We were anticipating our overnight excursion into Budapest. Ton packed a small bag with the stuff we would need and we were off to our hotel in town around 10 am. Our plan was to drop our bag off at the hotel and head out on a walk. We were really pleased when we checked in that they assigned us our room on the spot, so we got a few extra hours in the hotel.
These little paddle boats are the coolest of the many river excursions offered in Budapest.
Instead of setting out right away we enjoyed a few hours of relaxation before heading out for a late lunch/early dinner around 2:30. Ton had found a Transylvanian restaurant she wanted to try so we decided to make a day of it by strolling there.
River cruise boats rafted up on the banks of the Danube.
Transylvania was Hungarian for hundreds of years, and to most Americans is associated with Hungary because the Hungarian born Bella Lagozy played Dracula in the original movies. During the period it belonged to Hungary the region was settled mostly by Germans just to add to the mix of nationalities. After WWI most of the region was given to Romania and it remains Romanian today. When we traveled to Romania a few years ago we spent quite a bit of time in Transylvania and it is beautiful country. Another region with fascinating history. The food was good; though in the end we ordered Hungarian not Transylvanian food.
Our funnel cake desert.
As we have been walking the streets we keep seeing shops doing booming business selling a confection called funnel cake. Ton did a little research on them and found the Hungarians held them in some disdain calling them “Tourist Cakes” or “Tourist Traps”. But they did look good so we sampled one, think of a churro with ice cream. One is enough.
The Liberty Bridge.
Since we have arrived I have been fascinated with how the Danube influences the city. We both wanted to try a night time river cruise. We choose one of the longer ones that started just before sunset and lasted until after sunset.
Buda castle lit up from the river.
The river cruise covered the whole city in about 2 hours and since both sides of the river are beautiful it was nice to be able to look at the Buda bank going one way and the Pest bank going the other. As I said it seems every architect in Budapest designs their building to present its best side to the Danube. It really pays off on the river cruise.
The Pest Bank.
The views are essentially the same as you see from the River Bank, but of course being on a boat adds some charm. The best thing is it would take 2 hours of hard walking to cover the same distance that we did from a nice seat enjoying the view the whole time.
The palace.
As the trip ended I convinced Ton to walk down to the Parliament building to take some more pictures. When we passed on the boat the lights weren’t on yet. The weather was perfect and we really enjoyed our evening stroll.
The Parliament building from the river bank.
When we returned to the hotel we decided to have a glass of wine to toast our evening. It was a great way to end a night enjoying one of the worlds beautiful cities.
On our second day in Budapest we really took advantage of our transit pass to see a large swath of the city. The day began with us taking the #23 tram in front of the campground to the parliament building. I was pleased that the tram ran all of the way to the parliament in fact for most of the trip it ran parallel to the river.
The #23 tram in front of the parliament building.
At one point a tour got onto the tram and we learned that the #23 tram was once voted one of the most beautiful tram rides in the world. We jumped off at the massive parliament building and began our day.
The parliament from across the Danube.
The building is one of the landmarks of Budapest and is the largest parliament building in the world. The interior is as beautiful but all of the tours for the building were sold out for the period we are here so we will have to settle for the slide show we watched in the visitors center.
The parliament from the river side.
We walked along the river and it is one of the most beautiful river fronts I have seen. As I said yesterday I am completely impressed with how all of the major buildings in the city seem to present their best side to the Danube. It not only makes for a beautiful skyline but allows you to appreciate the buildings from multiple angles as you walk along both banks of the river.
The Buda side of the river highlighting the castle.
Further along the river we came to a beautiful but sobering tribute to the Jewish population of Budapest. Prior to WWII Budapest had a thriving Jewish population of over 400,000 people. Hungary was allied with Germany until 1944 and as an ally was able to protect the population. The Germans occupied Hungary in early 1944 fearing the Hungarians were negotiating to leave the war. After the Germans swept in they began the biggest shipment of people to concentration camps since 1942 decimating the Jews in Hungary.
The Great Synagogue of Budapest
Today there is a tribute on the banks of the river called the Shoes On the Danube Bank. In December of 1944 20,000 Jews were taken to the banks of the Danube and executed by Hungarian Fascists, they were forced to take off their shoes before being shot so that their bodies would tumble into the river, the shoes were considered too valuable to allow to be swept away . The bronze shoes lining the Danube are a tribute to the people lost in the holocaust.
The Shoes on the Danube one of the most memorable of the memorials to the holocaust we have seen.
Our next stop was heroes square. It is a large square away from the center of the city dedicated to historical heroes of Hungary. There were a lot of big statues of people you have to be Hungarian or a very well read European historian to know.
St. Stephen the only person in the group we knew anything about.
We had a lunch of goulash today that was ok but not quite what I expected. If this is good goulash, (the restaurant was very full) it appears to be a variation of beef stew and while it was fine, it was not substantially different than an American beef stew. I think I will give it one more chance before finalizing my verdict.
The crowds were still out in force on this beautiful spring day.
Ton wanted to visit the central market as she remembered it as one of the most impressive in Europe. I punched central market into google and we jumped off the tram in front of a nice building that looked like a market, but Ton looked confused. When we went inside the old market at this site had been converted into a modern supermarket. It turns out there are two buildings called central market, one on the Buda side where we were, and the famous one on the Pest side.
The good news was our detour to the wrong central market allowed us to visit this beautiful site that includes the Hungarian Lady Liberty on top of the hill.
I punched the other central market in and we had to endure another beautiful tram ride along the Danube to a steel bridge. We chose to walk across the bridge so that we could interact with the river some more.
The cruise boat dock on the river.
We arrived at the market and this one was much larger and still functioning as a market (even though there was an Aldi supermarket hidden in the basement.) Ton enjoyed looking around even though it was bursting at the seems with people.
The market is a beautiful building and can hold a lot of people.
She had a few things in mind and was particularly interested in paprika. After spending 30 minutes wandering around amongst the crowds we headed into the basement to the Aldi to get some essentials for François.
Looking down on the main floor of the market.
Our tram 23 had a stop at the market, so after getting our essentials taken care of we headed back to François for the evening.
Ton really wanted me to see Budapest. She visited about 20 years ago and it made a big impression on her, and when we talked about this trip she always referred to it as the Budapest trip. So I was looking forward to see the city that made such a big impression on her.
Great cities always seem to have a river that subtly shapes the character of the architecture.
We have been in Europe for their labor day (May 1 in Europe) and have had it influence our trips. On our very first trip we were in Paris on labor day and were going to head to the center when the desk clerk warned us we should stay in Montmartre for the day because- as he put it they would be having the annual May Day riot in the center. We spent part of our day watching live coverage of the riot on TV. As we walked around Montmartre you would have never known there was a riot going on 20 minutes away. In Poland we learned that the whole country shut down for not only labor day but the whole week as they had scheduled 2 other national holidays in the first week of May. We ended up in Kraków for 6 days as the campground owner there allowed us to stay out of pity, every campground in the country was fully booked for that week. So we were wondering what we were in for today.
St. Stephens Basilica.
