Tag Archives: travel

  • Playing Nice!

    August 10, 2012

    Leave a comment

    Budapest, Hungary…I covered this town today! I hit the ground running with ambition…

    Since Budapest is so spread out, I took it on recommendation, to employ the services of the dreaded open top tour bus! There are many different companies to choose from and they are set up conveniently all over the city…they include tours by bus and boat and are red, bright green, pink, blue, you name it…

    This really gave me the opportunity to see EVERYTHING from both sides of the Danube as well as actually from the Danube! It was comprehensive and a great way to capture the sights and history of the Hungarian capital. There is so much to see; the castles, churches, monuments, and bridges!

    I must say what struck me today: what is wrong with tourists? Why do people loose their manners and mind when traveling? Pushing, shoving, space invading…I really laughed many times today watching a little Japanese woman push aside a large German man, or a loud French woman knock a girl over for a seat, or the Swedish teen stepping allover this Italian woman who dropped her hat! What’s the problem? I think people are so fixated they forget we are all in this together! I am a New Yorker, so I get aggression, but this is vacation! I rarely do group tour activities but today gave me a better glimpse into people’s behavior!

    Slow down, take in the beauty…Chill and relish the culture…Relax, the sights are not going anywhere!

    I am loving Budapest, now I just wish everybody tried to love one another a bit more…

    20120810-164157.jpg

    20120810-164221.jpg

    20120810-164241.jpg

    20120810-164308.jpg

    20120810-164331.jpg

  • Hungary for More!

    August 9, 2012

    Leave a comment

    Budapest, Hungary…the morning should have been simple, but it was rocky…I bought a first class train ticket, but couldn’t find the first class car and was relegated to airless second class! Then upon arriving, I thought I should buy my onward train tickets to Krakow. The ticket office was packed with smelly back-packers and the wait was over an hour and half! What am I doing? Mini meltdown…Forget it…I stormed out!

    The taxi driver annoyed me too… oh, was Budapest gonna be a bust or did I just hit a wall from traveling 6 weeks? I think I was craving a switch from the series of small little towns with village squares and elaborate churches…

    Well, I peeled myself off that wall when I got to my glorious hotel, Zenit Budapest Palace! It’s fantastic and things are looking up! The day totally turned around…I love the vibe of Budapest…it’s not just castles and churches(they have them too!)… It’s youthful, has an energy to it, a bustle in it’s step…bigger than the other towns on this tour so far! It’s got fashion and style along with cafes in spades! People everywhere, chilling in parks or soaking in makeshift pools! I am totally responding to this change…

    It’s a large city spread out on both sides of the Danube…so my focus for now is just getting my bearings of what looks like a great place!

    20120809-164052.jpg

    20120809-164108.jpg

    20120809-164149.jpg

    20120809-164135.jpg

    20120809-164210.jpg

  • Watch Where You Walk!

    August 9, 2012

    1 Comment

    Budapest, Hungary…I was so mesmerized with this city, I got in trouble! I was walking and taking pictures that I accidentally walked right into a commercial…

    Milka chocolate was filming a commercial on the street and I walked smack dab into the middle of it…guys screaming at me in German…whoops! I thought it was funny, but they didn’t…And there were the live lavender cows, too!

    So funny.

    20120809-160850.jpg

    20120809-160908.jpg

    20120809-160922.jpg

    20120809-160937.jpg

  • The Hills are Alive!

    August 7, 2012

    3 Comments

    Salzburg, Austria…pretending to don my best Lederhosen, I headed on a day trip to the home of “The Sound of Music”…

    The 2 1/2 hour train journey cut through some very scenic parts of Austria and seeing the rolling hills and gingerbread houses that dotted the countryside really set the right note. I was singing all the Von Trapp tunes to myself the entire journey!

    Blue skies disappeared after arriving, but the cool 60 degree air was a joy after the relentless heat of Vienna. I feel like I just stepped into make believe…Salzburg looks like an Alpine movie set…like a postcard of what you think it should look like! But it’s all very real…I immediately start imagining how magical it must be after the first snow or the joy when Christmas carols fill the streets! It’s that kind of place, where you are drawn to fantasy and your mind races…

    It’s a small and quaint old town…music is an important part of life here…concerts occur daily and today is no exception! Girls walking around in dirndls, men in Lederhosen, and skilled violinists mix among tourists in awe. Many just linger at picturesque cafes for hours just taking it all in!

