Discovering Prague by Foot

The first thought I had when we arrived in Prague was, “So this is where all the young tourists are.” The sidewalks and squares were full of them. People from every part of the world were speaking their native tongue. It was fascinating. Next I thought, “I have lots to discover so what’s first.” I read a little bit about this place from a travel book I brought with us. The only thing I knew for sure is I wanted to walk. Getting exercise was important but not missing a thing was also very appealing.

The train ride was 7 hours from Salzburg. Since we had left so early, 4:20am, we were grateful to have our 2^nd class compartment all to ourselves to sleep. We both had 3 seats to lie down on and quickly fell asleep. Around 8am we were woken by the foreign speaking gentleman requesting our tickets. (He could have spoke German or Czech I am not sure.) Once again he studied the tickets carefully and said, “1^st class.” Duke and I looked at each other confused knowing that we got on the car marked with a 2. He then pointed to the “1” on our compartment door. Not again, how could that be? So once any we asked if we had to move. He once again spoke so little English that we were having trouble communicating. Eventually after we spent sometime trying to understand each other, he wrote on a piece of paper, “12:05 – 12:15”. Hummmm, I guess we didn’t have to move until we arrived at 12:05 - 12:15! No problem. (Later we discovered that both 1^st and 2^nd class compartments were in the train car marked with a “2”.) Hopefully we’ll get it right next time!

Once again we used our GPS to lead us to our hotel’s front door, the KK Fenix Hotel, about a ½ mile away. Anxious to take a look around we headed straight to “Old Town”. Our first stop was the “Old Town Hall and Astronomical Clock Tower.” There were mechanical figures that parade above the clock on the hour. This event causes quite a crowd. I enjoyed walking up the stairs to the top of the tower for my first bird’s eye view of the city. I took photographs in every direction. It was another beautiful clear spring day.

Since it was Easter week many vendors were set up in the square selling their wares and food. Yes more food. So what did we enjoy trying this time? German Sausages and Gelato. Also a stage was set up where various different musical performances entertained us all week. 

We continued to walk around until dinner time. Tonight we decided to be adventurous when finding a place to eat. As we walked down a steep stairway deep under the city, where the ceilings were low and arched we were greeted by knights in shining armor. The restaurant brightly lit and very appealing because many locals were eating there, so we decided to stay. The food was wonderful. So far everything has been great to eat.

The next day I wanted to wake up early and walk through the city before the crowds arrived. We headed for Charles Bridge, then to the Prague Castle by 9am so we could be first into Saint Vitus Cathedral. This was an architectural magnificent creation, whose foundation was first laid in 1344. Again we went up to the top of the tower, all 378 steps, for a terrific view. We spend most of the morning looking at various structures within the castle walls. We also watch a 30 minute movie on the building of Saint Vitus twice, first in Czech and then in English. It was a great way to rest our feet.

That night I saw my first Symphony performance. It was held in the beautifully restored Smetana Hall of The Municipal House. Duke was very concerned about his dress attire, “501 Blues, casual sweater and tennis shoes.” It was no problem however. It is amazing how casual things have become. Sometime I do miss “dressing up”. Two nights later we attended another concert featuring a traveling public high school from North Carolina. We were both amazed at the talent they all possessed.

On our third day of walking Prague we went hunting for museums. We started at the Natural History Museum, full of the usual bones, artifacts, animals and fossils. Next we went to a few art museums – however none of them impressed us much. What did catch both of our attention was the bright yellow Lamborghini casually parked near a café. We weren’t the only ones impressed, a few people even stopped so they could have their picture taken with it.

We walked so much that day, I begged Duke to stop and let me rest my tired feet. And my feet were tired. So we spent the afternoon in our room where I cuddled up on the bed and took a two hour nap. So I could be ready to walk again that night, shopping for crystal and glassware. Along the streets in Prague, especially in the pedestrian’s only zones, there are crystal shops everywhere. After a while you realize that they must be all owned by the same company because they seem to carry the same items and all have a similar “sale”. We couldn’t pass up the great deals however and bought two sets of wine glasses – one white and one red. Duke also bought a modern piece of striking red and black colored glass.

