October, 2023 - Travel With A Butterfly

The hills are alive with the sound of music.

Do, a deer, a female deer, Re, a drop of golden sun

Raindrops on roses and whiskers on kittens

Do these phrases seem familiar to you? If they do, that’s because they all are song lyrics from an incredibly well known movie called The Sound of Music. And lucky for us, we actually managed to visit the place where they shot a couple scenes from.

This was our second day in Salzburg, and also our last day in Austria before we headed into Czech Republic. For those of you who just want to know what attractions there are to see in Salzburg, the ones we visited include: Hellbrunn Palace (Schloss Hellbrunn), Mirabell Palace and the Gardens, the main shopping street called Getreidegasse, Salzburg Cathedral, St. Peter’s Abbey, and Fortress Hohensalzburg. Continue reading The Hills Are Alive – what to do in Salzburg

Austria

Hallstatt is Where the Swans Say Hello

ByRyan Lee

Hallstatt is a fairy tale like, picturesque small town that is both charming and idyllic, located in the Salzkammergut region of Austria. It is situated on the banks of the Hallstätter See (Lake Hallstatt) and is surrounded by majestic mountains, making it a stunningly picturesque destination. It’s walkable distance from Salzwelten Hallstatt (oldest salt mine, click here to read post) and offers a visual of skies and water that looks so clear it seems untouched, ever, by human industrial actions. What’s the most impressive was that the swans seem unfazed and unafraid of human beings; in fact, they kind of embrace it and seem to notice when you want to take photos of them. And if you feed them, they will definitely come nearby as well.

The town is renowned for its natural beauty and is a popular tourist spot. Hallstatt has a rich history that dates back thousands of years. It is known for its salt mining industry, which began as early as the Bronze Age and has continued till the present day. The town’s name has even been given to the Hallstatt culture, a prehistoric culture that existed in Central Europe during the early Iron Age. The charm of Hallstatt lies in its well-preserved historic buildings and traditional Alpine architecture. The narrow cobblestone streets are lined with charming wooden houses, some dating back to the 16th century. Continue reading Hallstatt is Where the Swans Say Hello

Austria

An Ice Cave and the OLDEST Salt Mine, in Obertraun, Austria

ByRyan Lee

We booked a private driver from goEUgo (https://www.goeugo.com) called Mr. Lau who was super friendly and knowledgeable and punctual. In our itinerary, we went to three places in one day! – an ice cave called Dachstein Giant Ice Cave, the oldest salt mine in the world called Salzwelten Hallstatt, and a small beautiful town called Hallstatt right around the corner. For this blog post, I’ll be posting photos basically from the first two activities.

We went to Obertraun, nearby Hallstatt, a village and also a popular holiday destination for people to engage in activities such as skiing, mountain biking, snowboarding, swimming, and kayaking. Continue reading An Ice Cave and the OLDEST Salt Mine, in Obertraun, Austria

Austria

Visiting the Incredible Melk Abbey and Dürnstein Castle

ByRyan Lee

Today began our six days tour of visiting different small towns in Austria and Czech Republic, our first stop being in Linz. But before stopping by Linz, we actually stopped by the town of Melk to see Melk Abbey and also took a detour to see Dürnstein Castle. We hired a driver through a tour agency called goEUgo (website) that also helped arranged us for our hotels. If you’re looking for mandarin or cantonese speakers, they can definitely help you out, but do note that there are not that many Cantonese drivers available We called a driver called Mr. Lau who was able to speak Cantonese. We were very pleased with him throughout the entire trip because he was knowledgeable, super friendly and nice, and very punctual every time, and never complained once even if it meant working longer than what was supposed to be a 10 hour work day (we had shorter days on other days)

Anyway, while Dürnstein Castle was pretty cool to see, Melk Abbey seriously blew our minds off. Dare I say it was quite possibly one of THE highlights of my 3 week trip. It was beautifully designed, with a pastel yellow that made it look significant but yet humble, and special. We also had some time on the way to our hotel that we also visited Stift St. Florian as well. Lastly, I’ll be sharing with you our horrible experience in the hotel we stayed in, at ibis Style Hotel Linz. Continue reading Visiting the Incredible Melk Abbey and Dürnstein Castle

Austria

Four Day Itinerary in Vienna (Part Two)

ByRyan Lee

This post is a continuation of the blog post Four Day Itinerary in Vienna (Part One), where we will be taking about my itinerary and the things we did on Days 3 and 4. You should read part one as it also included pics of our Airbnb and neighborhood, plus restaurants you should go AND shouldn’t go.

DAY THREE

Schönbrunn Palace (website)

We were awake really early on day three of Vienna, because we expected that there will be a lot of people for Schönbrunn Palace. Fortunately for us, that turned out not to be the case. That being said, it was still good we went early, because we actually have to get a ticket to be reserved a time to enter the palace. We got there around 9am, and this included a 10-15 min walk from the Schönbrunn metro station as well. While there was availability at around 11:30am, we decided to come back at around 2pm so that we had enough time to take photos around its garden but also go to one of our bucket list restaurants for lunch before coming back. Continue reading Four Day Itinerary in Vienna (Part Two)

Austria

Four Day Itinerary in Vienna (Part One)

ByRyan Lee

Before coming to Vienna, I had no idea, no preconception, no expectation of what this place would be like. Besides knowing that it’s a place for music and that Mozart was a prominent figure in Vienna, and that Jay Chou loves to visit here, I had no idea what this place would look like or feel like.

After coming here, I have to say as a tourist, I enjoyed this place very much. Amongst many places to visit as a tourist, I would rank Vienna to be high up compared with all the travel destinations I’ve been to. Vienna has a lot of beautiful museums that showcases a lot of incredible and vibrant artwork and antique collections, the city is very safe and very clean and tidy (comparable to Japan standards, even their gardens are tended very well), and the architecture of different buildings were all stunning. The museums offer a lot of its rich cultural history as well.

