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    2211

    Ljubljana

    22 czerwca 2017, Słowenia ⋅ ☀️ 27 °C

    And the food...

    Not necessarily Slovenian but amazing appetite crunchers..

    The first evening we visited a Slovenian 'fast food' joint called Klobarsarna. Traditional Slovenia sausage, bread accompanied by horseradish/mustard type sides..

    The Friday Food market offered food from everywhere and there was plenty of seating and the area was buzzing with people and noise. We chose some Egyptian chicken wrap thing which was out of this world. The smell as we passed by meant that we could not fail to choose it from the hundreds of stalls, lucky as I don't know how we would have picked otherwise.

    Saturday was no question, BURGER. Same market place and size as Friday but this time only burgers and beer.. heaven. Choice was harder but very pleased with what we had.

    The Thai is just for our now "traditional post Pride Thai" as we have eaten this after the previous two Pride parades too.

    The final photo is the famous Bled Cake.. taken on our visit to Lake Bled this week, we had read all about it and it didn't disappoint. Vanilla cream filled delight perfect after a walk around the lake!

    one thing is certain, definitely not going to waste away on this trip..!     Czytaj więcej

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    Wien

    23 czerwca 2017, Austria ⋅ ⛅ 28 °C

    "This means nothing to me.. Oh Vienna" (Ultravox.. some time in the 80's)

    Can't see that the eighties anthem has anything to do with the Austrian capital, but it keep looping through my mind the whole visit :)

    Headed to Wien - the pronunciation of which I love.. sounds like 'ween' - mainly to visit a friend Kinga, who I lived with in Paris many years ago. We were incredibly grateful that she invited us to stay in her apartment which was very central. Especially as this meant she had to decamp to her boyfriend Gerhardt's place for the weekend.

    Friday night we went to Museumplatz, an area where there are various museums and galleries and where people come to relax and meet. We had dinner and then finally - much to Stuart's delight - went for an 'Upsucker' (sp.?). Kinga had told Stuart about the 'Upsucker' in London a couple of years ago and he had talked about it ever since. It is basically when someone suggests one more drink - an 'Upsucker' - you cannot refuse. So as you can imagine, a real hardship for us ;D

    Saturday morning Stuart and I headed to a Viennese Kaffeehaus for breakfast (really all we are doing is eating our way around Europe!) which had been recommended to us. The typical Kaffeehaus was described to me as a bit dated and a bit sticky and it didn't disappoint! Quite atmospheric and the breakfast was good. Kinga was also very kind to invite us to a picnic on the Saturday with her friends so we got to spend the afternoon and evening meeting Austrians and other Europeans who live and work in Austria. I had my first taste of Wiener schnitzel in Wien though it was cooked by an Irish man! Delicious nonetheless! It was also when I finally realise Wiener means Viennese and therefore Wiener Schnitzel means "Viennese Schnitzel".. we also had some Topfenstrudel which when I googled it came up with 'CHEESE STRUDEL', but it is a dessert a little like cheese cake type stuff in pastry. Also very good.

    Sunday we had a personal tour from Kinga and Gerhardt around some of Vienna's sights. We saw Stephansdom, the "Hoary and Gothic" cathedral, as it is described in our guide.

    I had to look this word Hoary up and this is what the dictionary says:

    hoary
    [hawr-ee, hohr-ee]

    adjective, hoarier, hoariest.
    1.gray or white with age:
    an old dog with a hoary muzzle.
    2.ancient or venerable:
    hoary myths.
    3.tedious from familiarity; stale:
    Please don't tell that hoary joke at dinner again tonight.

    I am not sure which of the three meanings the guide intended but I suppose it could fall in all three categories.. It is grey with age, looking quite dramatic with the grey rain clouds gathering overhead. It could be classed as ancient as it was initially completed in 1160 and perhaps being there so long makes it stale to the locals..

    We also saw the statute commemorating the lives lost to the Black Plague, wandered around the Hofburg palace which used to be used by Austria's sovereigns I think until the early 20th century. Kinga told us the story of the assassination of Franz Ferdinand which led to the start of WWI - which I did not know. Interesting story of a failed attempt and then an accidental detour leading to the actual assassination which is quite fascinating. In the evening had some drinks next to the Donaukanal (Danube channel), where interestingly people are allowed to graffiti on the riverside.

    Ended the night with a "Hotdog mit Kasekrainer" .. basically a hotdog with cheese in it in a roll.. mmmm!     Czytaj więcej

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    121

    Attersee am Attersee

    26 czerwca 2017, Austria ⋅ ☀️ 23 °C

    Brief post to show you some pictures of the beautiful Attersee where we stopped for lunch en route from Vienna to Salzburg.

    It was a recommendation which did not disappoint. A clear blue lake framed by mountains. I think the pictures speak for themselves. Czytaj więcej

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    1322

    Salzburg

    26 czerwca 2017, Austria ⋅ ☀️ 24 °C

    We discovered in Vienna that a lot of Austrians have not heard of, or do not particularly care for, the Sound of Music. I on the other hand, do.

    The coach tour was our main reason for visiting Salzburg. Stuart was delighted that for about 3 weeks preceding this visit I had insisted on listening to the CD in the car on loop so I could be fully prepared for the singalong!

    We found out on the tour that the film was actually a flop in Austria and Germany. The Sound of Music is based loosely on the life of the real Von Trapp family who fled Austria in not so dramatic a fashion before the Second World War. There had been a previous German language film made based on the story and therefore people there were not flocking to see the Hollywood remake. So much so that it was pulled from cinemas due to lack of sales.

    This was our first coach tour and the lack of the enthusiasm from the other tour passengers (except the Canadian mother daughter duo next to us) meant it was a little underwhelming. You do however learn a lot about the film on the tour and visit the church in a lakeside town called Mondsee where Maria and the Captain were married in the Hollywood film - which was beautiful - so it was worth doing.

    Apart from the tour, and in between my recreating scenes Julie Andrews style, we did have time to visit some other things in Salzburg. We walked half way up to the fortress overlooking the city. Only half way as that was as far as my knees and the humidity would allow. We also visited the Cathedral and heard a choir sing in one of the churches.

