Prague, Czech Republic

A comfortable bus trip from Cesky Krumlov to Prague on a very spiffy bus, it takes about 3 hours. When I got there, I managed to negotiate the underground with the help of a young woman, and despite the very UNhelpful woman in the ticket kiosk. It had been snowing in Prague, and so trundling my suitcase over ice and snow proved to be a hefty undertaking, to get to my hostel almost 1 km from the my train stop. But I eventually got there, in a bit of a sweat, despite the cold temperature. I was given my room key, and heaved my luggage up a couple of floors to where the dorm was.

Strange - I thought I had booked a 6 bed female dorm. There were 7 beds here, and it was clear to me that, even though all the other occupants of the room were sightseeing in Prague, my room mates were not female. There is no way a room full of females would smell the way this one did, and furthermore those boots (ON the bed!!!) did not belong to a female!! Hmm. So, just to be sure, I double checked at reception that I was given the right room. Turns out that there are no female dorms - just mixed ones. A short time later, while I was settling in, and trying to air out the room a bit, The Lads arrived. Five of them. Aussies, travelling together. You can imagine my shock! Well, they were all super nice guys, and we all got along fine, and they apologized for the odour and promptly put the offending footwear out the window! They all moved on next morning, and so the second night I had the whole room to myself. Third night, another troupe of boys, this time only 3, from Argentina, also super nice guys. And cute!

As I mentioned it had been snowing in Prague, and it wasn't about to let up. It just snowed and snowed and snowed. The accumulation was nothing compared to what Revelstoke gets after 2 or 3 days of continuous snowfall, but on the other hand, there seemed to be no effort by anyone to shovel walks or plow roads. Getting around was really labourious, and forget about dry feet! Even businesses didn't seem to think that removing snow from in front of their shops was necessary. It was a really mess, and got more and more treacherously icy as the days went on.

But what a city! It is truly amazing how beautiful it is, and how many magnificent buildings there are. Just about every single one, in fact! And of course there is the castle on the hill. This is a REALLY big one. It includes the ultra magnificent St. Vitas Cathedral, with maybe a dozen chapels within, and an especially important one which was built for the remains of St. Wenceslas, the patron saint of the Czech people.

Another highly notable Czech native was Alphonse Mucha, a titan of the Art Nouveau movement. Here is a quote from Wikipedia, just so you know: "Art Nouveau is an approach to design according to which artists should work on everything from architecture to furniture, making art part of everyday life.The movement was strongly influenced by Czech artist Alphonse Mucha, when Mucha produced a lithographed poster, which appeared on 1 January 1895 in the streets of Paris as an advertisement for the play Gismonda,starring Sarah Bernhardt. It was an overnight sensation, and announced the new artistic style and its creator to the citizens of Paris. Initially called the Style Mucha, (Mucha Style), this soon became known as Art Nouveau." He was incredibly prolific, although most of his years as an artist were spent in Paris. His decorative motifs, designs, posters (he was hired by "The Divine Sarah" Bernhardt to design posters for her for a period of six years) graced not only parlors, homes, state buildings, churches, and theatres, but cookie tins, coffee tins, cigarette paper ads, you name it. I love his work and so lucky for me there is a Mucha Museum in Prague, which is quite small, but has a wonderful exhibit of some of his works and photographs, and runs a short film about his life. He returned to the Czech lands later in his life, never having given up on ideas of national expression, to work on one huge opus called the Slav Epic, which finally consists of 20 huge paintings, depicting the history of the Czech and Slavic peoples. It was a dream of his since his youth to create such a series, celebrating Slavic history, and it now is on display in a chateau in Mokavsky Krumlov, in eastern Czech Republic. Sadly, I did not see the real deal, but some reproductions of parts of it. It is very moving and wonderful.

The visit to the Prague Castle would have been a lot nicer if it had been not quite so cold, there being nowhere to warm up for the entire tour. I opted for the audio guide which was really helpful, but gave more information than one really needed, to provide a meaningful experience there. So, fast forwarding through some of the commentary was necessary for me to A: not freeze to death, and B: not be overwhelmed by too much information. My camera doesn't like the cold weather much, and ceasing up prevents my taking pictures but I got a few taken before it packed it in for the day.