    I walk to the perfectly manicured Mirabell Gardens, where the Von Trapp children learned to sing, and then along the ritzy shopping street Getreidesgasse admiring Christmas decor and Easter ornaments. I look up and see the castle-like fortress, Festung Hohdnsalzburg…from where you can see the famous nunnery from the film as well.

    What a joy! To make things even better, Salzburg is home to every imaginable pretzel! Huge pretzels: traditional, chocolate, cheese, you name it…I end my storybook day with a huge cheese pretzel…I hear the horse drawn carriages tap by and the sounds of music in the distance and call it a day…a very magical one!

    20120807-172327.jpg

    20120807-172341.jpg

    20120807-172404.jpg

    20120807-172424.jpg

    20120807-172444.jpg

    20120807-172501.jpg

    20120807-172521.jpg

  • Change of Plans!

    August 6, 2012

    Leave a comment

    Experiences teach you lessons!

    I am a firm believer in being fluid and not over planning a trip. The worst is to feel “stuck” in a place you don’t like, a hotel you hate, or a setting that doesn’t interest you!

    I hit a snag in the road and needed to do an about face…I loved the hotel in Vienna, but I suffered miserably through a night of unbearable heat and I needed to make a change! And QUICK!

    I plotted out my entire trip and made sure to book hotels throughout, but I used booking.com which doesn’t make you pay upfront and I made all reservations that were fully cancelable…so in this instance, I was able to break free from the idea of 3 nights sweating it out! I got a great last minute deal on hotwire.com and made the switch. Ahhh!!! The comforts of air-conditioning!

    I double checked my upcoming hotel in Budapest, it too was un-airconditioned! So I quickly canceled and rebooked an amazing last minute flash sale on booking.com…

    Don’t let travel freak you out and definitely don’t allow yourself to become a victim to a booking mistake, we all make them, just be flexible!

  • Hot on Mozart!

    August 5, 2012

    1 Comment

    Vienna, Austria…I made my way via train to Vienna or Wien as it’s called here. The four hour train ride was easy enough and all went smoothly. Upon arriving in Vienna, the train station was a bit confusing and with it being Sunday, the tourist info point was closed…I found my way to the taxis nevertheless and on to my hotel.

    The city is extremely hot! A brutal 90 degrees and it’s sweltering…I notice that typical of European cities, all the stores are closed with it being a Sunday!

    I arrive at the hotel and it looks like a dump! Oh no! Up a flight of winding stairs with overstuffed luggage was no easy task…I enter the hotel and it’s a designer gem! It reminded me a bit of my apartment in NYC, nothing from the outside but really unexpected inside…The Hotel Shermin is absolutely beautifully designed and decorated and I am relieved. I am ready to cool down and relax a bit before heading out…the room is totally my style in shades of gray and I immediately go looking for the air conditioner…I throw open every door, shutter and fling open the drapes…YOU GUESSED IT! No air conditioner! I guess it usually isn’t this hot…just my luck…I guess I didn’t read the fine print! I get a fan for the room and decide to go out and look around…

    Vienna is HOT! Cooling misters are on all along the wide streets and people are looking for relief huddled underneath them…I am right in the middle of the action. The city has a very German vibe as I walk through Karlsplatz and Stephansplatz. I love the wide thoroughfares lined with cafes and Mozart everything. I feel especially sorry for the guys dressed as Mozart in this heat! The Cathedral at Stephansplatz is magnificent with it’s brightly tiled roof and the use of gardens at other sights are a great compliment to the grand buildings.

    I see everyone either feasting on tortes of all kinds or hotdogs (wieners) that are sold on every corner! I love a hot dog! I go for a bratwurst as it reminds me of growing up with my mother’s German food! It’s delicious, but I am taken by the clever way it’s served; they take the roll and cut off one tip and insert a long hot rod in it, that makes the hole for the brat, then in goes the mustard and finally the wurst! It’s like the bratwurst is totally encased in the bun, no falling out! Thats clever…sometimes the simplest thing excites me!

    Tonight will be a challenge sans air conditioning, but travel is about surprise and sometimes compromise!

    20120805-172454.jpg

    20120805-172510.jpg

    20120805-172535.jpg

    20120805-172554.jpg

    20120805-172606.jpg

    20120805-172621.jpg

  • Karma is a Boomerang!

    August 4, 2012

    6 Comments

    Prague, Czech Republic…My sister told me a story that I never heard before. It was the story of a good deed someone had done for me…

    In 2003 I became very ill; I was hospitalized for 3 weeks and near death and I desperately needed amazing healthcare and a miracle! Obviously I got both!

