Our checkout for the Prague hostel was a ridiculous 9 am. What are you supposed to do after hitting all the big stuff in Prague but to move on? We left a LOT earlier than we had planned, simply because we couldn’t be bothered to go to the train station to stow our bags and wait all day for the sleeper train. We decided while we were there to just move on to Vienna anyway.
We went to a place recommended in a Korean travel book. They knew EXACTLY what we wanted to do. The ride to the border was on our cash, but we started the Eurorail pass at the border to Austria. That way we didn’t have to withdraw any more Czech cash. Ticket and Reservation in hand, we made our way to the departure train station a few subway stops away. We spent the money we had left on a lunch we’d take with us on the train, then converted the rest. We only ended up with about 50 cents US of wasted change. Not too shabby actually.
On the train, we tried to sort out a plan. Two nights in Vienna, three days. We were looking at paying for a hotel or hostel somewhere in town, paying an outrageous fee, then settling in for a stroll around town broke. Tomorrow is Sunday, and the banks are closed. We needed to get money to make a reservation for our NEXT stop on a sleeper for Monday night. We went and got the thing arranged and then headed over to a noodle shop with a big sign saying “Busan” in Korean.
There was a Korean lady minding the store, and three young Korean ladies spread out over a map trying to find directions. Where to go? What was cheap? What does she recommend? Two of the ladies were traveling together and looked fresh out of college, and the other was a little older, around my wife’s age. We started looking for a “Minbak“. In Korean, Minbak is basically a “room for rent”. Dirt cheap Korean accomidation in Austria? Rock on! We even got some ramyeon noodles at the store for a snack. My wife has been craving them since Prague, and she doesn’t even like ramyeon. She said she’s just tired of bread and sandwiches. I’ll be there in about a week, possibly sooner.
My wife and I, along with the woman who turned out to be my wife’s age, shared a few other things in common with us. She had ALSO arrived in London from a horrible Cathay Pacific flight. She had ALSO met family in London. She had ALSO flown Easyjet (although from another airport) to Prague. She ALSO was harrassed by the ticket agents at Easyjet about a visa for Koreans, as well as having a hard time at immigration. She saw the same stuff, and was planning on going to Venice in a few days too! Doppleganger tour! Freaky.
We all went to find a subway that would lead us to a tram, that would then lead us to a Hello Kitty store. We’d be staying in their basement. The noodle shop lady had called ahead, and we had made arrangements to hold the rooms. They were slightly worried that a foreigner wouldn’t like the accomidations. We used that to our advantage later. We set off. The lady at the noodle shop made it sound like we’d be walking a minute to the subway. It was a little farther than expected, so the ladies sent me off as a scout. I found the place and went back to get them to the station. After seeking help from a helpful Kebab man, we took the subway to the tram location. Then, with no problems whatsoever, I got them to Kitty World.
The woman we went to the minbak with decided to stay in a dormitory style room, while we got a suite. My wife, the ruthless haggler took over. While I was MORE than fine with the accomidation for the price and kick ass location, she had me wait in the bedroom. She went out to the owner and said that since the price was more expensive that a dormitory, and that since it was off season, we’d probably go there instead. She got her to cut the price of our stay by an amazing 10 Euro.
The ladies and I then went to the Saturday Outdoor Crapfest Antique Market. We arrived as it was closing, but even if it was still going on, the stuff that remained was literally just garbage piled on the street. We walked through basically paranoid about pickpockets. We then found the excellent fruit, vegetable, and meat market next door. We sat down for a kebab plater as big as a lamb. We got served a bellyache worthy amount of meat. We paid twice what we paid for our biggest meal in Prague, and this was basically only a step up from street food. It’s not a cheap town, and tomorrow the supermarkets are closed. WTF? No one shops for food on Sunday?Anyway, now completely stuffed, we’ve settled down for the evening. Internet service is still free. Yay!
It’s weird to be allowed into this sort of secret world of support between Korean people in other countries. Koreans travel together. They are masters of the bus tour, following the guides, and being tight knit travelers. Now, through my wife, I’m included in the festivities. We’re traveling around the town with this woman, and because of Korean usage of titles between strangers, we don’t even know her name. I’m supposed to call her “Older Sister” if I address her directly. She can’t speak English. I can still follow conversations and everything else I usually do. It’s just weird to make travel plans and be escorted into a secret sort of basement of luxury with people that share only a language in common. The people of the minbak are letting us use their kitchen, computer, the works. It’s great.