There were two reasons that I decided to cut short my trip to Prague. One was the atrocious weather, and the other was the fact that the week that I was there was a very slow week at the opera. The following weeks looked much more promising, so I decided after 3 nights to head to Berlin, to visit with my nephew Jarrod, and to check out the city that I had heard so much about from other travellers. But with the firm intention of returning to Prague - I wasn't finished with it yet!

Cesky Krumlov from Castle hill

Town gate

Inside one of the castle courtyards. Walls completely covered in sgraffito.

Cesky Krumlov, Czech Republic

The trip to this town in southern Czech Republic was half by train and half by mini bus. I took out a loan to buy the Austrian train ticket (just kidding) to get from Salzburg to Linz, about an hour and a half long ride. From there I got a pre-arranged pick up to take me to Cesky Krumlov. It was immediately apparent when we crossed the Austria/Czech border. Not so prosperous in southern Czech R. as in neighbouring Austria. There were small hamlets and villages that we passed through, that seemed like they were in a bit of a time warp, about 15 or 20 years behind the times. Really pretty countryside, rolling hills with forest and farms and more villages. I was dropped off about 300 meters from my hostel, so it was a very convenient way to travel. I wish there were more such transfer operators in the business.

Being in Cesky Krumlov is like walking around in an Arthur Rackham illustration. The buildings are so cute and just a little bit, but perfectly off-angle. The facades are highly decorated using the sgrafitto method (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sgraffito). There is a castle on the hill with a fancy-schmancy round tower, and an ancient brewery, and a waterwheel, and everything! It is one of the best castle museums I've been to, although it was pretty much all outside, in the bitter cold, unfortunately. A big disappointment was not being able to go inside the castle theatre which dated back to the 1700's I think. It is only open in the summer months, but apparently when it was built no expense was spared to make it a fully functioning state of the art facility with mechanical devices for movable stages and much , much more, making it the most advanced facility of its kind. It is still fully functional in its original configuration and still used as a performance venue.

There is also a gallery showcasing the works and life of Egon Schiele, who's mother came from Cesky Krumlov, and who spent plenty of time there himself. Sadly, the righteous townsfolk did not approve of his lifestyle or his art and he was run out of town. Today, the locals are quite a bit more liberally minded!

I loved this town, and was wondering if I had left too soon, after 4 nights, for Prague...

Salzburg

St. Peter's Cathedral ceiling

Salzburg, Austria.

So, I didn't do the "Sound of Music Tour" which of course is one of the main deals in Salzburg. This admission may come as something of a surprise to members of my family of origin, knowing what a huge fan I was of that movie and the music and Julie Andrews! However, I stood my ground, even though I was somewhat tempted when I read the itinerary. However, the weather was miserable and visibility was limited, and so I decided that there would be no point in paying an exorbitant amount of euros if half the sites would be shrouded in fog, cloud and darkness. Instead I settled for the usual self-guided option.

I will come right out and say it - I didn't really like Salzburg. I'm guessing it is stunningly beautiful in the summer, and absolutely crawling with tourists. Even in the dead of winter, there are a lot of tourists in this town. The city exists now, because of tourism. I think that it is safe to say that every job in Salzburg is a direct, or not very indirect result of tourism. It is a wealthy and prosperous place, and evidently they are managing the throngs to their advantage - and why not? But please, can someone explain to me why they are such a crabby lot? In fact, it is not that I didn't like Salzburg. It's Salzburgers! You know - if you live in a major tourist centre, and you hate tourists, then probably you should live somewhere else. It's not like the tourism thing is new to Salzburg. It's been the deal for a very long time! Since not long after salt was discovered, I think! Snippy, snippy workers serving cold Viennese coffee (sniff) and dried out fancy pastry (sniff sniff) for 7.50 euros, and expecting a 3 euro tip! Sorry, I'm not going back!

