Greetings from Berlin, Germany. July 15, 2010.
Yesterday, we arrived in Berlin, after a hot, all-day train trip from Prague, Czech Republic. Today was pleasantly warm and we walked around Berlin to Brandenburg gate and other close sites. Tomorrow the 16th, we plan to take a guided tour of Berlin and then fly home Saturday the 17th.
In the past, we’ve had pleasant experiences with train travel throughout Western Europe. However, our Rail Europe experiences on this trip have been something to write home about—and we don’t mean that in a complimentary sense! I guess we’d advise caution to anyone considering train travel in mid-summer in Eastern Europe—this has been a real adventure in international travel for us.
We traveled all day Sunday by train from Passau, Germany, to Prague, after disembarking from our Viking ship. We had chosen trains and made First Class reservations from Passau to Nuremberg, Germany; and then to Prague. All went well getting to Nuremberg where we changed trains. The Nuremberg main station has 20 tracks, and our train was posted to leave on track 9. However, this is the former East Germany, and the Soviet-era infrastructure hasn’t quite caught up with the rest of Western Europe. There was no electronic posting of the train schedule and track assignments—it was only in printed form in a cabinet at the station.
So we went to track 9 where our train was posted on a small electronic sign over the track. Departure time came but there was no train. Then in a few minutes we saw the electronic sign over the track change to list a Munich train. Not a good sign. Being the sophisticated veteran international travelers that we are, we right away suspected that something was awry. :-) So we went back to the station and inquired at the service desk. Seems that they changed our train to track 20 at the last minute and announced it only in German (even though they had been making some other announcements in both German and English.) So----our train departed on track 20 without us.
This meant we had to take whatever trains were available, without the First Class reservations. We had to settle for a later regional train with two train changes en route. Thankfully we were able to find First Class seats on two of the three trains, but on one 2-hour leg in the Czech Republic, our train was the local chicken run. The train consisted of one single car with its own engine. It was probably built around 1918, and had the comfort level of a Bronx subway car—straight backs and hard bench seats, and no food or drink service on board.
The temperature outside was about 95F and higher inside the train. There was no AC on any of these 3 trains. We eventually arrived in Prague around 10:30 Sunday night, and after we checked into the hotel, Betty said, "I need a beer!" And those of you who know her well, know that she’s not a beer lover. :~) The good news is that we saw the last 3 minutes of the final World Cup game while enjoying that beer in the hotel bar!
Then the story gets better. From Prague to Berlin yesterday, we were expecting a smooth, comfortable trip with lunch and drinks on board in the dining car. We had First Class reservations for an InterCity train with no connections, scheduled to arrive Berlin in four hours. After settling into our seats we noticed that it was quite warm in the car and no air seemed to be coming from the A.C. system. The outside temp was climbing to near 90F again, and higher inside the car.
As we progressed through the countryside and everyone was complaining to the conductor about the heat, he informed us that the A.C. needs electrical power supplied by an overhead wire — and the Czech Republic doesn’t provide that. He said the A.C. would be OK when we crossed the border into Germany. And unlike the chicken-run train we had coming to Prague, the windows in this train did not open.
At the German border, we stopped for a while and engineers tried to repair the A.C. without success. By the time we reached Dresden, now three hours from Prague, we’re certain the temp in the train was over 100F. At this point, the conductor told his management that he didn’t want to continue with this train unless the A.C. could be restored. So they had everyone get off and wait on the track platform. The conductor made a long explanation on the loudspeaker in German, then in a one-sentence English translation, said "Ladies and Gentlemen, the air-conditioning is kaput."
After some delay, they decided to cancel this train and put us on another Berlin train that was delayed into Dresden, but due to arrive within an hour. This worked, the new train was cool inside, and we arrived in Berlin only 3.5 hours late!
We’ve posted the following 10 new photos since our last post on July 4:
Bratislava Castle, Bratislava, Slovakia
St. Stephens Cathedral, Vienna
Gardens at Schonbrunn Palace, Vienna
Schonbrunn Palace, Vienna
Original Budweiser Brewery at Budweis, Czech Republic
Europe’s largest pipe organ (17,794 pipes), in St. Stephens Cathedral, Passau, Germany
Prague Castle and St. Vitus Cathedral on Vltava River, Prague, Czech Republic
Betty at the Charles Bridge Tower, Prague
Charles Bridge in Prague
Berlin’s Brandenberg Gate, site of Berlin Wall from 1961-1989.
Prague is beautiful. The famous Charles Bridge and the Prague Castle were both built beginning in the 14th century, and other sites in Old Town Prague give it a medieval look. We’re also quite impressed with Berlin and are enjoying our visit here.
Best wishes,
Bill & Betty
Thursday, July 15, 2010
Monday, July 5, 2010
Eastern European Odyssey--Bucharest to Budapest
Greetings from Budapest, Hungary. Monday, July 5, 2010.