My favorite part of our visit to Prague was on the last day. We decided to go to the Jewish part of Old Town. It was fascinating to visit the different Mosques. In one the walls were covered with neatly printed names of the local Jews who died in concentration camps, everywhere you turned names upon names where listed. Another was filled with antique treasures of many families. One room in another mosque had children’s artwork; drawing and colorings showing moments in time while living in the concentration camps. The cemetery that we visited was the most unique I have ever seen. Thousands of tombstones were practically piled on top of another where sometimes 20 bodies were buried on top of each other. It was a very somber time for me.

We ended our visit to Prague with a walk to the west side of the river. We walked up a very steep hill to get a fantastic view of the city and then finished with a stroll across the Charles Bridge one last time. The sun was low in the sky and I was able to capture some soft light on the statues that lined the bridge. That night we found a quiet outdoor restaurant to have some terrific pizza.

Traveling by train to Salzburg

When we arrived in Hungary one of the first questions Nicholas asked us was what we had planned for the next 10 days after our visit with him. Well our answer was simple, “Nothing.” We had no plans, no reservations and no tickets. Neither Duke nor I were concerned however Nicholas was quick to point out how beautiful Budapest was and how we must spend some time in his capital city. With a big smile, we promised we would at the end of our journey since our flight reservations included flying from Budapest to Copenhagen to Seattle on April 5^th.

On the last morning at the castle we were graciously driven to the train station by Tibor, Nicholas’ driver. Tibor was extremely helpful at making sure were got the correct tickets to the correct location and for the correct time. So where did we decide to go? Salzburg, Austria – 1^st class, platform 13 at 1:05pm.

This was the first European train ride for both of us. It was very comfortable, quiet and smooth. Since we each had a wheeled duffle bag and backpack to transport around and either fit under the seat we took up more than our share of the six seat compartment.  About 2 hours into the 6 hour ride we were asked to show our tickets to a Hungarian speaking gentleman. He looked them over carefully and said, “1^st class!” Yes, we agreed nodding. He repeated, “1^st class” and pointed down the train’s corridor and then pointed to a 2 on our compartment door. We both looked at each other thinking, “Aren’t we in 1^st class? Apparently not! But we are very comfortable.” So we asked if we had to move in English with lots of hand gestures. He shrugged and went on his way to collect the next tickets. So Duke walked down to 1^st class and came back to report that the first class compartments had a table but were actually smaller. So we stayed put.

We arrived to Salzburg on time at 7:20pm. Yesterday I had used the internet to make reservations at the Renaissance Hotel near the train station in Salzburg. When we arrived I got out our handy GPS complete with European maps and language guide, set our destination and started walking in the direction of the arrow. Sure enough 3 blocks later we were standing at the front door of our hotel. Great investment! We were hungry and tired of sitting so after dropping off our bags in the room we took a walk. Most places were closed but it was still light enough to see a bit of the town that night. We finished our evening eating dinner in the hotel.

The next morning with GPS in hand we were off to explore. I had visited Salzburg in 2004 with my daughters and mom so I knew some of the sights that I wanted to show Duke. The fortress that stood high on the hill, the beautiful shopping district and of course a few of the cathedrals. Salzburg is famous for many things: Mozart’s birth place, it is a World’s Heritage Site and the wealthy townspeople due to the trade of salt.

Duke fell in love with Salzburg’s beauty. It is a very clean, walking and biking friendly area. One of our favorite memories in Salzburg was watching a very proper lady in her 70’s with her overcoat, hat and dress shoes; riding her bicycle through a busy intersection sitting very upright and knowing that she definitely had the right-a-way. What a great town.

We spent two full days walking, shopping, touring and eating our way through Salzburg. Loving the open markets, the quaint shops and apple strudel. Yes, we had a new vise to add to chocolate and candy – Apple Strudel. Our mission if we chose to accept it (and we did accept it) was to see what café made the best Apple Strudel.