The city’s historic center, a UNESCO World Heritage site, showcases grand palaces, churches, and museums, such as the stunning Schönbrunn Palace, St. Stephen’s Cathedral, and the Belvedere Palace, which houses the famous artwork of Gustav Klimt. Vienna is also renowned for its classical music heritage, being the place where renowned composers like Mozart, Beethoven, and Strauss stayed, and home to the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra. The city hosts numerous music festivals and concerts, including the world-famous Vienna Opera Ball. Additionally, Vienna is celebrated for its coffeehouse culture, offering a cozy and traditional atmosphere to enjoy coffee and pastries.

We were there for four days in Vienna, and I would like to share with you our 4-day itinerary that you can utilize as well for your next visit. Continue reading Four Day Itinerary in Vienna (Part One)

Austria

Photos of Kunsthistorisches Museum Wien Vienna

ByRyan Lee

As I was uploading my photos from Vienna, I realized how many photos I took of the beautiful antiques, art, and collection from Kunsthistorisches Museum Wien, the art history museum. To avoid my Vienna post being too cluttered, I decided to create a separate post to showcase the photos from this amazing museum.

So without further ado, here are all the photos (that I’ve filtered down to already!). The photos do not include the interiors of the museum, merely the artworks and collection.

Read my Vienna itinerary which includes this art history museum at https://travelwithabutterfly.com/four-day-itinerary-in-vienna-part-one/. For the museum website, go to – https://www.khm.at/en/

Continue reading Photos of Kunsthistorisches Museum Wien Vienna

Travel

Where to eat in Dubai 2023

ByRyan Lee

There were too many words in my latest Dubai post, which talked about where we stayed and what we did, which you can read about in It’s Been Almost 7 Years Since I Last Went to Dubai. So this post will focus mainly on the places and things we ate during the four days I was there.

I highly recommend you to check out Forget Dubai, Visit Abu Dhabi! (Day Trip) for a brief overview of the Abu Dhabi day tour I went on, which brought me to see many impressive places such as a humungous mosque and a presidential palace. You should also read my Dubai blog from 7 years ago called Dubai Is Not A Walking City, But A Dining City to find out other things I did and ate as well.

And just to set the expectations of this blog, there were neither street food or fancy restaurants that will be featured in this post. There’s like casual dining and typical Middle Eastern to more above average upscale restaurants that we mainly ate at. Continue reading Where to eat in Dubai 2023

Travel

It’s Been Almost 7 Years Since I Last Went to Dubai

ByRyan Lee

Technically, it’s been 6 years and 9 months (as of the time of this writing) since I last went to Dubai in December 2016. Which is significant in the sense that a) I went to Dubai in December so the weather was cooler than it was when I went this time and b) it felt more Christmasy last time I went, so the mood of the place was different.

A lot of the things I did do this time was similar to what I did last time, except less fancy restaurants, and more time in souks and the malls and stuff. If you want to read my previous blog about Dubai, you can read my post, Dubai is not a Walking City, but a Dining City to read about the things I did last time. I also highly recommend doing a day trip tour to visit Abu Dhabi, which is a little over an hour to get there from Dubai. You can read my post, Forget Dubai, Visit Abu Dhabi! (Day Trip) for my recent experience over there, and after seeing the photos I promise you that it will make you want to go there. For places to eat that we went this time, check out Where to eat in Dubai 2023

The reason why we stopped by Dubai again was because we were taking a flight with Emirates to go to Vienna, so we decided to check out Dubai. I think 7 years is a good time to check it out again, since people have been saying a lot of real estate have tripled in price, a lot of crypto influencers and founders are currently based there, and a lot of expats love to go there as well, since there is 0% tax there.

That being said, after my second time in Dubai, I have to admit while I can see myself going there time to time for a visit, it definitely won’t be a place I will come again as a tourist, and I’ll explain why later. Continue reading It’s Been Almost 7 Years Since I Last Went to Dubai

Travel

Forget Dubai, Visit Abu Dhabi! (Day Trip)

ByRyan Lee

And no, this is not a paid post even though I’ve written the title as such. It’s just that, we signed up for a day trip in Abu Dhabi on Tripadvisor, guided by OceanAir Travels, and we had a fantastic experience, both because of the guide and the landmarks themselves, that we were blown away when we went there. Even when I posted these places on my Instagram story, a lot of my friends were also impressed and asked where these places were. Here’s the Tripadvisor that we joined – Dubai to Abu Dhabi Grand Mosque & Qasr Al Watan Palace. I liked this tour because rather than skimping over many different mediocre places like the Yas Island, this tour concentrates in visiting the Grand Mosque, the Presidential Palace, and the Etihad Towers for the observation deck, giving you ample amount of time to visit each of them.

Just a few quick pointers – the tour bus will probably pick you up at around 8 to 8:30am, so be ready at the lobby before then! Water bottles will be provided. Men will need to wear clothing that covers their shoulders, tummies, and pants longer than their knees. With ladies, the guide will provide a black abaya and a black scarf that you’ll have to return after the mosque visit. Women will ideally have to cover their ankles and also their entire arm. You must also hide any tattoos that are present in the body. And the tour will end roughly at around 4-4:30pm, but since it’s about a 1 hour and 15/30 minutes ride one way from Dubai to Abu Dhabi, you’ll be back to your hotel probably latest by 6pm.

I think a day trip to Abu Dhabi is so underrated at the moment, so you definitely should book a trip to visit their palaces and mosques before it starts getting too popular.
Continue reading Forget Dubai, Visit Abu Dhabi! (Day Trip)