    We also met a chap called Mick from Milton Keynes in a bar who is a trucker travelling on his own and showed us his tattoos of the flags of the countries he has visited. He also used to frequent the pubs where Stuart grew up in Buckinghamshire, so we had a lot to talk about.

    Most importantly we ate a doughnut pretzel about the size of my head... sweet sugary goodness it was great.     Czytaj więcej

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    25

    Tábor

    2 lipca 2017, Republika Czeska ⋅ ⛅ 20 °C

    We did not intend to be in the Czech Republic right now but the weather and a subsequent cancellation by our alternate host in Germany thwarted our original plans.

    We had some German campsites planned and then we found out about weather warnings for severe thunderstorms. Didn't quite fancy putting the tent up in the pouring rain and not being able to cook for ourselves for the next few days. We have a gas cooker which is fab but not really user friendly in bad weather, something that we found out in Austria! So we found somewhere on Airbnb in Germany but the host cancelled the day before we were due to leave..

    As places in Germany are really not that cheap we decided to head the other way and ended up here in the Czech Republic. Tabor in particular as we found a nice looking place with a decent price tag.

    Tabor does not feature in any of our guides but we have enjoyed our stopover here. The best thing to do here according to Tripadvisor was the Hussite museum. It was actually quite interesting and we got to try on 12kg of chainmail and also had a tour in some underground passages with a guided tour in Czech...

    Yesterday we went into the town again - to visit the botanical gardens - as we were running out of things to do and trying to help our budget. It was a Saturday afternoon and it was completely deserted. Appears that everything closes at 12pm and everyone actually disappears. We first thought we had entered the zombie apocalypse and felt safe when we saw a hunting shop where we could steal guns if the zombies appeared. But we eventually saw one human gardener mowing the lawn.

    The apartment is great and Stuart has been able to do some actual cooking :) so I am pleased.     Czytaj więcej

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    35

    Český Krumlov

    2 lipca 2017, Republika Czeska ⋅ ☁️ 20 °C

    Stuart finally saw a bear!! Luckily for me it was safely walled into the moat of a castle and not just hanging around in a Czech Forest..

    We were in Cesky Krumlov, a popular tourist spot due to its beautiful old town with red roofs and its Castle overlooking the town. As you will see from the photos it is quite a sight with the river running through it.

    We wandered around appreciating the architecture that seems to us to be unmistakably Czech, comparing it to other places we have been in Europe so far. Powered by the sugar of the 'trdelník' (see photo) that we ate (definitely not by the worlds smallest panini that we had previously eaten), we then climbed up to the castle grounds. Seeing the sign for "Bear Moat" I thought it must be some historical name but no, there actually was a brown bear in the Moat. As you can see from Stuart's face, he was rather pleased by this.

    You can wander all around the grounds and the beautiful gardens, where I tried and failed to climb a tree.

    We then drove back to the apartment in a sea of Skodas.. which I now know are manufactured here in Czech Republic hence every second person drives one.

    Off to Prague tomorrow x     Czytaj więcej

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    214

    Prague

    4 lipca 2017, Republika Czeska ⋅ ⛅ 21 °C

    Home to thousands of stag do's and some beautiful buildings, we enjoyed our whistle stop tour to this city.

    We stayed with a Slovakian girl who has lived in Czech Republic for years and whose black Labrador Nikko became Stuarts newest friend on our travels.

    On our arrival we headed to the famous Tyn Church (the main pic) with its mismatched spires symbolising Adam and Eve (I presume Eve is the larger of the two) and rumoured to have come about because they ran out of money/material.. We almost missed the astronomical clock which is currently covered in scaffolding and wandered through the jewish quarter.

    We had read online that Prague was "agonisingly crowded" so prepared for the worst. Ok so it was busy with Charles' famous bridge teaming with tourists, we had experienced Rome so were not phased. Managed to easily get a beer and a burrito before the queues!

    The main tourist spots ticked off we decided to pick up tickets for Guns n' Roses live in Prague and what a great decision that turned out to be! Settling down onto the grass in the cheapest standing area we enjoyed beer in our commemorative cups and watching warm up acts including Biffy Clyro. When the sun started to set Axl Rose wowed us with his vocals and Slash was on fine form.

    Great introduction to the Czech capital.     Czytaj więcej

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    Brno

    7 lipca 2017, Republika Czeska ⋅ ⛅ 20 °C

    Its nickname is "Moravian Manchester". It is the second largest city in Czech Republic and it was dead the day we arrived.. I don't know if someone warned them we were coming but hopefully it was due to it being a Czech public holiday. This first day was largely taken up on the search for a chocolate crepe. They seem to like crepes here in Czech and as I do not share the obsession with Nutella with the rest of Europe, I dragged Stuart around the streets until we found actual chocolate.

    On the second day we did our first "free" walking tour here. Where you basically tip what you feel like. Definitely helped to add interest to the city and we learnt quite a lot about it and Czech humour. We saw a statue of two people fornicating on the side of a church, a huge horse that when you stand under it and look up it looks like a giant penis and their modernist astronomical clock which is shaped like a bullet but people think that it looks - again - like a giant...

    In Brno they ring the noon day bell at 11am and have done since 1645. The weary Swedish were close to conquering the city but agreed that if they had not done so by 12pm then they would leave and not return.. the sneaky Moravian Mancunians therefore decided to ring the bell at the Cathedral of St Peter and Paul an hour early at which point the Swedes promptly left and the city was saved.

    On the tour we met a lovely Finnish girl called Hanna, who was in Brno for a Bachelorette party. We ended up having lunch together and visiting a crypt under the Capuchin Monastry with Hanna. We also enjoyed a free Birdseye view of the city which we had learnt about on the tour.

    In the evening we headed to the coolest bar called Super Panda Circus. It is found behind a curtained doorway and you must ring the doorbell to be let in. You are then met by a doorman who explains how the bar works, shows you to a seat and brings a display of random items on sticks. You choose your drink by instinct (but you can see how much you are paying and the alcohol content!!).