Yesterday morning at 6:45, along with a half dozen friends that we’ve met on the tour, we had a brief worship service on the Sun Deck looking out on the Danube and this beautiful city. We’ve added the following new pictures with this post (latest photos appear at top):
Buda Castle Fortress and Matthias Church
Budapest—Hungarian Parliament Building
Budapest Chain Bridge, Parliament, and Viking ships
Budapest Chain Bridge and Parliament
Budapest Chain Bridge and Royal Palace
Hungarian Cowboy Rides 8 Horses
Betty Learns Hungarian Wife Training
Six-Ox Wagon Team in Hungary
Flooded Danube River in Serbia
Betty on Ceaucescu’s Palace Balcony (in Bucharest)
In our last post on June 27, we told you about the high water that had trapped our ship upstream in Serbia because the ship couldn’t pass under the bridge at Novi Sad (about 50 miles upstream from Belgrade.) They say this has been the highest flood in this region in over 50 years and CNN reported that it has caused the death of over 2000 people in eastern Romania. One of the pictures with this post shows an example of the flooding on the Danube in Serbia.
Viking kept us at the Hilton in Bucharest, Romania, until Wednesday June 30, when they flew us to Belgrade and took us by bus to Novi Sad, Serbia where we boarded the Viking Primadonna. During the time in Bucharest, they organized bus excursions to the Black Sea cities of Constanta and Mamaia on Monday, and to the Bulgarian cities of Russe and Veliko Tarnovo on Tuesday. However, because these tours involved many hours of bus riding, we opted to stay in Bucharest where we had tours of the Palace of Parliament (Nicolae Ceausescu’s massive palace and government HQ), and other sites of interest.
In Belgrade on Thursday we visited the Kalemegdan Park, a medieval fortress from the Byzantine era of the 12th to 18th centuries. Then on Friday, we arrived in Vukovar, Croatia, whose people were enemies of Serbia in the Balkan wars of 1991-1999--remember that? Today, they're both applying for membership in the European Union--a good thing for future peace. But they have to change some internal laws to move away from the socialist past and adopt a true market economy before EU will admit them.
In both these countries, the guides told us that the combined total tax rate for a person's earnings comes to 78%. That’s even worse that the People’s Republic of California!
Saturday, we docked at Kolacsa, Hungary, where we visited a local horse farm that is sort of an outdoor museum, showing examples of Hungarian farm life from days past. We were treated to a horse show where the local "cowboys" demonstrated their horsemanship skills, riding beautiful horses that were mixed Arabian and Hungarian breeds (see the photos).
Then early Sunday July 4, we docked in Budapest and had a tour of the city and the scenic spots. We're docked right upstream from the Chain Bridge, the center of the historic city, with stunning views of the Royal Castle and cathedrals across the river. The Danube runs up the middle of the city, which is composed of the former two cities of Buda on the west and Pest (pronounced Pescht) on the east.
It's a beautiful city--very old Europe with beautiful Baroque building architecture. And like the Austrians, Germans and Swiss, they keep the streets pristine clean in most parts of the city. Everything here in the city center looks Baroque because the Austrians controlled it in the 1700s and 1800s until WWI (part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire under the Habsburg monarchy). The Austrians rebuilt the cities here after the Mongols and Turks had destroyed almost everything in previous conquests and occupation.
Sunday night we had a "Budapest by Night" tour including a visit to the Royal Castle on top of Gellert Hill, across the river from our ship. Today, Monday, we are still in Budapest until afternoon when we sail for Bratislava, Slovakia, part of the former Yugoslavia.
We hope you’re enjoying your July 4 holiday weekend. At dinner last night, the Viking staff served us red, white and blue cake with sparkler candles, and we sang "America The Beautiful." Happy Birthday, America!
Best wishes,
Betty and Bill
Yesterday morning at 6:45, along with a half dozen friends that we’ve met on the tour, we had a brief worship service on the Sun Deck looking out on the Danube and this beautiful city. We’ve added the following new pictures with this post (latest photos appear at top):
Buda Castle Fortress and Matthias Church
Budapest—Hungarian Parliament Building
Budapest Chain Bridge, Parliament, and Viking ships
Budapest Chain Bridge and Parliament
Budapest Chain Bridge and Royal Palace
Hungarian Cowboy Rides 8 Horses
Betty Learns Hungarian Wife Training
Six-Ox Wagon Team in Hungary
Flooded Danube River in Serbia
Betty on Ceaucescu’s Palace Balcony (in Bucharest)
In our last post on June 27, we told you about the high water that had trapped our ship upstream in Serbia because the ship couldn’t pass under the bridge at Novi Sad (about 50 miles upstream from Belgrade.) They say this has been the highest flood in this region in over 50 years and CNN reported that it has caused the death of over 2000 people in eastern Romania. One of the pictures with this post shows an example of the flooding on the Danube in Serbia.
Viking kept us at the Hilton in Bucharest, Romania, until Wednesday June 30, when they flew us to Belgrade and took us by bus to Novi Sad, Serbia where we boarded the Viking Primadonna. During the time in Bucharest, they organized bus excursions to the Black Sea cities of Constanta and Mamaia on Monday, and to the Bulgarian cities of Russe and Veliko Tarnovo on Tuesday. However, because these tours involved many hours of bus riding, we opted to stay in Bucharest where we had tours of the Palace of Parliament (Nicolae Ceausescu’s massive palace and government HQ), and other sites of interest.
