It was good for me – was it good for you

Last night was a rough one. Not much sleep and both of us woke up still feeling pretty shitty. Made for a slow start to the day and I must admit this is the first day I didn’t want to get out and explore. We made it to the Castle in time to take the short tour but since we had already seen quite a bit the day before it worked out just about right. For some reason I am intrigued by views through windows so I occupied most of my time taking photos. Val thinks it’s stupid but that’s not the only thing I do that she thinks is stupid. Can you spell NASCAR.

On our way to the Castle we saw a dog carrying a tennis ball and it seemed clear it was just waiting for the right spot to play. Made Val think about Mia and since I look for things to validate my thoughts it seemed to point out that our basic desires and needs are all the same no matter where we live and that holds true with dogs too.

After we got out of the Castle we wandered around in the snow. Wandering has become one of my favorite vacation activities. The things you find are so much more special. We came across a couple of really cool buildings. One was the Loreto and it had a small church in it with organ music playing and a treasury that had a beautiful gold and diamond cross thing that I found very attractive. I don’t know what the other building was but I got a great picture of it.

We wandered back towards the Charles Bridge and it was so nice since there were a lot less people and it made things feel very different. I really liked it and am wishing we were staying a few more days.

We stopped at a restaurant that advertised Gipsy music on Friday and Saturday. We knew it wasn’t either of those days but thought a place that had gipsy music was worth going in. Not many people there and suspect they won’t make Fodors recommended must eat places in Prague but it was perfect for us. The waiter was friendly the food was good the company was great and it didn’t cost much.

On our last trip over the bridge we noticed a nativity scene that Val liked. Upon closer look we were concerned that baby Jesus, Mary and Joseph were somehow imprisioned in Prague. Maybe that’s why they have so many cool churches - to make up for their sins?

Have not been able to fit in the absinth run so will have to make a trip back with Alec. It just didn’t work out this time as with the Hockey game. We did cross paths with a trainload of hockey fans fully dressed and it made it clear to me that I do need to come back and fit that in too. Dara will come along for that one?

We have had a wonderful trip and it would not be possible for me to have a better travel partner. Val not my laptop. Just as she does in life she has supported me when I needed it, kicked me when I deserved it and loved me every minute of every day. I am lucky not good. I hope you have enjoyed the post they have been good for me. I think I’lll go have a smoke.

The Party’s Over?

Gary and I have always been partners . . . in life, in parenting, in adventures, in many other undertakings. BUT – he does not like being a partner in this persistent sinus/congestion and today it showed. He has been moaning, yes, moaning. And not in a good way. He stood at the Metro with his eyes closed and said, “I’m just hoping I can make it home.” Good lord. Dara and Alec, I’m glad he wasn’t the carrier of you two.

More beautiful sights today—Praha is a city I would visit again in a heartbeat. We woke up to a thin layer of snow which brightens the dingy January look of the city. We walked the length of Wencelas Square and placed a rose on the Jan Palach memorial. One of the great benefits of traveling is the “thinking” time you get. I complain that in my job and at home I am in reaction mode. Here, I can contemplate and pontificate (at length). This might explain some of Gary’s grumpiness! We followed the coronation path again down Celetna and across the Charles Bridge and I was able to make my once-in-a-lifetime wish on the John of Nepomuk statute. He was a priest that the queen confessed to. The king wanted to know the queen’s secrets, but the priest said nada and was thrown from the bridge. You can imagine that my wish was sweeping: World peace in my life time.

Camille – we saw an advertisement for “real gipsy musik.” We need you here too

Tomorrow is our last day. I am so grateful to have traveled with Gary, to have seen the sites that we will talk about forever, but am so excited to go back to those who adore me.

Val’s asleep now and I’m so sick I can hardly type but I gotta get this blog post done since everyone is so faithfully following it. OK Val is asleep, I’m not quite that sick, Val only exaggerates a little bit and I don’t have any idea how many folks follow the blog but suspect it is less than I assume.