    The drinks themselves were like works of art. Mine came accompanied by a lime and coriander ice lolly.. Hanna's had a marshmallow and an ice block branded with the bar's logo.. Stuart's came accompanied with a dish of enoki mushrooms.. All of this in a completely non-pretentious atmosphere. The bartenders were really friendly and the doorman didn't bat an eyelid at us in trainers and rainmacs. To top it all off the prices were half of what you'd pay at home. I would say this place is reason enough to stop over in Brno, and I don't even like cocktails!     Czytaj więcej

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    111

    Bratislava

    10 lipca 2017, Słowacja ⋅ 🌧 20 °C

    Didn't really know what to expect and hadn't found much was going on but what a great city! Smaller scale than Prague etc and although touristy in the Old Town, it didn't feel cramped. Lots of great cafes/bars/restaurants and lots of sights to see.

    Even though we arrived from Brno on Saturday at 3pm we headed straight for another free walking tour at 4pm. The first thing we learnt was that people often mistake Slovakia for Slovenia. A mistake apparently made by George W. Bush when talking to a Slovak reporter in 1999. Now I have a little sympathy as Slovakia is "Slovensko" in Slovak and therefore a similar spelling to Slovenia ... but as we had recently been to Slovenia we could happily say we could tell the two apart.

    We learned that Slovaks love Statues. There are countless statues in Bratislava and some really quite random, including a man called "Cumil" popping out of a manhole. Is he taking a break from working in the sewers or looking up women's skirts..? Who knows! Apparently if you are female and sit on his head you will fall pregnant within a year. Needless to say I ran away from that one :)

    There are also statues of Hans Christian Anderson and Napoleon amongst famous Slovak personalities whose names I wouldn't dare try to pronounce. But I have included a picture of a Slovak poet's statue found in the square named after him in the Old Town. Our Slovakian is about as bad as our Czech and so I am just generally smiling a lot. I stupidly told the guide that I would really like to learn some basic words - as I hadn't had a chance to consult the vocab section in the guidebook before coming out - and she later had Stuart and I up in front of the group to practice. Namely "stick your finger through your throat" .. "Strč prst skrz krk". Not that sticking your finger through your throat is a 'thing' in Slovakia but just a saying without a single vowel. Needless to say we sucked at that.

    According to our tour guide, local wine is only available in Slovakia as although they produce around 300,000 gallons per year, they consume about 900,000 so there is none left to export. My recollection of the exact volumes and figures may be tainted by the subsequent trying of said wine along with a chap called Henry from the walk. But I do remember that the wine did not disappoint! Our guide had also recommended a restaurant so we headed there to try a local dish called Bryndzové halušky. It is potato dumplings with sheep's-milk cheese and bacon. Sounded so wrong and tasted so right! Bit like Slovak Mac n' Cheese.. mmmm

    Today we wandered up to the castle which was reconstructed in 1953 based on a former incarnation that burnt down in 1811. They've done a really top job and although there was a storm looming overhead today, the gardens and the view were beautiful.

    If I can say this from the (what seems like) hundreds that I have seen this trip so far.. I think I have found my favourite Church! It is nicknamed the "Blue Church" but its real name is the Church of St Elizabeth. Once you see the photo you will understand the name and it is blue in and out. In the middle of the suburbs, it is a real change from any other church we have seen and a really stunning sight!

    One sombre lesson in the history of Bratislava (and Slovakia) was the treatment of the Jewish community internally and externally. Of approximately 15,000 jews who lived in Bratislava only just over 1,000 returned after WWII and even before that they were persecuted on countless occasions throughout history. The main holocaust memorial stands in the place of a former synagogue remembering the Slovak jews who were killed. Walking along one of the streets earlier I had noticed three brass plates amongst the cobblestones which had names and dates written on them. I took a photo, having an idea of what they could refer to, and my guess was confirmed by a google search this evening. They are called Stolperstein and they are "inscribed with the name and life dates of victims of Nazi extermination or persecution" (thank you wikipedia). Quite harrowing but a reminder of what horrors people faced during the Nazi regime. Apparently they are part of a project in Europe and I am sure it may be something we find more of as we continue on our trip. There was also plenty of information about Jewish history in Bratislava within the old city walls but we didn't have enough time to study it in more detail.

    Another reason to add to the list of why we would most definitely come here again.

    Dovidenia!     Czytaj więcej

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    Holčíkovce

    10 lipca 2017, Słowacja ⋅ ☁️ 18 °C

    What an absolute blinder of a view.. again!

    We randomly booked to stay at a campsite here as it was a cheap option (even tho we didn't pitch our own tent!).

    Storms rolled in again so we were very pleased we hadn't decided to use our own tent, which could quite possibly have slid down the hill the campsite is set on in the downpours!

    We were here for three days and didn't really do very much at all except play games at the campsite bar and admire the view. Turns out there isn't too much close to here but we had a relaxing few days. I went for a dip in the lake as it was still super hot, though you wouldn't know it from my lack of suntan!!

    Whilst the facilities weren't the best - for example only one toilet unlocked at night with no key so I had to be chaperoned by Stuart - the people were friendly. Only Slovakian campers however and as we are finding with campsites, people are happy to enjoy their holidays without interference from us!

    Onwards to Poland...     Czytaj więcej

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    Kraków

    14 lipca 2017, Polska ⋅ ⛅ 19 °C

    So my first step is to apologise for the photos, which do not do this city justice at all!

    On the drive from Slovakia into Poland we stopped at a services to eat as we were too hungry to wait anymore. Lucky to be spotted lamenting our lack of understanding of the Polish menu by a handyman. He - in excellent English - suggested three traditional dishes that we should try. And what fantastic recommendations! I had Barscz, a clear red beet soup, traditional in different guises in this part of the world. Stuart had potato pancakes with Goulash and was a very happy boy!

    We arrived in Krakow on Thursday and did not hesitate to get some washing done .. rock n roll!

