Eastern Europe 2016, Day 7 - A Mass of Slovakians

May 29, 2016

Bratislava, Slovakia

After six days of travel, Jen & Mark took the chance to sleep in while Jim went on a hunt for breakfast. We ran into each-other mid-morning and headed towards the old city to explore the fabulous city of Bratislava. A large mass of people were having an outdoor mass in the old city, then taking it on the road for a tour of local churches with outdoor shrines and altars along the route leaving only a path of flower petals.

The town square is kind of quirky.  It is compiled of little alley ways filed with shops, restaurants and cafes.  We hoofed it up to the Bratislava castle that overlooks the city for some nice views of the city of Bratislava and the Danube.  The Bratislava castle is now home to the Slovakian History Museum.  After that we hailed an Uber for a ride up to Slavin, which is a memorial for fallen Soviet soldiers from World War II. We rode back into town and visited the Blue Church/St. Elizabeth.  St. Elizabeth’s looks like it is something out of a video game – maybe Super Mario Brothers  - you be the judge.  Our exploration of Bratislava continued to a street that has not been altered or updated. The road happened to lead us to St. Martin’s Cathedral.

Town Gate
Bratislava, Slovakia

Bratislava Castle
Bratislava, Slovakia

Slavin
Bratislava, Slovakia

Saint Elizabeth Church
Bratislava, Slovakia

Saint Martin's Cathedral
Bratislava, Slovakia

The three of us wandered back downtown and had lunch at an outdoor brewery where we people watched and enjoyed cold drinks with our good food.  Mark had pork belly with potato pancakes, Jim had pork neck sandwich and Jen had a grilled chicken salad.

After lunch we stopped by a grocery store on the way back to the hotel for a relaxing afternoon.  Why is the pit stop at the grocery store notable?  Because we needed to stock up on strawberry juice (who knew it was a thing in Slovakia!)!! The lazy afternoon felt really good: naps were taken, packing was started and the hotel fitness center was utilized.  Our last meal as a group was dinner at one of the top ranked restaurants in Bratislava.  The restaurant was down an alley, through a courtyard and around a corner – it’s amazing there wasn’t a secret knock involved.  Jim had veal medallions, Mark had pork schnitzel breaded in potatoes and Jen had weiner schnitzel.  This meal was one heck of a way to end our time in Europe.

Potato Breaded Pork Schnitzel
Bratislava, Slovakia

 After dinner we went for a walk around the Old Town – the atmosphere was something out of a movie. Spirited Slovakians were singing random American pop songs at the tops of their lungs everything from Nirvana to Que Serra Serra. The memories of this experience will stay with us forever.

Eastern Europe 2016, Day 6 - Four Countries by Car

May 28, 2016

We got up from a warm night in our upgraded balcony suite (number 216!) and headed out for a walk. Jim found a funky little restaurant right in the market which gave us a great people watching opportunities.  Breakfast is difficult to find in Croatia, which isn’t surprising seeing all the people out late at night.  We wandered around Zagreb a little bit, past the Opera House and through the Botanical Garden. As we compare and contrast, Zagreb struck us as a little closer to Saint Petersburg, while Budapest has a flavor all its own. Zagreb is definitely more free spirited than either Budapest or its Russian cousin, however. 

Market in Zagreb, Croatia

Opera House
Zagreb, Croatia

The three amigos were ready to continue their adventure.  We hopped into the car and drove from Croatia through Slovenia and into Austria. Our first stop (aside from purchasing the obligatory highway tax vignettes) was at the Hotel Sacher in Vienna for some highly recommended torte. Interestingly enough, our parking garage was just a few blocks from the Hotel. It's possible Jen had yummy yet ulterior motives the entire time.

We had a good lunch at the Mozart Cafe, waltzed past St. Stephen’s Cathedral and saw the Imperial Palace. We spent a while wandering through the palace gardens and marveled at their collection of well-kept decades-old rose trees.

Vienna, Austria

Imperial Palace
Vienna, Austria

7 foot tall 56 year old Rose Tree
Vienna, Austria

Vienna feels like a pure western European city in comparison to Zagreb and Budapest, which isn’t terribly surprising.

After wandering through Vienna we hopped back in the car for a short ride over to Bratislava. We checked into our “Austria Trend Bratislava” hotel about 8pm and crashed for the night.

Here are our stats for day 6
Steps - 16,386
Miles - 7.47
Stairs - 26 flights

Eastern Europe 2016, Day 5 - UNESCO Approved Waterfalls

May 27, 2016

Plitvice Lakes National Park
Croatia

It’s high time we took this adventure on the road true Mark & Jen style.  We enjoyed an early start to the day by picking up our car around 8:30 and heading southwest toward Croatia!!!  It was a 5 hour drive through the Hungarian and Croatian countrysides.  Lunch of cold cut sandwiches, fresh pressed juice and strudel was at a Marche during our gas stop. As Jim said- it definitely was a better lunch than speedway!  

Destination for the afternoon - Plitvice Lakes National Park.  We arrived at the National Park around 2:30 - entrance tickets were purchased and we were on our way!  The lower area which is the most popular portion of the park was closed due to flooding.  We explored the lesser traveled portion and were not disappointed.  The paths around and through the lakes were made of quaint 3-5” diameter tree branches, cut about 48” long.  There were varied gaps and no railings which would make for some substantial lawsuits in the US.  The Plitvice Lakes is a UNESCO World Heritage Centre - considered by some to be one of the natural wonders of the modern world. The park is comprised 16 terraced lakes connected by waterfalls.  I can talk all day about it - but let’s just get to the pictures!