On the second afternoon we took a tour in a van to the Austrian Salt Mines. It is amazing to me that simple salt created such wealth for this area. The tour was great and included a ride on the salt train through a small 2 mile tunnel, two fun wooden slides and finished with a short trip in a funicular – along with an education on how the mines work to extract the salt.

On the last evening in Salzburg we had dinner at an India restaurant, we stopped there because it was a non smoking restaurant, a rare breed in Austira. The chicken curry dish was delicious. After dinner we took one last walk through the cobble stone streets for pedestrians only still amazed at all the beauty.

We had a train to catch to Prague, Czech Republic the next morning at 4:20am so early to bed.

Next 3b – Discovering Prague by foot

A Friend’s Hungarian Castle

My life is full of experiences, learning and love.

Duke and I are in the Geneva airport with our European skiing friends, they are flying home to Seattle and we are flying to Hungary. When we arrive a driver will be picking us up and bringing us to a friend’s castle in a small village about one hour north of Budapest. Pinch me; I want to make sure this is real!

Nicholas and Sheryl are two gracious, accomplished, wonderful people we met on our Antarctica Expedition. While getting to know them we found out that they had just spent 2½ years remodeling their castle in Hungary. Nicholas is a proud naïve Hungarian that met and married Sheryl while in Texas. Sheryl kept us in stitches with humorous stories and amazed me with her grace.

We mentioned to them about the ski trip we had planned in March to Europe and how we would love to stop by and see the castle. This set into motion an event in my life that I will treasure and feel very fortunate to have experienced. Not only did I get to spend three nights in a beautiful, private, stately castle; I also experienced a family’s dynamics of pride, mutual respect and love.

As we arrived at the airport we saw the sign, “Teri and Duke”, our driver was holding. We were whisked away in our Mercedes, with a short private tour of Budapest, on our way to the “Bodor Kastely”. You could easily see the influence of the 45 years of Communist rule. Did you know that Budapest is really two cities divided by The Danube River? Buda on the west and Pest on the east of the river. After leaving the city we were driving amongst the farmlands of the darkest soil I have ever seen and past villages whose names I couldn’t even attempt to pronounce.

Nicholas greeted me in his evening coat with a warm hug and kiss on the cheek. Duke received a strong hand shake and hug. Erik, Sheryl and Nicholas son, greeted us as we entered. Unfortunately Sheryl wasn’t able to come to Europe so instead we were honored with getting to met and share conversations with Erik.

We were shown to our room where our luggage already arrived. It was a large beautifully Hungarian decorated room with water waiting on a tray for us. The bathroom was brightly lit completely in marble with a LARGE tub. Large handmade area rugs, sparkling refurbished chandeliers, soft down comforters on the bed; everything was perfect. Just as I would expect, even though I didn’t really expect anything at all.

You see even though I knew I was going to be honored with this experience I didn’t put any expectations on it. I knew without a doubt that it would be perfect no matter what. I knew this because of my previous experience with the Bodor’s. I wanted to live in the moment. Be completely surprised and grateful. I just kept wondering and still do wonder, “Why me?” What did I do so right in my life that I deserved this experience?

We spent the evening in the sitting room drinking homemade plum brandy, eating a wonderful Hungarian meal prepared by the cook, Agnes, that was accompanied with sweet white wine, (just like I like it (Nicholas remembered)), getting a tour of every room in the castle and ending easily with time upstairs in front of the extra large TV complete with English speaking Discovery Channel.

Nicholas spent some time looking at castles to purchase throughout Hungary. Sheryl’s only request was that it was to have towers; a castle had to have towers. The castle was in ruins from years of neglect when Nicholas purchased it. This castle was a community center during the Communist rule complete with, Theatre, dance hall, pharmacy etc. Nicholas made all the design and decorating decisions himself all while meeting the Historical Registry’s requirements. He did a terrific job. He didn’t give himself enough credit for the tough job he had of hiring and trusting the people who worked for him. The amount of work and the decisions that needed to be made are endless with a project like this.

