Don't order fish in a land locked country
Don't generalize with a GPS, it will always take you in the wrong direction.
Eastern european drivers are more dangerous than the Spanish. They haven't figured out that there is no such thing as half dead.
Croation's only cook whole pigs on spits during tourist season.
Sausages are a safe bet anywhere.
On November 1st, All Saints day, everything is closed before you have a chance to get what you need.
Tractors have the right of way on all roads except motorways.
Buy olive oil, nuts, and produce from roadside vendors.
Wine is cheaper in the grocery store.
Ipermarts have everything you need, if you can't find a roadside stand.
Buy from local producers.
Don't buy cheese from places called Bingo Market.
If you're nice to someones dog, they will be nice to you.
Smiling at people is a fifty fifty proposition you'll get a response.
Eggs are better in Europe in general.
Croissants should be eaten in France, though other countries try.
Ikea kitchens are cool.
Small communist farms are still used and some have small bungalows.
Cellphone towers are everywhere---except here in the mountain town we're in.
One should always arrive by train to Venice.
.
Friday, November 4, 2011
Thursday, November 3, 2011
Back to the West......
Rovinj was a fabulous stay. We ended up in four star hotel as a result of my driving and navigation errors. As mentioned earlier, the place was loaded with Italian families, grandparents kissing grandkids, parents kissing grandparents, kids kissing parents, etc. Kids run wild when there is family around. Wanted to take all of them out to the pool for a swim........Instead, went up to the room to watch the Seahawks game on Slingbox. Turns out you have to have a higher speed connection than available anywhere in Italy except for possibly a government office. So I listened to it on the radio, and wish I hadn't spent the money on the hotel for the connection, and more so, the money on the buffet that they served that night. Lots of mediocre food in large quantities........
Next morning we met Kate Dooley at Apartman 31 Driover in Rovinj. Kate and her husband Jack are both from Seattle, which is bizarre enough, but as it turns out, Kate was the General manager for the Alexis Hotel in downtown, and Jack ran the Inn at the Market, just up first avenue. What a strange experience. Their apartment looks directly at the Adriatic Sea from the bedroom window. It's very much like a botique hotel, with a kitchen and dining room. Maybe a hundred yards from the center of town, we relaxed and enjoyed this place tremendously. Almost stayed a third night.....the day we got there was Halloween and probably near 70 degrees. We went for an hour boat ride through some of the islands. the Dalmation coast is really a series of hundreds of offshore islands, and when the sun's shining it's spectacular. Though not on the Euro, we found it pretty affordable. Went to a retaurant called Scuba in town, for my birthday. We shared a seafood platter with shrimp (yeah the heads were on) mussels, the best grilled calimari ever, two different sauteed fish, and the coolest side dish ever. Potatoes and kale cooked together, with a hint of REALLY GOOD olive oil and a dash of salt and pepper. (After all of the different cabbage preperations in Poland, Hungary and the Chezch Republic, we were ready for something like this!)
Spent the next day lazing around the town and planned on heading to Italy the next morning.........STORY INTERRUPTION: The place we're staying tonite has a four month old longhair daschund puppy, which has turned my wife into some kind of puppy starved nut-----"she can stay here with us"..........
We decided that after Budapest, without GPS, that we'd not go to anymore big cities, as they're a pain in the butt to navigate. (Donnas idea) After we leave Croatia, there's about a six mile drive through Slovenia, where you have to purchase a medallion, for 15 Euros, that allows you to go through their little section of the world without getting stop sticked. Having been stop sticked in Austria, we're going to play by the rules, so I stop about two miles from the italian border and go into a gas station and ask the attendant for one. He says, "Where are you going?" I say "Italy". He says "it's fifteen Euros---thats the cheapest". I look despaired. He says "go the back way out of the station, go through the next two roundabouts, heading for Trieste, and you'll get back on the motorway on the other side of the border". I say thanks and head off. Six minutes later we're in Italy. Great advice.