Val did not mention the two beautiful churches we went into today. Very different styles both incredible. I don’t keep track of their names so well or know much of anything about Gothic or Baroque but these were very different inside and out. The first one allowed access to the gallery (second floor kind of) and was white and had lots of what I would describe as layers. The second one had some of the most beautiful stained glass I have ever seen and I have been around (Guemes, Bellingham and even to Seattle a couple of times)

The views from up at the Castle were spectacular but I was starting to run out of gas and we had to get back to the apartment. We will go back to the castle tomorrow. That is one of the things I have enjoyed about this trip is that we have been able to spend some time going back to places and not just have to hurry from one site to the next.

Val took a picture of a cool European guy on the escalator. This gave me a chance to be reflective about important things like how I have thought quite a bit about the fact that you get off of one underground line that connects to another and you go down some pretty long escalators to get to them. Just how far underground are these things? Tried to Google it didn't find much but they do say that they have the longest escalator in the world so it must be pretty deep. I am so sick I have to try to get some sleep.

PF Flyer

Spent the morning looking for cheap dress-up close without any success. Did stumble upon Wenceslas Square and had a good look around it. Inspiring seeing a monument to a young man who set himself on fire in 1969 protesting communist rule. Twenty years later a rally commemorating that protest started the Velvet Revolution which ended with the Communist government leaving Czechoslovakia about a year later. Not much for detailed history but it’s nice to see that individual acts (along with a whole lot of other circumstances I suspect) can lead to significant change.

Since we didn’t find any clothes we decided to do the best we could with what we had and assumed it would be good enough. I think we were wrong. It may have been us being sensitive but we didn’t seem too well received by some in attendance and the left over KGB lady usher. We got in ok and were directed to our seats. I looked around and saw lots of folks taking pictures so I discretely take out my camera and take one photo of the ceiling. The lady usher from hell busts me done and sternly tells me no photos. I apologized and said I thought it was ok since everyone else was taking photos. She looked at me as if to say “YFSA – if you didn’t come in REI Northwest attire and weren’t so obviously American maybe I would let you take a few photos but since you don’t get it put your fucking camera away, shut up and sit down”. I thought I saw an AK47 under her coat so I did what she said.

The concert (at least the part I saw – more on that later) was incredible as was the inside of the building. Really do love the orchestra part. Still don’t get the soprano part however. Can’t tell if it’s the words I don’t understand or what. The large lady with ample cleavage really had some range but it just doesn’t do much for me at all. A little past half way through the concert I had a coughing fit. It is hard to time your coughs during loud parts of the music or clapping breaks. Val nicely suggested I meet her in the hall after the concert. I obeyed as always.

I am glad to have witnessed the hall scene. They had a couple of screens showing the live action (just like sporting events) and you could hear the music (kind of). Some of the ushers including my friend were standing around watching. When a waltz song came on several of them including my friend started to waltz around the hallways. I wished I could dance it would have been fun to join them. Changed my impression of miss kgb too (a little).

After the concert we went to dinner at the fancy expensive restaurant that son in law suggested. Turns out it wasn’t as expensive as we thought. Got a dinner for two that had lots of meaty treats (sorry Mia) and included apple strudel for dessert. It was good and the most we have eaten since we left Anacortes.

We decided to wander a bit to find a Metro stop and got lost. Ended up in the complete opposite direction than I thought we were going at the river in a spot we had not been. Offered great views and wasn’t too far from a Metro stop so we walked along the river and enjoyed the scenery.

I titled this PF Flyer at the start with some vague reference to Prague Philharmonic then finally realized before I published it would be PP not PF. I like PF better and have a history of getting initials wrong sometimes so just deal with it. YYGG.

Val takes the reins

Val was our tour guide today and she is good (at tour guiding too). We did things today I have only dreamed about doing and there were no motorcycles involved. Two walks in one day plenty of transportation exchanges and we never got lost once.

Our first stop was some old fortress turned park and church. It was not very crowded with beautiful views of Prague and the grounds were incredible. The pictures are pretty good but they don’t do it justice.

On our way to our next stop we both agreed that short skirts and high heels are not always a good thing. No pictures but I am sure you can imagine.

