Bathing with the locals

I spent all day wandering Andrassy Utca, one of the main drags that goes from the center of Pest out the the city park. It had been raining lightly all day, but not so heavy that I've felt the need to hide indoors. Along the way I visited the Terror Museum, which documents Hungaries occupation first by the Nazis and then by the Soviet Union. It was a very modern museum with very dramatic displays and impressive use of technology. The main atrium is very memorable, with a massive Soviet tank filling the space and a wall stretching up three floors with pictures of victims. The exhibit starts at the top and you work your way down to the first floor (that's the 2nd story to you American types). From there you take a very slow elevator ride down to the basement while a short DVD plays on a flatscreen in the elevator describing the execution procedure. At first I was confused why they wanted to shuffle me into the elevator, I was fine using the stairs I told them and went looking for some, but the museum staff persisted and eventually ushered me into the elevator with the rest of the waiting tourists.

At the end of Andrassy Utca is Heroes Square with a massive group of monuments and statues dedicated to the greatest Hungarians in history. Behind Heroes Square a bridge led to the City Park, built in 1896 to celebrate Hungary's 1000th birthday. There was a replica of a Transylvanian castle, during the time Hungary ruled that part of the continent, lots of paths to wander, a zoo, and the Szechenyi Baths. By far the greatest attraction is the Baths, and so far my most favorite experience here in Budapest. Built in Roman and Turkish style, the outside baths are massive and opulent. I borrowed a suit and towel and strutted my stuff around the hot baths along with the hairy, pot-bellied, and speedo-clad men playing chess in the baths. The water was so warm and rejuvinating, it felt so good to just float around and stand under the spouts of water. The light rain ceased to matter. Unfortunately I wasn't aloud to take pictures while in the baths, besides there was nowhere to put my camera once I got stripped down. I spent about two hours lounging around in the baths before continuing on with my day.

After getting dried off, dressed, and back on the street it was time for a late lunch. I found a nice cafe around the corner from the zoo and had a delightful meal, complete with a couple of glasses of Hungarian sweet wine, Tokaji. Next I strolled through the zoo, which wasn't anything special, but since I was there it was a nice way to spend half an hour.

I rode the Metro back towards the center of town. The orange line plays these cute little musical ditties when you pull into and leave a station. I was whistling along with them in no time. I got off at the Opera station because I'd read there was a decent internet cafe nearby. Lo and behold, I have found it and it is good. I will save posting my last pictures for when I get back to Krakow. I can use my laptop and the internet at the office which will be much more enjoyable and less expensive.

I leave for Krakow on the night train at 19:10, just three hours from now. I'm not sure what I'm going to fill the remaining time with. Talk to you all again soon.

A hole in my shoe and a chip in my tooth

I've definitely put on the miles since the beginning of the month. My shoes are wearing very thin in parts, my calves are rock hard, and my legs haven't been in this good of shape since my soccer days. Maybe I should find a team to scrimmage with when I get home, and keep up the hiking routine. I'll need to buy some new shoes first.

I noticed something in the air in Vienna was bugging my nose, it started running soon after arriving and didn't stop until I left, and it wasn't due to cigarette smoke this time around.

My train to Budapest didn't leave until almost 14:00 so I found time in the morning to squeeze in one more museum. I saw a great collection of paintings, and Greek and Eqyptian artifacts. I would definitely recommend buying one of the package tickets, which are good for all the sights I went to see. They pay for themselves after only three visits.

Final thoughts on Vienna: too large to see in two days, I never got out of the center ring. Lots of delicious pastries and treats to be had there. Bikes, skates, and scooters are very popular and useful, but you have to watch where you walk or get run over. It's a very tourist friendly town, but a bit expensive. You can find deals if you look hard enough though. Someone could easily spend a week in Vienna and not be bored.

I made it to my train with plenty of time to spare. I left at 13:52 and arrived in Budapest at 16:35. I ate a simple lunch on the train from my supplies. I managed to take a small chip out of one of my bottom teeth while biting through a stale roll though.