So we've decided not to go to anymore big cities, that is until we reach Trieste. If you can imagine Palermo and Naples combined, you get the picture. GPS or no GPS, it doesn't make any difference. A bunch of hilly, winding one way roads, combined with the usual construction and it's hell. Takes an hour to get out. That's it. My head is exploding. Back to the motorway and we decide to stay in Vincenza, as it looks centrally located for day trip to Venice, Bologna, Parma, and a bunch of other cities in the region. The TI isn't the best in the world and we end up looking for an apartment where we're supposed to meet the man in front of Pizzeria Mamma Mia. Spent the next forty five minutes looking for the place only to find we've driven past it three times. Smallest sign in the world. The guy meets us, we go in, and we use the excuse that it doesn't have a wireless connection to get out. It's on the fourth floor and furnished with what we can assume are pieces of furniture that previous renters didn't want to take. (Mamma Mia---this guys mother, will not win any awards for congenialty...
Drive to Verona, half an hour away, and are headed into town when we decide to check two hotels on the outskirts of town. The first one says their full, and "the whole town is full for the festival this week". What festival----the horse festival. The hotel next to it does have a room and we grab it. It's fine and the manager reccomends a pizzeria "above the pool, 300 meters away". So we hit Tripadviser and see what they say. Turns out some other people who stayed in this hotel have given the place great reviews. You walk up a flight of stairs, and the wall of glass overlooking the pools surprises at first. The pools are full---all three of them. Olympic hopefuls in one. Water aerobics in the next, and it must have been heart patients in the last. The pizza was great!
Now we're in an apartment in Nogarolo di Tarzo, in the foothills of the Dolomites. It's about a forty minute train ride to Venice which we'll visit tomorrow. Got here around one and spent the afternoon in the DOC of Prosecco. Bought a couple of bottles, went to the most amazing cheese shop, local producers only, bought some amazing cheeses and what can be described only as the best breadsticks in the world. Then to a wood fired oven bakery for the kind of bread you've heard of and never found and won't. Soup, bread and cheese for dinner and good books for desert. no TV in this place, high in the hills, lots of fresh air, and of course, a puppy.
Next morning we met Kate Dooley at Apartman 31 Driover in Rovinj. Kate and her husband Jack are both from Seattle, which is bizarre enough, but as it turns out, Kate was the General manager for the Alexis Hotel in downtown, and Jack ran the Inn at the Market, just up first avenue. What a strange experience. Their apartment looks directly at the Adriatic Sea from the bedroom window. It's very much like a botique hotel, with a kitchen and dining room. Maybe a hundred yards from the center of town, we relaxed and enjoyed this place tremendously. Almost stayed a third night.....the day we got there was Halloween and probably near 70 degrees. We went for an hour boat ride through some of the islands. the Dalmation coast is really a series of hundreds of offshore islands, and when the sun's shining it's spectacular. Though not on the Euro, we found it pretty affordable. Went to a retaurant called Scuba in town, for my birthday. We shared a seafood platter with shrimp (yeah the heads were on) mussels, the best grilled calimari ever, two different sauteed fish, and the coolest side dish ever. Potatoes and kale cooked together, with a hint of REALLY GOOD olive oil and a dash of salt and pepper. (After all of the different cabbage preperations in Poland, Hungary and the Chezch Republic, we were ready for something like this!)
Spent the next day lazing around the town and planned on heading to Italy the next morning.........STORY INTERRUPTION: The place we're staying tonite has a four month old longhair daschund puppy, which has turned my wife into some kind of puppy starved nut-----"she can stay here with us"..........
We decided that after Budapest, without GPS, that we'd not go to anymore big cities, as they're a pain in the butt to navigate. (Donnas idea) After we leave Croatia, there's about a six mile drive through Slovenia, where you have to purchase a medallion, for 15 Euros, that allows you to go through their little section of the world without getting stop sticked. Having been stop sticked in Austria, we're going to play by the rules, so I stop about two miles from the italian border and go into a gas station and ask the attendant for one. He says, "Where are you going?" I say "Italy". He says "it's fifteen Euros---thats the cheapest". I look despaired. He says "go the back way out of the station, go through the next two roundabouts, heading for Trieste, and you'll get back on the motorway on the other side of the border". I say thanks and head off. Six minutes later we're in Italy. Great advice.