It wasn't all bad though. It truly is a beautiful place, with the dramatic backdrop of the Austrian Alps, echoing all that Austrian Angst. The fortress up on the hill overlooking the city is quite marvelous, and requires only a small mortgage against your property for admission. I did have one of those "special, rare moments" when I hiked up the trail to the Carpathian Monastery, and upon entering the church sat down to enjoy the final throes of Bach's Toccata and Fugue being played on the organ. The monks were very welcoming and invited me to sit and listen. Even Salzburgers can't take away the pure joy of listening to Bach!

There are some fabulously beautiful churches, natch, and some good looking buildings, but not a lot of colour or ornate exteriors facades that are so prevalent in Vienna. But it does have a nice system of trails that wind up and down the hills that surround the city. Salzburg is in the middle of a large flat plain with a few odd lumps and hills scattered over it. The mountains are "over there", but not as close as they are in, say, Vancouver, but you can make them out through the haze if the light is right.

Lot of history to Salzburg which started well before the von Trappe family came on the scene. Of course, salt is a big part of the story, about which I learned almost nothing! Just another cranky tourist.

Despite the miserable wind and cold, I did manage to take a few pictures, so that my memories of the place will not be lost to the cruel ravages of old age.

Hundertwasser Haus

This is where the Vienna Phil sometimes plays, and where the famous New Years Eve Ball takes place.

Karlsplatz Station, designed by Otto Wagner
Another Otto Wagner building, all tiles on the exterior facade.

Schoenbrunn Palace. It's too big to fit the whole thing in!
Pokey and Gumby are excited to go to the opera!

Vienna, Austria.

It was a pleasant train trip to Vienna, and I was able to score a very inexpensive ticket from Ljubljana, just 29 euros for the 6 hour trip. Train transportation costs are different depending on the country of origin. By comparison, I paid 47.50 euros for the 3 hour trip from Vienna to Salzburg. Obviously, it is premium pricing in Austria, and that is pretty much across the board. Austria is a very expensive country to visit, but Vienna really is worth spending some time in.

I arrived at train station late afternoon, and following the hostel web-site instruction I trundled my suitcase over cobblestone sidewalks for about 40 minutes to get to what would be my home for the next nine days. After I got my things stashed away in the dorm, I ventured out to see what I could see before dark. As is my habit, I armed myself with the best map available and started walking, rather than take a bus or subway.

Vienna is a pretty big city, and after about an hour of heading straight up Maria Hilfenstrasse, I found myself on the edge of the huge Ring road that surrounds the heart of Vienna. Since I was in the "vicinity" I figured I might as well find the Wienstaatsoper. It was already almost dark, so navigation didn't make quite as much sense as it should have, but eventually I found it. Lo and Behold there was a performance on that night of La Forza del Destino!

I had done my homework about how to get standing room tickets, so I knew that I had to find a side door where those tickets are sold from. Once I had that reconnoitred, I realized that I needed to eat some dinner before taking my place in line for a ticket. I found a kebab shop nearby and quickly wolfed one down along with a bottle of juice, and hoofed it back to the line-up.

It is a very democratic system that is in place for these standing room tickets. They go on sale 90 minutes before performance time, and the side door opens an hour or so before that, so you needn't stand outside in the cold! The deal is: one ticket per person, and you can't save a spot in line for your buddy. All comers go to the back of the bus. Once tickets go on sale the line moves quickly and the only thing you need to decide is whether you want a 3 euro or 4 euro ticket. Best deal in all of Austria!

From the box-office area, you make your way, with the help of the very polite staff, to the next line-up. Again, the staff really keeps an eye on the goings on, making sure everyone is orderly and there are no attempts to crash the line. Then, at a given time, the hoards are allowed to enter the hallowed hall, where you jockey to get the best available spot along a terraced rail. You must mark your spot by tying a scarf to the bottom rung (NOT the top rung - das ist verboten), and then you await further instructions. When all and sundry have crowded in, there is a little welcoming speech from an usher, and instructions about taking pictures and coats. ALL coats MUST be checked at the guardaroba. No exceptions. It is now about 30 minutes to curtain time. The best strategy at this point is to find somewhere to sit down, because the next three hours will be spent standing in one place, with someone behind you breathing down your neck!