I'm staying at a cute little place here, very near the Parliment building, called Hotel Hold, on Hold street of course. They put me in a small room with the bed up in a loft. They knocked a bit off the price for not having the room I wanted ready for me when I got here. Still, I'm not complaining, I'm just glad they had anything on short notice. I'm getting used to the Metro. Budapest is more confusing than Prague and more spread out than Vienna. I rode down to Raday street, which is the locals' favorite restaurant row, and found a place to sit at the Berliner. I dined on goulash and pasta while big fat Hungarian mosquitos dined on me.

After dinner I took a long walk up the Danube River. I'm staying on the Pest side of the river and I don't think I'll have time to get to the Buda side, so I had to content myself with just taking pictures of it at night. Time for bed now. Good night.

Tiny little sandwiches

Guten Tag.

Since I went to bed so early I woke up at 5:00. Amazingly enough nothing is open that early. I spent the time reading through my guidebook, planning my day, and eventually wandered down to Naschmarkt, which starts to perk up around 7:00. It was full of fresh fruit, dried fruit, olives, meat, pastries, all kinds of vinegar, wine, spices, T-shirts, sunglasses, and other junk. I had fun wandering up and down the market for awhile since it was near my hotel. When the internet shop opened I was all over it. I'm addicted to email, I admit it. If I kept track, I think internet expenses would be second on my list next to food.

After I had my fill of posting pics, updating blogs, and sending emails I went back to the Hapsburg Palace and toured the treasury. I've never seen so many bejeweled scepters, robes, and crowns before. They also have enough reliquaries filled with pieces of the original cross, the blood of Christ, and fragments of bones of saints to reconstruct the entire Catholic pantheon two times over. Overall it was pretty neat, even with the constant clicking of the motion trackers in each room reminding you that you're being watched all the time.

I stopped for finger sandwiches at Trzesniewski Buffet and a tiny beer. It was fun to just point at random sandwiches that looked tasty and try them out. Fast, cheap, efficient, I would do it again.

Next I took a tour of the Opera house. They only have two tours a day this time of year so it was pretty busy at the first tour of the day. I watched a tiny French woman worm her way in front of me in line, she even glared at me at one point when I asserted my position. Of course there wasn't a shortage of tickets so I'm not quite sure what her problem was. I overheard many visitors proclaiming loudly in line that they "sure hope they speak English in there". Gotta love American tourists. Our tour guide was Austrian with a very thick accent. It reminded me of Harrison Ford's feigned German accent in the Last Crusade when he claimed to be at the castle to "inzpect ze tapeztries!" especially when our guide kept pointing out all the tapestries. Not many of my pictures turned out well inside, mostly because I was gun-shy about using the flash inside what I considered museums after being barked at in the last cathedral. That didn't stop most of the other tourists, they were all happily flashing away. Oh well. The tour seemed rather short to me, but I had busy day planned so I didn't mind so much. We were warned that all operas and ballets are sold out months in advance and that a very few standing room tickets are available an hour before the show, but that people line up early in the morning just for a chance to get them during the popular operas. Tonights opera was going to be Swan Lake. I decided not to wait in line for standing room tickets. It would have been great to see a show there, but I had too much else I wanted to accomplish. Maybe next time, I can book long in advance.

After the tour, I sat down outside and savoured a cup of coffee as I wrote in my journal and flipped through the sights in my guidebook. Next stop was the New Palace Museum back at the Hapsburg Palace. They have a great military, musical instrument, and Greek artifact collection. Plus I was able to wander the beautiful marble halls of the palace.

I decided to walk the entire old town ring and take pictures next. I had taken the tram around the ring the day before, but we zipped past all the sights too quickly to get decent pictures. I made it about a quarter of the way, near City Hall before I was hungry so I stopped at the park and ate more food from my magic backpack. I had taken some time earlier in the morning to restock on cheese, rolls, trail mix, apples, and water.

By the time I got all the way around the ring it was time for more internet and then dinner. I wandered back toward Bermuda Triangle and found the closest cafe to St. Ruprechts monastery, Zum Kuchldragoner. I had a tasty burger, potato wedges and a beer. After that I started a self guided pub crawl. It was short but fun.

The internet cafe closes in 5 minutes so I have to wrap this up. Good night all!