    Friday we headed into Krakow old town to take part in a walking tour. The old town is quite beautiful and not totally dissimilar to the Czech and Slovak old towns that we are getting used to now. The tour itself was taken by an enthusiastic historian who told us of Krakow's most famous former residents - Copernicus and JP2 (as he is affectionately known).

    We saw dragons breathing fire below Wawel Castle and heard the tale of the cobbler who defeated the virgin eating dragon with a sheep full of sulphur. We also learnt of Krakow's survival during WWII, compared to the destruction of Warsaw.

    In the main square we heard the "Hejnał Mariacki" played - and interrupted - from the tower of St Mary's Church. This excerpt from a tune, also called the 'Krakow Anthem' is said to be interrupted in remembrance of the original trumpeter who was shot with an arrow mid-way through sounding the alarm when the city was being besieged in 1241. Though we were also told that this is just legend as the church was not built in the year it was rumoured to have occurred. Nevertheless he plays every hour on the hour from each window in the highest tower of the Church. The lower tower being such in order not to block the view.

    We met another couple on the tour. She half polish and he Australian and they invited us to join them for dinner that night. More lovely company and polish food and then polish beer followed.

    The one food we had been avoiding trying was Pierogi. They are traditional dumplings with savoury or sweet fillings which are then boiled. The reason for the avoidance was that we were attending a Pierogi making class on the Saturday afternoon. I had found a website online called Eataway. It was started by Marta - the very lady who was going to be showing us how to make our Pierogi! Beginning in Krakow it is spreading over Poland and further afield. A great way to experience home cooked food in different cities with the opportunity to meet other guests at the same time.

    Marta and her husband Mark live in a unique house in the Polish countryside. Whilst we got a little lost en route the aimless driving was worth the wait! The house has Mark's artwork on the walls and a atmospheric garden where we ate and later played Croq-pole!

    On our arrival Marta was being interviewed about the project so we were lead inside to meet other attendees and other members of eat away who were there to help with the days cooking. We were shown how to finish off the dumplings and saw the other food being prepared. Stuart was very impressed with the homemade smoker, the inside of which was cooking fish and the outside of which was cooking the bread we helped to prepare. After pierogi and acquaintance making we sat down with about 14 others to a home cooked feast. Lunch was followed by Croq-pole.. having never played croquet before, with some helpful tips, we both seemed to get the hang of it!

    Marta was having 20 Belgian scouts for dinner that evening and so we stayed to help prepare more pierogi before leaving our "lunch" six and a half hours later!

    On Saturday evening I started to feel feverish which put paid to our intention to do another tour and revisit places to photograph on Sunday.

    We did manage to head out on Sunday evening for another Eataway experience that we had booked. This time a Bengali dinner at the home of Sumona and Hasan. Delicious home cooked Haleem, pickles and chicken with vegetable curry washed down with Mango Lassi did wonders to temporarily relieve my symptoms! Winning a game of Family Fortunes may also have helped :)

    Definitely a good introduction to Polish cities and food and people - now looking forward to seeing more!     Czytaj więcej

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    ... in Kraków

    20 lipca 2017, Polska ⋅ ⛅ 27 °C

    Especially for you Ange! Don't worry, although I hadn't been particularly blogging about the food - as the 6 pic limit sometimes prevents me from doing so - we definitely weren't depriving ourselves :)

    Firstly my deep red Barscz with accompanying pastry things. have no idea what they were but tasted good! Stuart enjoyed his potato pancakes on a bed of gooey goulash... a very positive introduction to Polish food! How would believe it of a motorway services, obviously being freshly made in the kitchen, such a great little find!

    A small taster of Marta's wonderful feast.. we ate huge klobasa sausages, lamb kebabs, many types of wonderful salads, flatbreads sauces and topped off with chocolate cake with gooseberries.

    Next up me, the proud mother with my pierogi babies :)

    The one thing I failed to mention in the last post was finding a whole aisle of fresh biscuits in the huge supermarket. Would've been rude not to try at least a little selection.. chocolate orange mmmmm

    And finally a photo showing some of the wonderful food made by Sumona. Milder than traditional I think to cater just for us!! And finished off with chai tea

    Smacznego!     Czytaj więcej

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    Auschwitz

    21 lipca 2017, Polska ⋅ 🌧 19 °C

    This will not be a nice read folks..

    "FOR EVER LET THIS PLACE BE A CRY OF DESPAIR AND A WARNING TO HUMANITY"

    Taken from a plaque in the centre of Auschwitz-Birkenau, I could not think of better words to sum it up. It is deeply moving, haunting and harrowing. The scale of the camps themselves and the atrosities that were carried out here cannot be adequately described by me.

    The camps show that we must never forget the atrocities carried out by Hitler and the Nazis with their racial doctrine. The fact that they thought that there was a part of the human race that was "superior" to any other was at the heart of the mass murder that took place on these two camps, and others around Europe. It is something that I cannot possibly begin to comprehend in the first place. That they thought themselves superior and the methods they then used to carry through their beliefs are unthinkable.

    Walking into a room where the sole exhibition is a 2 ton mound of human hair that was shaved from the heads of the people arriving at the camps I felt a lump rise in my throat. I couldn't stay and the same was true with a lot of the exhibits. You can't stand and stare as it feels so utterly wrong to be looking at the piles of belongings stolen from new arrivals at the camps by the Nazis, the before and after photos of a victim who - hideously emaciated - miraculously survived, the replica of the living conditions and the "death wall" where they carried out executions.

    All it left me with was questions.. How can anyone have agreed and supported the actions of Hitler? How can they have carried out the inhumane torture and murder of one and a half million fellow humans? What would modern-day Europe's jewish population be if they had been spared this massacre? How can we tackle the hatred and prejudice that still plagues our earth?

    I don't have the answers and it is a horrible visit but one that I believe everyone who has the opportunity to should take.     Czytaj więcej

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    Częstochowa

    24 lipca 2017, Polska ⋅ ☀️ 23 °C

    So this is the second incarnation of this post which I accidentally deleted!

    In between Krakow and Warsaw, we camped in a wonderful little campsite near a town called Tarnowskie Gory. It was by the far the most sociable of the places we have camped despite its size. We met three separate sets of dutch campers and enjoyed an evening, a beer and a boardgame with them.