Our next adventure was the royal walk and it included some of the sights we saw last night but now Val explained what we were seeing. We came upon some NFL nesting dolls. They had every team including the Steelers and Browns but did not have the Bengals. Must have been sold out Dan?

We got tickets for the Prague Philharmonic performance tomorrow. The tickets were expensive but since it is all in Czech money who cares. It looks like the hockey game is off but maybe I can catch some Euroleague Basketball in a bar that serves absinth? Really am looking forward to the philharmonic but we may need to do some shopping for both of us since our REI northwest attire might not fit in. The fellow at the ticket window advised Vietnamese second hand stores. He said they don’t check labels at the door. I am trying to decide if I should go with the second hand stuff or buy nice things that fit Alec and he can wear them. We will see where that goes. I am looking on the internet for good second hand stores and fancy retail outlets in Prague that are opened on New Year’s Day. Val has finally come around to the idea that bringing the laptop was a good idea.

We went by the restaurant that Adam had recommended and it looked too expensive and fancy for us. Hmm. We were hoping to get something to eat there in advance of the late night crowds so we needed a backup. I got Val some really nice street vendor sausage, one of those cinnamon toast things and a can of warm Czech beer to share between the two of us. Who said I don’t know how to treat a lady. I did get some extra cinnamon toast stuff as a bonus. I think that was because there was a fellow at the booth giving directions in broken English to a person and he ended it with “you can’t miss it”. I said that was the kiss of death and they both looked at me with somewhat angry stares. I said well anytime someone tells me I can’t miss it I usually do and then they got it, laughed and said welcome to Prague.

This is going to seem weird but I think I am missing having interactions with people. Not sure that is the case but maybe I’m not as antisocial as I think I am. I will give that some more thought after I have some absinth and let you know.

We went down to the river tonight to see the New Year’s celebration. Just like Bruce Springsteen? It was wild and fun. On the metro there was a young person playing the accordion and a group of young men singing songs. Since we don’t know the words we will assume they were Czech folk songs but it’s more likely they were just drinking songs. Here’s to Little Alec he’s with us tonight ………We got there early and found a vacant bench right along the river. The area in front of us filled up fairly quickly but it was fun watching the people.

“Love couple” were entertaining early and we thought they might put on quite a show but for some reason the fireworks between the 20 something girl and the 40 something guy never materialized. There was a fun drunk with some friends and another group of young people that kept things interesting while we waited the hour or so for the main show to begin. Lots of boats on the river the castle in the background and the Charles Bridge off to our left. Quite a site.

It was very crowded as it got closer to midnight but the crowd was fun and not obnoxious at all. We had read the there were lots of individuals fireworks let off at the Old Town Square area so we opted for the river display. I can’t imagine what the Old Town Square was like. There were tons of individual fireworks let off by the river in very close proximity to everyone. It was wild. No bottle rockets hit us and we only got showered with remnants a little. Val gave me a real kiss at midnight and I promised to buy her a farm in 2010. All in all a wonderful magical evening.

We working on a video of the fireworks scene and if we can figure it out I will post it asap.

Prague – aha

They call It Praha over here and I can see where the aha comes from. We didn’t get a full day because of the snow and rain but what we saw today was incredible.

I went out on my own this morning to get cash to pay for the apartment and pick up some groceries. Got a little sidetracked with a beautiful church whose name I don’t even know and another building that has some sort of concerts in it. Picked up some killer pastries (is it ever to early for dessert) on my way back and don’t know what it was called but the chocolate pudding and whipped cream inside a hard shell with chocolate coating was worth whatever it cost and I don’t know because the conversion is too complex for me. It’s vacation.

We both got a good nap to catch up with some of the sleep we have been missing and headed out around 2:00.

We weren’t sure where we were going just trying to get a feel for the town and didn’t know what to expect. Well it’s no revelation but each City has had its own feel and Prague is certainly different than all the others. Can’t describe very well with my limited vocabulary but it kind of has a small village feel to some parts, a cosmopolitan feel to others and then a bunch of really cool old buildings crammed in there. Now that I’ve painted a clear picture in your mind, let’s move on.