So, how was my first of three Wienstaatoper experiences? Exciting and disappointing, both. The whole drill was pretty neat, despite the long hours of standing. The production of La Forza del Destino, by one of THE foremost opera companies in the world, was absolutely atrocious! Definitely the worst production I have ever been to. The singing was fine and even very good, but the production was chaotic, incongruous, and even smutty. Cowgirl-chicks in hot-pants and Stetsons, waving six shooters and lassos, lewd promiscuity, and really awkward transitions between scenes and acts. Not sure what the director was smoking when he came up with the design for this production, but I’m guessing it was a controlled substance.

The next production I went to was MacBeth, with the very hunky and wonderful baritone, Simon Keenliside. Another difficult production, which also included some very strange staging arrangements, including a fully operational shower (!) in which Mr and Mrs drenched themselves in an effort to wash away the liters of spilled blood from the victims of their assassinations, MacDuff and his toyboy guards with whom he was sharing his bed, naked.... I'm sorry, but it really didn't advance the story or the singing or the theatricality. It was just a big mess to clean up. It seemed to me that Mr Keenliside was not terribly interested in the production, and that he was just going through the paces. But even this was an improvement on La Forza!

Third production was the New Years Eve standard, Die Fleidermaus, which was a much happier and of course more traditional, classical setting. Only the third act dragged somewhat, due to the inclusion of the "special guest" who was an Austrian political satirist or comic actor of obvious repute. Since his lines were improvised, there was no translation, and so unless one understood German and Austrian politics, it was pretty much beyond comprehension.

In all I stood up and watched about 10 hours of grand opera, not much of it being that grand, but I was still happy to have the experience. It is actually kind of interesting to see how even the "best in the bizz" can hit and miss. Like the production of Tosca at the Met - that was definitely a "miss".

What about the rest of my time in Vienna? You could spend every minute of everyday in one museum and another. The place is stuffed full of fabulous palaces and priceless treasures of art, architecture and music. I took in a few museums, including the Schonbrun Palace, the Sisi Museum, half of Belvedere, the Hundertwasser Museum, The Third Man Museum (as in: the Orson Wells movie) among others. There are numerous exceptional buildings and landmarks, from Hapsburger to Art Nouveau to Modern and Post Modern. The Art Nouveau movement started in Vienna with a few renegade artists, and there are some gorgeous examples of their ideas scattered throughout the city, not the least of which is Gustav Klimpt's Beethoven Frieze. Another member of that movement was the architect Otto Wagner, who designed numerous public buildings and private homes, beautifully stylish design and lovely facade decoration. I'm particularily fond of this style so I was happy to go the extra mile in search of some of his buildings, including subway stations and apartment buildings. All a nice contrast and compliment to the opulent and majestic palaces of the once mighty Hapsburgs. Vienna is really a feast for the eyes.

It is also a feast of culinary delights, and a feast on the wallet. Of course, I mostly cooked my own food in the hostel self-cater kitchen. But I decided to treat myself on Christmas day, to a mid-day restaurant meal. I found a place that seemed like it was a bit of a Viennese landmark, and shared a table with a woman who was from just outside Vienna, and was having a coffee and cake, before catching her train back home. We had a lovely visit, talking about music and church organs, and we compared notes on upcoming concerts over Christmas Week in the many cathedrals in the centre of Vienna. My meal was good and the company was lovely, and the staff was full on Viennese - not quite rude/not quite polite. I think I'm right in remembering the restaurant being Cafe Diglas, established in 1875. The reason I'm mentioning it, is to invite you to go there when you are in Vienna - not only for the good food, but for the WC. The MOST high tech biffy I have ever been in. The stalls have glass doors through which you can see both in and out, UNTIL you lock the door, when it magically, completely clouds over. In that way, it is obvious whether or not the stall is occupied! And Dyson hand dryers (like those high tech vacuum cleaners), which almost peel your skin off. Uber Cool!

