rather beautiful and iconic canal.
The boys met me and we started our all day walking tour. We had some steps to get in. Christmas day also proved to be tough to find anywhere open for well anything. 8 AM 711 wraps? Porque no! I’ve got a general sense of a route for the day, but we detour for something that didn’t work out, but instead stumble upon a cafe on a lake! A blessing to get out of the cold because, yes, ya boy was still wearing 12 articles of clothing.
First stop was the statue of the Siren that the Little Mermaid was inspired by. Along the route we come across this little island sculpted into the landscape with a moat surrounding it. It was shaped into a star and to be honest, it looked like what I imagine a cult town to look like. No escape besides the one bridge across the moat. A little creepy but some good views of the water.
We saw Rosenburg Castle and recreated the photos of Scott and his mom a few years prior.
We head to Tivoli Gardens, the world’s oldest theme park. We walk around the park for a little before we stop for lunch on the park river. Scottie orders the boys some smorgasbord and we try some traditional Danish food. Pickled red herring: didn’t expect to like it but I was delightfully surprised. Probably won’t eat it again but glad i gave it the first go.
Afternoon reset.
We enjoy some happy hour free drinks at the hostel while they host bingo. A little while later, we are approached by the bingo winners, who just won a grand prize of a pitcher of beer.
They, unfortunately didn’t have the capacity to consume all of it, so they so delightful offered to share with us. Qué suerte.
We recruit a group to head back to Tivoli Gardens for the fireworks show and it was a really nice way to celebrate the night of Christmas. After, I hopped on a call with the family while they were opening presents back in California. First Christmas away from home and it was weird! Happy to be traveling but wishing I could be two places at once. Story of my life the last year and half.
We remeet with our hostel friends and head to the local Irish Pub for christmas. Really the only appropriate way to spend the night of Christmas.
Day 9: Copenhagen to Malmö
55.6050° N, 13.0038° E
We wake up early for a little Danish cold plunge in the river. This river was even colder than bratislava, if that’s even possible. Morning refresh and then with the weather being meh and little on the schedule, we decide to send it over the bridge to go see Sweden! Scott walks into the lobby just as we are walking out and the three of us are on our way.
Easy train. One uncalled for police search. And we are in Sweden.
I did a quick search on what to see in Malmo. I’ll tell you right now there isn’t much. And each location was wildly underwhelming. I finally just decided to take us to the closest coast. We walked through some weird parts of Malmo, where it seemed very unlikely we would encounter anything worse seeing. Thank god we emerge from this neighbordhood onto a coastal boardwalk where you can look back at Copenhagen and the bridge you go across.
To escape the cold, we grab lunch in a ramen shop, and then head back to the train station.
In all honestly, I’m not sure I can say I’ve been to Sweden.
Day 10: Copenhagen to Madrid
6 AM flight home.
What a trip.