We made it to Old Town Square just before dark and it was spectacular. There was still a Christmas carnival going on with nice food and craft booths. They also had some music that was in Czech but it sounded fun and had some of the younger folks dancing. We went up in the Old Town Hall Tower and Val got some great shots while I helped some French women (they were older but those French women can get me to do anything if they just call me Gareee) figure out how to make a pressed coin. They didn’t speak English, I don’t speak French and neither of us knew anything about Czech language or money. It was fun and took my mind off the heights.

When we were leaving, the Astronomical Clock was about the strike 6 and a crowd had gathered to watch. It was cool and someone played some trumpet notes from the top and folks cheered. Might try to make it back for New Years or will watch the fireworks along the river. Had some great food at the booths. We got some dough that was wrapped around a hot rod and cooked over an open fire then rolled in cinnamon and sugar. A little like cinnamon toast but quite a bit better.

There seem to be lots of young people here. Not sure if they are in town for the celebration (New Years and Velvet Revolution Independence Day – I made that up but do know it is a big event) or if it is always that way.

We stopped at a supermarket in the City center and it is the first supermarket I have been in that is on two floors and has an escalator type device that allows shopping carts on it. It is basically a moving sidewalk on an incline and was a funny feeling riding it.

We got lost on our way home but at least we got our monies worth on the transit system. Had to go back to the same place twice then finally got pointed in the right direction to get back to our apartment. Val’s not so hot on my direction finding skills right now but I’m the best she’s got and I don’t eat much when I’m on vacation.

It rained quite a bit tonight and we were out in it more than planned but my coat and Val’s poncho worked and kept us and our stuff mostly dry. If it rains every day for the rest of the vacation we can’t complain because we have had wonderful weather.

We are having a little dilemma. Trying to pick between a Czech hockey game and a classical music concert. I say go to the concert hall and look at it for cheap and do the hockey game too but for some reason Val wants to hear the music. Do they have classical music at hockey games? We will keep you posted on where that goes.

Travel day to Prague

Every travel day is interesting and tests us in new ways. We had a pretty successful trip today; we got here without too many mishaps or wrong directions. One thing that has become quite comedic has been the fact that Valerie’s glasses broke so we are kind of down to one pair between us. We can see most things but transportation maps are usually in pretty small print. I usually ask Val to find or verify something and depending on how well we are getting along she will let me know that she needs the glasses to be able to do that. You can probably imagine the range of ways she expresses that to me.

We shared a train cabin with a lady and her 21 year old daughter today who had been in Vienna were going to Prague and then on to Budapest. They were currently from North Carolina but have lived in several countries over the years as her husband’s job requires quite a few moves. It was nice to have some conversations in English with someone other than ourselves.

If you haven’t done it I can’t explain how difficult it is to get from one place to another. The train was a little late and moved from one platform to another. That is not announced in English and you have to just get lucky to see it appear on the overhead. We almost got on a train to Rome. Maybe that would have been fun? Lots of other chances like that make we wonder how we have ever made it to Prague. One more trip and we will be back in Anacortes.

The landscape in the Czech Republic was beautiful on the trip over. Lots of farms and rolling type hills. I didn’t expect that but not sure what I did expect. Old communist tanks abandoned everywhere? The buildings range from cool old European to square boxes. Not sure what that means either, just and observation.

Train trips are tough on me. Too much time to think. Closed my eyes and didn’t fall to sleep. Rare. So therefore didn’t snore. Embarrasses Val but not me for some reason. Anyway the light filtering through the trees and other passing things made we think that it must be like using some drugs that I have never used since they were popular shortly before my time. The psychedelic effect was cool until I realized it would stop when I open my eyes. It helped pass the time and we made it safely to our apartment.

The apartment we are staying in is perfect. The location is a bit sketchy but I am hoping we adjust to that. It is right on a tram route that will take us to the downtown area but there is lots of painting and vandalism on the outsides of the buildings. The inside is spacious and lovely and appears to have decent internet service and is close to a real grocery store.

No pictures today so I went back and included ones we left out. Hoping for a more interesting post tomorrow.