So we've decided not to go to anymore big cities, that is until we reach Trieste. If you can imagine Palermo and Naples combined, you get the picture. GPS or no GPS, it doesn't make any difference. A bunch of hilly, winding one way roads, combined with the usual construction and it's hell. Takes an hour to get out. That's it. My head is exploding. Back to the motorway and we decide to stay in Vincenza, as it looks centrally located for day trip to Venice, Bologna, Parma, and a bunch of other cities in the region. The TI isn't the best in the world and we end up looking for an apartment where we're supposed to meet the man in front of Pizzeria Mamma Mia. Spent the next forty five minutes looking for the place only to find we've driven past it three times. Smallest sign in the world. The guy meets us, we go in, and we use the excuse that it doesn't have a wireless connection to get out. It's on the fourth floor and furnished with what we can assume are pieces of furniture that previous renters didn't want to take. (Mamma Mia---this guys mother, will not win any awards for congenialty...
Drive to Verona, half an hour away, and are headed into town when we decide to check two hotels on the outskirts of town. The first one says their full, and "the whole town is full for the festival this week". What festival----the horse festival. The hotel next to it does have a room and we grab it. It's fine and the manager reccomends a pizzeria "above the pool, 300 meters away". So we hit Tripadviser and see what they say. Turns out some other people who stayed in this hotel have given the place great reviews. You walk up a flight of stairs, and the wall of glass overlooking the pools surprises at first. The pools are full---all three of them. Olympic hopefuls in one. Water aerobics in the next, and it must have been heart patients in the last. The pizza was great!
Now we're in an apartment in Nogarolo di Tarzo, in the foothills of the Dolomites. It's about a forty minute train ride to Venice which we'll visit tomorrow. Got here around one and spent the afternoon in the DOC of Prosecco. Bought a couple of bottles, went to the most amazing cheese shop, local producers only, bought some amazing cheeses and what can be described only as the best breadsticks in the world. Then to a wood fired oven bakery for the kind of bread you've heard of and never found and won't. Soup, bread and cheese for dinner and good books for desert. no TV in this place, high in the hills, lots of fresh air, and of course, a puppy.
Monday, October 31, 2011
Budapest to Beautiful in 5 hours
Final day in Budapest we went to Szcentendre, (St. Andrews), which is just past St. Envelope according to Donna. At least that was her translation........Neat little town, and had the best junk food ever! Called langos, they're deep fried yeast bread things----piping hot with tons of different things you can add. We chose to have ours plain, and it was incredible. (had we not just had lunch----and now I know what chicken paprika should be) I'd have had five or six more.
Back to Budapest---20 minute train ride--- and we decided to go to a restaurant close by called Grappa. We were there the day before for a glass of wine and someother people ordered a plate for two that looked incredible. We figured that we'd make it our last good dinner in Budapest. Donna ordered a salad and i ordered fish and chips. Donnas iceburg lettuce with a slice of tomato and two olives, and my fish sticks and french fries (previously frozen) sucked. We had a good bottle of wine and that was it.
No more big cities for us. From this point on, we're going to do small cities till we get back to Nice. Big cities have a lot to offer, sights, history, museums, etc, but without a GPS, it's virtually impossible to find anything. It takes us as long to find where we are trying to go as it does to get there. While in Budapest, there was street construction beneath us, starting at seven in the morning, and a constant barrage of sirens and car alarms. Not to mention the horns........
Got to the motorway about ten and were heading for Lake Bled and the Juhlian Alps. Couple hours into we changed our minds and headed for Plitzvica lakes. We were there about five or six years ago, and knew the hotel where we stayed then. Found it, and took a room. After about five minutes we changed our mind and "checked out". Going back is often times not the same as the first time. The first time we were there, after driving up from Dubrovnik, we would have stayed in a tent if they had a restaurant and a bar. This time we went back and it wasn't the same..............it hadn't changed since the last time. Dated. (Turns out that this was the "park" hotel----run by the government for a long time, and one of the only places to stay) We ended up about a mile away in a brand new hotel (five months) for the same price. Marble floors, new beds, great shower, well worth the expense.