    At the time, her friend visited The Church of our Lady of Victory in Prague and arranged a mass in my name. It is believed the church houses an icon with the power to perform miracles, the icon is of the infant Jesus…the statue is dressed in a changing wardrobe of ornate vestments and religious pilgrims come the world over to pray to it for miracles. Even Pope John Paul II kneeled at the statue’s feet during his visit to Prague.

    I am not overly religious, but believe in karma. Someone does good to you, you repay that goodness if you can. In this instance I can! This isn’t a religious quest for me, it’s a pilgrimage of good karma.

    I didn’t think I was going to find the church, I went to two other churches by mistake before finding the correct one. I am great at directions, so was my getting lost TWICE some kind of sign? I did not waiver, I was more determined than ever to find it! Sore from walking, I finally came upon the simple facade of the church!

    As I walked through the church I saw the statue and stopped. I proceeded to tour the church…as I walked, suddenly from nowhere a priest called out to me! I did a double take! Me? He stopped dead in his track mid-conversation to talk to me…
    “where are you from, my son?” I responded and he said he too was there last year while visiting New Jersey. He proceeded to place his hand on my shoulder and said “welcome” and walked away. The crowd was stunned and looked at me like some kind of ghost! A few chuckled nervously…

    A bit overwhelmed by that, I found the English version of the prayer to the Infant Jesus of Prague Shrine and knelt to pray, wishing success for that good samaritan that prayed for me.

    Karma is an important force, I know this for sure…it works beyond religious beliefs…I may refer to it flippantly but it’s a principle I adhere to!

    20120804-132320.jpg

    20120804-132336.jpg

    20120804-132349.jpg

    20120804-132409.jpg

    20120804-132424.jpg

  • From Top to Bottom!

    August 3, 2012

    Leave a comment

    Prague, Czech Republic…I notice the throngs of tourists filling this town all are drawn to the same sights…their pictures are of all the same guide book designated things…like they are going down a checklist; clock-tower, check…statue, check…bridge, check…etc…

    Are they noticing some simple things that give this place it’s unique charm and individual character? The sea of terra-cotta colored gabled roofs, the ornate moldings on simple buildings, the little brook that comes from nowhere with a water wheel, the vintage barely-there colored buildings, the moss laden cobblestones, and so on?

    These are the things I am enamored with! It’s all in the details! From top to bottom, Prague is cluttered with unique details that are enthralling me…I love all of this town’s sights from it’s grand ones to it’s small ones, but my designer eye really appreciates those that others may just overlook!

    20120803-173801.jpg

    20120803-173819.jpg

    20120803-173844.jpg

    20120803-173901.jpg

    20120803-173915.jpg

    20120803-173942.jpg

    20120803-174011.jpg

  • For Art’s Sake!

    August 3, 2012

    Leave a comment

    Prague, Czech Republic…I decided to do the real tourist thing today! I started my day with the “hop on-hop off” bus to get the full overview of Prague’s sites. This is totally unlike me and not my idea of how to see a city, but this was my lazy way to get a big picture reference point. I would be lying if I told you it was anything other than boring! The young guide, who coincidentally grew up blocks from me in Chicago, didn’t seem to appreciate my constant yawning. The sights of this amazing city can only truly be taken in via foot tour from the stunning old town, not circling detached from it all atop an topless bus. I did learn that Czechs consider themselves part of Central Eastern Europe, not Eastern Europe; which refers to Russia or Ukraine. Central Eastern Europe includes the Czech Republic and Hungary.

    Art comes in all forms and not all artists have the luxury of ritzy gallery showings or refined museums to display their work. Prague is a huge canvas for Graffiti! I enjoy all forms of expression, some of it is art and some of it is political…counter balanced to its street art, Prague boasts a bounty of Art Nouveau architecture and interior design in addition to it’s Renaissance period old town. This is just the start of the Art Nouveau I will encounter as Vienna, the home of Gustav Klimt, is next on the itinerary.

    Shortly after my bus tour, the skies suddenly darkened and rain started to pummel down on the town; this is the first rain I have seen in ages! It is a welcome relief to help moderate yesterday’s sweltering heat.

    The rain passes and off to meander thru old town I go! I have to say after a lazy month in the Mediterranean, city tourism sure is hard!

    I head back via taxi and my driver gets aggressive with another driver and displays a very different kind of road rage! He rolls down the window and spits at the other driver! Whoa! The Czech may not consider themselves Eastern European, but that stunt sure seemed pretty Eastern Bloc behavior to me!

    20120803-152934.jpg

    20120803-152950.jpg

    20120803-152959.jpg

    20120803-153007.jpg

    20120803-153013.jpg