The streets were quiet and the tram was pretty empty so we were optimistic when we arrived downtown. We decided to head to the Basilica as that is where we usually start our city visits. For the first 5 minutes we were on side roads and Ton said that the crowds weren’t too bad. 30 seconds later we turned onto the avenue that St. Stephens faces and we found the crowds. In addition to the normal load of tourists, there were a lot of labor day tourists from the surrounding countries, we heard a lot of Slavic languages being spoken in addition to the normal German and English you hear in every city. The campground is an indicator that this is a labor day destination for Hungary’s neighbors as we are surrounded by plates from Slovakia, Poland, Romania, and Slovenia instead of the normal French, Dutch, English and German RV’s
The interior of St. Stephens is beautiful but full.
St. Stephens is a beautiful cathedral, but today it was teeming with people and tours. Ton spent a lot of time wriggling her way around groups of people to get a photo without a head in it. I spent my time on the edge of the crowds trying to enjoy the beauty while keeping an eye on Ton so I didn’t lose her.
This reliquary contains St. Stephens holy right hand. There is a sign next to it giving the history of the hand and its coming and going over time.
After St. Stephens we decided to cross the Danube on the Szechny Bridge. Once again the views were beautiful but it was a challenge to enjoy them without getting swept along with the crowds. But as I looked at the city from the bridge I began to realize how all of the major buildings in the city seemed to be drawn to the river. Many great cities have a river that shapes them but Budapest is striking because so many of the important buildings in the city compete to show their best face to the Danube.
St. Mathias Church in Buda Castle.
After the bridge we tackled the climb to Buda castle. About 80% of the way up the hill we saw a cafe and decided that we deserved a beer. In the cafe we shared our table with a Brazilian couple who we enjoyed speaking to.
The fisherman’s bastion from the front.
At Buda castle Ton really wanted to visit the fisherman’s bastion as it had really made an impression on her last visit. When she visited she remembered standing on the walls of the bastion listening to a Gypsy Band playing Hungarian music. She was so impressed with the band that she bought one of their CD’s. Now you have to pay to walk on the walls of the bastion and their were not any local musicians around. But the views are still incredible.
Part of the grounds of Buda castle.
Ton than consulted her list of places and said that she wanted to visit the area of ruined pubs. I punched it into google maps and to my surprise it provided directions to the area of ruined bars. So after a bit of a walk to a tram and a transfer to a bus we found ourselves in an ally on the edge of the old town. The ally had character and it did have a bunch of pubs though I would not call them ruined, but intentionally funky.
The exterior of our ruined pub.
We had to wait 15 minutes for our pub of choice to open, but by the time it did we had been joined by another 40 or 50 people. I’m not quite sure how to describe the pub. It is consciously outlandish and unabashedly aimed at tourists, but it is so over the top that it works and is almost charming.
The hookah room in the pub. There are probably 15 more themed rooms in the place.
We found a table and Ton immediately took off to take pictures. She came back and told me that we didn’t need to rush to get a table as the place was immense. As we were drinking our beers a steady flow of tourists wandered thru our room including at one point a guided tour.
Customers are encouraged to write on the walls.
We settled into the routine and enjoyed taking in the steady flow of people including one Canadian couple festooned with Canadian flags on their clothes and backpacks. We guessed they wanted to make sure they were not mistaken for Americans.
There are several catwalks to get you from one room to another.
As we were chatting the couple next to us leaned over and asked where I was from? They were American and had been trying to figure out my accent. It turns out they were missionaries who live in Austria helping to resettle refugees. They were on a weekend retreat away from their three teenagers and seemed to be having a great time.
This is supposed to be the most beautiful cafe in the world. It is called the New York Cafe because the building was originally owned by the New York Life Insurance Company.
We walked to the New York cafe which bills itself as the most beautiful coffee house in the world, to see if we could be tempted to overpay for coffee and a desert. Any thought ended when we saw the line of people waiting to get in. So we decided to head back to François for a much more affordable dinner.
We shifted to Budapest for what is a planned 5 day stay. It was a quick drive from our peaceful campground in the Valley of Beautiful Women to an urban campground surrounded by Lego Buildings. Our only plans for the day after we arrived were to do our laundry, and check out a local grocery to stock up on some vegetables. That accomplished we settled in for the day and did some planning for Budapest including booking a hotel for Sunday to give us a little break from François. Tomorrow will be much more interesting as it is labor day in Budapest.
Our campground surrounded by apartments is not beautiful or quiet, but conveniently located a 100 yards from a tram line to visit Budapest.
We had a relaxing start to the day and did not head into town until nearly 11. Our plan was to visit the castle here which is an important part of the Hungarian national story and the subject of an epic poem by one of Hungary’s great writers. But once again we enjoyed walking thru Eger and found ourselves going off on tangents.
It is graduation time for Hungarian High Schools and we have been noticing that most businesses are displaying photos of the graduating classes of the high schools in town. This is a charming tribute we have not seen anywhere else.
At one point as we were walking down the street we noticed a large group of high school aged kids being placed by their teachers on either side of the street in pairs. The street was lined for a couple of hundred yards so we decided to wait to see what was going on. It was taking the teachers awhile to get things organized and three boys had broke formation and were chatting with each other near us. I asked if they spoke English and one of them replied yes. I asked what was going on and he explained in flawless English that they were practicing for the graduation tomorrow. He said that the graduating class walks down the street thru all of the other students of the school who are forming a guard of honor.
The observatory in the background with the camera obscura in the copper dome on top.
The castle is located on the highest ground in the city center and is quite large. In its long history it was burned to the ground by the Mongols, successfully staved off a siege by the Ottomans in one of the battles that is taught as a high point in Hungarian valor- only to fall to the Ottomans 50 years later in a defeat that is blamed on foreign mercenaries, was retaken by the Hungarians (with help from Wallons from today’s Belgium) and then fell into disuse for 100 years before being converted into a garrison for various iterations of the Hungarian Army (Hapsburg, Republican, Fascist, and Communist). It symbolizes the complexity of history in this region.
This building within the castle was the Bishops residence until it was taken over by the Army.
In 1960 the government recognized the importance of the castle in Hungarian history and started a program to preserve and reconstruct it. A lot of the castle today is a reconstruction, but the reconstruction is well done.
A painting of the siege of Eger in 1552.
The displays were really well done and we enjoyed reading the history of the castle and the surrounding town while looking at artifacts from the various phases of history back to the Mongol invasion. Hungarian is a unique language in Europe and is related to Mongolian so the Hungarians owe their language to the invasion.
Looking out on the town from one of the cannon ports of the castle.
They also had a well done 18 minute movie depicting the battle in which a teenage Hungarian not interested in history is transported back to 1552 to take part in the battle with a cute female class mate who loves history. In the movie all ends well as their teacher and the hero of the battle arrive just in time to save them from the Turks and send them back to modern times where the history hating boy falls for the history loving girl.
Another view of the bishops palace, but note the line of Lego apartments on the right side of the building in the background.