Early train to Vienna

Somehow I was still able to wake up in time and catch my train to Vienna the next morning. We left Prague main station and 6:23 in the morning. My breakfast consisted of things I found in my backpack. Most of it was still good, but the cheese was a bit sweaty, probably from being in my bag so long, so I avoided that. I took a nap on the train, but when I woke up we were in Marchegg, which didn't seem right to me at all, it was on the wrong side of Vienna. I checked my watch and it was later than we were supposed to arrive. I panicked for a moment thinking I missed my stop, but it just turned out we had taken a long detour due to some flooding on normal track. We arrived about two hours later than planned. As a side note I noticed my watch it broken. The knob came off, so it still tells time, but I won't be able to change it back when I fly home. Something is trying to tell me to stay in this time zone.

I got some Euros, grabbed a map, bought my ticket to Budapest for Tuesday, and then wandered off in the direction of my hotel. The Hotel Admiral is nice enough, although the room is tiny. At least there are no ants in the bed and I have a private bathroom and shower. I really needed that shower by the time I got to the hotel. After refreshing a bit I starting wandering around town.

So far my impression of Vienna is that it is bigger, more modern, the sights are farther apart and generally larger sites, the city is cleaner, and classier, but it's a bit more boring. Prague is definitely seedier. While I was there I was approached many times by drug dealers, sex workers, and varies scam artists. I even saw some racy nude pictures being taken on Charles Bridge in broad daylight amongst the tourist crowds. You have to stay on your toes and keep your eyes open in Prague, but it's a fun and lively place to be. I'll give Vienna more time though to charm me.

I did a quick tour of the major sites near old town, swinging by the Opera House, St. Stephen's, the Hapsburg Palace, and various other sites. Later I wandered up to the area known as the Bermuda Triangle, where most of the trendy pubs & clubs are, right near an old monastery. It always seems like the good places are near monasteries. I wonder why that is.

I went to bed early last night and caught up on my sleep. I really needed it, and once again my feet were tired.

Towers & Pubs

For my last day in Prague I went back to a few sights to explore them more. First I climbed the old town clock tower to take a few pics of the square. Then I took a quick tour of the Monastery library, which was quite impressive, but I somehow managed to buy the ticket that made you stand on the other side of the rope from the best parts of the library while you watched more important people get a guided tour in those areas. Still very impressive collection and the library itself was beautiful. Worked my way back to the castle and braved the crowds outside the gates and cathedral. I ended up spending more time waiting to buy a ticket than to get inside the cathedral. It was amaying inside. I walked around the nave and apse, down into the crypt and up into the tallest tower. The narrow spiral stone staircase was jam packed with people going up and also trying to squeeze past on their way down. There were 287 steps in the tower, but I lost count after 190. Once at the top I took my time and lots of pictures to make it seem worth the hassle. Then I pushed and shoved my way back down the stairs. I think I may have crushed a few children and grandmothers along the way. It was every man for himself in there... horrible. I managed to lose my ticket in the crush somewhere, so I couldn't get into any of the other sights in the castle, but I think I saw what I wanted to anyways.

That evening I went on a guided pub crawl. They promised one beer at each place and dinner at some point along the way. We gathered under the astronomical clock and was surprised to see a rather attractive young gal gathering the money and handing out tickets for the tour under her bright yellow umbrella. All the tour guides use some sort of device like this to herd their tourists around. You see many umbrellas, sometimes a flower on a stick, and other times more interesting choices of icons. Anyways after everyone was gathered and paid up they did the old bait and switch move as the umbrella was taken by a balding guy in his late 30s, named Radk, who would be taking us on our tour. It seemed more appropriate at least, I would expect our pub tour guide to look like he spent most of his time in the pubs, not a fresh faced girl with hopes and dreams. Our crew was made up mostly of Brits, Aussies, a couple of Germans, and three Americans, including myself, and of course Radk, our Czech guide. I struck up a conversation with him about the tour. He doesn't actually get to pick the pubs at all, they are chosen by the tour company and change only infrequently. I was disappointed to hear that, but it lined up with what I suspected. Radk was a decent guide and personable enough, but it did feel like we were being hustled through our tour as efficiently as possible. We ended up at three different spots, none of which had much character or would have been a place I would have chosen on my own. Dinner was a non-event, your choice of chicken, goulash, or fried cheese and french fries. I went with fried cheese, and I think I got the best out of the bunch from what I overheard. After the last pub Radk walked us back to the clock tower and said good night. I thought about heading back to bed, since my train was leaving at 6:23 the next morning, but it was my last night and I didn't want to end it with a disappointment.