    Unfortunately since leaving Krakow I had been feeling quite unwell so the first few days I spent in the hammock reading a book.

    It was from here that we had travelled to Auschwitz. We also visited Tarnowskie Gory and had an amazing icecream for the equivalent of £1.. surely the best medicine. We also discovered the Silesian museum in Katowice. A super interesting find that had even Stuart and I wondering around the art gallery part! It also has a museum exhibit dedicated to the history of Silesia the area of Poland that - I did not know - we were staying in. The highlight though was the temporary exhibition room made up of mirrored walls and floor named “reflections”. Not sure what we reflected on but was a great spot for funny photos.. not quite sure that was the point but its what we got out of it! We also squeezed in a trip to the IMAX in Katowice to watch the new Spiderman movie. Very funny film and one I would highly recommend for Marvel fans out there.

    Checking the weather forecast on the penultimate day of our stay we decided to pack up early to avoid the torrential rain waiting on the horizon. Such a great decision as it gave us the chance to pack up a dry tent and an extra day before arriving at Warsaw which we spent in Czestochowa. The Jasna Gora monastery here houses a shrine to the Black Madonna. It is a place of catholic pilgrimage.. which you cannot really describe our 5 mile walk to and from the hotel.. nevertheless I found it a very moving place.     Czytaj więcej

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    Warszawa

    28 lipca 2017, Polska ⋅ ⛅ 22 °C

    So to Warsaw.. We had received mixed reviews about Polands capital city so had to find out for ourselves.

    And we really enjoyed it! So much to see and far too little time.

    I fell in love with a building that was a gift from Stalin. The Palace of Culture and Science is the tallest building in Poland. Its the Art Deco one in the photos, amongst the high rises. We went whoosh in a super fast lift up to the 30th floor to see the views over the city.

    We visited the Museum of the History of the Polish Jews, which was something I had been keen to learn more about. It is housed in a super modern building and tells the one thousand year story of jews in Poland. I think we were spoilt by a few recent museum gems that we were found that we didn't immerse ourselves totally here. However because it was a Thursday the entry was free and it was very interesting to learn more about how Jews came to settle in Poland and their - totally discriminatory - treatment over the years by others.

    We also saw the new old town.. which was annihilated by Hitler after the Warsaw Uprising and then rebuilt. It has been reconstructed in such a way that I - perhaps being quite oblivious - would not have suspected that it was not original. This feeling must be shared by others as UNESCO have named it a World Heritage Site. Great minds think alike eh!

    We also tried a Zapiekanka. It is like a foot of bread covered with mushrooms and cheese..mmmm.

    Whilst we lost a day waiting for our camping equipment to be taken away by courier - as we need to make space for our impending guests :) - there is a lot more I would like to see so another one to add to the list to revisit.     Czytaj więcej

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    Kaunas

    29 lipca 2017, Litwa ⋅ 🌙 17 °C

    It's KAUNASTIC!

    Thats what they say and it makes complete sense to me now. To find out for yourselves, you will just have to come here! A fab city with lots to do for tourists but very few tourists around.. perfect :)

    We are staying in the suburbs in a lovely cottage in someones garden. Stuart has won a fan already in the guise of the owners dog who is waiting for him each time he steps out of the door. Kaunas acted as the capital of Lithuania between 1920 and 1939. It is our first taste of Lithuania and is home to a castle, a very successful basketball team, a huge mix of architecture and a devil museum, amongst many other things.

    After a round the houses bus trip on a mini bus we arrived across the beautiful river Nemunas straight into the centre of the old town, past the Perkunas "Thunder" house, an impressive gothic building housing a jesuit museum. We found our way to the Baroque style Town Hall in a very attractive square to collect a mound of maps from the tourist information.

    Heading first to the Cathedral we were treated to lovely singing from the balcony accompanied by the organist and quickly realised that we were inadvertent guests at a wedding! Don't worry we weren't the only tourists there, but whilst Stuart scarpered I lingered a while to see the dress of course! She was one of three brides that we saw in Kaunas this morning, the weather was lovely - and not too warm! - 23 degrees, obviously a perfect day for a wedding!

    Moving through old town streets mooching for souvenirs, we walked the length of "Laisves Aleja" (Freedom Avenue). It is reported to be the longest pedestrian street in Europe, so not surprisingly half way along we needed to stop for lunch. Our intended lunch stop was quite a distance away so we settled for Mexican. And boy it didn't disappoint! Food was delicious and Stuart had a skull drink. A cocktail in a skull shaped glass with food on cocktail sticks and a flaming sambuca in the centre.. this boy sure knows how to choose a drink! I meanwhile sampled a Lithuanian beer which apparently is the best in the World. Now where have I heard that before....

    On a majorly full stomach, and having been to quite a few historical museums recently, we decided to visit the Devils Museum. Basically it is collection of 2000+ devil statues housed in the house of the late collector, an artist named Antanas Zmuidzinavicius. Completely random but a bit of fun and interesting to read about the folklore from Lithuania and other countries regarding the devil, be he stupid or scary.

    To Stuart's delight we found another funicular, this one being the oldest in Lithuania Unlike the one in Prague - where we had to queue for 20 minutes - there was only one other guy riding it.
    At the top of the funicular we visited Christ's Resurrection Church. It was completed in 2005 and apparently is seen as an eyesore by some. It cost us 1.2 euro to walk the 165 steps to the top where you have great views of the city.

    Kaunas is also full of street art that they are obviously very proud of, so much so that they are all marked on the tourist maps.. We passed a lot on our travels, including an old man the size of a building with a pipe full of stars, a multi coloured shack and a space hedgehog.

    According to one of my many guides, we visited/saw 10 of the 15 top things to do in Kaunas today so all in all a good days sightseeing!     Czytaj więcej

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    Trakai

    30 lipca 2017, Litwa ⋅ ⛅ 21 °C

    So after a quiet Saturday in Kaunas, we found out where all the people are!