When we were done Ton proclaimed Eger Castle to be one of the most interesting castles we have visited and well worth the less than $3 entrance fee she paid. I also enjoyed it especially the wide range of medieval artillery on display.
A statue depicting the battle of Eger.
After a few hours walking, climbing hills and battlements we decided to reward ourselves with another wine tasting of the excellent local wines. Today we went for a high end winery and were not disappointed.
Every town now has a sign that you have to pose in front of, and I am always the one posing, despite not having a valley paying homage to my beauty.
We are camped in the “Valley of Ton”, or as the Hungarians call it the “Valley of Beautiful Women” near the town of Eger. Eger is the scene of a heroic stand by 2000 Hungarians in 1552 successfully defending the castle against 60,000 Ottoman soldiers. It is also famous for the library and observatory in its University, and the local red wine known as Bulls Blood.
The neoclassical Basilica.
It was a bit of a walk to the center of town but we were fresh so we decided to tackle it. The first place we came to in the center was a giant neoclassical building that I took for a government building as it reminds me of a lot of the buildings in Washington DC. It turned out to be the Basilica and once you stepped inside it was clear that it was a church.
The interior of the Basilica.
It is one of the newest Basilica’s we have seen as it was built in the 1840’s. The interior was nice and the artwork reflected the period it was built. The stained glass windows were all from the early 2000’s which I found interesting and puzzling.
Meridian Line and Telescopes at Esterhazy Karoly Catholic University.
Our next stop was the Lyceum at the Esterhazy Karoly Catholic University. It was built in the 1750’s and contains a great library which our ticket didn’t give us admission to and a Camera Obscura on an observation deck 9 stories above the city. What we didn’t know was that you had to climb 330 steps to reach the Camera Obscura. A camera obscura is a device that projects images onto a table in a darkened room using lens mounted in a cupola. The projections are real time images of what is going on in the city and by manipulating the cupola you can see different parts of the city. It was fascinating- the guide was able to show us a 360 degree panorama of the town. You could see cars moving and people walking. We really enjoyed the view, and at the end Ton said it was a great way to see the town.
The center of the city is still very intact which made for a nice walk.
After climbing down 330 steps we still had a lot of the city to cover. Eger was lucky; after 1700 it was not fought over so the center of the city was largely intact. During the communist era the center was not encroached on by new construction and while 30% of toads population still live in Lego buildings, the buildings are mostly on the edge of the city.
A baroque era church in the center.
The city has a simple charm to it that I really enjoyed. It is an easy walk and there are a lot of interesting buildings both large and small. Ton and I enjoyed our walk to the castle with lots of detours to check out different buildings that caught our attention.
The main square with the castle in the background, and the stalls for an upcoming wine fair in the foreground.
When we finally arrived at the castle, I proposed we extend our stay, and return to the castle tomorrow. After some thought Ton agreed, so we are going to add a day to our stay in Eger.
The entrance to the castle which we will explore in depth tomorrow.
Our day wasn’t over though. We needed to return to the Valley of Beautiful Women and check out the wine caves. They have done something here that we have not seen anywhere in our travels. In the Valley of Beautiful Women there are many caves that have been taken over by wineries in the region.
The entrance to one of the wine caves.
In a very small area there are over 15 wineries tasting their wines side by side. You have your choice of high end wines with international reputations, and mom and pop wineries selling wine in 1 liter plastic jugs. It is a great place for us.
A happy man in a wine cave.
The wine the region is most favorite for is Egri Bekaver which translates to Bulls Blood in English. We tried a taster that included Egri Bekaver and 4 other wines from the region. After the taste we decided to head back to François for some food and a bit of a rest.
Our evening treat.
Before settling in for the evening I convinced Ton to walk back over to the caves for an evening taste. It was a nice evening walk with a reward at the end of it.
Today we officially moved on to Hungary for the trip, despite visiting Tokaj yesterday we returned to Slovakia to sleep. For the next few days we will be in Hungary.
Entering Hungary on a quiet country road.
Our stop today was the nearby city of Miskolc. But as soon as we crossed over we ran across a Lidl so we added some food, and a bottle of Tokaj wine to the refrigerator. We are also going to have to recalibrate our minds from Euro’s to Forints, we spent the whole time asking each other questions like is 499 Forints a good price for a liter of OJ? Yesterday as we were driving we noticed all of the gas stations had diesel set at 619 Forints per liter, Ton did the math and that came out to €1.69 per liter, since diesel was around €1.80 in Slovakia we decided to fill up in Hungary. The problem was when we pulled into the first station there was a long note taped on the pump that told us the 619 Forint price was for Hungarian registered vehicles only, and that non-Hungarian vehicles had to pay 688 Forint’s. That turned out to be about 10 cents a liter more than it would have been in Slovakia. Oh well…
40% of the population of Miskolc still lives in the infamous block apartments built during the communist era.
Miskolc is starting to get a little light on the tourist trail primarily for its food scene. The downtown core has a section of older buildings, but more so than in most cities we have visited a large part of the skyline is dominated by buildings built in the communist era which look like large Lego blocks made of poor concrete. The city was heavily damaged in WWII so the reconstruction was done by the communist government and the buildings that are not Lego blocks are built in the Brutalist Style that the communists favored which is not nearly as stylish as the art deco and baroque styles you see in most of Europe.
The tower in the background is the biggest landmark in Miskolc.
Miskolc oozes a blue collar vibe, and as it was Monday most of the cafes and restaurants were closed on the main street which has a very long name, that even the locals have shortened to Forint Street, as that is where all of their money goes.
Forint Street with some 19th and early 20th century towns.
There is an area of town that is built on the side of an extinct volcano that has hundreds of caves that have been used for various purposes in history, but today are being used primarily for wine.
This Unitarian Church had a beautiful wooden roof.
We headed there to take a look, and passed a beautiful church that was the architectural highlight of the trip. You have to earn your wine in the Avos district as it is quite a climb from the city center. Unfortunately, for us it was Monday and all of the wine places were closed.
Looking out over town with Lego buildings interspersed with the church steeples.
I think we caught the town at its least charming and I suspect that on a nice weekend with a crowd on Forint Road and all of the restaurants and wine stores open it would feel a lot more dynamic than it did today. We ended up spending about 3 hours exploring and then decided to move on to our next stop.
This building was surrounded by cranes, you can see two of them there was a third. Ton spent about 10 minutes trying to find an angle without a crane, and then just decided to embrace the cranes. We think it is a museum.
It was a quick drive to Eger and we arrived at what was a campground, but has been converted to an Aire. The problem is it is a no contact aire so you have to log into a website enter all of your information make your payment and then they send you a code to open the gate and enter. It was a frustrating 45 minute process due to a poorly constructed website, a poor WIFI connection, and two boomers trying to work a computer. We eventually got a code to enter, but must have done something wrong because about an hour later someone drove up and asked to see our proof of purchase. After some conversation on the phone in Hungarian the person confirmed we were ok. I am more and more missing people at check in.
We hadn’t seen these gable windows that look like eyes since Romania. Ton really likes them.