In Belgrade on Thursday we visited the Kalemegdan Park, a medieval fortress from the Byzantine era of the 12th to 18th centuries. Then on Friday, we arrived in Vukovar, Croatia, whose people were enemies of Serbia in the Balkan wars of 1991-1999--remember that? Today, they're both applying for membership in the European Union--a good thing for future peace. But they have to change some internal laws to move away from the socialist past and adopt a true market economy before EU will admit them.
In both these countries, the guides told us that the combined total tax rate for a person's earnings comes to 78%. That’s even worse that the People’s Republic of California!
Saturday, we docked at Kolacsa, Hungary, where we visited a local horse farm that is sort of an outdoor museum, showing examples of Hungarian farm life from days past. We were treated to a horse show where the local "cowboys" demonstrated their horsemanship skills, riding beautiful horses that were mixed Arabian and Hungarian breeds (see the photos).
Then early Sunday July 4, we docked in Budapest and had a tour of the city and the scenic spots. We're docked right upstream from the Chain Bridge, the center of the historic city, with stunning views of the Royal Castle and cathedrals across the river. The Danube runs up the middle of the city, which is composed of the former two cities of Buda on the west and Pest (pronounced Pescht) on the east.
It's a beautiful city--very old Europe with beautiful Baroque building architecture. And like the Austrians, Germans and Swiss, they keep the streets pristine clean in most parts of the city. Everything here in the city center looks Baroque because the Austrians controlled it in the 1700s and 1800s until WWI (part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire under the Habsburg monarchy). The Austrians rebuilt the cities here after the Mongols and Turks had destroyed almost everything in previous conquests and occupation.
Sunday night we had a "Budapest by Night" tour including a visit to the Royal Castle on top of Gellert Hill, across the river from our ship. Today, Monday, we are still in Budapest until afternoon when we sail for Bratislava, Slovakia, part of the former Yugoslavia.
We hope you’re enjoying your July 4 holiday weekend. At dinner last night, the Viking staff served us red, white and blue cake with sparkler candles, and we sang "America The Beautiful." Happy Birthday, America!
Best wishes,
Betty and Bill
Sunday, June 27, 2010
Eastern European Odyssey
Greetings from Bucharest, Romania. Sunday, June 27, 2010. We are enjoying our third day in Bucharest, preparing to join the two-week Viking River Cruise from the Black Sea up the Danube River to Passau, Germany. This trip began with a refresher on the lesson that we long ago learned—that God is in charge; we’re not. The adventure continues to unfold with surprises.
The trip began with weather and traffic delays on all three flights Wednesday -- from SFO to Chicago to London to Bucharest. Then on arrival in Bucharest, we learned that Betty’s luggage was left in Chicago. It was delivered to us at the hotel two days later. Betty learned to love that blouse and pair of slacks, as well as the t-shirt that I lent her for sleeping!
On Friday we booked a personal guide for a tour of the key interest points of Bucharest, including those in three of the pictures shown here--the Romanian Athenaeum, the Palace of Parliament, and the former Soviet Communist military occupation building.
The Athenaeum is the concert hall, home of Romania’s National Philharmonic, and is located just across the square from our hotel. Completed in 1888, it has become the iconic symbol of Bucharest.
The Palace of Parliament is the massive palace and communist government headquarters built by the notorious dictator Nicolae Ceausescu, who along with his wife Alena, were executed in the 1989 revolution. At 3.8 million square feet and over 1100 rooms, the Palace is said to be the world’s second largest building, after the U.S. Pentagon.
The tall white obelisk in the third photo is a memorial to the 1300 protestors killed in the 1989 revolution, when Ceausescu was overthrown and his army began firing on the demonstrators in the square here.
Yesterday, Saturday, we took a 2-hour train ride north to the town of Sinaia, where we met Connie Fortunato, a family friend from home, who is in Romania conducting music training camps for orphaned children, as a part of her music mission ministry called Music Camps International. With Connie and an associate, we toured the famous Peles Castle, shown in the photo. Peles Castle, completed in 1883, was the summer home of Carol I, Romania’s first King.
For our next surprise, we learned on Friday that our ship, the Viking Primadonna that we were scheduled to board today in Oltenita, 90 miles south of here, is stuck up-river in Belgrade, Serbia because an unusually high water level is preventing the ship from passing under the Danube River bridge at Belgrade! So in response, Viking has set up operation here in our hotel, the Athenaeum Palace Hilton. We stay here until Wednesday morning, and Viking will take us on land excursions to the Black Sea towns of Constanta and Mamaia, Romania; and the Bulgarian cities of Russe and Sofia. Then Wednesday AM, we go fly to Belgrade to join the ship.
So---the adventure continues; stay tuned. And yes, Betty is healthy and showing no signs of her houseboats trip crisis from 10 days ago. We hope all is well with you also.
Bill and Betty
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