I ended up finding the discoteque that the guys in Krakow told me about, right near the Charles Bridge, which has five floors of bars, djs, and dance floors. It was fun to wander between floors and check the scenes, but only two floors had much going on at all. I had a Red Bull & vodka and watched the people dance, not feeling too dancy myself. I was glad to see they had free internet (well cover was stiff enough so it had better be free) so I plopped down for a bit and did some emailing until my terminal crashed. I finished my drink and wandered home.

Making friends with booze

Last night I ate at Plzenska Restaurace u Dvou Kocek, literally the restaurant "by the two cats". They used to name buildings by the decorations above the doors instead of using numbered addresses, but that all changed to make it easier to collect taxes. The atmosphere was great and there was live accordion music. I wasn't sure if I would get a place to sit, but they found a spot at the end of a table where a nice older German couple was already sitting. I ordered a Pilsner Urquell and connected with the gentlemen with a friendly raise of the glass. The couple seemed very nice and we smiled at each other as we ate our meals. They both ordered shots of what I assumed was vodka so the next time the waiter came by I offered to buy us all a round. The lady politely declined but the gentleman gladly accepted. What the waiter brought out was not vodka, but a slightly yellowish liquor that had a cinnamon and licorice flavor, my best guess is that it was Ouzo. That lubricated the conversation and soon we were chatting amiably in English together. He told me they were on holiday here in Prague, that he'd been to the U.S. on a few occasions for work and pleasure, and that they had sons and daughters living in Austria and Italy. I shared some about my travels and work as well. The gentleman ordered us another round of beers and we passed the time very pleasantly. I ended up giving him my card and he promised to write. I took a picture of them and he snapped one of me and his wife, which I promised to send to him when he wrote. The food was good and a bit spicy, I would definitely come back.

I had to leave to get to my play. I only got lost once on the way there. The Black Light Theatre is small and intimate. I sat fairly close but to one side, it would have been better to be sitting more towards the center because many of the effects were oriented that way. The show, Aspects of Alice, was entertaining. It was a bit like being on a dreamy drug trip with lots of floating objects and people, friendly giants, disembodied hands, dancing flames, and even some gratuitous full frontal female nudity, which is always a nice treat. It was an enjoyable evening.

Finally a picture update

Finally I found a decent internet access point and got some pics posted. Have fun!

Sight-seeing on Czech knees

The hostel had a better map for free than the one I had bought at the train station and it was more compact. On it was advertising for guided walking tours so I read through them all. I notice a 6 hour one starting in just 15 minutes so I quickly unloaded my heavier stuff, repacked in the smaller bag and ran to catch the beginning of the tour. They were just starting at the astronomical clock when I got there. The cost would be 1000 crowns, or about 40 dollars, when they got to the tour boat. Its a good thing because I saved 40 dollars when I realized how lame the tour was after just a few minutes of following the guide around. I was much better off on my own with the book and moving at my own pace. I get very impatient on guided tours. This whole trip Ive been moving at top speed through the sites, skipping anything that seemed like it would not be efficient and packed with value. Ive been extremely frugal with my money as well, except when it comes to food and drink. So far Ive gotten by pretty cheaply too, subsidizing my meals with staples like bread, cheese, fruit, sausage, and water bought from the grocery stores.

The first Americans I met were a Texan couple in their 50s. Apparently they go on a European tour every year, but the guy couldnt stop complaining about things. He didnt seem like he was enjoying himself. He complained about the roads and how hard it was to drive in Eastern Europe, and kept trying to explain to me the best places to rent a car and where to park etc etc, and his wife kept reminding him that I was relying on public transportation for the whole trip. That never seemed to sink in on him. I just nodded and smiled and politely took my leave at a break in his diatribe. I felt sorry for his wife. Maybe if I came here every year Id get grouchy, but I sure hope not.