Did Plitzvica this morning. This IS the most beautiful natural area in the world, that we've ever seen. Donna's posting picture tomorrow and every one is from a different place. Though they may look alike, not one of them is the same area. You walk on boardwalks, directly over streams and waterfalls that are as clear as glass. You can see the bottom form anywhere. The fish can be seen everywhere. Trees that have fallen in are preserved like petrified wood. All the water is filtered through travertine, which it builds, through moss, and flows from the upper lakes through a series of falls that lowers about five hundred meters from the upper lakes to the lower. It's very hard to describe this place. I can't do it justice. Renee sent me a card today that showed autumn------the pictures Donna took today are autumn. We originally went on the two hour walking trail, which I didn't quite read right and we ended up on the six hour trail, which we managed to do in four hours.
Leaving there we messed up and took five hours to go about four hours worth of diving. We are in Rovinj, on the Adriatic. It's a three day weekend in Italy and this is where the Italians come for cheap vacations. the hotel is large, and fully booked. There must have been a thousand italians going through the buffet tonight, which makes for good people watching, but the wild children offset the fun.
Back to Budapest---20 minute train ride--- and we decided to go to a restaurant close by called Grappa. We were there the day before for a glass of wine and someother people ordered a plate for two that looked incredible. We figured that we'd make it our last good dinner in Budapest. Donna ordered a salad and i ordered fish and chips. Donnas iceburg lettuce with a slice of tomato and two olives, and my fish sticks and french fries (previously frozen) sucked. We had a good bottle of wine and that was it.
No more big cities for us. From this point on, we're going to do small cities till we get back to Nice. Big cities have a lot to offer, sights, history, museums, etc, but without a GPS, it's virtually impossible to find anything. It takes us as long to find where we are trying to go as it does to get there. While in Budapest, there was street construction beneath us, starting at seven in the morning, and a constant barrage of sirens and car alarms. Not to mention the horns........
Got to the motorway about ten and were heading for Lake Bled and the Juhlian Alps. Couple hours into we changed our minds and headed for Plitzvica lakes. We were there about five or six years ago, and knew the hotel where we stayed then. Found it, and took a room. After about five minutes we changed our mind and "checked out". Going back is often times not the same as the first time. The first time we were there, after driving up from Dubrovnik, we would have stayed in a tent if they had a restaurant and a bar. This time we went back and it wasn't the same..............it hadn't changed since the last time. Dated. (Turns out that this was the "park" hotel----run by the government for a long time, and one of the only places to stay) We ended up about a mile away in a brand new hotel (five months) for the same price. Marble floors, new beds, great shower, well worth the expense.
Did Plitzvica this morning. This IS the most beautiful natural area in the world, that we've ever seen. Donna's posting picture tomorrow and every one is from a different place. Though they may look alike, not one of them is the same area. You walk on boardwalks, directly over streams and waterfalls that are as clear as glass. You can see the bottom form anywhere. The fish can be seen everywhere. Trees that have fallen in are preserved like petrified wood. All the water is filtered through travertine, which it builds, through moss, and flows from the upper lakes through a series of falls that lowers about five hundred meters from the upper lakes to the lower. It's very hard to describe this place. I can't do it justice. Renee sent me a card today that showed autumn------the pictures Donna took today are autumn. We originally went on the two hour walking trail, which I didn't quite read right and we ended up on the six hour trail, which we managed to do in four hours.
Leaving there we messed up and took five hours to go about four hours worth of diving. We are in Rovinj, on the Adriatic. It's a three day weekend in Italy and this is where the Italians come for cheap vacations. the hotel is large, and fully booked. There must have been a thousand italians going through the buffet tonight, which makes for good people watching, but the wild children offset the fun.
Thursday, October 27, 2011
The tussle
Got out of Vienna fairly easy. Forgot to mention that when we went the the schnitzel restaurant we were very lucky. We got there around six and waited about ten minutes before getting a table by the door. We were there an hour or so and during that time, about 20 groups were turned away. "Reservations?" "No." Sorry, complete." The reviews said that the waiters were rude and the wait was too long. We were lucky!
Leaving Vienna was a piece of cake. Emily helped us, but this time we really didn't need her to get us out of town. We were on;y about a mile from the motorway. Got on the motorway and Budapest was two hours and fifteen minutes away. Cruised all the way to the Austrian border making good time. Got to the border and were met with stop sticks. Figured they were going to do another breathalyzer...........