    Trakai was mobbed! Appeared mostly to be locals and the lady at the Tourist Information explained that there was a concert and a rowing competition due to be taking place. Though we didn't see any of these we did see beautiful lakes, an Island Castle and some colourful houses.

    Our main aim was to visit the Trakai Island Castle, set in the middle of the lake. It is a red brick structure that was renovated at the start of the 20th century. Stuart's highlight was getting to try out shooting a crossbow.. luckily not at me.

    We put each other in the stocks and learnt about St Florian, the patron saint of firefighters. After the castle we wandered along the lake and I dipped my feet in the lovely cold water. Although it was only ! 23 degrees I found it pretty warm so the lake was lovely and refreshing.

    The houses in Trakai were all different colours and made for a lovely walk around. We found a lovely gift shop and managed to finally start picking up a few gifts/souvenirs.

    I had read on the map that there were 35 x 5m angel statues on a hill just outside of Trakai so we went there on our drive out. It is an odd collection, and we only stayed 5 minutes as it was swarming with flies and the effect is spoiled with a larger collection of electricity pylons in the background.

    Apart from the slightly weird angel collection and the cars strewn on all the available pavements, Trakai is a lovely spot as you can see from my amateur photos!     Czytaj więcej

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    Vilnius

    31 lipca 2017, Litwa ⋅ ☀️ 22 °C

    "According to a widespread popular belief, the word Lietuva (Lithuania in Lithuanian) originated from the Lithuanian words lyti (to rain) and lietus (rain)" (thanks Wikipedia). This was also one of the first things that our guide on the free (but not free) tour told us.

    And rain it did today! Unfortunately for me it didn't seem to lower the temperature at all...

    It rained about half way through the tour and it is possible that that, along with tiredness and having seen so much dampened my view of Vilnius. It has all the factors: Old Town; Palace; Cathedral; Castle ruins; Museums etc, but it didn't have the same feeling as we had in Kaunas.

    We did a free (but not free) tour as I had - perhaps an omen to the day - not made any plans as to what to do/see in Vilnius.

    Possibly the highlight of the day for me was entering the "independent state" of Uzupis. I write in quotations as it is a self-declared independence. When you cross the bridge it has a road sign showing that you should smile on arrival, as Stuart is modelling so wonderfully.

    It is home to many "artists, Bohemians and yuppies" according to our Rough Guide. These include the former Mayor of Vilnius who is now a part time uber driver. He is known for a video of a stunt showing him drive over a car parked illegally in a bus lane. Highlighting Vilnius non-cycle friendly nature. You can copy and paste this link to see him in action! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V-fWN0FmcIU

    Uzupis also has a square dedicated to Tibet - which caused issues with Chinese relations - a fountain that disperses beer once a year; a statue showing Jesus as the worlds first backpacker and it even has its own constitution. This 41 point constitution is inscribed in various languages on multiple metal plaques. If you excuse me in the reflection, you can read these in the photos. Our favourites were numbers 3 and 12.

    After the tour was finished we headed to try some Lithuanian food - finally!

    I have the traditional potato dumplings and Stuart had potato pancakes. These were very tasty and cheap so extra bonus! After the meal we walked to find the statue to Tony Soprano at the train station. Decided to check it out as Stuart loves the Sopranos. It is huge and completely weird but helped us walk off some of our potato calories :)

    Onward to the next capital city tomorrow - Riga!     Czytaj więcej

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    Jūrmala

    2 sierpnia 2017, Łotwa ⋅ ☁️ 20 °C

    So, we don't have long here in Latvia so we didn't wander too far for Riga, where we are staying in an old house at the end of someones garden. It is very nice and they have given us fruit and vegetables from their garden!

    It was our third wedding anniversary so we decided to head to Sigulda where we had seen there was a leather workshop. Stuart - who is infinitely better at anniversaries than me - had found out that leather is the gift to give.

    Bucketing down with rain we diced with the treacherous Latvian roads. They are possibly the worst that we have encountered. A lot of people drive in the outside lane to avoid the huge holes in the inside lane. Lorries drive half on the hard shoulder to achieve the same.

    When we arrived at Sigulda, it was still damp and dreary and we headed to the castle complex to seek the leather factory. We weren't very enamoured with the items on offer and had even less enthusiasm for the castle. We agreed that we couldn't be bothered with a visit so instead headed to the nearby town for some lunch. We found a random restaurant which looked like a huge hut but inside was quirky and comfy and the food was sooo good. We both had soup but they were incredible. Mine was tomato with goats cheese in it, amongst other things, and Stuarts was a lamb goulash. Finished off with chocolate cake, the trip to Sigulda wasn't a complete disaster.

    On the drive home the clouds started to clear and beautiful sunshine arrived. As Stuart was snoozing I decided to change course from the mall where we were heading to head to the beach at Jurmala. This is apparently Latvia's answer to the French Riviera and you have to pay a toll of 2 euros just to enter the roads in the vicinity.

    A long stretch of beach with soft white sand and - as the weather hadn't been too good - not too many sunbathers. We took a walk along. I was shocked that Stuart had his shoes off before I did and even dipped his toes into the sea! After stopping for a drink at the beach bar, we headed off for dinner. We first went to a restaurant we had read about online and appeared to be the only customers except for two mafia types sat at the bar. On reading the menu and seeing the price of the food however we felt even more uncomfortable and decided to bail.. Instead we headed into the town centre and had a burger meal: very relaxing, very unromantic and very us :)

    The architecture there is like nothing I have ever seen before. Most of the houses are large and have either a tower or a turret poking out of the top.. I have added a little selection to give you an idea.

    Jurmala was definitely worth the change of plan and the 2 euros.     Czytaj więcej

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    Rīga

    3 sierpnia 2017, Łotwa ⋅ 🌙 18 °C

    So a quick rundown on Riga as I am super tired. I am not sleeping and I swear that moving from one hour ahead to two hours ahead is keeping me up all night!

    We headed in today with little (well none actually) pre reading on what to do and see. This is quite unlike me so I felt a little unsure of what to expect. First things first we ate lunch. Most people who know me will know I am not good at two things: 1. getting up in the mornings; and 2. being anywhere on time. We therefore never tend to get anywhere earlier than lunchtime unless we have to!

