The best part of traveling is trying new things — new sights, sounds, experiences — and that includes new tastes. One of the easiest ways to get a cultural taste “snapshot” of an area is trying the street food. Fresh, hot, tasty and different, street food gives you an opportunity to try a sample of what the locals eat. At GetAway Travel, we travel and believe in embracing everything travel has to offer, including new tasting opportunities. Our travel advisors can help you plan a tasty trip! 

 So many tasty options around the world 

 What country has the best street food? There are lists and lists and, honestly, it depends on your tastes.  Keep an open mind no matter where you travel, some of the smallest countries have the most memorable street food. And remember, those calories stay in the country where you ate the food! 

Cevapi on the grill

Believe it or not, Bosnia and Sarajevo rank up at the top of a lot of “best street food in Europe” lists. Try cevapi there, minced meat formed into small, thin sausage-like shapes served on flatbread with onion and ajvar. Ajvar is a traditional sauce of garlic, oil, vinegar, charred red peppers and roasted eggplant. It’s a little smoky, a little tangy and very tasty. Or try a borek, a hand-sized pie of phyllo-like dough with minced meat, potato or spinach tucked in the layers. Bulgaria has something similar called a banitsa and it comes stuffed with cheese, cabbage and spinach, or a sweet version with apples and walnuts. 

Borek

Other street food options in Bulgaria include, surprisingly enough, salads. Snezhanka salad or snow white salad is strained yogurt, cucumbers, garlic, salt, dill and oil. Sometimes you can get it with roasted peppers and walnuts and parsley. Shopska is cucumbers, tomatoes, white cheese and onions. Kebapche is similar to cevapi.  

Traditional Bulgarian snezhanka salad

Try a käsekrainer in Austria, a crispy sausage filled with melted cheese served with mustard. You can, of course, get fresh, hot pretzels in Austria or Germany. 

käsekrainer sausage

You may be surprised to learn German street vendors sell a salad, too. Wurstalat is a sausage salad! It is diced up sausage, cheese, onions and pickles with a vinaigrette dressing. Weisswurst is the traditional white, Bavarian sausage made from minced veal and pork back bacon. Flavored with parsley, lemon, mace, onions, cardamon and garlic, it is boiled and served on bread with mustard on the side. Rumford suppe is soup with vegetables and barley and Bayerische Kartoffel is a potato served with creme fraiche and chives. 

Weisswurst sausage served with pretzel and beer

Sweden is home to the tunnbrödsrulle. That’s Swedish flatbread rolled up to enclose a hot dog, mashed potatoes, raw and fried onions, mustard, relish and mayonnaise or shrimp salad. And while we are talking about hot dogs, you can get a perepichka in the Ukraine, a hot dog wrapped in a slightly sweet fried dough. 

Smørrebrød, traditional Danish sandwhich on black rye

Denmark gives us smørrebrød, a dark, dense, buttered piece of rye bread with a variety of toppings and a schmear. Vendors sell fish and chips in England and, of course, you can get pizza in Italy. But in Italy you can also get polpette di bollito, small disks of pulled beef that are shaped, breaded and fried. Some stands also sell suppli, fried rice balls with tomato sauce. 

Proper British fish and chips

Street vendors in Japan can whip you up an order of takoyaki, bite-sized tasty treats fried in special molded pans. They contain tiny pieces of octopus, green onions and pickled ginger. Yakitori is grilled meat on a stick. Ask what the protein is, sometimes vendors grill sparrow. A okonomiyaki is a savory pancake, cooked on both sides and topped with eggs, meat or seafood and topped with sauce, mayonnaise, bonito and seaweed flakes and pickled ginger. 

Takoyaki octopus balls

 Go for some sweet options 

 Indulge your sweet tooth with trdelnik in the Czech Republic, also called chimney cakes, they are rolled dough grilled over an open fire and then dusted with cinnamon sugar or nuts. They come filled with Nutella or whipped cream. You can get a sweet palaçinky (they come in savory options, too). It is similar to a crepe filled with jam, chocolate or hazelnuts. 

Chimney Cakes roasting over coals

In Belgium you can get waffles that are savory or sweet. The sweet options come topped with strawberries, whipped cream and Nutella. 

Waffle fanatics!

Don’t skip getting a gelato in Italy. It is creamier, more dense and more healthy than American ice cream and there are so, so many flavors to choose from. 

Gelato at the Trevi fountain, Rome

In Croatia you can get a fritule, a yeasty dough fritter with raisins and grated apple inside. Speaking of raisins, they are soaked in rum and added, with apples, to apfelstrudel in Austria. 