I covered both Christmas and New Years Eve in Vienna. A long stay, but still so much to see there (like for instance a really really GOOD opera!). One of the reasons I was there for that many days was because I could not find any other available accommodation in other nearby destinations, like Bratislava. In fact, I was very lucky to get 8 nights at the hostel I booked, because at that busy time of the year they have a policy of a maximum 4 nights stay. I pleaded my case with them and suggested that I could think of no better place in Europe to spend my birthday, and it was enough to sway them in my favour.

New Years Eve in Vienna was quite weird actually. I came out of the opera at abound 11:00, into the very busy streets nearby. There was a tangible sense of agitation amongst the revellers, many of whom were quite drunk. I decided not to find out what was planned for the ringing in of 2010, because it just felt too dicey. I headed underground to the subway station and found an even stronger element of weirdness in the crush of celebrators. Drinking openly on the streets and on the subway is common and obviously legal. Beer is readily available at kiosks and shops just about everywhere, as common a Coke. But there were some seriously drunk and disorderly people on the trains and in the stations and streets, and Austrian Angst was in your face. I was a little alarmed when the train that I was on blew right through the station that I needed to transfer at, presumably because it was complete chaos at that station. It took me three extra transfers to get back to the hostel. On the walk from Westbahnhof to the hostel, I noticed the full moon, which I realized was a Blue Moon. A Blue Moon birthday on New Years Eve, in Vienna - I don't think I will repeat that!

Next morning I was on a train headed to Salzburg.

Beautiful Bled Castle with Julian Alps in the distance.Vintgar Gorge
Lake Bled

Unfortunately, Blogger isn't working very well again, and it has become impossible to add photographs. Hopefully this problem will be rectified soon, and I can share some more photos with you.

Bled, Slovenia.

Wow! That's the first thing that came out of my mouth when I arrived in Bled. It is stunningly beautiful, and in mid December, there are few tourists, so the views are unobstructed! The mountains were showing a bit of accumulation of snow on the peaks, and in the valley there was some old snow, but not much. The lake was almost dead calm and provided near perfect reflections. I found my very comfortable hostel within a few hundred meters of the bus stop and following the advice of the hostel host I set off for a walk around the lake before early darkness would become an issue. It was great to breathe in the fresh mountain air after so many weeks of cities and almost constant exposure to second hand cigarette smoke!

My host also advised me where to get a very good meal of typical Slovenian food, where the locals eat, and exactly how to order it. I followed her advice again, and had a fantastic mid-day meal of some local sausage served with red cabbage and potatoes, complete with a super tasty small desert all for about 7 Euros. It is nice to eat out every once in a while, but only if you can find local food being served. Of course, anywhere in Europe one can settle for pizza. Please... no pizza! I have steadfastly refused to settle for Euro fast food, even if it is better than NA fast food. Burek and pizza are available everywhere, and for some of the young travellers they comprise their entire diet, day after day, week after week, month after month. Well, it's a cheap way to go, if you don't mind unbalanced meals and endlessly monotonous food. Raw veggies (salad, for example) are not such a common part of the diet in these parts, so grocery shopping becomes essential if you want to get some minerals and vitamins mixed in with all the carbohydrates, and it's usually cheaper, but not always.

A local "must do" is to hike the Vintgar Gorge. This is Bled's version of Johnson's Canyon. At least that's how they see it. It's a pretty and easy hike through a river ravine, with some really poor signage, at both ends. It had snowed the night before I undertook this venture, so there was some deep snow to trudge through, but the board walk and trail were in fine enough shape for it to be completely safe. It was a pleasant walk beside a small river, with a few small waterfalls. Being from Canada, and having spent a lot of time hiking in the Rocky Mountains, I have to say that I wasn't all that impressed! (Take the Robson River and Emperor Falls, for example - now THAT'S impressive!)