Wrong................."License and registration." Hand them over. "Do you have an official Drive in Austria permit?" "What?" "An official drive in Austria permit you idiot." "Nope" "You have to have an official Drive in Austria permit." Never heard of it or anything about it." "There are signs at every border crossing." "We came from Czech Republic." "They have them also." "Didn't see anything about that and we've been in Austria twice on this trip." "Tough crap you ignorant tourist----it's gonna cost you 120 euros either on a credit card or in cash." "W T F " "Or you can go to jail." Donna, agitated, "Pay it on the Visa and we'll dispute the charge." "I already gave him 120 euros." "then hurry up and give him the card and get the cash back" I did. We'll dispute the card with a picture of our ten year old atlas that makes no reference to the Official drive in Austria permit, and I'm confident that Visa will see our side of the story..............
As soon as we got over the border, Emily took ill again. Seems that Eastern Europe and her don't get along. I doubt that she'll be able to join us again till we get to Italy, or some place that she knows.....
Our mapquest took us directly to the parking garage in Budapest, where I spent about fifteen minutes looking for our apartment........ As we had no Hungarian money, Donna had to sit in the car to make sure it wasn't towed. A nice gentleman, (or a street bum) saw my troubles trying to put euros into the pay meter for a parking ticket. He gave me about 200 Hrus ($1.00) to pay for parking in exhange for 4 euros ($5.00). I was on cloud nine going back to the car to show Donna my kill............He could have charged me $10.00 and I would have given it to him. Went to the internet cafe and got online, while Donna walked to the cash machine. This duplicated my problems. One. Not knowing where the Apartment was. And two. Not knowing if Donna would find her way back. Got part one taken care of and then stood on the street, for far too much time, looking in the direction Donna went. A while later............................I see Donna crossing the street for a different direction that she set off in....................and I'm relieved. Budapest is a big city and I can picture Donna saying "Do you know the internet cafe?" So she comes back and has 5 twenty thousand Hru notes, each worth about a hundred bucks. So I offer one to the girl at the internet cafe and she smiles and says, "I don't have change for that---------------next time." We promise to return to pay her after we get some smaller cash.
Get to the apartment. Wonderful. Half a block form the Danube, with a view of the river and a bridge that crosses. The cruise barges are parked on the river, about a hundred yards from our window. The apartment is a studio, with a big kitchen, small eating area, large living room with a comfrtable murphy bed and a bathroom with a washing machine. It's a block from the main pedestrian street, five minutes from the indoor market place and ten minutes from the original Eastern Bloc McDonalds and the center of town. Cost is $55.00 a day. We don't understand why people would spend four times that to stay at a hotel, with out any amenities??????????? We have four times the space, washer, kitchen, and the only thing they have that we don't is room service.
Parked the car in the garage.............First stop was a pay lot in the back of the indoor market. They wanted 400 hrus an hour to park there. That worked out to $100 for two days...............ended up two blocks away in a garage that will cost $24 for the same time....Stopped back at the internet cafe and paid the girl, who seemed surprised, but happy.
Stopped for lunch at the For Sale Pub. We both ordered soup. Donna had the small serving of Goulash soup. I had the full serving of Hungarian Bean soup. Mine came in a tureen........had lunch and brought the rest home for dinner tonite. We just finished and we had that with a couple of different breads, some cheese and smoked sausage. Lunch and dinner today cost $18.00.
Went to the Jewish synagogue today, which is the second largest in the world. Donna will post the pics on Facebook. Spectacular is the description. The ark has twenty three Torahs. The synagouge holds three thousand, with the main floor for men holding 30 more seats than the upstairs. The Holocaust Tree is something special. NINETY percent of Hungarian Jews were exterminated or died of unreasonable conditions during the Nazi reign....
After that we went to the Heroes Square, where the monuments to the Magyars, who ruled the area way back when, are. These are Giant monuments ot them, and the square is quite impressive, surrounded by the History museum and an art museum,. Just past are the hot springs where you can go for a thermal dip.