Austrian apfelstrudel

Go for the sweet crepe option when in France, they are served with chocolate, fruit, Nutella and custard! Or, pick up something called a raspberry bottereaux, raspberry-filled pastry pockets dusted with powdered sugar. 

basket of Romanian doughnuts

In Romania try gogoasa, puffed doughnuts that come plain or filled with jam. 

taiyaki red bean pastries in shape of sea bream

In Japan, look for taiyaki at a street vendor. It’s a fish-shaped waffle filled with red bean paste, custard or chocolate or dango which are sweet rice dumplings on a stick. 

Sweet korvapuusti cardamom buns with sugar and cinnamon

A korvapuusti in Finland is a tasty creation that is essentially a flat cinnamon bun. 

Making Baklava

Of course you can have baklava in Greece and churros in Spain. 

 What to remember when checking out street food 

 Eat where the locals eat. They know what tastes best and is fresh. If you are near a university, students gravitate towards the best food that is reasonably priced. Vendors that have children and seniors in their lines are a good sign, too. 

Long lines that are moving along are a good thing. That tells you the vendor serves great food and it’s going to be fresh when you get there. Lines aren’t bad, talk to the locals, make new friends! 

La Boqueria – Barcelona

Check out the vendor area, is it clean? Is there one person handling the food and one handling the cash? Talking to a vendor and getting a sample is a good thing, taking a sample that has been sitting out — not a good thing. Does the food come with a sauce? Then the vendor should add the sauce rather than you trusting a sauce that’s been sitting out on a counter. 

Market food, Christmas market in Germany

Eat when everyone else is eating even if it means standing in line. You may be thinking you should go see one more thing and then eat… but that means you might be getting food that has been sitting out. Fresh is better.  

GetAway Travel is standing by to help you plan a tasty fresh adventure! We can be reached at:  (262) 538-2140, e-mail: sue@getaway.travel or paul@getaway.travel 

Penne Arrabiata is a classic with tomato sauce and red chili peppers.

Spaghetti, ravioli, gnocchi and fettuccine, you can find all these pasta options in Italy, but wait, there’s more! Make sure your Italian adventure includes lots of different food options. When you travel to the country that made pasta famous, don’t limit yourself to what might be considered a “pasta dish” in the United States. Your travel advisor from GetAway can help you plot a course through the interesting sights in the country and give you a little advice on dinner courses, too! 

Durum wheat – green and not ripe yet – with poppies growing in the field

 First, some pasta facts and etiquette 

 Pasta is an Italian word meaning paste which refers to the dough that starts out as sort of an egg, flour and water paste. It was affordable for all because it took advantage of the country’s wheat crop. When it is dried, it has a long shelf live and the climate of the country lends itself to growing all sorts of yummy stuff that makes great toppings.  

Durum wheat close -up. Durum is latin for “hard” – making it favoralbe for pasta but less practical for bread flour

Pasta tastes different, by that we mean ‘better’ in Italy, because it is made of 100% durum wheat flour. It is dried slower and at lower temperatures which gives it a nutty flavor and it is higher in protein. When pasta is extruded, that is pushed through a die to make it a hollow tube, it has nice ridges and a rough texture on the outside. In Italy, the dies are bronze, not Teflon. So tube noodles in Italy make great vehicles for sauce because it sticks better to the inside and outside of the noodle. 

Carbonara is a pasta dish made with eggs, hard cheese, cured pork and black pepper. Simple and delicious

Pasta is the course after an appetizer and then comes the meat course. Italians eat about 60 pounds of pasta per person each year, and they still manage to fit into those skinny European jeans! That’s because a typical serving of pasta is about a cup, and then you get your meat course with a portion of vegetable and perhaps a salad. It comes on your plate or flat-bottomed bowl with the noodles, then the sauce on top and then, perhaps, cheese. It is served with a spoon and a fork, not for you to use the spoon to help twirl your spaghetti like they show in the movies, but for you to toss the ingredients. Then, you eat your pasta with a fork. Italian pasta is easier to twirl and keep on your fork because it is always served “al dente.” It has some chew to it, not like soft, squishy noodles that fall apart and can’t hold a sauce or stay on a fork. 

Making fresh pasta

Bread is served as a vehicle to sop up the sauce, not like garlic bread or breadsticks like in American restaurants. 

 So many pasta-abilities… 

 There’s thin, thick and rounded ribbon noodles, sheet noodles, thin tubes that suction up sauce and larger tube noodles made to be stuffed with tasty ingredients. Speaking of stuffed, there’s ravioli, tortelli, tortellini, tortelloni, agnolotti, orecchiette and cappelletti and then we can throw in a couple of odd shapes like rotelle, bigoli, orzo and rotini. 