We woke up to a gale, but the skies were blue. The plan was to sleep in, but the church we are sleeping next to rang its bell for about 15 minutes starting at 7:30. It wasn’t even a real bell, but a recording of a bell. So we were up earlier than we planned.
Driving thru the Hungarian wine country.
Our plan for the day was to drive to Tokaj in Hungary. Tokaj is the center of one of the oldest wine regions in Europe specializing in sweet and desert wines. The wine has been in high demand even in France since the 1300’s.
A Socialist Realism take on wine making. I’m not sure if it is left over from the communist era.
We kept seeing a big town a few miles away, but when we asked about things we were always given directions to towns in different directions by the Slovaks. It turns out the big town is in Hungary, so we crossed into our 27th country about 10 minutes after leaving the campground. We will be returning tomorrow because the Hungarian town has a Lidl.
Wine bar with the source of the wine conveniently close.
After about 45 minutes we arrived in Tokaj which is a pleasant town located on the Tisza River. It was definitely a town leaning into its wine making heritage. We headed to a winery Ton had identified and when we arrived there were three people getting told about the local wines. We asked about their tours but were told that the tour was already underway, after we bought a glass to try, the server told us to take a table near the three people as they were the tour and we could listen in to what they were being told.
A statue to Bacchus, and a wannabe.
Between wines we struck up a conversation and it was a Canadian/English couple living in Scotland, and a medical student from Tokyo. We enjoyed conversing with them, and since we were engaged with the tour the guide invited us to join them on a trip to the cellar. In the end I told Ton it was a good thing that we didn’t do the tour as it included 6 wine tastes, and they were full glass tastes, so it would have been irresponsible for me to drive 45 minutes back to the campground afterwards.
An old wine press at the winery we visited.
After our visit to the winery we headed down to the river for lunch. We both choose different catfish dishes. Hungary does not use the Euro so we spent some time trying to wrap our heads around whether an entree for 4000 Forints was a good deal. (It is.)
The statue in the background of what appears to be a giant ape had us guessing.
After another turn around a blustery Tokaj it was time to head back to our campground in Slovakia for the night. It was another peaceful drive and when we returned we were the only customers in a really beautiful campground.
We saw a lot of vineyards with these small cottages at their bases. We suspect they used to be the homes of the vineyard workers, and suspect today they are cottages for the city folk to escape to the countryside, or Airbnb’s for tourists.
Today was a laid back day in the Tokaj Wine region in Slovakia. The Tokaj Wine Region is actually a famous Hungarian wine region, but a small part of it spills into Slovakia. We were not quite ready to leave Slovakia so we decided to head here today.
Our reason for being in Mali Bara.
We found a very well reviewed campground in the wine region and headed out in the morning for Mali Bara. We needed fuel and as we were driving out of Kosice I told Ton we were going to stop at the next gas station. We passed one near the campground in Kosice but thought we could do better on the price. Before we knew it we were into a beautiful countryside and ended up driving the hour to our campground in Mali Bara without seeing another gas station. When we arrived at the campground I told the person at reception we needed diesel and he told us there was a station nearby.
Vineyards and stables.
We decided to head over to the station before setting up. After about 15 minutes we pulled into the station but before we could get to a pump the attendant said that they do not sell fuel to vehicles with foreign license plates only Slovak plates. He was apologetic about it, but unbending. I asked him where I could get fuel and his first answer was Hungary. I told him I wanted fuel in Slovakia and he said there was a Shell station about 25 minutes away, and showed me on google maps which one it was. Apparently some companies are restricting purchases for foreign vehicles because there was a run on Slovak gas stations near the Polish border, we are far from the Polish border, and google says fuel is cheaper in Hungary than Slovakia so they aren’t crossing to buy fuel here. Fortunately the drive was on a good road with pretty countryside so we enjoyed ourselves.
Our campground is famous for their treehouse cabins. All of them were occupied but there was only one other RV.
We returned and settled into our campground for the day. We asked about wine tasting and were told there was a place walking distance. We headed up there and found a very nice restaurant full of young people on bicycles. We enjoyed a nice meal purchased a bottle of wine and headed back to François for a relaxing afternoon.
The campground is a bit of a zoo with Alpacas, goats, peacocks, chickens, and 3 cats.
Kosice is the second largest city in Slovakia, and until we arrived in Bratislava I didn’t know it existed. It has a population of about 230,000, and historically has bounced between Hungary and Slovakia with a hundred years of Ottoman rule. Today the population is overwhelmingly Slovak.
St. Elizabeth Cathedral.
Our first stop was St. Elizabeth’s Cathedral which is the Easternmost Cathedral in the Roman Catholic Church. Like most Cathedrals it is an imposing site in the center of town and is one of two buildings located in the center of the long rectangle that is the center of the city.
This Fresco was from the early days of the Cathedral in the 1300’s. It was covered for several centuries and rediscovered around 1900.
The interior was nice and we enjoyed looking at the art from several different eras of the church. Much of the interior artwork appeared to have been done by Hungarian artists as they dominated the town when the Cathedral was last renovated.
There was a small chapel that stood adjacent to the Cathedral. Both had decorated tile roofs like the churches in Burgundy in France.
We have noticed that one unique feature of Slovak towns outside of Bratislava is the lack of a large town square. Instead there is a long but rectangular center of the town that is formed by townhouses with occasional gates to allow access to surrounding streets. The only buildings inside the rectangle seem to be the main church and a government building. In the case of Kosice this rectangular center is over a kilometer in length.
This column is called the Plague Column built after an outbreak in 1711.
In the case of Kosice this Kilometer was all that got our attention. We walked up and down it a few times, stopping once at a very posh coffee shop in a hotel, and once in a brewery that dated back to 1521.
The Dominican Fountain.
After a few hours walking the market kilometer, and a few of the streets surrounding it, we were tired and headed back to François. Kosice retains much more of the “Brutalist” architecture of the communist era than Bratislava. It may also mean that a lot more of the older buildings were demolished during that period. The older 19th century buildings are much more “charming” than the block concrete buildings of the communist era and may have led to our inability to find a reason to venture out from the center.
Neither of us can remember what this monument is.
On the tram ride back to François Ton and I agreed that Kosice was a nice city, but a little bit uninspiring. We had originally planned on two days, but are now considering shifting to a small wine region near the Hungarian border for our last day in Slovakia on this trip.
We were off to an early start. The weird Aire we stayed in did not lend itself to lingering so we were both ready to go quite early. The drive to our destination of Levoca was pretty short so we found ourselves parking at the base of the walls of the city before 10:30.
These town homes are from the Renaissance and are mostly original.
Levoca was part of Hungary until 1918. But avoided most wars from the middle ages on, so the town and its walls are well preserved. It was a major market town, but it was bypassed the railroad in 1871 so it became a backwater which led to the town staying largely unchanged.
The 18th century town hall and the 14th century St. James Bascilliaca.
What was a problem in the 19th century is now an asset in the 21st century. The town is now a UNESCO site because the town contains so many old buildings.
The “Cage of Shame” dates to the 1600’s and has a prominent place on the main square.