So far the weather has been alternating between being sunny and warm, to grey and windy, to lightly raining, and even the infrequent downpour. I havent minded the changes, although I end up spending a lot of time packing and unpacking my jacket. At one point I got caught out in a hard rain and got soaked as I ran back to the hostel. At least I dont have to worry about washing these jeans for another couple days.

I keep running into people who have the same guidebook as me. Its an instant and fun way to connect with people. Not surprisingly we end up at the same hostels, restaurants, out of the way sights, and such all listed in the book. It would be fun to check when I get home to see if there is a forum or website where I could try to catch up with some of them and hear how the rest of their trips went. I do love this book, but I have some complaints about it as well. I will be tempted to write a review once I get back.

Thursday I spent all day wandering Old Town, the Jewish Quarter, and New Town. I saw Charles Bridge but saved Little Quarter and the Castle Quarter for Friday. Even after seeing all the major sites on the East side of the Charles Bridge, I still had time to wander back and forth to the train station multiple times. Each time I would forget to do something and have to head back later. After picking up schedules for the trains to Vienna and Cesky Krumlov I decided not to cram in a side trip to Krumlov and bought my ticket to Vienna. I carefully selected a time that I thought would be best to leave Prague before buying the ticket and was surprised to learn that it is good for anytime in the next month. That would have saved me a lot of time and stress if Id known that before hand. I guess since its not an overnight sleeper I dont have to reserve a seat. Good to know, now when I get to Vienna I can buy my ticket to Budapest without stressing out about it. I also decided to skip Bratislava, both Rick Steves and the curmudgeon Texan said my time is better spent in Prague, Vienna, and Budapest.

Thursday night I went out for a late night walk and got myself nice and lost for awhile. I wasnt too stressed about it and had a decent map with me. Ive learned I can always follow the tram lines in the road until I find something that I recognize. Also Ive learned to watch the locals and imitate them when Im not sure what Im doing. That little trick has come in very handy.

Friday I woke up with ants in my bed. Not a pleasant experience. Ill try one of the top bunks tonight. The breakfast was uninspiring so I picked up some supplies at the grocery store and had an impromtu breakfast near the Charles Bridge. I leisurely strolled across the bridge and took a short tour of Kampa Island on the other side. Then I walked through Little Quarter square and up the long steps to the castle. I seemed to be walking against the crowd most of the way and doing the standard tour backwards. I liked being different and a source of irritation to the hordes of tourists trying to walk in the other direction. I felt like was paddling upstream in the center of a river of people. The castle was interesting but I didnt bother buying tickets to the museums and sites, I felt they were overpriced and overcrowded. I was mostly interested in the Gothic and Neo-Gothic monstrosity that is the St. Vitus Cathedral. I loved it. Its construction spans 600 years, hence the mix of architectural styles. I was appalled by the gargantuan queue waiting to get inside the cathedral at 10:00 so I begrudgingly passed up the opportunity to see the inside. I will try again earlier tomorrow morning.

After leaving the castle I wandered down to the Monastery and had lunch at the old brewery. I ate a light lunch of soup, cheese toast, and two kinds of beer. By the time I wandered over to see the library at the monastery it was closed for an hour. Something else I need to do tomorrow. Next I hiked through the park to Petrin Tower for an excellent view of the city. Downstairs was an exibit dedicated to the greatest mind and inventor who never existed, Jara Cimrman. It was a very funny display. I hiked down the side of Petrin Hill and then back to Old Town in search of an internet cafe and some coffee. Along the way I spotted the Black Light Theater, which I am planning on going to tonight to watch Aspects of Alice. It should be interesting.
Thats all Ive got so far. I still havent found a place I can upload my pictures from. Ive got a ton, hopefully I dont run out of room anytime soon.

Until next time, Ciao.