There is also a castle up high on a hill overlooking the town and Lake Bled, which is another good outing on foot. It has some small museums in it, including an ancient printing press similar to the one used by Luther. Really old!

A few days of hiking and relaxing in and around Bled was a fine way to get out of cities, without having the essentials for a full on mountain experience - hiking boots, gaiters, down clothing, waterproof outerwear, tent, sleeping bag, stove, et cetera, et cetera. Kinda like being a tourist! I even went to bee-keeping museum in the nearby town of Radovljica. That was quite weird actually! The town was a good size at about 6000 residence, but almost completely dead! That is to say there were very few people out and about, even though it was the Saturday before Christmas. There is beautifully restored old town with gorgeous ancient buildings from the middle ages. The museum was closed when I arrived, but did open an hour or so later, so I came back to have a look. Probably I was the only visitor that week. Maybe all month. So then, why would they bother turning on the heat? It was easily as cold inside as it was outside, except that the sun wasn't shining inside. Slovenians are very proud of their bee-keeping and honey production industry which is old and traditional.

After 4 days in Bled it was time to head back to Ljubljana where I was going to catch a train to Vienna.

Pokey is amazed by all the

snow in Ljubljana!

Pokey graffiti.

Christmas lights along the

Ljubljanica River.

Ljubljana, Slovenia

The countries that made up the former Yugoslavia are certainly beautiful and have great cities. Slovenia was the first of that group of newly independent nations to jump back into free market economy, and it is the only one of those nations that is a full member of the European Union, complete with euro currency and prices. It is also a Schengen Treaty member, which for me meant as soon as I crossed the border into Slovenia, my allowable Schengen days started ticking away again. I had 72 left when I got to Ljubljana, and I could see that I was going to have to be really careful about how I managed the remaining days.

Ljubljana is yet another very beautiful city, with strong influence from the Austro-Hungarian Empire in its architecture and monuments. The Ljubljanica River arcs through the middle of the city with the lovely, tiny old town on one side, connectedto the opposite side by a beautiful pedestrian bridge. The Christmas Market was in full swing when I was there, and so there were numerous stalls selling handmade items and hot mulled wine, beer, and wurst. The most impressive visual feature of the city is the Ljubljana Castle which watches over from atop a steep hill just behind the old town. It is an easy enough walk up the partially paved walkway, but if you want to save your energy for other events, one can take the short fenicular railway to the summit for a mere 3 Euros. That doesn't buy much (about 5 bucks), but I sure wasn't going to fork out that kind of cash! No, I'd rather save the money for groceries. Besides, I needed the exercise.

Of course, it was raining and snowing and cold, but there is a warmth and friendliness to the place that I found endearing. There is a university and so there are a lot of students adding their own fresh energy to the historical grace of the once mighty Hapsburg era. In the university area there is an interesting compound situated behind a high cement wall. It was formerly military barracks, built and used during the bad old days of communism, and then abandoned after the collapse of the regime. It was slated for demolition, but had been occupied by students needing cheap accommodation and alternative art and music studios. So, now it is looking quite neglected again, but there is still evidence of occupation and creativity taking place, including some very colourful graffiti on the otherwise grim cement walls. I was delighted to see images of Pokey, who is Gumby's pony. They happen to be MY partners in adventure, going everywhere with me in a dedicated mesh pocket in my shoulder bag. The graffiti inspired me to start including them in some photos of my trip, and they are happy to oblige!