The town is small and easily walkable in a couple of hours. We noticed that St. James Bascilliaca had a guided tour at 11:30 so we wandered around the square. The day was bright blue, but the temperatures were in the low 50’s and the wind was really howling so we were happy when the tour began.
St. James is famous for its Altar.
St. James is one of the newest Basilicas in the Catholic church having just been made a Basilica by Pope John Paul in 1995. The church dates back to the 1300’s but is famous for its gigantic Gothic wooden altar. It stands over 70 feet tall and is carved wood that is painted. There are no nails used in the structure which is amazing.
This is one large piece of art. The details of the carving are incredible and the fact that it is held together without nails is amazing. The carver put his face in the last supper in the very bottom panel.
Unfortunately the tour guide didn’t speak English. She escorted us into the church and gave us a written guide in English, but to compensate said Ton could take pictures despite the no photography signs. Ton was in heaven. In the end the lady broke out her limited English mixed with German to give us some details about the church which was very nice.
Part of a Fresco that predates the alter.
After the church we headed back to François for the trip to our final destination in Kosice. As we were driving we discussed visiting Spis Castle, but as we were approaching the exit we decided it was way to windy to climb on another castle so we settled for a picture from the freeway.
Spis Castle one of the many beautiful castles in Slovakia.
As we were driving Ton told me that Slovakia has the most castles per capita in Europe. The countryside in Eastern Slovakia is really beautiful, with large valleys surrounded by high mountains. The towns are often dominated by large block Communist era apartments. Even small towns have multi-story apartments, and they often dominate the skyline of the town. The Slovaks are doing their best to pretty them up with paint, but they are pretty monotonous in such a beautiful countryside.
Slovakia is not a large country in size so our drives have been relatively short. Today we took our longest drive of our visit at about 2 hours. But the drive was really beautiful crossing thru two national parks in the Tatra Mountains. While the drive was in the mountains, the roads were generally good and we made decent time.
This was a little road we took on a side visit to Spania Dolina.
We visited two places that were very different in size though they both exist because of mining. Banska Bystrica is a thriving town of 80,000 in a river valley, and Spania Dolina is a rural village of 200 people tucked away in the hills.
A T-34 tank at the Museum of the Slovak Uprising.
The first place we stumbled across was the Museum of the Slovak Uprising. Banska Bystrica was the center of anti-Nazi resistance in Slovakia during WWII and rebelled against the Nazi’s in late August 1944. They managed to hold the town for nearly 2 months before losing it to the Germans and fading into the countryside to fight as partisans.
German WWII armored vehicles on display at the Museum of the Slovak Uprising.
The museum had a nice display of Soviet and German WWII vehicles that I enjoyed walking thru while Ton took pictures. They even had an armored train on display which was a first for me.
The main square at Banska Bystrica.
The town had a nice square that we spent about 45 minutes exploring. About half way thru Ton proposed lunch. We have discovered the Slovak set lunch of Soup, and a main dish. Today our lunch with the addition of a beer cost only €20 for the two of us.
François in Spania Dolina.
The second stop was the small village of Spania Dolina. Copper has been mined near the village since 1254, though there is evidence of mining activities around 2000 bc.
The covered stairway of 160 steps from the town center to the church on the hill.
The town has a church built on a hill above the main square that served not only as a church, but as a fortification when needed. The church was built of stone, but the spire was wood and was beautiful.
The wooden spire was quite intricate and beautiful.
After we visited the church we climbed back down and went to visit the mines. One of the shafts was opened up for about 50 feet and we walked down to see it.
Entering the mine shaft.
The village is full of pretty stone and wooden roofed houses, and while the permanent residents are now less than 200 there were more homes there than that. We guess that a lot of the homes are vacation homes as the town is now a center for hiking and cross country skiing in the Tatra Mountains.
The entrance to the covered stairs.
After Spania Dolina we doubled back about an hour to a place that had good reviews on Park4Night. Every trip we run into a place that is “interesting”. Our campsite tonight is that place. It is behind a large restaurant situated in a newly constructed village of very large and expensive looking homes that we think are for rent, but that is not certain. There are about 20 of these homes, and none of them are occupied. The shower is located in the basement of the restaurant in a weight room. The lady who helped us was very nice though we did not share a common language, so she decided I would understand German better than Slovak and spoke to me in German. Despite that we managed to communicate. No one showed up for dinner either so the kitchen staff all left at 6:30, so as near as I can tell we are the only ones now occupying this huge complex.
Tonight we are camped in the Tatra mountains near the Polish border. It is not the place we planed on being but sometimes things happen.
Trencin with its castle watching over the town and the river.
We had a good time getting here. We have a plan for the rest of Slovakia and the first stop on our itinerary was Trencin. It is a nice little town with a castle overlooking it- like many other towns in Europe.
The guard gates as you enter the castle.
Trencin was about 90 minutes north of Bratislava on a pretty good freeway. We were rolling along when there was a sign saying to slow down for police. As we got near a rest area the police were directing about 70% of the traffic from the freeway into the rest area. In the rest area another set of police were splitting the incoming traffic into two lines. We were directed into the longer line which we were grateful for as we noticed the cars in the other line were getting searched. We were finally approached by a police officer who asked me “No Alcohol?”. I wanted to reply; not at 10:30 in the morning, but just said no. He then said he was going to have me blow into a breathalyzer. He handed me a bag with a plastic tube in it and told me to open it. I then performed my first breathalyzer test and after blowing for a few seconds he said “You passed” and waived me on my way. Ton and I were wondering how many people fail at 10:30 in the morning.
Trencin and the surrounding hills from the castle walls.
We again ended up interacting with the police again when we parked in Trencin. I wasn’t sure if our parking place was pay or not, when Ton noticed a barcode on one of the signs. I scanned it with my phone and it redirected me to a parking app to pay for parking. Interestingly I already had the app downloaded on my phone so I must of used it somewhere else in Europe. I bought 4 hours worth of parking and we were on our way just as two parking cops walked up. Just to be safe I showed him the app and he noodled and said good.
The lovers well in the castle.
Having finished our interactions with Slovakian police we climbed the hill to the castle. It was a nice castle with great views of the surrounding countryside. It also commanded the river that runs thru the valley.
Trencin’s tower gate similar to the one in Bratislava.
After the castle we walked thru the main square of the castle to the main site Ton wanted to see which was the Spitting Man Fountain. Nix was a local who couldn’t impress a girl until her house caught fire. He then lowered himself into a well and puts out the fire by spitting water from the well onto it. In the story he succeeds in putting out the fire, but dies doing it, and then the girl falls in love with him. In the fountain commemorating the story he is wearing a Top Hat while he is doing the spitting.
The Spitting Fountain.
While it was bright blue, the high today was only 50 and there was a brisk breeze. So we decided to duck into a coffee shop to warm up. We were the only customers, but had a great time talking to the owner and the barista about coffee and traveling. We ended up ordering a second cup and sitting in there for 45 minutes because we were enjoying the conversation with the two guys so much. But our allotted parking time was coming to an end and we knew they are enforcing it so we were on our way to a planned overnight stop in Zilina about an hour up the road.