Tagliatelle with ragu bolognese sauce

A word about sauces, pasta dishes can be served with butter and herbs, olive oil and herbs, tomato sauce, bolognese, ragú, Alfredo or béchamel sauce. The olive oil sauce could be infused with garlic or herbs. Ragu is a meat-based sauce where the meat is braised with tomato or wine sauce. It has some vegetables in it and that’s the difference between bolognese and ragú. Alfredo, which would be unusual to find on a restaurant menu, is a heavy cream, cheese and butter sauce while béchamel is made with milk and flour and is a light, silky sauce. 

Lasagna – layer upon layer of yummy goodness

Lasagna is considered a “Sunday” dinner dish because it is baked and in Italy, it is usually made with béchamel and tomato sauce. 

Linguini alle Vongole (clams)

So let’s talk ribbon-type noodles first. Spaghetti, linguini, vermicelli, capellini are great first course pastas and can be served with tomato, meat or vegetable sauces. Depending on what region of Italy you may be in, they could be served with pesto or green beans and potatoes, or tomatoes, peppers, olives and capers. Linguini could be served with anchovies and pine nuts, a spicy red sauce which would be called arrabbiata on a menu or with a clam sauce. 

Pesto. In our house we make it with pine nuts – what do you use?

Then there’s pasta options that are designed to be vehicles for fabulous fillings or savory sauces. Penne, cannelloni, manicotti, rigatoni, strozzapreti, ziti and tortiglioni are tubular noodles, some with ridges, some without, and if they come stuffed it’s with meat, cheese and spinach. Stuffed pasta options include ravioli, cappelletti, agnolotti, tortelli, tortellini and the slightly larger, tortelloni. Tortelli may show up as a dessert option because it is also used to describe fried pastry stuffed with cream or jam.  

Tortellini stuffed with mushroom, garlic and cheese

There’s those pastas that don’t really fit into any category except — pasta. Orecchiette is a pasta shaped like an ear that is found in the Puglia region. Often served paired with broccoli rabe or broccoli, it is sturdy enough to stand up to gorgonzola cheese. Gnocchi are darling little dough dumplings made with potatoes, spinach, eggs and ricotta. Macaroni is most often found in casseroles, fusilli is a long, thick cork-screw looking noodle considered a Sunday noodle because it usually shows up in a slow baked dish. Bucatini is a long noodle that looks like spaghetti, but it has a hole through the center and it is served with very savory ingredients like sardines, anchovies, pancetta and guanciale. 

Orecchiette with turnip greens

Whatever your pasta preference, you will surely find it in Italy. GetAway is ready to plan your next pasta-lovers adventure!  We can be reached at:  (262) 538-2140, e-mail: sue@getaway.travel or paul@getaway.travel 

Wheatens don’t really make pasta, but they sure are cute and they are named after the color of Wheat!

While Vienna may be the “City of Dreams,” Salzburg is the “Stage of the World” for its artistic and cultural significance. So after spending time in Vienna, take the three hour or so trip to Salzburg and also spend some time in Innsbruck. By train or by car, the trips involve some fabulous scenery. Salzburg is the birthplace of Mozart, the city where much of the “Sound of Music” was filmed and Innsbruck lays claim to a heritage of salt, silver and gold mines, an Olympic history and the Swarovski experience. GetAway Travel advisors can plan your trip and pack in some fabulous experiences and memories. 

Innsbruck

 Architecture, Mozart and more 

 The fourth largest city in Austria, Salzburg sits on the border of Germany and is divided by the Salzach River. Salt mining was the primary source of income here, and the reason Salzburg became a huge trade center. It is renowned for its well-preserved examples of Baroque architecture and much of the city has been designated a UNESCO World Heritage site because of the cultural significance of the buildings. 

Gardens at Schloss Mirabell Palace

The city seems like a movie backdrop with its historic churches, abbeys, palaces, concert halls and a fortress. It’s like you are just waiting for Julie Andrews to show up and start belting out “the hills are alive…” as you look up at the Alps. 

Mozart statue in Salzburg

Much of the “Sound of Music” was filmed in and around Salzburg and Mozart was born here so, the hills pretty much are alive with the sound of music. That’s especially true in August during the Salzburg Festival. More than 250,000 people gather to hear classical and contemporary performances by more than 200 artists during the festival.  

Wonderful view of Sazlburg featured right at the start of Do-Re-Mi

Tours of area historic sites make reference to their appearance in the “Sound of Music,” but there are also a number of tours that just take visitors to areas that were featured in the movie. 