Laundry day

Well even on vacation you have to take care of some mundane tasks. Still quite an adventure when you don’t speak the language and can’t read the signs. First problem was that I had to get money changed. The bank lady isn’t like the one at Horizon in Anacortes. She couldn’t or wouldn’t speak English and apparently didn’t find me too charming. I felt the same about her but got my 100 back in 5 20’s just the same. Now back to the machines. No English and a different system than our Laundromat. I was getting close to having it down but couldn’t find any detergent. Someone app

eared from the back room and made some motion that led me to believe he was asking if I needed help. I apologized that I only spoke English. He asked why I apologized and I told him that we weren’t the most popular folks in some countries. He said “we are all just people” and went on to give me the assistance I needed. My experience is that most folks recognize the similarities between all of us and our struggles / triumphs / dreams /needs / etc. Maybe that wasn't what he meant but it was what I heard. Anyway, the detergent is in the machine and I didn’t bother to ask about bleach or fabric softener. I think it is a waste of time anyway and just use it because Val tells me to.

Oh, by the way. How about those Bengals. Playoff bound and did it with a win not having to count on Baltimore losing even though Pittsburg beat them anyway (thanks Dan).

Went to a great little place that was really crowded but lots of fun today. They sell small sandwiches and beers among other things. We had a few sandwiches and three small beers. The beer was really good and I wondered if I like it better in small glasses. Didn’t wonder too long about that because it was getting dark and I have to say I love the lights of Vienna with the beautiful buildings as a backdrop. Took some decent pictures but the sights will stick in my mind for quite some time to come.

We came around a corner and there was a big door and small dome at the end of the street so I asked Val if she wanted to look inside. It was another splendid church. Not as special as our find from yesterday but still really cool. Not sure how many of those there are around here but suspect there are plenty of reasons to come back.

We are both still not feeling the best and today the drug stores opened back up.

Another interesting trip. The drug stores are apparently the only place they sell things like Dayquil since we couldn’t find it anywhere else. So I go in to the drug store and am trying to play it cool and look around for something with a sick person with a runny nose on it. No luck, lots of stuff I didn’t know what it was and was a little wary of taking a chance. A nice fellow says can I help you. I explained my situation and he pulls out from behind the counter something that looks very much like Vicks Dayquil. Glad I didn’t have hemorrhoids and just wanted to quietly pick up some Preparation H.

Travel to Prague tomorrow. Should be fun.

Val’s special find

Not me. I am pretty special but not in such a good way.

Gary started this yesterday – but is watching football and updating his fantasy leagues – bless him – so you are stuck with me.

Yesterday we started the day at the Imperial Treasury – in a palace once housing the Hofburgs. My crow eye for all that glitters and sparkles was rolling about every way and I flapped my crow wings in excitement and hopped all about the place. We viewed exquisite jewels, robes, crowns, scepters—trinkets as Alec calls them. We even saw a jeweled cradle and receiving blanket fitting for the coming attraction to our family, Little Yoyo.

From here we walked to the chocolate palace – Dremels – that is touted to have incredible chocolate displays – we didn’t see displays but we did see incredible pastries. The place was jammin’ and elbow-to-elbow with tourists so we went out for a sausage and Gluwein from a street vendor instead. Gluwein is a hot mulled wine drink that makes me such a jolly traveler!

We wove around the core of Vienna to the edge where we found our destination: Dominikanerkirche (dates from 1630). Of all the churches we have visited, this is the one I have fallen in love with. It is small and the outside is rather plain but the inside detail is jawdropping. After all the crowds of Vienna this was an amazing change – at most there were 10 other people inside of this church. We had time to sit and look and look and wonder. Lit a candle for Grandma Cecelia Rose.

It was hard to tear away but we left to find our way to Belvedere Palace. We took a few wrong turns but that is always part of the adventure and the more you walk, the more you get to eat! The Belvedere is another incredible museum with a large Klimt collection. If stripped of artwork the museums would still be worth viewing.