Duke was in awe, asked many questions and complimented Nicholas on every detail. It was great to see them interact; Nicholas, an accomplished chemist who is highly respected in his field and has 190 patents; and Duke, an accomplished mountain climber, skier and contractor; sharing stories and experiences with interest. As this visit progressed I saw more and more how many similarities they both had. Especially their love and devotion to their sons, the closeness and care, the way they give guidance and advice. 

We spent two full days with Nicholas and Erik visiting a fortress and the UNESCO Cultural World Heritage village of Holloko, climbing to the highest point in Hungary, eating traditional Hungarian lunches at various restaurants, going on trips to purchase wine, and visiting a local farm with very rare purebred cattle and furry pigs. Also, we ate traditional Hungarian breakfasts and dinners at the castle while enjoying long conversations and sipping wine. (I enjoyed this so much that I want to add wine to my dinners more often. I find that it is a great slow time of conversation, something I hadn’t experienced before.)

I could share many more details of this time in the presence of the Bodor’s but they seem too personal. Something I don’t want to broadcast on the internet. These are stories to be told with a human voice. I will finish with this simple conclusion: I do know what it is like to live as a princess and want to thank the Bodor’s and Duke for that opportunity.

Next – Part 3 – Traveling on foot and by train

Skiing in Italy and France

A new adventure brings lots of questions: Why must we arrive at the airport 4 hours early? How long is this flight? How many flights do we have? How long of bus ride? Are the hotels nice, in a good location? What is there to do in the towns we are visiting? Oh! and how are the snow conditions?

The difference between this trip and many others I have been on is I didn’t plan a thing. Usually I make all the airline, hotel, bus, car, etc reservations and determinations for Duke and me. This time we were going with the Seattle Mountaineers – a lady named Patti made all the plans, she had done so for 25 years – we were in good hands. It was nice to just relax and enjoy.

A group of 21 ski enthusiasts, some who had been many times before, and others like us were first timers heading to Europe to ski. I kept hearing concerns that maybe there wasn’t going to be enough snow but I felt it didn’t really matter much since I was going to get on the plane and go regardless. I knew from prior experience that there was always something to do; we were going to Europe for goodness sake.

So after a really long time on 3 different airplanes and a short bus ride that I swear went around in circles since everything looked so foreign and all the same, we arrived to our hotel in Torino or Turin as the Italians call it. The hotel was very nice, the beds were comfortable and I was ready to sleep.

Patti had planned to spend two nights in this city where last year’s winter Olympics was held. A good plan, since it would allow us to recover from jet lag before heading to the slopes for 11 days of skiing.

Walking through Torino (his first European city) with Duke was so much fun. I was excited to share this experience with him. Even though we are on vacation, Duke the contractor is always looking, touching, knocking and even kicking various parts of the buildings as we pass by. He envisions, appreciates and understands what it took architecturally to construct such feats so long ago. Sometimes he just shares in awe. Once while looking at a large restoration he exclaims, “Do you see that? There are only two bolts holding up all that scaffolding. They better be through bolts.” Then walks up to take a better to look and after careful inspection returns shaking his head and says, “I wouldn’t be standing up there.”

So after experiencing much of Torino on foot we were off to Sestriere for our European skiing adventure. We each had a suitcase, a boot bag, a ski bag and a backpack so getting everything into the bus was always tight. But somehow it always worked out even when the bus driver didn’t speak English and no one’s French was very good. The arrival to our hotel in this Italian Alps resort was very warm and welcoming by the owner. We went to our rooms, each with a private bath and unpacked. At “Happy Hour” every night, the half hour before dinner, we were given details of what to expect the next day. Tomorrow we were to meet outside the hotel at 8:15 am with gear on, skies, poles and tickets in hand.

So how were the snow conditions? Simply put, without snow making this resort would be closed up and cursing Mother Nature, but thanks to one of man’s many useful inventions we were on the slopes by 9am turning them right and turning them left. Duke and I had only skied twice this season but were both in good shape from much exercise so I felt strong and Duke, well what can I say, was in top form gliding down the mountain. He is so good. We spend about 6 hours a day skiing. Moving around the mountain to find the best snow, looking for spots the sun had a chance to soften up.