Nonnberg Abbey

You can see the Von Trapp home which is actually Leopoldskron Palace, the Nonnberg Abbey where Maria’s abbey scenes were filmed and the Mondsee Cathedral where Maria married the Baron Von Trapp. There is, of course, a Sound of Music World Museum in Salzburg. 

Maria and the Baron’s wedding at Mondsee Cathedral

Hohensalzburg Fortress

Hohensalzburg Fortress sits on a hill overlooking the city. Take a trip on the cable car railway and wander through the medieval era rooms and the courtyard. It is thought to be one of Europe’s best preserved gothic structures. 

The Mozart Museum is Mozart’s birthplace in the center of the city. You can’t miss the bright yellow building. Walk through the family apartments, see his musical instruments and other period memorabilia. 

Salzburg cathedral at Christmas time

The Salzburg Cathedral is a stunning landmark. The centuries-old Baroque style building houses a crypt, some lovely statues, seven fabulous bells, the Vanitas art installation, a museum and a baptismal font. Mozart and Joseph Mohr, who wrote, “Silent Night,” were baptized in Salzburg Cathedral. 

The stunning Hellbrun Palace

The bright, yellow Hellbrunn Palace is worth a visit because of the trick fountains. Wander the gardens and check out the water features, fountains, grottos and geysers. 

A short drive from Salzburg will take you to Salt Mine Berchtesgaden. The tour there will give you all the information you need about the mines and salt mining and as an added bonus — a cool boat ride on a subterranean lake. 

 Add some sparkle with a trip to Innsbruck  

Pipe organ at St James Cathedral, Innsbruck

Innsbruck is a little more than two hours for Salzburg. It was also a trade center. There are some great examples of design and architecture in Innsbruck. The city is home to two small, but stunning churches. Hofkirche has 28 bronze statues of founders and heroes of Austria. The Cathedral of St. James is a great example of Baroque architecture. The interior has a beautiful ceiling, as well as great artwork. 

Schloss Ambras

Schloss Ambras is a medieval fortress that was transformed into a Renaissance castle by Archduke Ferdinand II for his wife. Enjoy the medieval armor and artwork inside the castle. The city is also home to a quaint Folk Art Museum as well as Tirol Panorama, a modern museum that lays out the complicated history of Tirol. 

Spanish Hall in Schloss Ambras

The 1976 Olympic venues are still in use and you can enjoy panoramic views of the city from the Olympic ski jump. 

Ski Jump at Olympic stadium, Innsbruck

Innsbruck is home to the world headquarters of Swarovski Crystals. Swarovski Kristallwelten is a delightful place to tour and visit! There are outdoor areas with large garden sculptures, a waterfall and a hedge maze. There are indoor displays about Swarovski, but the “Chamber of Wonders” is the star. Eighteen designers created inspired displays for Swarovski. 

Swarovski

If it sounds like Austria has a lot of your favorite things, GetAway Travel can get you there! Reach us at:  (262) 538-2140, e-mail: sue@getaway.travel or paul@getaway.travel 

We couldn’t resist! – one last Sound of Music video – The Lonely Goatherd

One of the most popular take-out foods is pizza. We can thank Italy for creating the pie that more than 5 billion people enjoy throughout the world each year. Pizza is different in Italy, varies from region to region, and even eating it is different. But honestly, it’s just darn tasty. So when you travel to Italy, and the travel advisors at GetAway are ready to plan a fabulous trip for you, don’t skip the pizza. The pies you get in Italy are far better than the steamed crust varieties you get when you order delivery in the United States. 

Pizza in the shape of Italy

 First, some pizza history 

 The first pizza likely didn’t have tomato on it because the fruit didn’t come to Italy until the Europeans brought it in about the mid-1500s. It was pieces of leftover dough either fried or baked with whatever ingredients were available. Pizza marinara was probably the first pizza more like the pizza Americans are used to, because it was fluffy dough prepared by the wives of fishermen who topped it with garlicky, oregano-seasoned tomato sauce. Truthfully, that early pizza was more like focaccia. 

Focaccia – well it ain’t so bad either!

In the 18th century, street vendors in Naples would sell flatbread topped with garlic, salt, herbs, lard and cheese. It was a satisfying and convenient fill-up for low-paid workers. Pizza got the royal seal of approval in 1889 when King Umberto I and Queen Margherita arrived in Naples and wanted to taste “local” food. The queen was said to be quite impressed by a pizza that featured basil, mozzarella and tomatoes on top. It helped that the toppings were the colors of the Italian flag! 