    Once we had lunch I asked a lady in the cafe if she could give me a map as she had a huge pile. She said no because she counts them .. but helpfully told me where the tourist information was. Map finally in hand, we took a little jaunt around the old town centre, where we found ourselves, until we saw a little tour buggy thing. It said it was five euros each and would take you around the main sights with an audio guide. Having done countless walking tours we thought we would do it in style this time - see picture of model Stuart in the buggy thing. It lasted half an hour and I was too busy watching the driver nearly mow people down to really listen to the guide but it was different and I get the gist that Riga has some old buildings - the oldest being the House of the Blackheads daring from 1334 (but renovated in 1999 of course) - a few cathedrals and a freedom monument that is currently entrapped in scaffolding.

    After our little ride we headed to the Latvia Occupation Museum. In approximately a century the country went from Soviet Occupation to Nazi Occupation to Soviet Occupation. They were treated horrifically, subject to separation of families, executions, deportations to remote parts of Siberia with no food or clothing, being stripped of their national identity and forced to adhere to Soviet/Nazi/Soviet rules and ideology.

    One of the favourite things that I learnt about here - and had heard of in Lithuania - was the Baltic Way. On 23 August 1989, two million people joined hands and the line stretched between Vilnius (Lithuania) to Tallinn (Estonia) to show their desire for independence. This was finally granted on 21 August 1991.

    One thing I had heard of before coming to Riga was a building that is sometimes known as Stalins birthday cake. Why I have no idea and the pictures I had seen and descriptions likened it to the Empire State Building. I was excited as I had hoped it would be like the one I fell for in Warsaw. It was no way near as impressive - as you will be able to see from the picture - but took us on a detour through the market on the way back to the car.

    Whistle stop tour of Latvia completed now onto a new country.     Czytaj więcej

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    Kõvaküla

    4 sierpnia 2017, Estonia ⋅ ⛅ 18 °C

    So we arrived in Estonia where we were staying the night in a brewery.. :)

    We have been doing a lot of driving recently as we have been doing a bit of country hopping over the past week. I find being a passenger quite tedious so when I am not driving I have invented the game "Stalking Storks".. we first saw these long legged beauties in Slovakia. Perched on top of telegraph poles in the very centres of town, I thought they were herons to begin with. If you know me you’ll know that animals are not my ‘thing’. In Poland, it was explained to us by Mark that they were in fact storks and the government there were giving out grants to people who were able to get them to nest on their land. So started a little competition between Stuart and I.. Shows you how dull it can be driving for hours on end!!

    We broke the drive from Latvia to Estonia up with a stop at a “Hesburger”. We had seen these fast food joints on numerous occasions through the Baltics so we thought we better check it out. A bit like MacDonalds but cheaper, two happy customers.

    Unfortunately the owners of the brewery were not there so we could not have a tour but we had the whole, very large, building to ourselves and beers to try. It was Estonian craft ale and very nice indeed!

    In the afternoon we also headed to the local town for a walk around the lake and got distracted by a disc golf course.. like crazy golf but with a frisbee. We looked far and wide - at each of the supermarkets nearby - but we could not find a frisbee :( so no fun for us but left us wondering whether it was Estonia’s national sport?

    We then drove onward to a local “tourist attraction” that turned out to be a derelict old country house. But on the plus side we randomly found a huge swing in a field which we went on like big kids!

    Probably fortunately for our livers we were only there for one night!     Czytaj więcej

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    Tallinn

    6 sierpnia 2017, Estonia ⋅ 🌧 16 °C

    So Tallinn turned out to be our favourite Baltic capital city.

    The first day we arrived mid afternoon. We had to pick the key for the apartment up from a cafe and so we stayed for lunch and what a lunch it was! Mine was a bright pink beetroot risotto topped off with goats cheese and was delicious.

    Our Latvian host in Riga had recommended that we visit an area called Telliskivi, which is the "arty" district of Tallinn. Run down industrial buildings scattered with cool bars and street art. It made for a grey setting to a very grey day! Far too cool for us in our rain Macs! After exploring a while, we had a lovely glass of wine at "Frenchys" before heading back to relax.

    The second day it poured to the extent we weren't sure were even going to brave the walk into the town. Luckily for us it paused for a few hours so we got to see a bit of the old town and leave the apartment!

    Immediately we got a better feel for Tallinn than we had for Riga and Vilnius. There was more life and so many things to see. We wandered past cathedrals, castles, old town walls and multiple souvenir shops. We had the "best hotdogs in the Baltics" with nothing to compare them to, I suppose they were for us.. Stuart had - what he said was - an amazing Snickers brownie from a homemade chocolate shop and we tried on silly hats to keep out of the rain.

    Enjoyed it but definitely time now to move onto Scandinavia :)     Czytaj więcej

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    Helsinki

    8 sierpnia 2017, Finlandia ⋅ ☀️ 20 °C

    Back due to popular demand (thanks Helen and Kevin for noticing its been a long while since a post..!). We have been a little busy over the last couple of weeks so I will try to catch up now.

    Since we last spoke, we first stopped off in Helsinki. The capital of baby Finland (which is only celebrating its one hundredth year this year). We met with our friend Hanna who you may remember avid readers from our post in Brno, Czech Republic. Hanna lives in Helsinki and although currently finishing her thesis for her masters, kindly met us to show us around. She also brought us some homemade blueberry pie which was delicious and shows you how lovely she is!

    We met at the central station and wandered the streets before entering into the beautiful Cathedral. It is a stunning white Lutheran Cathedral set at the top of some steep steps and the domes are green (my fave colour) with gold stars. The effect of the exterior is elegant and the inside is minimalistic - which I now understand is in typical lutheran style. We then headed to the harbour which sparkled on the sunny day (and I thought Finland was supposed to be cold..) and across to the market halls. Admiring the mounds of liquorice and reindeer jerky, we were quite hungry. Hanna took us to a place to have a buffet lunch (all you can eat it seems) which is standard for workers to eat at their lunch hour.