I almost forgot to tell you about a day trip that I made to the town of Postojna, about 2 hours bus trip from Ljubljana. Why, you might ask, would I bother with such a place? Well, because of the caves. That's why. I was more pretty skeptical upon arrival at the entrance to the cave. First of all, the only way you can enter the cave system is by taking the guided tour. Second, the guided tour starts out with a mini-train ride into the deep caverns of the system. Cheesy, or what? My skepticism lasted not even 30 seconds into the train ride. It was absolutely mind blowing. To say that this cave, which isn't the biggest in Slovenia, is vast is an understatement. It is gargantuan, and quite fantasmagorical. Spellcheck doesn't know that word yet, but that is what it is. Taking photos was prohibited, so the best I can do is invite you to check out some photos at this web-site:

http://images.google.de/images?rlz=1C1GGLS_enCA334CA334&sourceid=chrome&q=postojna+caves&um=1&ie=UTF-8&ei=3TdWS9-_MdaisQaipsHYCw&sa=X&oi=image_result_group&ct=title&resnum=5&ved=0CDIQsAQwBA

I made plans to go to Bled, which is reputed to be a fabulously beautiful town in the Julian Alps, north of Ljubljana. An hour and a half on the bus gets you there.

Zagreb, Croatia.

Remember the night train from Sarajevo I mentioned? How I thought it would be a good idea, since it is a 9 hour trip, I might as well use the time to save money and sleep, rather than travel all day, and arrive in the late afternoon somewhere I have never been before, only to faffe about in the dark trying to find my way to the next hostel? Well, in theory, it was a good idea. However, I didn't know about Bosnian and Croatian train conductors. In all, the train stopped 10 times, including border crossings out of Bosnia and into Croatia. For some reason, the conductors found it necessary to check my ticket each of those 10 times. So much for the sleeping part of the plan. The ONLY time I wasn't aroused was when we arrived in Zagreb. Naturally, by then I was in a deep, desperate sleep. Luckily, I was alerted by the sounds of silence, and managed to get myself and all my belongings off the train and into the chilly early morning of Zagreb. To top it off, after about a 30 minute walk from the station to my hostel, I found myself locked out in the freezing wind. There was no one at reception until 8:00, another hour away, IF they got to work on time. Fortunately, one of the guests buzzed me in a little more than 30 minutes later. the receptionist arrived a half hour late for work that day. No more night trains for me....

I was quite tempted to crawl into bed for a few but after a cup of Bosnian (Turkish) coffee, I felt good to go, and so I started to find my way around the old city. It is a very attractive place, and enjoys a sophistication that goes back a long way. Some very attractive buildings and stunning churches grace the streets. There are several squares (Trgs - if you read my earlier entries you might remember ho I mentioned the Croatian aversion to vowels.) which feature beautiful statuary of important historical figures. There is an National Theatre and a Concert Hall, both of which are of Austro-Hungarian vintage, so very grand.

The weather was really nasty during my three days in Zagreb, which resulted in my not taking many photos. At one point, when I was at the outdoor market, several of the tall canapies were blown over, which didn't really seem to deter anyone. After all, it was getting close to Christmas, and there was business to conduct. There was a beautiful assortment of fresh produce, honey, baked goods, yogurt, fresh and ripened cheeses, wine, olive oil, and nuts. The indoor market housed the permanent vendors of poultry, pork, beef, horse, fish, pasta, and sauerkraut. That's right - stalls selling ONLY whole pickled cabbage. Yum!

I had some excellent chats with one of my hostel mates, a Croatian who regularly came to Zagreb on business from his home on the beautiful Croatian coast. He would be about my age I suppose, and so has lived through several incarnations of the Croatian identity. It was very enlightening to hear his evaluation of the Yugoslav communist era. He made no bones about the fact that there decreased productivity from a country that had once had a booming economy in construction and engineering, ship building, shipping, and agriculture. During the bad old days of Tito's Yugoslavia, there was little incentive or reward for productivity. The state provided for everyone, and so why bother to make any effort? He had lived through that era, and was now witnessing how the country was still emerging from that mind-set, and commented that it would take another generation or two to put it to rest. Together with the ex-pat Irish owner of the hostel, the three of us had some fine conversation about economies, and the state of the world

today!

My next destination was beckoning me, so I made my arrangements to travel to Ljubljana, this time by day time train.

