budapest

22 july
First thing this morning, we drove to the statue park outside the city where the statues from the Soviet era have been laid to rest. The people no longer wanted them in their city.

women are great

to give you some idea of the size of this, his back toe is about shoulder height to me

lenin, of course

After this, we dropped off the car at our camp site and headed for the Pest side of the city today. The bus from our camp site stops on the Buda side, so we walked down the hill to the bridge beside the island. This gave us a good view of the Parliament building on the Pest side and the castle on the Buda side. We walked from the Parliament building through a square with the only remaining soviet statue in the city. It commemorates the Russians liberating the city from the Germans. This is my old neighborhood from when I spent two weeks here with Kristine and Cheryl in 2004. I took Paul to St. Stephens and showed him the flat we called home right next to the church. Then we walked to the synagogue, across the Chain Bridge, up to the castle and back to the bus stop where we started.

the soviet monument still in budapest has to have a fence around it to protect it from damage by the people. a policeman walking by explained this to us when paul asked about it

st. stephen's church

the synagogue

21 july
It took us three hours to get to Budapest, and the sat nav delivered us to our campsite. It is called ‘Niche’ for a reason. It’s on a steep hillside and we are slotted into the slope like a niche in a wall.
our camp site

We set up camp quickly, then took the bus to the castle. Both it and our campsite are on the Buda side of the Danube. We walked the length of the castle and enjoyed beautiful views of the river and Pest side before returning ‘home’ for dinner at the local restaurant.

a view of parliment from the fisherman's bastion on the castle hill

the chain bridge from the castle hill

a gate to the hapsburg part of the castle hill

detail from a building on a corner within the castle walls

vienna and bratislava

20 july
Bratislava Slovakia is just down the Danube from Vienna. We wanted to take a boat there, but they have to be booked well in advance, so we took the train instead. It was a quick hour’s journey through more farmland. The difference between Eastern Europe and Western Europe was more striking here than in the Czech Republic, possibly because the trip was so quick and also because Vienna is so opulent.

pretty but shabby

the train we rode was in much better shape than this

Still, Bratislava is charming, with a pretty hilltop castle and small town centre. We enjoyed a wonderful meal of tapas before returning on the train.

our lunch stop


one of the main squares

Tim’s fever is gone and he’s back to his perky self.


19 july
Vienna is an impressive city. It’s all about the architecture again, but where Prague’s buildings are generally cozy and welcoming, Vienna’s buildings seem to sit on golden thrones that we wander around the legs of, like ants in the throne room. We started at St. Stephen’s church.


impressive tile work on the church roof


the opulent inside of the church

Then we made our way to the palaces, and museums that look like palaces. We stopped and had some Viennese coffee near the stables where the Lipizzaner horses are kept, trained and paraded. We didn’t see them. From the outside, the stables and arena look like a palace.

the square where we had coffee. the stables are behind paul who is taking the photo

this is a museum. we ate our picnic lunch beside one of the bushes.

i believe this statue of athena with nike is a replica of what scholars believe stood inside the pantheon in athens. we'll see the pantheon in a few weeks and can try to imagine her there about five times this big and without all the statues below her feet.

At 18:00, Tim’s fever spiked, so we took him to a hospital that we’d learned of from a pharmacist this morning. The care was excellent and immediate. The first question they asked was about insurance, and Paul was ready with EU insurance cards that he organized for all of us long before the trip. We saw four doctors, all of which spoke English. They were kind, friendly, professional and made a nice fuss over Tim. They gave him a suppository for his fever and a prescription for some drops for his eyes. We didn’t get home until 23:30, which was hard on Tim. He was over tired and screamed in bed inconsolably for about forty minutes. Poor guy. Poor neighbors. Poor us.