Three dessert day

Some days are just better than others and today was one of those days. Three desserts in one day and they were all low calorie. Dessert #1 was at the Sacher Tort Café. They have a famous café, hotel and cake that is simply explained as chocolate cake with some apricot jam, chocolate frosting and whipped cream. Val ordered it and I got a white hot chocolate with some sort of biscuit. They were good and the place was fancy but not too intimidating for a couple of hicks like us. Dessert #2 came at some place by Stephansdom Cathedral and mine was some sort or custard cream layered pastry thing and Val got a “apricot custard delight” both were excellent and I got a dainty cup of hot chocolate in a fancy cup.

Dessert #3 came after dinner and was something that looked like cheese cake but was made out of what we think was creamed cheese and whipped cream with a shortbread crust. It was delicious also. We walked plenty to make up for the added calories today.

On the tram ride in to town I was thinking to myself how much fun I could be if I had a ton of money. I could do this and bring friends along almost any time. Then I wondered if it would still be fun if you could do it all the time. Then I got sidetracked with the incredible beauty of the day and never got back to the question and now it seems pointless. Oh well.

The sun was out and it was brisk but not cold today. We say some incredible sights inside and out. The Albertina Museum had a impressionist display that was magnificent. All the painters I like and not too many I don’t. Can’t name them all but Monet, Manet, Chagall, Munch, Cezanne, Renoir, Degas, Gauguin, Van Gogh, Sisley and they had some cool modern art too. Then we went to Stephansdom Cathedral and it was spectacular inside and out.

We were able to visit the Kunsthistorisches Museum (great names they have over here and easy to pronounce too, aren’t they Dara?). It has lots of stuff but val wanted to see the really old paintings I hate. The building was incredible and they were getting ready to shoot some sort of movie or film. We went and looked at the Arcimboldos together then I sat down in a comfy spot and mapped out the rest of our evening. Vals was so thrilled to ditch me that she wasn’t able to make it back to me at closing. They shooed me out and as I came down the grand marble staircase with all the stage lights on and ballet dancers practicing Val was at the bottom of the stairs giggling. Mary, you should have come, you would have been able to hang around the set and meet famous people and who knows how your evening might have ended.

We went back through the downtown area and the lights of the buildings and the Christmas lights were absolutely amazing. I love that kind of stuff and was really enjoying the moment. The camera battery went out so we didn’t get any pictures but maybe we can make it back there again one of the next two nights for some photos.

At the end of the night we stopped off at what amounts to the local 7-11 with a small twist. It has a gas station and convenience store stuff but it also has a bar in it that is apparently frequented by a group of old men that I would guess are regulars. They rarely seem happy that anyone is getting gas or trying to buy some milk and complain to the one person manning the whole place. It’s kind of comedic but the whole place is a little seedy and all I am interested in is getting some milk and getting on my way without getting into a fight that Val might not be able to get me out of.

P.S. Sorry about the shitty Christmas Dara and Alec but we spent too much money on this trip to do much for you guys this year.

Merry Christmas

Sorry about missing the post yesterday. Once again Val picked up the slack. Seems like a theme is developing. How long has that been going on?

Val did leave off one observation from yesterday that we both found interesting. We came all this way, have seen incredible sights that can fill volumes of picture books but one lasting memory will be of some small child singing “Oh Taunnenbaum” (gsp) filling this tram that seemed like it was at least one block long with her youthful voice of joy. It warmed our hearts at a time when we were missing our own kids.

This morning we went out looking for an open grocery store (for some reason Val didn’t want “Eees goot meat” as she thought it might make us sick(er). As we were following the path of grocery bags to their starting point we came upon a lady with a dog. Well most of you know that part of the reason I come to Europe is because I’m not very good socially. Over here since I don’t speak the same language I can’t talk to most people so it’s somewhat acceptable. Now I can’t resist a dog so I give hand signals to the person asking if it is ok to pet. I think she says sure and start to pet the dog. She is talking to me in some language I don’t understand then I tell her I am sorry but I only speak English which doesn’t impress her much but when I say I have a dog she busts out the English and we exchange a few words while her dog licks my face. Bottom line is that I think dogs and kids speak the universal language and maybe if they were in charge we would all get along a bit better. Not sure it matters but the dog was a pit-bull and a good looking boy too Mia.

