Merry Christmas!

Woke up on Christmas day in Budapest... and really had to think if it was true! We went in the bus up to the castle/palace on the Buda side of town.. Spectacular views but flippin cold. Slight snow again... but nothing lasting.

Saw this incredible shoe memorial. Our tour guide was of Jewish family and told really sad stories about the Holocaust, and this memorial is a line of shoes along the river's edge which look like maybe 40 people just stepped out of their boots and fell in the river. This represents how some people were forced into the river during the execution of Jews in world war II.









We wandered through the streets and found somewhere for lunch.. which I didn't write down and now have no idea!

Back to hotel for catnaps and blogging.

We then went as a group to this Budapest style dinner where the food was good and the entertainment was fantastic. We had dancing girls, boys, musicians, singers and it was just amazing. I loved the traditional dress and the fun and laughter.

Home to hotel exhausted.

So it's now the 24th December

(well actually... to tell the truth... it's the 31st and I finally have internet access again!)

So the 24th was a really long driving day, through three countries in one day!

We drove from Prague, through to Bratislava, where we stopped for lunch... though many things were closed. There was a light snow flurry as we drove so much excitement. Anyway we found somewhere to eat and were proud of ourselves for managing to pay with the right money.

Back on the bus and onwards to Budapest, where we stayed in a beautiful old hotel. We met in the foyer to share Christmas presents with all of the group. We drew a name from the hat and had to buy a 2 Euro gift for them. We both found a christmassy thing and added a kiwi pen to it and handed it over. We both got Christmassy things back! A little glass and a lovely ornament.

Then to dinner, it was supposed to be a traditional Budapest dinner, but to be honest it was more like a 4 star hotel version of the local food, not too bad but not particularly interesting.

We then took a drive of Budapest by night and hopped off at various points to see the views and sights. We learned that Buda and Pest and Old Pest are all different places, and saw amazing lights at night. Then... a lovely suprise... the tour guide, Brigette, organised bubbles and sparklers at this beautiful old castle museum place, for us to all say Merry Christmas. (note this is still the 24th... but I had my Santa hat on because it was already Christmas in NZ).

I am pedalling as fast as I can

but we are so tired on our return that leaping on here and typing keeps getting put aside. I am taking paper notes too... so will continue the story soon!

and so it goes...

That man, with the accordion was one of the highlights of the evening walking tour around Prague. We walked through the new town (built in around 1600) and then to the Pub! This guy played the accordion and traditional music, as well as a couple of funny songs, and everyone had a beer or wine. We moved on to walk over the Charles Bridge, and on the way we saw the Carmelite Nuns House, where the wall is over 20 feet high, to keep the men out and the nuns in I guess. The Charles bridge is a wonderful construction which crosses the main river through Prague. We saw all the levels of flooding, the latest in 2002 was so high you could not imagine how the city survived. We walked through the old Jesuit buildings and it was eerie and old feeling. I think the bridge and the views at night are the highlight to date.



23 December 2008

Up early again, this time in the freezing cold to see Hradcany castle. Really it is a whole small town with the most unbelievable church to date. My highlight in the church was the funny story about the door, which has 7 keys for 7 locks and 7 people hold the 7 keys, and all of them must be present to open the door to remove the precious relics.




We went off then to the Old Town (built before the New Town). We watched the astronomical clock (and like all of these things, the reality is a bit lame, but then you realise that for the most part these things were designed and made hundreds of years ago), and wandered around another Christmas market.

My feet by this time were so sore I couldn't believe it. I am working on what works best, a combination of pain killers, rest and ignoring them!

Keily has taken 7 trillion billion photos and bought presents for... oh not telling! Have been finding magnets 'cos Pip suggested that was the best touristy thing, and she's right!

We took ourselves out for a shopping/wandering walk and found a shopping centre built around 1900 where every window is ringed with brass and it is just glorious. There was an interesting sculpture of a horse, hanging by it's feet upside down with King Wenceslas sitting on it's belly! Apparently a reflection of the topsy turvy life for a while in Prague.

Will try to attach some more photos now, and then tell you about going to three countries in four hours!

evening of 22 December 2008

what is this man doing?
Wait and see...

22 December 2008

On our way to Prague, these early morning starts are a killer, but as Brigette (our tour guide) says, don't waste time sleeping, it will be the most expensive sleep ever!

We stopped at a roadside petrol station/restaurant/toilet where we paid 50c to a machine to go to the toilet. It spat out a ticket, which you could then use to buy something in the shop! All I could think of was unwashed hands handling tickets... ew...

Prague is incredible - so old! like old old!. Run down in places, a little scary in places, in the dark. The hotel we stayed in is a boutique hotel one block from the city centre, so it was easy to walk everywhere. We walked so much I think my feet fell off!

Finally got internet access so I can finally start this blog... and I have.

In the afternoon we walked the streets from the hotel, (after a quick eat at McDonald's.. yes... I know). Every thing we could see was fascinating, most buildings more than 100 years old and many in the several hundreds. We were walking around St Wenceslas Square (so sang the song constantly for a day or so) which is actually a half mile long rectangle on a gentle slope down hill. Just fantastic. Christmas market at the bottom of the road, Huge museum at the top. We saw these wonderful sprial dough things baked over a charcoal fire, yum, and found a brilliant marionette shop. The one I like the most was several hundred dollars... so after that I couldn't buy something smaller, they just didn't compare.

We had dinner with the group, potato soup, pork, sauerkraut and dumplings (but flat, like bread). The best part was the apple strudel, which was the best apple strudel I have ever had!

We chose to pay for the night tour, and it was worth every penny.

OK, must fly for breakfast, will be back with the details of the tour and photos later on.

Merry Christmas everyone (as it's Christmas while I write this)!!

and we carry on around Munich

So we headed off to see the sights of the city, mostly on foot, in the rain. Marienplatz is the famous christmas market, and we did go there, but to be honest it was OK but would have been much better in the evening. We did watch the glockenspiel go through the motions, but it took ages, so sore neck for me!.

Our tour then offered an extra trip to Salzberg, and everyone opted to go. It was 1 1/2 hours away in rain, but the tour guide told us loads of history and what to look at out the windows. We kept seeing these weird brown mounds of something out in the fields. (Training myself not to say paddock as people look at you as if you are strange!) Anyway... they are MOLEHILLS. What a hoot! Never seen anything like it. It's like a cluster of maybe 20 piles of dirt, say cowpat size, in an area of a field. The tour guide said the farmers can't poison them as their stock eat the poison so they try things like sticking garlic down the holes.... but I don't think it's working!

So on to Salzberg. What an unbelievable place. Amazing history, loads of Mozart and Sound of Music stories. We walked for ages and got to see all kinds of places. The best for both of us was walking through this incredible cemetary where all the graves look like this.








And then on to the Christmas market, which was waaay better than the last. Watched ice skaters fall on their faces, and watched all the weird and wonderful people going about their business. I saw the most wonderful stores selling lederhosen and traditional outfits for women, and they are current fashion stores, not costume shops. The best pair of lederhosen, costing about $1,100 were made of deer skin and were just amazing.







Then back to Munich to go to the Hoffbrauhaus. Now if you have been to Munich, you MUST have been here. It seats hundreds and hundreds of people, you just sit down with anyone and order these 1 litre steins. There is an ooompah band, frauleins in their frocks and just a vibrant atmosphere. We tried to make the waitress smile, but no luck. K was happy with this stein, but even happier when Irina and Natalia from Russia joined us at the table!!!

Home to hotel late, tired out, ready for early start the next day.