18 july
Our sat nav, which we love, took us to Vienna by way of a secondary road through Northern Austria. It wound through small villages and rolling hills of farmland. We met the Danube at Krems with the monastery of Melk making an impressive show on a high hilltop. Arriving at our Vienna campsite in the late afternoon, we spent our time doing administrative business, as Paul calls it. Our campsite has loads of hot water and laundry, so we got all the kitchen things clean as well as our clothes. When we arrived, the place was about half full. By the time we went to bed it seemed full, and when we woke the next morning the place looked like a music festival. Tim’s cold hasn’t improved or worsened except that his other eye now has the same discharge.

there is a tent to my left that you can't see with a family from romania inside.

czech republic

17 july
buildings in the main square of Prague

Luxury, as with everything, is relative. Our hostel is basic: no breakfast, shared loos and showers, and tiny rooms. However, compared to camping, we feel like we are really stepping out. The location is the best thing about this place. It’s called Tyn. For those of you that have been there and those who plan to go, take the street on the left side of the church that has the Hogwarts style top and then turn down the first alley on the left.

the church near our hostel

the astronomical clock in Prague's main square

the memorial to jan hus in the main square

We crossed the river today and walked to, through and around the castle.

charles bridge

Our bus home was mid afternoon again. The ride seemed longer and the bus was not as comfortable or new as the one in which we rode to Prague. It was good to get ‘home’ and to find that our tent and car were both as we had left them. Tim’s got a cold and slight fever. One eye has some discharge as well. He’s in a good mood, but sleeping a lot.

16 july
We left our tent and car behind and took the bus to Prague to spend the night in a hostel. The earliest bus we could get wasn’t until mid afternoon, so we spent some time wandering the village and visiting the internet café.

the castle from one of the streets near the market in Cesky Krumlov


another twisting, narrow street near the market square in Cesky Krumlov

a close up of the castle tower


We got lucky and were able to book a room at the most desirable hostel in the city, according to Lonely Planet. It’s meters from the centre. We planned to take the train but learned from the tourist office in Cesky Krumlov that the bus is faster and more comfortable. It took 3 hours to get there with several stops including one in the town that in German is known as Budweiser. When Anheiser-Busch named their beer Budweiser, it was because the name was synonymous with great tasting beer from this Czech city. Prague brews Staropromen, and Plizen is where lager was first made. The beer there is called Pilsner Urquell. We dropped our stuff off in our room and set out to see some of the city. I came here with Karen in November 2004 and little has changed. It is better in the summer when the outdoor cafes are open. The main square is a smorgasbord of architecture.

15 july
No rain in the night or this morning made taking down camp a little easier. We drove to Cesky Krumlov today, a small town not far from the Czech/Austrian border. Whale, a friend of Paul’s recommended the place and it was even better than his description.


The river is so twisted that it creates a near circle in the centre. In the middle of this is a castle. Across the bridge is the old market square, and radiating out from both are narrow, cobbled streets. The village is in a valley, so the view as we drove in was from above, revealing a sea of red tiled roofs. Disney could not create a better medieval village. Unlike other medieval centers that we’ve seen, this one is not surrounded by a larger city. The ugly block apartments and soviet era growth is down river. Our campsite is described as basic, and that it is. It’s also Eastern European basic. The location is nice, beside the river, and there is a beer hall and restaurant, but there’s no hot water and loos are filthy. The place is wall to wall tents.

innsbruck and salzburg

14 july
We started our visit to the centre at the palace gardens, a showcase of roses and begonias. Then we crossed the river and visited several squares with impressive churches and plenty of outdoor cafes. We took shelter from more rain in one of the cafes and enjoyed a couple of beers. A group of American teenagers sat beside us and I was reminded of my trips and glad that I’m not doing that anymore. It was great, but nothing like the freedom and fun that comes with traveling with my family. When the rain stopped, we pushed Tim up the hill to the castle entrance for a view of the city. Lovely spires and pointed, red tiled roof tops. One of the high meadows of the nearby hills must have surely been where Maria sang ‘The hills are alive…”


the gardens


the city from the castle gate


the walk down in the rain
13 july
The only thing worse than setting up camp in the rain is taking it down. We watched, with envy, RV after RV fold up their awnings, put away their chairs, shut their doors and drive off as we attempted to get our tent down with as little mud on it and us as possible. We did surprisingly well and didn’t have a single argument. The more we do together, the more compatible we find ourselves. Our drive from Innsbruck to Salzburg meant a quick jog through Germany, but the border crossing was invisible save for a couple of good-bye and welcome signs. Our campsite here is not as well fitted as the one in Innsbruck, but it’s clean and comfortable. The rain is still with us, but that hasn’t stopped us from seeing the sights. No, we didn’t take a Maria tour nor did we visit the salt mines. The town has enough to offer without these. We visited a monastery with a beer hall, actually several beer halls in one huge building, full of people. The monks brew the beer and it is tasty.