The Coffee Shop was called the Coffee Lab, so our pour over coffee was served in a laboratory beaker.
After another hour drive we arrived at the campground in Zilina but it looked closed. The gate was open but there was not a soul in sight. I walked around a bit and noticed a sign on the reception saying that if the reception was closed to find a spot and pay in the morning. So we drove in and I found a place to plug in François. But it still didn’t feel right. Just then a couple walked by with a cute dog and I asked them if they knew if the campground was open. We ended up having another nice 15 minute conversation about our travels in Slovakia, before we both remembered my question about whether the campground was open. He said he would call the owner for me, and after a brief conversation it turns out it wasn’t. But he said there was a campground about 10 kilometers away that was definitely open, so we thanked them and were on our way. Slovaks are quickly working their way up our nice and fun people list.
The main square in Trencin.
We had a little scare when we arrived at the recommended campground when the reception was closed, and the barrier was down. But there were a few teenagers using the basketball court so there was hope. After a call to the phone number on the reception we were told to just pick a spot and come pay them in the morning, and she opened the gate remotely. So we are settled in for the night with lows forecast in the mid-30’s, so the heater will be running again.
Some days when you travel like we do the day is about chores and not experiences. That is what we expected today, but it ended up being one of the best days of this trip.
A small church in the median of the road in Modra.
The water on our toilet has not worked since we arrived. For readers who are non-RV’ers it is not as big of a problem as it sounds, especially if you use a cassette toilet like we do, but something you do want to get fixed. I have been doing google searches of shops, and sending emails to try to get an appointment at each city we have visited. At each destination we either didn’t get a reply, or we were told they were too busy. I didn’t have much hope when I sent an email before heading to Bratislava, but was pleasantly surprised to get a quick reply saying if we came in on Monday they could do it. So we were up bright and early and made a short run to a family run business. They took us right in offered us a seat and coffee, and an hour later we left with running water in our toilet. The family running the shop were charming we mentioned we had been down into the city the day before and saw the race. They went and got the two employees who had run the race and brought them to meet us. It was a much nicer experience than you usually have in a repair shop. The price was also great.
This fellow is supposed to be the codifier of the Slovak language.
We decided to head out into the wine country near here and picked the village of Modra as a target. After a short drive we were in the center of Modra and walking down the main street. It is a very small town and as I walked thru it I was thinking that we have driven thru hundreds of small towns like this over the years without stopping.
The entrance to Malik winery.
We noticed several small cafes advertising coffee in the morning and wine in the afternoon. One ally way caught Tons attention, it was lined with tables and there was a worker hanging things on the wall. He greeted us and said come on in this is my winery.
Fedor Malik, the owner of Malik winery.
We thanked him and while Ton took a couple of pictures, he and I chatted. Before we knew it he spontaneously gave us a tour of the winery telling us about not only his own wine but some background on the region and grape varietals in Slovakia. He walked us thru his entire facility from the crushing area to the barrel room. It was one of the best wine tours I have ever had. Early on he handed Ton and I glasses and would periodically stop at a tank and pour us a hefty sample while he explained the grape and the technique he used to produce the wine.
The cave where he is producing sparkling wine.
At the end of the tour we met an older gentleman and Fedor introduced his father also called Fedor. His father was a professor of enology at the University in Bratislava for decades. He has toured the world studying wine making techniques and varietals, and has even been recognized by the French government for his research. He has written over 30 books. It was a joy to talk to him also. I asked him his favorite wine and he said he loved wine from Uruguay which was a surprise to us as we did not know Uruguay even produced wine.
Some of Fedor the elders books, and Fedor the youngers wine.
At the end we asked Fedor for a lunch recommendation and he told us to try the hotel around the corner if we wanted Slovak food. They had 5 lunch specials but the descriptions were only written in Slovak, the waiter brought us the dinner menu which they had in English but we were fascinated by the Slovak meal. I got out google translate and was able to figure out what the dish was made of. When the waiter came back I ordered the chicken dish, and Ton ordered the mushroom dish. The first thing that arrived was a huge tureen of soup made of smoked sausage, potatoes, and shredded dumpling.
Our soup dish.
This alone would have been a meal and it was delicious. We then received our main courses which were also delicious, and at the end we received a custard desert. We did not expect a three course meal when we sat down, and each of our meals cost €8.50. We were amazed.
Tulips and the two protestant churches in town.
A day we had absolutely no expectations for turned into the most memorable of this trip, and one of our most memorable ever. Slovakia is exceeding our expectations because we keep running into friendly amazing people.
We were expecting rain when we got up but to our surprise it was quite nice out. Ton did a quick check and the rain had gotten delayed overnight and was not not expected to hit until around 5 pm.
Today was the National Devin Run the oldest sporting event in Slovakia.
We had to sort out the logistics of getting into town as today was the National Devin Run which is a big deal in Slovakia. The race starts at a castle about 12 kilometers outside of town and ends in the center of Bratislava. We could tell that the tram route was shortened to accommodate the run but couldn’t tell by how much. The young lady at the front desk determined that the tram ran to the center of the city so we were good to go.
The finish line of the race.
We needed a purpose for the day so walking to the tram we decided to seek out a street sculpture called the sewer worker. It is a cute sculpture showing a guy climbing out of a sewer hole. Ton also had discovered a restaurant that she was interested in trying the food and seeing the building. So with a purpose in mind we struck out into Bratislava.
Traditional Dancers.
The main square was packed with post race activities and we stopped and watched a traditional Slovak dance group perform a few songs. Right after the main square we found our first target the sewer hole cover dude. It was a well executed and quirky piece of art that seemed to fit the vibe we felt for Bratislava.
The Sewer Worker. My favorite Sculpture so far on this trip.
Ton and I have discovered we have a type of city we really enjoy and Bratislava is one of those cities. We admire sophisticated big cities with lots of culture and many things going on like Vienna. But we enjoy cities like Bratislava, and that is different than big and sophisticated.
The Opera house in Bratislava.
It is a medium sized city with plenty to do, with people out and about doing things and enjoying themselves. It is more practical than pretentious and people seem to have time to interact with each other. Bratislava has been a great introduction to Slovakia for us and will join a short list of cities that have surprised us.
This tree lined street had the US embassy among others on it.
We had been quick to find the Sewer Worker so we decided we need something else to do before heading to lunch. I suggested we walk across the Danube to the base of the UFO bridge.
Crossing the Danube.
It was a nice walk, but the base of the UFO restaurant didn’t offer much, so Ton mentioned the Blue Church. We doubled back across the river to a new part of town and found a beautiful church which is very appropriately called the Blue Church.
The Blue Church.
There were a few people there, and though it was Sunday you could not enter, but only look thru a locked gate. There was one large tour group who were getting an extended briefing on the church in Spanish.
The interior of the blue church.