    After lunch we wandered further around the streets with Hanna acting as a free guide (Thanks Hanna :D ) and ended up having the possibly most expensive pint in a long time accompanied by some yummy cured reindeer. Hanna told us lots of interesting facts about Finland - bears, elks, knives, saunas and all. Some of these facts include:

    1. Street names etc are listed in both Finnish and Swedish because both are the official languages of Finland;
    2. If you hit a reindeer when driving it is the owners fault but if you hit an Elk you are dead;
    3. If you see a bear - walk away slowly...

    On the Wednesday was the much anticipated arrival of my BFFs!! Once we picked them up we switched apartments to one with its own sauna! BBQ and beers and a blooming good catch up, needless to say I was very happy!

    Nothing specific was on the agenda for Helsinki but our first full day was spent in Suomenlinna. It is an old fortress island 15 mins on a ferry from Helsinki Harbour. It has lots of old structures still in place and is a great place to picnic on another sunny day - and as it was Kate's birthday we of course had Prosecco!

    The second day we visited Allas Seapool - a public sauna and pools which is set in Helsinki harbour. Following some amazing pizza for lunch, we went to see more sights. The silent chapel - in which Kates mobile went off and we met the chattiest American child who amusingly tried to guess where we were from based on the language we were speaking... Finally we headed to the Rock Church - a church carved into the rock - and got in for free as their was a piano concert taking place!

    Next off to the wilderness...     Czytaj więcej

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    Uurainen

    12 sierpnia 2017, Finlandia ⋅ 🌧 17 °C

    Well it was a kind of wilderness anyway.. no hot running water and a composting toilet was as wilderness as I am going to get!

    In the middle of nowhere we arrived at a gorgeous little cabin for 3 days of Finnish nature. Luckily no bears.

    The cabin was on a small lake, surrounded by trees with a hot tub and a sauna so you can imagine where we spent most of our day... We also had a BBQ and an open fire and so Stuart was in his element making fire.

    We got soaked on a walk around the Pyha Hakki National Park. It is a forest full of mushrooms and moss and walkways through the boggy open areas. We did a little hike and I worried I may have touched a deadly mushroom. But here I am living to tell the tale so I imagine it was unpoisonous.

    We also visited the nearby city of Jyvaskyla for a harbour side stroll and some Finnish food.. ok so it was fast food.. but Finnish fast food nonetheless! Hesburger is a McDonald type burger joint which was actually very nice and a welcome relief for the budget!

    The composting toilet was an interesting experience. As was stumbling there in the night past the axe situated in the tree stump... Gave me some nightmares out there (the axe not the toilet)!     Czytaj więcej

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    Stockholm

    16 sierpnia 2017, Szwecja ⋅ ⛅ 18 °C

    And across the water we went... We were imagining the same type of ship that we had crossed in from Italy to Croatia. And we had been reliably informed that this particular trip was known as a "booze cruise", with people taking the trip to stock up on duty free and party. So what we therefore expected was a naff ship filled with boozy louts.. especially when they hand you the thingy you hang in your windscreen which helpfully reminding you of the drink drive limit in Sweden...

    But we were so wrong! Yes I can imagine a lot of people come on the boat to party but they must do it in style! There were various restaurants, a two storey night club, outside cocktail bar, casino, spa, live bands and not to mention the duty free shopping world 😳 and in walked us the great unwashed from our cabin in our casual clothing. Looked a little out of place next to the couples ballroom dancing.. We made the most of it with a nice meal and a lovely cocktail and waved goodbye to the beautiful Finnish sunset (see picture 1).

    On arrival into Stockholm the next morning (see picture 2) we were greeted by a stunning view of the city skyline. We were so early that we left our car near our next Airbnb and travelled into the centre. Gamla Stan, the old town centre, was already busy with fellow tourists. We joined them through the streets and the had our first Fika. Fika is a Swedish tradition that I suppose would be called a "lifestyle" concept, It is traditionally in the afternoon (so we were a bit early for that too) when people meet to drink coffee, eat their body weight in cake and socialise. I can definitely recommend the Kanelbulle (cinnamon bun). Most definitely something I could get used to, and some may argue in my family we already do practice Fika!

    We returned to the Airbnb to await our host. After an hour of waiting he came down apologetically telling us his phone was broken (which I now think was a little untruth). Warning signs went off as we were shown upstairs past the pile of rubbish he had been removing from the flat.. Inside the place was quirky and not very clean. We also realised that the "free parking on premises" was actually "paid parking on street". When he left the four of us looked at each other.. the further we looked the worse it got. But we thought (well half thought) we could put up with it. After a night sleeping on top of the bedding, the morning came and the electricity went and the host couldn't be contacted. With even the most hardy of us deciding it was the last straw we showered in the dark packed our bags and left. Airbnb helped us with the cancellations and on explaining the situation they alluded to the fact this wasn't his first offence,

    We trawled the internet at lunch - tasty salmon and shrimp salad - and at an Espresso House - Swedish coffee chain - for alternative accommodation. We even randomly met an Airbnb host when on a walk from the guide book who showed us some great views of the city. He approached us when we were studying our map and evidently looking very lost. Unfortunately his place was booked but he told us a lot about the history of the city and the buildings we could see.

    Ended up finally booking a hotel at 7pm. A beautiful - and budget busting - hotel but definitely worth it to enjoy our last days in Stockholm!

    In a more relaxed mood on our final day we visited the Saluhall - a covered market full of Swedish treats. We took a ferry to the Vasa Museum which is the number one thing to do in Stockholm. It tells the history of a warship that cost 2% of Swedens then GDP and sank in Stockholm harbour on its maiden voyage in 1628. The ship was salvaged in 1961, watched by millions and 98% of the original ship is now on show in the museum.

    Things we discovered in Stockholm:

    It has really long escalators;
    There ARE a lot of blondes;
    Restaurants close early;
    Snapchat.

    Before dropping the girls back to the airport we popped into IKEA and had a 5kr hotdog. Well, when in Sweden...     Czytaj więcej

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