We got on the train to return to town. We're both standing and Donna's holding on to one of the high grab handles you hang onto when the train is moving. Next stop, nurse cratchett gets on. Donna moves aside, with out letting go of the handle and she passes under her arm, her hair touching Donnas arm...................She lets go with a rant and Donnas eyes go wide! I take a look at Donna, then the woman, and start laughing. (This strikes me as funny) The woman is staring a hole through Donna and I'm cracking up. First off. The woman seems to be partially bald. I know this. Secondly, she seems to be a bit loony. I know this too. After one more stop we sit down on two empty seats, and I say to Donna, who's still a bit intrigued, "Why did you tussle her hair like that?"
Donna says, "We're getting off at the stop after she does....................
Leaving Vienna was a piece of cake. Emily helped us, but this time we really didn't need her to get us out of town. We were on;y about a mile from the motorway. Got on the motorway and Budapest was two hours and fifteen minutes away. Cruised all the way to the Austrian border making good time. Got to the border and were met with stop sticks. Figured they were going to do another breathalyzer...........
Wrong................."License and registration." Hand them over. "Do you have an official Drive in Austria permit?" "What?" "An official drive in Austria permit you idiot." "Nope" "You have to have an official Drive in Austria permit." Never heard of it or anything about it." "There are signs at every border crossing." "We came from Czech Republic." "They have them also." "Didn't see anything about that and we've been in Austria twice on this trip." "Tough crap you ignorant tourist----it's gonna cost you 120 euros either on a credit card or in cash." "W T F " "Or you can go to jail." Donna, agitated, "Pay it on the Visa and we'll dispute the charge." "I already gave him 120 euros." "then hurry up and give him the card and get the cash back" I did. We'll dispute the card with a picture of our ten year old atlas that makes no reference to the Official drive in Austria permit, and I'm confident that Visa will see our side of the story..............
As soon as we got over the border, Emily took ill again. Seems that Eastern Europe and her don't get along. I doubt that she'll be able to join us again till we get to Italy, or some place that she knows.....
Our mapquest took us directly to the parking garage in Budapest, where I spent about fifteen minutes looking for our apartment........ As we had no Hungarian money, Donna had to sit in the car to make sure it wasn't towed. A nice gentleman, (or a street bum) saw my troubles trying to put euros into the pay meter for a parking ticket. He gave me about 200 Hrus ($1.00) to pay for parking in exhange for 4 euros ($5.00). I was on cloud nine going back to the car to show Donna my kill............He could have charged me $10.00 and I would have given it to him. Went to the internet cafe and got online, while Donna walked to the cash machine. This duplicated my problems. One. Not knowing where the Apartment was. And two. Not knowing if Donna would find her way back. Got part one taken care of and then stood on the street, for far too much time, looking in the direction Donna went. A while later............................I see Donna crossing the street for a different direction that she set off in....................and I'm relieved. Budapest is a big city and I can picture Donna saying "Do you know the internet cafe?" So she comes back and has 5 twenty thousand Hru notes, each worth about a hundred bucks. So I offer one to the girl at the internet cafe and she smiles and says, "I don't have change for that---------------next time." We promise to return to pay her after we get some smaller cash.
Get to the apartment. Wonderful. Half a block form the Danube, with a view of the river and a bridge that crosses. The cruise barges are parked on the river, about a hundred yards from our window. The apartment is a studio, with a big kitchen, small eating area, large living room with a comfrtable murphy bed and a bathroom with a washing machine. It's a block from the main pedestrian street, five minutes from the indoor market place and ten minutes from the original Eastern Bloc McDonalds and the center of town. Cost is $55.00 a day. We don't understand why people would spend four times that to stay at a hotel, with out any amenities??????????? We have four times the space, washer, kitchen, and the only thing they have that we don't is room service.
Parked the car in the garage.............First stop was a pay lot in the back of the indoor market. They wanted 400 hrus an hour to park there. That worked out to $100 for two days...............ended up two blocks away in a garage that will cost $24 for the same time....Stopped back at the internet cafe and paid the girl, who seemed surprised, but happy.
Stopped for lunch at the For Sale Pub. We both ordered soup. Donna had the small serving of Goulash soup. I had the full serving of Hungarian Bean soup. Mine came in a tureen........had lunch and brought the rest home for dinner tonite. We just finished and we had that with a couple of different breads, some cheese and smoked sausage. Lunch and dinner today cost $18.00.