A quiet morning in Prague

I had a good time at Szymon's watching Barcelona v.s. Arsenal with his friends. Maja was kind enough to offer me a ride to the train station so that I could stay longer and not walk in the rain. I got to the station in time to meet up with Marcin. Together we found my train car we said our goodbyes. I was surprised to see that the sleeper car could hold a total of six people, bunked three to a side. The top bunk didn't look much bigger than a luggage rack. Luckily I was on the very bottom and only sharing the car with two very friendly South Korean students who were studying English in London, but in Eastern Europe for a short vacation. We chatted a bit before turning out the lights and catching some sleep. I was fairly comfortable on the ride, much more so than on an airplane. There were a few brief stops along the way and I only had to get out my passport once during the trip. The ride seemed to be over very quickly, and we arrived at Hlavni Nadrazi (Main Station) in Prague exactly on time at 7:01.

I spent almost an hour wandering around the station trying to get my bearings, find a bankomat and withdraw some Czech crowns, find a decent map to buy, figure out the tram ticket machine (which I still have yet to use my one tram ticket), and find the exit. I followed my map to the main square and sat down to eat my breakfast of bread, cheese, sausage, water, and an apple. It was very peaceful in the square at 8:30 before the hoards of tourists all woke up and the commercial tours began, probably my most favorite memory of Prague so far. I stuck around to watch the astronomical clock strike 9:00 and put on it's hourly performance and then went in search of my hostel.

I booked a room at the Art Prison Hostel, which sounds dubious, but is actually quite nice. I have a four person room all to myself and it's very nice to have a sturdy door and a lock so that I feel safe leaving most of my things (and stuff) in the room. Paul's magic backpack has a smaller backpack you can unzip from the rest of it, so I've been using that as my day bag. I have to get myself one of this! I took a shower, got dressed and then sat down to plan my day.

I have to get off the shared computer now so I'll save the rest of today's entry for later. Ciao.

Last night in Krakow, ready for Prague

Tonight I take the sleeper train leaving Krakow at 22:41 and arriving in Prague at 7:01 the next morning. From there I hope to check in early to the hostel I reserved a room in for three nights. The Pension Unitas & Art Prison Hostel came recommended as a convenient, cheap, and interesting place to stay. Apparently the basement was used as a secret communist prison. Now it's a cheap place to sleep for the night. I hope they let me leave after I check in.

Last night I packed my bags, putting what I thought I would need for the next week in the smaller bag. This morning I skype'd my sweetheart, ate breakfast, got my stuff out of the safe, checked out of the hotel, and took a taxi to the Biprostal building where the LLP offices are located. At first the driver assumed I was headed to the train station or the airport, so when I wasn't making myself clear I got some assistance translating from the front desk clerk. A short ride and ten zloty later I was at Biprostal. As I was wheeling my two bags and carry-ons into the building I got a few strange looks from people who work there. I could imagine their internal dialogue "Silly tourist, he thinks this is a hotel".

Paul is lending me his backpack for my trip. Thank you, Paul, once again you've proven to be an excellent host and friend. He brought it in this morning and I moved my stuff from the smaller bag to the backpack. After a load test I took Paul's advice and edited down my clothes that I was planning on taking. If I'm going to be hostel jumping across Eastern Europe I need to pack light. Paul made an excellent point, that if I don't have enough to wear, I can always buy something when I need it and it will be a great souvenir. I think I have it down to a reasonable weight now, but I'm probably still taking way more than I need. This will definitely be a learning experience. I'm looking forward to it and the next time, whenever that may be.

I'm leaving the rest of my junk locked in Paul's office while I'm away. When I return I will have to do one more quick repacking before Friday. It shouldn't be too much to manage. In fact I will probably have extra room in my bags to fill up with vodka!

Paul and I just got back from lunch. We took care of my last minute supply shopping and then ate a delicious lunch at a Ukrainian style restaurant, that I didn't catch the name of, but I do remember trying to get in there during the last trip with Daryl, Tom, and Mark when it was too busy. The zurek with horseradish in particular was tasty. On the walk back I picked up a new pocket-knife, something that will come in very handy, and some munchables for the train ride and whenever.

This afternoon I might go to Szymon's flat to watch part of a football match before I need to go catch my train. Marcin had to take a train this morning to his hometown to get his passport and will be returning in the evening. He may get back to the train station just as I am leaving. It would be nice to see him before I head off.

I am leaving my laptop, and I will most likely not have easy access to the internet. I do plan on posting pictures and doing blog updates when I find convenient internet cafes. Stay tuned. Ciao.