We went to Schounbroon (gsp) Palace today. Some say it is the Versailles of Austria. Not sure it reaches that level but it was spectacular and I loved the garden and the green house. Too much family history for me. I can hardly keep track of my own immediate family and these folks have lots of kids and marry them off the other countries to gain power, etc. Didn’t work so well for Marie Antoinette in this case.

Forgot to mention that I have very smugly been packing and having with me foul weather gear just in case it rained. Well when the day started it was around 55 and pretty clear so I decided to leave the stuff at the apartment (which is as nice as promised on the internet). So when we get out of the palace to tour the grounds the temp seems like it has dropped 20 degrees, it’s raining and the wind is blowing. Being from the northwest I am not going to let a little weather get in my way of a good time so we went out to tour the grounds. It was wet but not as bad as the trips with Dara, Adam and Alec. Now I will keep packing the gear and I can be sure I won’t need it.

Short story about Val and a Christmas center piece. We are walking along the street and see a Christmas center piece outside a florist shop with no price on it. I think maybe it’s free. Val goes in and asks the price. The shop owner says 15. Val says no thanks. The shop owner says he will take 10. Val give him 15 and says Merry Christmas. Now I say Val got the centerpiece for the 10 it was worth and gave the poor shop owner a 5 Christmas bonus and that is one of the many reasons I love her.

We had a great encounter on our bus ride today. Got on the right bus and came to the place we wanted to get off. For some reason the door would not open so we were standing by the door. The bus driver yells something. We thought he was saying not to go out that door but he could have been saying either Merry Christmas or YFSA’s . We went to the other door and it wouldn’t open either. The bus driver yells again this time maybe Happy New Year or AYSYFSA’s so I’m in a panic and push what I think is the stop button on the bus which turns out to also be the open the door button. We calmly get off and I am going to just assume that he was wishing us a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.

One last thought for this Christmas day. Viennese women should not be allowed to eat sausages in public they way they do. It truly is not fair.

Merry Christmas to all and to all a good night.

Vienna - A city of wonder

Christmas Eve --Today’s blog brought to you by Val.

Gary has done an incredible job of chronicling our little journey but since I so generously shared my cold with him, he is taking the night off. I am the designated blogger.

We had an absolutely lovely train ride from Munich (Muchen) to Vienna (Wien). The train was called a Rail Jet and sped along at 200 km. There is an engine on each end of the train – they do not turn the train around on a turnstyle – the conductor just moves to the other engine and heads off in the next direction. This means all the train seats were facing backwards. I admit I was getting a bit queasy seeing where I had been.

Side note- apparently Gar isn’t as sick as he claims. He just had to interrupt and point out on the map where he wants to go tomorrow; Wienerburg. Really? Will my oldest “son” ever grow up?

After arriving it only took about 40 minutes to get our bearings, purchase tickets for the tram-rail-underground system AND find our apartment. Gary is navigating us around Europe like a pro. I can’t find my way out of a Safeway.

Another side note – I have never seen so many dead animals on women as we have during this trip. It is quite upsetting to see the Robinson rabbit friends and other little forest animals fashioned into adornments. Don’t think the ASPCA has a branch over here.

We were looking forward to stopping in some specialty shops and purchasing our Christmas dinner fixins’ but we were walking all over Wien with our mouths hanging open and lost track of time. This city is as elegant and classy as Audrey Hepburn. All the stores were closing early for Christmas Eve. We hurried down to a large outdoor market similar to Pike’s Place. Only a few stalls remained open – we went into one that offered a variety of meats and asked about turkey. The gentleman paused for a second then said, “Ya, I’ve got turkeeee.” Goes to a box and pulls out half a turkey with feathers still clinging to it and SLAMS it down on the counter. “Eees goot meat!” We are the suckers that purchased this noble bird without giving thought to one detail – an oven – we do not have an oven. Stewed turkey anyone?So today was spent on in child-like wonder strolling about Wien and visiting a Christmas Market. Our plans to attend a midnight church service are out because we are both hacking like smokers.