Went to the Jewish synagogue today, which is the second largest in the world. Donna will post the pics on Facebook. Spectacular is the description. The ark has twenty three Torahs. The synagouge holds three thousand, with the main floor for men holding 30 more seats than the upstairs. The Holocaust Tree is something special. NINETY percent of Hungarian Jews were exterminated or died of unreasonable conditions during the Nazi reign....
After that we went to the Heroes Square, where the monuments to the Magyars, who ruled the area way back when, are. These are Giant monuments ot them, and the square is quite impressive, surrounded by the History museum and an art museum,. Just past are the hot springs where you can go for a thermal dip.
We got on the train to return to town. We're both standing and Donna's holding on to one of the high grab handles you hang onto when the train is moving. Next stop, nurse cratchett gets on. Donna moves aside, with out letting go of the handle and she passes under her arm, her hair touching Donnas arm...................She lets go with a rant and Donnas eyes go wide! I take a look at Donna, then the woman, and start laughing. (This strikes me as funny) The woman is staring a hole through Donna and I'm cracking up. First off. The woman seems to be partially bald. I know this. Secondly, she seems to be a bit loony. I know this too. After one more stop we sit down on two empty seats, and I say to Donna, who's still a bit intrigued, "Why did you tussle her hair like that?"
Donna says, "We're getting off at the stop after she does....................
Tuesday, October 25, 2011
Vienna
Emily came out of her coma as we crossed the border to Austria. Got us to the door of the B&B in the time promised. Donna is ecstatic to have her back. Saves her taking out contacts repeatedly to look at the map, which is in small enough form that I need reading glasses.........The b&b is called "the beds" and is really nice. Good room with brazil wood floors and a large bath. Went into town this morning at 9:30--10 minutes by train. Took the tram in the wrong direction to a beautiful park, where we reboarded and headed back to where we needed to go. (Donna had wanted to ride the ring tram so I accomodated her by leading us in the wrong drection-----she loved it! :) (Saved us $60 for the city bus tour.) Got to the Hapsburg palace about 10:30 and decided that we'd go it alone without the tour. Well worth it. Tons of silver and plates, gold and crystal in the first part. The second part is Sisi's digs. She apparently was the Dianna of her day, and it appears that her husband was a great leader. Met with anybody of the Hapsburg empire at the castle. It averaged about 100 meetings a day, and the people could talk with him about anything. Though the locals were required to be dressed well, people from the othere regions he ruled were allowed to wear their ordinary clothes, as long as "they were clean". Saw the royal apartments afterwards, then went to the Sacher hotel for some Sacher torte. What an ambiance............ Strolled around for a few hours and went to the Opera house for a tour. Both my brother and Charlene reccomended it and we're grateful. It's an absolutely beautiful building ,with a great history and a huge modern day following. They stage operas and ballets for ten months of the year, working five years in advance to schedule. We could have spent 185 euros to sit in the good seats for tonites performance, or 4 euros for standing room only.
Vienna surprised me. I was ready to skip it altogether, but am happily surprised by the city. It's buildngs rival Berlins, but are much more approachable. there are a few pedestrian walking streets, that go for a mile or so in a couple of directions, and the locals use them constantly. To and from work, meeting for lunch, or just shopping. The transportation system, subways, trams and busses seem to go everywhere, and are heavily used. The lack of cars in the core is cool.
Went to dinner at Figlmuller. This place is known for "Schnitzel that covers the plate". Even though the plates are only about 10 inches, the schnitzels are at least 12 in diameter. thin as you can imagine, they have there own mill that grinds their grain for the coating. Donnas struggled to have half of hers, and needless to say, I didn't. Squeezed fresh lemon on it and though it actually took me an effort, I managed to get it done. Our side of potato salad made me ask for the recipe, which our waiter gladly gave me. With some practice, I'll be able to replicate it. Donna said it was the best ever, and I concur. Back to the subway for the ten minutes home and it was a perfect day.
Watching a game on Eurosport that is pretty much soccer, played on a basketball court, that involves throwing a ball into a net, protected by a goalie. Think the movie "Dodgeball" with rules........... they call it handball. Snooker is on next, followed by this week in soccer and probably another obscure sport that Donna won't like. Tomorrow we leave for Budapest. The weather today was cool and breezy, and tomorrow when we hit Budapest is supposed to be cool, but getting nicer as the week goes on.