We had now walked enough to have lunch. The restaurant Ton had picked was located in an old theater that had been converted to a restaurant and brewery. The exterior of the building was nearly swallowed up by a construction zone, but the interior was spectacular. The building has a complicated history. For several hundred years it was a hospital run by an order of priests supported by nuns. Like many church run hospitals they had a side business making beer to help pay for the upkeep of the building. Shortly after the communists took over Bratislava in 1950 the priests and nuns were imprisoned or exiled. The hospital was maintained as a medical clinic but the chapel of the hospital was converted into a theater.
My lunch, a Slovak macaroni and cheese, and cabbage soup.
After the communists fell the building was returned to the order of priests. They didn’t know what to do with the theater so they leased it out, and it became the restaurant that exists today. The restaurant also got the right to brew beer using the old formula of the priests. A priest still consecrates the beer periodically. We really enjoyed the meal, the beer, and the atmosphere.
Some left over Socialist Realism art from the communist era.
After lunch we hustled back to François just in time to beat the rain. We settled in for a relaxing evening and listened to rain beat on the roof of François.
Slovakia is a country that Ton has been excited about visiting since we began planning this trip. For me it is a bit of a mystery. Our first stop is Bratislava which is the capitol, but is only located about 60 kilometers (as the crow flies) from Vienna. This makes Bratislava and Vienna the two national capitols that are closest to each other.
The UFO on top of the main bridge over the Danube is a restaurant.
Bratislava also like Vienna is located on the Danube river, and historically has always been a crossroads of civilizations, at different time in the last 200 years it has been dominated by Hungarian, Austrian Germans, and Slovaks. The population today is more heterogenous than it has been historically with Slovaks making up 86% of the population.
The Danube River runs at the foot of the old town.
We really needed food so our first stop in Bratislava was a Lidl. After about an hour we were well stocked for the next few days and headed over to our campground.
5 corners in the center of Bratislava.
We were debating whether to take the afternoon off, but a quick check of the weather showed a 65% chance of rain tomorrow. It was beautiful today so we hustled into the city to take advantage of the sunny and warm day.
The center of the city was hopping due to the good weather.
The tram ride in was thru the commercial and industrial part of town, and it was kind of dead. I was worried that we would not find much to do in the center of town. I was very wrong. The center was bustling with lots of people out enjoying the beautiful weather on a Saturday.
Outside of the center of town a lot of the buildings are graffitied pretty heavily. Ton really liked this building and the bricked in door.
I was enjoying looking at all of the people sitting in cafes with beers and glasses of wine. I was jealous and informed Ton that I wanted a beer. She agreed but I had to first earn it by climbing up to the castle above town.
Bratislava Castle commands the Danube from a very high hill overlooking the river and the city.
This was our first hill climb of the trip, it has been nice hanging out in the Netherlands, and even Vienna was surprisingly flat. The climb was pretty steep but in the end it was worth it for the views of the Danube, the city, and the countryside.
St. Michaels gate dominates the old town of the city.
Ton rewarded me for our hill climb by allowing me to pick a place to have a beer. I immediately settled on a Black Lager, and Ton had a sampler of local beers. We originally ordered onion rings to snack on, and were disappointed when they arrived in both the quality and quantity, but we noticed an older couple with a bread bowl full of soup. When we asked our waitress about it she explained it was a garlic soup. We ordered it and it was delicious, and when we got the bill we laughed because it cost less than the 8 small onion rings.
Enjoying my large beer, and plotting to steal some of Tons small beers.
As we were eating the fellow at the next table asked why Ton had four different small beers, he had never seen a sampler before. We ended up striking up a conversation and he and his wife were a delight. He was originally from Istanbul and his wife is from Croatia, and they now live in Vienna.
The soup was almost done, so we also devoured the bowl.
Our late start had us on the streets much later than usual, some of the lights were even coming on so we decided we better head back to François for the evening.
Heading back to the Tram for our ride to François.
Today was the highlight of our trips to museums in Vienna. As I said yesterday Ton is a great fan of Klimt and “The Kiss” is probably his most painting. We were on our way just after rush hour to check out the Belvedere Museum.
The Belvedere Palace and Museum.
The Belvedere Palace was built in the early 1700’s by Prince Eugene of Savoy. Prince Eugene is considered to be the greatest Austrian General but the catch is he was French. He was unhappy with his lot in France and immigrated here where he ended up in command of the Hapsburg Army and was instrumental in securing the empire from the Ottomans. For that he was rewarded with the funds to build the Belvedere Palace on what was then the outskirts of the city.
Didn’t get a picture of Prince Eugene but here is a picture of his countryman Napoleon.
We walked the grounds for a while as we had to wait for 45 minutes for our entrance time. The day was beautiful and the grounds were very stylized and pretty to look at for a few minutes, but didn’t entice us to wander.
The gardens of Belvedere.
As soon as we entered the museum Ton wanted to see the Kiss so we made a bee line for it. The space it occupied was crowded but with patience you could get a good look at it We spent 10 minutes taking in the painting before moving on to the rest of the exhibit.
The Kiss by Klimt.
Klimt did not actually name it the Kiss. He had given it another name, but the museum renamed it after they came into possesion of it and the name has stuck.
Another painting by Klimt in a completely different style.
The Belvedere had an extensive collection of art by Klimt, and between the Leopold yesterday and today I have gained an appreciation for him as an artist. He is quite versatile and like many great painters his genius is evident in all the styles of painting he does.
Another Klimt portrait, more conventional but still arresting.
He lived for 55 years and fortunately his genius was recognized early in his career. From this trip I think I will always associate Vienna with Gustav Klimt.
This unfinished painting was found in Klimts studio after his death.
The museum had a large collection of Austrian art spanning multiple eras and we spent the next 90 minutes wandering thru the different room. Part of the interest of the museum though was also taking in the palatial rooms that the art is presented in.
The main reception room of the Palace.
The collection contained everything from cubist art of the mid-20th century to church art from the 12th century.
Mid-20th century art.
As someone with no talent I was awed by the amount of talent on display at the Belvedere. Because of the way we structured our stay in Vienna there are two things I will remember about the city. The museums, and the coffee shops.
Part of an altar board from the 12th century. Painted carved wood done by a team of artists all lost to time, but geniuses also.
After the Belvedere we headed over to try one last coffee shop before our departure. Ton picked a good one the Demel. This one was in the old city and close to one of the main squares so it was much busier (and more expensive) than the others we had tried. The shop was originally opened in the 1780’s and I enjoyed my pancakes which were close to a bread pudding. Ton had a pastry that she really enjoyed.
My pancakes with plum sauce.
After our lunch Ton said she wouldn’t be able to eat any more whipped cream for a while. Every pastry and often coffee comes with a big dollop of whipped cream on the side.
Two of the riders for the Lipizzaner Stallions.
We tried to walk off some of our desert by strolling thru the center of the city for a while. It did help and we enjoyed just taking in the sites and looking at the crowds of people also taking in the sites. It was a good way to finish up our Vienna experience.
A church in the center of Vienna.
Vienna is an amazing city that offers so much that it kind of overwhelmed me. Five days is not enough time to even think you have seen what it offers. I think by narrowing our visit down to art and coffee we helped take one small bite out of the giant apple that Vienna is. Next time we can tackle one of the other things that Vienna excels at such as music, dance, or architecture.