My lesson – Tomorrow we have six eggs, some milk, some bread, and a bottle of champagne for Christmas dinner. I feel that I am the luckiest woman in the world to be sharing this with a man that I have loved as long as I can remember. I am lucky that our kids pushed us out the door and said JUST GO! I am lucky to have the most loving and supportive family and friends. Merry Christmas every one!

Castles, Castles Everywhere

We went to see a couple of castles out by the town of Fussen today. I can’t get their names right but they were really very pretty castles done by a couple of Ludwig Kings. The later one done by Ludwig II is the one that Disney used to model their castle after. They were beautiful inside and out. Couldn’t take pictures inside so only have some from outside and those really don’t do them justice.

When we planned this trip I had specific agendas for each day. This is the first day we have actually followed that agenda. Not sure if that is good or bad but it is what it is.

A big part of today was the trip to and back from the castles. It involved getting a train ticket at the best available rate (not as easy as you might think), figuring out schedules, platforms, connections, where you should sit, etc. It may be easy for some but it stretched Val and Gary quite a bit. Happy to say we made it and are still talking to each other. One example of the difficulty. When looking for the town of Fussen there are apparently two letter u’s in the German alphabet one the regular way and one with a couple of dots over it. Use the wrong one on your search at the ticket machine and your city does not appear.

I do at this time have to offer an apology however to a whole country. I had previously made some disparaging remarks about Japanese tourist groups. Wouldn’t you know it that as life always seems to point out you should not make vast generalizations and be an asshole. We were having a bit of difficulty waiting for a bus back from the castles and this Japanese man asked me about the bus, etc. I told him I didn’t know much but thought this was the place to catch the bus. Well he finds a taxi asks us is we want to join him and then pays the whole bill. I said thanks and asked if I could take a photo of his family that I will include later. Suspect he didn’t know what he was teaching me but hope I learn it this time.

Well we should be leaving Munich and Germany tomorrow and I have a few thoughts.

Do they have any drinks that aren’t carbonated? Had carbonated water, apple juice and beer. Couldn’t find much without carbonation besides milk and they don’t keep that it in a cooler.

They have quite a bike system in Munich that includes bike lanes and even signals at intersections specifically for people on bikes. Their system seems more set up around their sidewalks than their roads. A lot of folks ride bikes and it seems not so much recreationally as just a function of getting to and from places. Lots of bike racks, etc.

Really looking forward to our trip to Vienna tomorrow.

Munich

What a day. Had things all mapped out when we left Anacortes but have had to adjust plenty. Did that today and we did it well. Basically just walked around downtown and looked at stuff. Had some idea what was there and some idea when to look for it but other than that it was pretty free form. Got tickets for the train trip to Vienna (Wien). If you haven’t been around it, it is easy to get the wrong tickets and get on the wrong train. We haven’t been around it much but hope we get it right when we go on Thursday morning. If not there are lots of cool towns around and maybe they will have a room. The train station was incredible with people coming and going.

From there we went to see the Glockenspiel(sp) at the new town hall go off at 12:00. It did and was fun to watch. Then we went up in the tower and had a good view of the town / area. Val took good photos and I hung on and stayed away from the edge. Got to see the Olympic Village even if we aren’t going to make the trip out there.

Next up was the Hofbrau House. Had lunch and a couple of beers. Both were good. I don’t particularly care for the sauerkraut I have had in the states but his stuff was good with the sausages and beer. Got a picture of a beer maid but not with full steins of beer. Best I could do as I didn’t see any carrying armloads of full beer steins and I didn’t want to stage one.

After that we went to an open air market that starts with a V and has a whole bunch of letters in it, two churches – one beautiful on the inside one beautiful on the outside. Then we walked around and looked at the outside of the Residence (a fancy palace) and the start of Englisher Garten a huge beautiful park that is too big to get around without a bike and no snow.

Planning on going to a couple of castles outside of town tomorrow if we can figure out the train and bus arrangements. If not, there is still plenty to do in Munich that will more than fill another day. Did some laundry tonight and hung close by our room.

Thought for the day for me. When we planned the trip we used Munich because it was cheap to fly to and had a castle close by. At one time we weren't even going to spend a day. It has turned out to be as good as any town I have been to in Europe as far as I'm concerned. What does that tell me?