Vienna surprised me. I was ready to skip it altogether, but am happily surprised by the city. It's buildngs rival Berlins, but are much more approachable. there are a few pedestrian walking streets, that go for a mile or so in a couple of directions, and the locals use them constantly. To and from work, meeting for lunch, or just shopping. The transportation system, subways, trams and busses seem to go everywhere, and are heavily used. The lack of cars in the core is cool.
Went to dinner at Figlmuller. This place is known for "Schnitzel that covers the plate". Even though the plates are only about 10 inches, the schnitzels are at least 12 in diameter. thin as you can imagine, they have there own mill that grinds their grain for the coating. Donnas struggled to have half of hers, and needless to say, I didn't. Squeezed fresh lemon on it and though it actually took me an effort, I managed to get it done. Our side of potato salad made me ask for the recipe, which our waiter gladly gave me. With some practice, I'll be able to replicate it. Donna said it was the best ever, and I concur. Back to the subway for the ten minutes home and it was a perfect day.
Watching a game on Eurosport that is pretty much soccer, played on a basketball court, that involves throwing a ball into a net, protected by a goalie. Think the movie "Dodgeball" with rules........... they call it handball. Snooker is on next, followed by this week in soccer and probably another obscure sport that Donna won't like. Tomorrow we leave for Budapest. The weather today was cool and breezy, and tomorrow when we hit Budapest is supposed to be cool, but getting nicer as the week goes on.
Monday, October 24, 2011
The DUI
Some notes that came as we drove to Vienna. Rainy, cold and foggy, but made decent time.
Got stopped the other day for no reason----somebody coming the other direction on a detour flashed their lights and I was going plenty slow. The STOP STICK came out and I was waved over. Lovely woman officers says, "Documents please." Hand her my liscense and the car registration. "Passport please." Hand her my passport. "Have you been drinking?" It's nine thirty in the morning! Would you take a test? She's got this huge smile on her face, and I say, of course. I blow into the machine, and score a 0.0. She says "good----here's a souvenier for your vacation, you may go...............
One of the things I find really interesting is the number of school age children visiting the musuems, castles, and historical sights. Field trips seem to be a forgotten art in our country, unless they're going to see a sheep get sheared or the zoo. We're missing the boat.......
There have been a ton of asian tourists here. Mostly Japanese in packs. Obviously enjoying the sights and fun to watch.
Prices in Austria make the Chezk Republic seem like Wal-mart.
Transportation in Vienna is incredible.
Motorways rule.
Donna and my dinner last night was about $40. that included mucho pivo and wine, drinks for the band and two dinners----------Donnas would have been enough for the four people at our table. Apparently they cook a bunch of food at the start of the week, that will keep, and serve it the rest of the week. By Sunday, they cross off everthing they're out of and load you up on the stuff they're trying to finish off................
Got stopped the other day for no reason----somebody coming the other direction on a detour flashed their lights and I was going plenty slow. The STOP STICK came out and I was waved over. Lovely woman officers says, "Documents please." Hand her my liscense and the car registration. "Passport please." Hand her my passport. "Have you been drinking?" It's nine thirty in the morning! Would you take a test? She's got this huge smile on her face, and I say, of course. I blow into the machine, and score a 0.0. She says "good----here's a souvenier for your vacation, you may go...............
One of the things I find really interesting is the number of school age children visiting the musuems, castles, and historical sights. Field trips seem to be a forgotten art in our country, unless they're going to see a sheep get sheared or the zoo. We're missing the boat.......
There have been a ton of asian tourists here. Mostly Japanese in packs. Obviously enjoying the sights and fun to watch.
Prices in Austria make the Chezk Republic seem like Wal-mart.
Transportation in Vienna is incredible.
Motorways rule.
Donna and my dinner last night was about $40. that included mucho pivo and wine, drinks for the band and two dinners----------Donnas would have been enough for the four people at our table. Apparently they cook a bunch of food at the start of the week, that will keep, and serve it the rest of the week. By Sunday, they cross off everthing they're out of and load you up on the stuff they're trying to finish off................
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