the castle above the city and the 'lovely' weather

12 july
We spent a lovely day in Innsbruck today. The guide book makes the city seem dull after seeing the golden roof, but that’s not what we found. The medieval centre is full of twisting, narrow cobbled streets that reveal a new delight of architecture with each turn. Sometimes it’s an intricately carved wooden door or a curly-queued iron sign with gilt accents or a balcony with hanging geraniums. This evening, we took advantage of the wi-fi in our campsite and did a lot of on-line work. Most of the day was sunny with broken clouds, but the rain moved in for the night.


one of the many shop signs


the golden roof is the main attraction in the city centre. it covers a balcony where dignitaries used to address the people


signs of the weather change

11 july
We drove from Interlaken to Innsbruck today. For the first hour of the journey, we played peek-a-boo with the glorious scenery as drove in and out of tunnels. There were so many that I began to think that they were built simply because they could be built rather than because they were needed. We stopped for a photo in Liechtenstein (deleted because Paul didn't like it) and to give Tim a break. It’s a pretty place but can’t compete with Switzerland. Our campsite in Interlaken was nice; the one we are in now is fantastic. It has a beer garden, restaurant, wi-fi, and friendly proprietors who we’ve heard speak German, English, and French fluently along with recognizing that someone trying to speak German was from Romania! Her new hire spoke fluent Romanian. We had to set up camp in the rain and it’s cooler here, but the low clouds and temperature add a new dimension to things. I know when we’re in southern Turkey and it’s hitting 41C/100F, we’ll remember this with fondness.


our campsite in Innsbruck

luxembourg and switzerland

the matterhorn

10 july
We traveled by car and train to Zermatt today, about 2.5 hours from our campsite. This is a carless village near the Matterhorn. Half way through the journey we drove onto a train, which took us through a mountain. It's not as swish as the eurotunnel, but it works. We parked the car in a valley and rode a train up to Zermatt. We walked through the village and briefly along a path before stopping for lunch above a glacier fed roaring river.


the car train


the village of zermatt


edelweiss

9 july
Paul did a six hour hike high above our campsite today, and Timothy and I stayed at home and spent most of our time playing on the blanket. We said good-bye to our neighbors next to us from The Netherlands with their three children and hello to our new neighbors in front of us from The Netherlands with their son. Based on the number of Dutch cars pulling campers, I think Americans must have got their love of caravanning from these ancestors. At 15:00, we drove to Grindelwald to meet Paul and had lunch under the shadow of the Eiger.


views from paul's walk


part of the trail


grindelwald below the eiger

8 july
We took a Rick Steve’s walk up a valley with stunning views to a cable car that took us to Gimmelwald. Someone once wrote that ‘if heaven is full, send me to Gimmelwald.’ We think we’d rather just skip heaven all together and go straight to Gimmelwald. There are 150 year round residents here and probably that many cows and goats.


part of the walk


a beer with a view in gimmelwald


this hut is on stilts to keep the mice out of the hay stored for the winter



alpkase, stored in this hut, is the cheese that is made and kept at these altitudes, too high to transport


in the summer the cows are taken to higher pastures and have to wear these expensive bells, which are hung from the summer huts once they arrive. Reportedly, they don't like the bells.



7 july
We arrived in Interlaken, set up camp and got to know the area today. It took us a while to get settled because all the camp site reception offices were closed for the afternoon break when families get together for a long lunch. Our camp site is basic, with super clean bathroom/showers and sinks for cleaning dishes complete with dishcloths for drying.


our first campsite


this place is adventure sport heaven. there seem to be as many people in the sky as on the ground.

6 july
Colleagues of mine from Egham, Mark and Gabe, took jobs in Basel, and we spent one night with them. They had only arrived that day but did a great job of showing us the city. It’s on the Rhine and has a great old center.


fountain art


the flag


typical square

5 july
Our first day and night in a place neither of us has been: Luxembourg. The city is small but graced with impressive fortifications. It was once called the Gibralter of the north.


luxembourg city from 'the most beautiful balcony in europe'