It’s a simple question. If you save up money to take a romantic trip to Vienna with your significant other, how would you most want to spend your time?
If you have a Hello Kitty fanatic in your life, you already know the answer…forget the culture, forget the sights, forget the romance, forget the history and head straight for the Hello Kitty shop:
This picture reflects how a holiday to beautiful Vienna can be ruined when finding Kitty World down a side street. Hours upon hours were spent, while missing out on all the sights Vienna has to see…fun
The problem with any type of traveling you do with a Hello Kitty fanatic is that the trip ultimately turns into a Hello Kitty search quest. Even worse, if there is anything Hello Kitty within 100 miles of where you are visiting, the Hello Kitty fanatic’s radar will somehow hone in on it, take you there and ensure that the vast majority of the vacation is spent with the evil feline. That pretty much sums up every vacation I have ever taken while in Hello Kitty Hell…
Sent in by Mark who has my deepest sympathies and is welcome to blog here at any time for all the pain, suffering and downright Hello Kitty Hellishness that I’m sure he’s endured…
Hmm… Vienna isn’t so very, very far… Maybe a short weekend trip?
There’s like tons of Hello kitty stores where I live… why do you need to spend more time in it when you’re taking a vacation?
I thought Hello Kitty is “… like crack for young Asian girls”.
It is quite interesting to see that the evil feline is now spreading to other parts of this globe.
Hello Kiity always reminds me of Borg from Star Trek.
Yes, “resistance is futile.”
Vienna, Austria? I hope not. I overdosed on Mozart there, with all their sodding “Mostly Mozart” shops selling Mozart snow shakers and Mozart tea towels and Mozart socks and an interesting comestible called “Mozart Balls”… now people have to go through the same thing with Hello Kitty?
There’s so much history to be seen in Vienna, so why anyone would rather delve into something modern and globally widespread like Hello Kitty, in a country renowned for hundreds of years of culture, is a complete mystery to me.
Although, I definitely classify Hello Kitty on the same level of addicting as cigarette smoking. Easy to start, extremely difficult to quit.
Sad…..
I wonder if there’s some way to combine Hello Kitty and Mozart as a product. Hello Wolfie o something. Oh, just imagine …
> I wonder if there’s some way to combine Hello Kitty and Mozart as a product.
I bet people from Sanrio are checking this Blog so your comment gave them a new idea to open up a new teritory to explore (or to exploit).
What a waste of good travel time. :/
Why???? Oh why????
Now seriously why? I’m speechless
My boyfriend can relate to this. Everywhere we travel, I have to scope out places for Hello Kitty stuff. When we went to Toronto, it wasn’t about the sites, it was about the Hello Kitty haul I could come back with.
In my defense, the country where Mark and I live is probably the only place in the world untouched by Hello Kitty, South Africa is a lonely place to be if you are a kitty fanatic perhaps you should consider immigrating here and finally be free from kitty hell.
Although I would definitely miss your ranting …it is a weekly pleasure for me to see just how the KITTY is slowly taking over the world and torturing her non-believers.
What a complete waste of a visit to one of the most beautiful cities in the World.
Kitteh!!
I totally agree. Now I like HK and all, but seriously, that’s stupid. If I were in Vienna, I’d be too much in awe of the history surrounding me to get excited about Hello Kitty. (I am however, a history major, so that might be a reason.)
So I have to say two things as an HK fan: 1) I too lookup any and all HK related stores when I travel (hey, that’s just how I roll) and 2) I want one of those coffee mugs!
Okay, now: I on the otherhand, would see all the sites, THEN go do the HK shopping…
P.S. the characters on the walls look dumb- whoever drew them got it wrong, wrong, wrong!
Thank- you mhkitty, I was in Vienna for two weeks, which was not mentioned and in that time Mark and I saw all the sites, galleries, palaces and we snowboarded, so spending a few hours HK shopping in my mind is totally okay….of course the boyfriend doesn’t mention the hours of shopping we had to do looking for things for him.
Ok, I’ll ‘fess up that I would pass down the shopping streets on a typical trip to Wein, just because I like the architecture. I might even visit a shop or 2, but mostly for things like Austrian souvineers (sp) and postcards, and because you find cafes in them.
Sachertorte und cafe bitte?
Philippa: I would love to go the South Africa someday….along with just about every other major country 🙂
I went to church with the nicest family from SA, they moved back, I believe, a few years ago… they said it was beautiful and so neat how you go a few hundred km north and all the scenery changes…
I tried to find HK in Aruba, Martinigue, Guadeloupe and French Guiana, but my stays were so brief I had no time to wander!
I will have to quote another poster on this one….
“Sad.”
Seriously. That person is pathetic….
hmm….the sad thing is that in such locations as vienna there really cant be too many sanrio stores so the fact that one was located only makes it kind of like fate playing a dirty trick on the sad traveler
Another place to be free of the evil feline : India! appart from a few day planner here and there and perhaps a few kiddie lunch box there is no HK shop or anything widescale…YET
I’ve not seen much, if any, HK merchandise in shops here in GB, and I know the Anime is neither available broadcast or on R2 DVD.
London has a few stores, there were a few product lines made just for selling there. I know this cuz I have a few pieces I got off eBay 🙂
I think British (wearing a dress made from the flag a’la Austin Powers) and Scottish (wearing a kilt!) HK’s would be a great idea!
What exactly is wrong with spending time in a shop looking at the thing you love most? You act like that nobody buys anything when they go on vacation. One of the best parts of traveling to new countries is seeing what Hello Kitty goods they have. It’s much better than spending money in an overpriced tourist shop.
This proves again that you don’t have any respect for your wife and what she likes to do. If you did, you would spend more time letting her do the things she loves. Why even go on a vacation if you aren’t going to let anyone else enjoy it?
Ah, I only really go to London on business, so never really see the shops; just office blocks, restaurants and pubs.
Can’t forget the Pubs 🙂
Have a pint (or two) for me…
Will do, probably Sam Smith’s or Fuller’s
How about one of each!
aw damn. Had I known there was a HK store when I went to Vienna I’d have gone! :*( as it was I just meandered the streets by myself waiting for the tour bus to come pick me back up (all the regular shops were too pricey for me)
darlene needs to go away
perhaps she should shoot herself with a HK gun so she can go to HK heaven and shut up about that damn cat in hell
Ok, but not on the same night probably; I’m working so I don’t drink that much when I’m down there.
Oh, man, when I head over the Isles- hopefully sometime in the next two years- I’m going to be trashed everynight!
On whiskey, though…hate beer, ale, mead, etc…
Grrrrrr!!!! It’s Scotch Whisky – no “E”!!! 😉
Let me know when you’re in more advanced planning.
Sorry, I knew that from watching the travel channel!
My bad!
Taken as meant then I guess. I’m Scottish, and proud of it and Single malts. I don’t bother with Bourbon or rye, and think Irish is dull and lacking in depth and character, although it is smooth.
@darlene
“One of the best parts of traveling to new countries is seeing what Hello Kitty goods they have.”
Are you high? Why would you spend your hard earned cash getting to a different country, just to look in one or two specialist shops?
@ darlene ‘One of the best parts of traveling to new countries is seeing what Hello Kitty goods they have. It’s much better than spending money in an overpriced tourist shop.’
uh… hello kitty stuff is overpriced, so i’d rather spend my money on something overpriced WITHOUT hello kitty jacking up the price more just cuz her face is on it
This photo is Kitty shop in Vienna. I drew Kitty painting what is backgraound in this photo.
I am a korean artist whose name is Geumpa Lee.
I am staying in Korea but I will go back to Vienna 0n 2010 April.