Pizza Margherita – Mozzarella, Tomatoes and Basil

 Let’s “pizza” our way through Italy 

 The biggest differences involve the dough and how the pie is cooked — baked in a wood-fired oven or an electronic oven. Toppings vary, but expect less than you get on a pizza in the US because the fabulous dough is the star and Italians expect their pizza to be light, not the gut-bomb pizzas with tons of toppings and a stuffed crust like some chains offer. And don’t expect to be able to get pineapple or chicken on a pizza. 

Pizza with Arugula & Prosciutto

Here are some regional differences. Naples is in the Capania region. Here, pizza napolitana is king. Think soft, thin crust with some nice airy bubbles and a thickish edge. It is baked in a wood-fired oven at a high heat. 

Pizza from Napoli

Rome is in the Lazio region and here you’ll enjoy pizza romano. It’s a larger size, crunchy, thin pizza with almost no edge. It gets its crispy texture because it is rolled out with a rolling pin and baked in an electronic oven. Liguria is on the West coast and home to the city of Genoa. Pizza here is a soft, flatbread similar to focaccia. The pillowy golden, brown dough contains milk which gives it the softer texture. 

Pizza in Rome

Trendy Milan is in the Lombardy region. Of course the “pizza” here is different. The panzerotti was created here. They are sort of the Hot Pockets version of pizza. Filled with tomato sauce, cheese and sometimes meat, they are a cross between a deep fried turnover and an empanada.They are a great street food choice! 

Chef making panzerotti in Milan

Sicily may be small in surface area, but it boasts three types of pizza! There’s pizza and pizza Siciliana which is two pieces of thick dough. The dough is airy, with a crunchy, crisp bottom and filling in between. The pizzolo is a round turnover creation stuffed with fillings and baked in a wood-fired oven.  

Thick crust Pizza from Sicily

Puglia, on Italy’s heel, has pizza pugliese. The thick dough rises slowly overnight in the refrigerator and it is full of flavor.  

Pizza from Puglia region

Vento is an area that specializes in gourmet or tasting pizza. You can get smaller slices with individual creative toppings. 

 What can you expect for toppings? 

Expect fresh toppings and that brings us to how pizzas are served. If you order them in a restaurant, they come to your table uncut and you eat them with a knife and fork. Yes, a knife and fork. If the menu or the server says they come with tomatoes, they mean tomatoes. Fresh tomatoes squished onto the crust with fresh mozzarella. Both of those ingredients contain a lot of liquid and you’ll either be eating your pizza with utensils or, depending on the region and how soft the crust is, folding it in half or thirds. You may get sausage as a filling, but not usually on top of a pizza. The fast-baked crust in many regions isn’t conducive to toppings that require a lot of cooking. 

So you may get onions, fresh anchovies, ham, prosciutto, potatoes, hard-boiled egg, broccoli, olives, mushrooms, olive oil, sea salt, herbs, artichokes, smoked cheese, gorgonzola, salami and goat cheese as a topping. Pizzas are served by type, you don’t order by topping and they are all one size.  

You can go into a bakery or shop and order pizza al taglio, or cut to go, You’ll see four or five different types of pizza and you point to what you want and show the size of the piece with your hands. The piece is weighed and you are charged by the weight. 

 Some common types of pizza 

 Marinara is tomato sauce, olive oil, oregano and garlic and margherita is tomatoes, mozzarella, fresh basil, salt and olive oil. Frutti de Mare would be pizza with scampi, mussels or squid on tomato sauce with no cheese. Quattro stagioni is a four-sectioned pizza with artichokes on one part to signify spring, tomatoes on one section for summer, mushrooms for autumn and ham for winter. Pizza capricciosa has mozzarella, ham, mushrooms, artichokes and tomatoes. It could also have prosciutto, marinated artichoke hearts and egg. If you order diavola you’ll get a pie with tomato, mozzarella, oregano and spicy salami. You can order a vegetarian pizza or pizza Bianca which comes with no tomato sauce. Quattro formaggi is four cheese — mozzarella and something like gorgonzola, provola and fontina. 

Quattro stagioni Pizza

At GetAway Travel we are all about experiencing a country through the culture, the sights and, the food. Your travel advisor will help with a vacation experience that includes all of that, especially good eats! We can be reached at:  (262) 538-2140, e-mail: sue@getaway.travel or paul@getaway.travel 

Thanks for reading our blog.  We told you you would be hungry now!  Please share with your friends and let them know you are ready to join them on a GetAway to Italy – Ciao

P.S.  Soft Coated Wheaten Terriers should not eat pizza – but this guy is too cute!