After putting in 7 miles at Plitvice Lakes we piled back in the car and headed to Zagreb for the night.  Much to our surprise our hotel (Hotel Esplanade) was host to a local prom; it was neat to see all the young adults dressed up. Our receptionist (BTW he was a hoot!!) mentioned that prom was a US custom that was just starting to be adopted there.  After dinner we went for a walk to explore Zagreb around 11pm.  There were people everywhere with multiple outdoor concerts going on (interestingly many of the concerts were comprised of USA pop tunes.). The cafes, restaurants, and bars were full with people of all ages enjoying an early summer weekend. 

Here are our stats for day 5
Steps - 22,545
Miles - 10.28
Stairs - 69 flights

Eastern Europe 2016, Day 4 - Floating as if in a Giant Hungarian Stew

May 26, 2016

Mark was able to join us for the morning today!  We started with a rather long walk to Margaret Island via the Margaret Bridge.  We explored the island on a bicycle-built-for-6.  We checked out the ruins of an old church, rode past Japanese Gardens, saw the largest swimming pool in Budapest and finished our time on Margaret Island by enjoying fountains that were choreographed to different pop tunes (First song played was Let it Go).  It was really cool!

Margaret Bridge
Budapest, Hungary

Bicycle Built for 6
Margaret Island
Budapest, Hungary

Tres Amigos
Budapest, Hungary

Fountain
Margaret Island
Budapest, Hungary

 Lunch for the day was at the Budapest Barbecue Company.  Jim and Jen had burgers while Mark had half-a-chicken.  The food was great and the lemonade was amazing.  A side note about Hungarian Lemonade – it is like nothing that any of us have ever experienced before. There is a slight carbonation to the beverage and a mix of lemons, limes and oranges are all added to what we know as standard lemonade.  It is simply magical.

After lunch Mark headed to work and Jim and Jen made their way to the Szechenyi bath house.  The bath house was cool - crazy old and full of people.  In the lobby there are a slue of bathing options available depending upon what each individual can partake.  Jim and Jen decided to start with a simple bath.  There are large dedicated locker rooms for changing and prep, everything from towels, bathing suits, snacks and sunscreen are available for either purchase or rental.  ⅓ of the bath was drained for repairs but there was still plenty of space for us to fit in.  The water is fed by a natural spring with a temperature of about 35-38C (95-100F).  And it was incredibly sunny - needless to say we felt as though we were in a giant human slow cooker.  Once we reached the point of prunage we scurried out of the bath - changed and headed out to our next adventure.  

Szechenyi Bath House
Budapest, Hungary

The plan had been to get a ride back to the hotel however Jen got distracted by the circus across the street with a performance starting in 15 minutes.  Jim and Jen decided that since they were so well behaved in the bath the two of them deserved a trip to the Hungarian circus.  The ticket procurement process was a little more involved than it needed to be - but the end result was fabulous.  Jim and Jen filed into their seats in the round arena.  The majority of the audience was comprised of little Hungarians.  There were many acrobats showing off flexibility and strength and the animal portion was dog and macaw based.  It was a great spontaneous decision.  

Circus
Budapest, Hungary

After the circus Jim and Jen found a cab and went back to the hotel.  Jen worked a little and started to pack things up as this was our last night in Budapest.  Dinner was pizza and salad.  Gosh was it yummy.  We sat outside enjoying the warm night air while being serenaded by musicians.  After dinner Mark and Jen took a walk around the castle district. It was neat to have access to the courtyards and walkways of the royal palace 24/7.  Such a treat!  Fun Fact – the music video for Firework by Katy Perry is filmed in Budapest – the video opens with shots of the Chain Bridge and highlights many features from the Castle District.

Budapest as a whole has to be one of the favorite cities in the world that we’ve visited. It is unlike any other city we’ve ever been to. The people are nice, the food is good, the buildings and architecture are amazing, the city is inexpensive and has a lot to offer. Along with Paris, this would be a wonderful city to hang out in and get an Airbnb for a few weeks

Here are our stats for day 4
Steps - 20,880
Miles - 9.52
Stairs - 38 flights

Eastern Europe 2016, Day 3 - A Palatial Day

May 25, 2016

Wednesday started like every day should start with two friends enjoying coffee and strudel at an outdoor café.  Jim and Jen stayed close to home exploring the Castle District.  We walked around the palace grounds which is now home to multiple museums and the Sandor Palace, the home of the President of Hungary. We happened upon a bride and groom having pictures taken on the palace grounds.  She looked like a princess and he was no doubt her prince charming.  Next stop in the castle district was St. Matthias Church where we thoroughly toured the church and bell tower.  At the top of the bell tower we had a fabulous panorama of the city.  To top off the afternoon we tried to do some retail therapy and were mostly unsuccessful.

Sándor Palace
Budapest, Hungary

Buda Castle
Budapest, Hungary

Tower Bridge and Budapest Skyline
Budapest, Hungary

Statue of Saint Stephen
Budapest, Hungary

Fisherman's Bastion
Budapest, Hungary

As you can tell It was an overall chill day - we actually went back to our hotels mid-afternoon where Jen took a nap until it was time for the group function sponsored by Mark’s host.  The evening was spent on the Kossuth boat docked in the Danube just down from Parliament.  It is a museum ship boasting views of Castle hill.  

After a fabulous Hungarian themed dinner and a beautiful sunset we decided to forgo the free ride across the river and up the hill and take our time winding through the town.  We finished the night enjoying the city lights from the Fisherman’s Bastion. There were buskers setting the mood for us while we enjoyed the view, one with a harmonica, guitar and several other instruments playing Americana, and a lady with a violin playing classical.

Saint Matthias Church
Budapest, Hungary

Jen on Castle Hill
Budapest, Hungary

Parliament from Fisherman's Bastion
Budapest, Hungary

Here are our stats for day 3

Steps - 22,154

Miles - 10.1

Stairs - 75 flights