Sarajevo

Sarajevo: city, ski hills, and cemeteries.
Map of Sarajevo
View from hostel window.
Sarajevo, Bosnia Herzogovina

In 1984 Sarajevo hosted the Winter Olympic Games. Eight short years later the city was surrounded and under a three year siege by Serbian forces. We heard a lot about this sad chapter in the recent history of the Balkans, but I for one, never really understood or appreciated the extent of the devastation that was rained down upon this very old community. I still don't really understand what it was all about. It was a very complicated war, with the Serbs coming out looking very much like the perpetrators and aggressors. When the war is talked about with locals in Bosnia and Croatia, there is usually a deep reflective, heartfelt sigh of sadness, followed by a slight shake of the head, and still wondering why the Serbs did what they did.

Sarajevo is an very old city, and based on the proximity of houses of worship of Catholics, Orthodox, Muslims and Jews, it is obvious that the good citizens have lived in harmony for a long, long time. It really is a crossroads of east and west. The muslim presence if strongly represented in the architecture, food, and commerce, more so than any other city I have been to on this trip, so far.

The old city is know as Bascarsija, and as usual, it's where you want to find your accommodation. My hostel was right across the street from the edge of this fascinating part of town, so it was easy to roll out of bed and to find a nice cuppa Turkish coffee, or better yet, Turkish tea. I found a beautiful tiny Turkish tea/coffee shop and it became my absolute favorite place in Sarajevo. So small, you couldn't "swing a cat", there was always one or two "regulars" there, smoking cigarettes and lingering over tea, discussing - who knows what? Politics, no doubt...

I met up with another travelling acquaintance at the hostel, Douglas whom I had met in Orhid, Macdonia. Together with another Aussie traveler (Jane) we hired a local guide to take us on a city tour, with particular emphasis on the famous Siege Tunnel. The guide was a youngster during the Siege of Sarajevo, but has very vivid memories, and a strong understanding of the intricacies of the politics and maneuverings of that time. He showed us important places within the city, and from viewpoints pointed out various features and monuments. The ski resorts of the 1984 Olympics are within 30 minutes drive of the capital, and were just beginning to show signs of accumulating snow. Strewn across the landscape of the city itself are cemetary after cemetary, Muslim, Catholic, Orthodox, and Jewish.

Then he took us to the Tunnel House, where the life line to Sarajevo began in the basement of one mans house. Eight hundred meters of passage way that was the sole means of getting food and supplies into the city for 3 years, it was dug underneath the airport runway. It was eventually equipped with some small rail cars and tracks to increase the flow of supplies and make it easier to move through the 4 foot high shaft. The house itself and surrounding houses are riddled with bullet holes, and there are remnants of rocket shells in the pavement. All in all it was a moving experience, and once again brought home how blessed I am to be Canadian.

Douglas, is a traveler who is not very interested in what makes a country beautiful to the average tourist. He is less impressed by grand architecture and historically beautiful sites and more interested in what he refers to as "the real world". He seeks out and easily finds places where it's just the locals struggling and making their way, day to day. Being racially Chinese, he is something of an oddity to the rural folk, and they are curious to meet him and welcome him into their home and work places. He finds himself staying in monasteries and humble mountain homes, happily using sign language and any other means to communicate with his hosts. With this sense of adventure, he talked me into joining him to find the so-called Great Pyramids. Some whacked-out local archeologist of some repute was convinced that one of the many hills in the territory near Sarajevo, was actually a pyramid built by the Egyptians, no less. There is a description of this site in the Lonely Planet guide, so off we went to see for ourselves.

It was after this day long "adventure" that I started referring to the guidebook as the "Lonely Planet Book of Lies". A bit unfair, perhaps, but it was very evident from our experience that this is one of the many recommendations in the Lonely Planet books that the writer has clearly not explored for him/herself or verified the information provided. Let's just say that one would have to have been on drugs to imagine that any of the hills is anything other than a geological formation. But, it was a different kind of outing than I otherwise would have had, and definitely added to my arsenal of experiences!

From Sarajevo, I decided to take the night train to Zagreb, thus saving one night accommodation cost. Was it worth it? Stay tuned...