The breakfasts in Europe can vary from bread and coffee to a large selection of cereals, cheeses, yogurt to a gourmet made to order omelet with champagne. Well at 3 star resort hotels they are adequate but lacking whole grains and protein Duke was hoping to get. So we solved that by shopping for a muesli cereal at the local grocery store. Lunches on the slopes were great. Good variety of pastas, salads and desserts, which I avoided at first but finally broke down and had the chocolate mousse. Dinners were yummy. Starting with soup and bread (always lots of bread), the main dish would be covered in some delicious cream sauce, next would be the cheese basket and lastly dessert. A couple times we had a dessert bar full of 20 plus choices. Those nights I was in heaven and tried way too many things – all chocolate of course.

Since snow was lacking at this Italian ski resort Patti did some research and found a bus that would take us to nearby resorts higher in the French Alps where there was more snow. She was always on top of things working hard to please everyone and going the extra mile for some. Skiing was definitely better in France this year, higher mountains up to 11,000 feet.

Every night different stories about that day’s skiing were shared during dinner. It was always good to hear that everyone felt they had found the best snow to ski on for the day. One of the best stories was told by Mike, an excellent fellow Mountaineer skier. - Taking a wrong turn when skiing to the bottom of the mountain proved to be quite an incident for Mike. This wasn’t a little mistake under the low snow conditions. You see there wasn’t a chair lift of any sort when the snow ran out at the bottom of the valley. So instead he had to hike the rest of the way down the mountain, skies and poles in hand. This tour included a trip through a muddy farm, a climb over a fence and a close encounter with a donkey. (We teased him continually about the this side trip.)

We skied for 11 days total in Sestriere, Sauze D’oulx, Sansicario, Montgenevre, Serre Chevalier and Les 2 Alps. After 5 days in Italy we took a bus to Les 2 Alps for the final 6 nights. Les 2 Alps was a much busier place full of many teenagers and young 20’s groups. There was much more to see and do in this town but we were defiantly in ski resort towns. Along the street you would see a restaurant, ski shop, pub, chocolate shop, ski shop, pub, pastry shop, restaurant, ski shop, etc. The chocolate was to die for and the pastries were always yummy. We also stopped in the town of Briancon, the highest European city, for the afternoon while traveling from Sestriere to Les 2 Alps. There we toured a castle, walked within narrow cobblestone streets and had a cheese and ham crepe for lunch. It was a nice afternoon break allowing our legs to rest a bit.

Most ski days were sunny, a few we woke up to fresh powder and two were very windy and cold. I improved with each day, started to feel some sort of rhythm and carved a few linking turns. Once I will admit I snow plowed the entire way down the mountain to the mid station because the light was so flat I was just avoiding getting vertigo. My favorites were the powder mornings because I got to watch Duke, float down the mountain with the skill he perfected so long ago. I made it down the mountain even figure-eighting his turns once but I can only envy what it must feel like to be really good at it.

Another part I wanted to mention was the variety of ways to move us up the mountain. Gondolas, trams for up to 50 people, eggshells for four close friends, platter lifts, t-bars, old 1940 vintage one seat chair lifts, 2, 4 and 6 person chair lifts and my favorite the 8 pack detachable high speed high back chair that made a turn at mid station. The approaches to the lift were always an experience in itself. The most unique being the moving conveyor belt that moved a bit slower then you as approaching which causes you to pitch forward and just as you got your balance back the chair hits you on the back of the legs practically throwing you into it. I did master that experience before the end of the trip..:)

As you can see from the photos the views were amazing. Having lunch with that view was worth the whole trip, mostly on sunny days sitting on the deck. Everywhere you turned you looked at a tall snow covered peaks. I felt very small in such an ominous place.

Even though it was a ski trip and we had plenty of wonderful times on the slopes it was mostly a learning experience for me. Learned a little more about people, culture and life in general in the two weeks we were with the group. I would recommend it for anyone who enjoys getting fresh air while gliding through the white stuff.

Next – Part 2  - Bodor Kastely

Teri