Vienna has at least 112 museums which is for me why it is such a intimidating place to visit. Today we focused on one of the most famous ones the Leopold Museum which is in the Museum Quarter that contains several other large and small museums.
One of the archways between courtyards that contain dozens of small museums and art organizations located in the old imperial stables.
Before heading to the museum for the afternoon we spent the morning on a driving tour of Vienna. We wanted to get a look at other parts of Vienna to determine where to spend tomorrow. The drive was interesting and we saw both the old and new parts of Vienna.
These high rises have to be on the opposite bank of the Danube from the old town, as no building can be taller than the spire of St Stephens church on the other bank.
After our driving tour we headed to another cafe to try to break our streak of ok food. Today was much better, our coffee was delicious, and the pastries we ordered- the restaurants specialty cake, and a cheese strudel were also excellent. Happy with our choice we headed to the Leopold Museum.
Death and Life by Gustav Klimt.
Ton is a big fan of the Austrian artist Gustav Klimt and this museum has several of his works on display. The museum focuses on Austrian art from the late 1880’s to the beginning of WWII.
Gustav Klimt and the gown he used for painting.
Ton is a huge fan of the Kiss which is displayed at a museum we will be visiting tomorrow. But the Leopold had a lot of information about Klimt and the Kiss including some stills of the model he used for the painting that we studied in preparation for visiting it tomorrow.
Emily Flogh the model Klimt used for the Kiss, his most famous work.
I ended up falling under the spell of an architect and industrial designer named Joseph Hoffman. They had several rooms highlighting furniture and other household goods that were designed and produced in Vienna around 1900. In each of the rooms we entered there was always one piece that caught my eye and pulled me to it, and while there were several designers on display, in each case the piece I was drawn to (and Ton also) was designed by Joseph Hoffman.
Hoffman designs were both beautiful and utilitarian, a perfect combination in industrial design.
The period from 1900 until WWI was particular striking for me. The artists were quite daring for their time. They were ahead of popular tastes for the era, and in the 1930’s many of them were branded as degenerate by the Nazi’s.
Egon Schiele, “Self Portrait with Physalis”.
It was a wonderful collection of art, and we thoroughly enjoyed wandering thru the well laid out presentations. We had planned on going to another museum but when we were done with the Leopold it was too late, so the Albertina will be on tomorrows agenda.
A study of the death scene of Juliet by Gustav Klimt.
We have our commute from the campground to the center of the city down now. After a quick trip back to the campsite Ton prepared another great meal and we settled in for the evening on a warm(ish) night.
In our quest to investigate every “Versailles of” we decided to visit the Versailles of Austria Schonbrunn palace. This one came close to matching Versailles in size and splendor.
The entrance to the grounds.
Schonbrunn palace was the summer residence of the Hapsburg dynasty, and was used for 170 years until the fall of the Hapsburgs in 1918. The Hapsburgs as a dynasty were not slouches ruling Austria, and varying other parts of Europe for over 600 years.
A family portrait of the Empress Maria Theresa with 11 of her 16 children.
The palace has over 1200 rooms and a gigantic garden. Our tour today was limited to 25 rooms that were the sleeping quarters and work space of King Franz Joseph who was King of Austria for 70 years, as well as the main public rooms of the palace.
Queen Elisabeth of Austria, affectionately known in Vienna as Sissi was Franz Josephs wife. This room was her sitting room.
As you walk up to the palace we were struck by the amount of commercial activity taking place in front of the palace on the grounds. There were many food and souvenir stands, and even carnival rides. It felt more like a fair grounds than the entrance to a great palace. Ton was a little taken aback, but I thought it was kind of fun. The grounds are free to visit and they are immense and I imagine that on nice days and summer they are buzzing with tourists and locals alike.
Part of the food cart pod at the palace with a carousel in the background.
The palace itself was beautiful and as ostentatious as you would expect for a place that was meant to compete with Versailles. The working rooms were meant by Franz Joseph to be modest, but modest for an Emperor is quite different than modest for most people.
The woodwork and the inlays were beautiful.
The main ball room was spectacular, but not as spectacular as the hall of mirrors in Versailles. But it came a close second.
The ball room was spectacular.
It took us about two hours to go thru all 25 rooms. We had planned on spending some time in the gardens, but while they are immense and pretty they did not grab our attention. We sat on a bench for 15 or 20 minutes taking it in and then decided to head back to the center.
Part of the Gardens of the Schonbrunn Palace.
By the time we returned to the center of the city it was nearly 2pm and we were ready for a late lunch. We headed to a place that was recommended yesterday. It is supposed to be a bit of a hidden gem. To keep up with our Vienna experience we ordered two of the dishes Vienna is famous for Schnitzel and Goulash. The food was fine. So far our verdict on Austrian food is… fine. We have yet to have anything that has wowed us.
One of the main streets of Vienna.
One thing Vienna does spectacularly is the streets. They are built for walking, and pedestrians are definitely king here. There are multiple wide boulevards lined with interesting shops to wander down and almost no vehicle traffic. Of the large cities we have visited in Europe I think Vienna is the best for just strolling around.
The interior of St. Peter church.
On one of the streets we came across St. Peters Church and popped inside to check it out. It was ornate and beautiful. Ton really liked it and spent 30 minutes exploring. I spent a lot of that time sitting in a chair and taking in the place, it is built to overwhelm the senses and it succeeds. It also features concerts in the evening, and it looks like it would be a great place to take in some of the music that Vienna is famous for.
The dome and altar of the church.
After St. Peters we decided to head back to François for the evening. I think the problem with Vienna is going to be managing what to see, as the options for concerts, museums, and just walking the streets are so diverse and tempting that it would take weeks to do the city justice.
Vienna is really the beginning of our planned trip. Everything up to now was fun but it was positioning to get us to the heart of trip.
Part of the Imperial Palace of the Hapsburg’s.
Ton has visited this area before on tours, and as we have been traveling the last few years she has kept saying I need to see Vienna and Budapest. Last night we were having a discussion about how to do our visit to Vienna. In the end it seemed very complex so we decided to begin the visit by doing a walking tour of the city and see what it inspired in us.
Another wing of the Imperial Palace.
We arrived downtown a couple of hours before our tour was due to begin so we visited the Nacht Market. The Nacht Market is a permanent market that has been in place for 150 years or so in the median of a major road.
A section of the Nacht Market.
We gave it a pass thru with an eye towards finding a coffee shop. Ton said there was a special pastry we needed to try called a Sacher Torte, since I never need encouragement to try a piece of cake I was all in. Nowhere in the market grabbed us, but just up the street we saw a place. We also ordered the special coffee of Vienna called Melange. They were both good, but neither struck as special, the Melange was a mild form of Latte with coffee instead of espresso, and the Sacher Torte was well… chocolate cake a little on the dry side. We were wondering if we had picked a bad place, but on the tour later the guide who was a native of Vienna, but had lived in France for 28 years gave the exact review of the cake I just gave including the little dry part. He said it was good marketing by the Sacher Cafe. So we felt vindicated.
The famous (infamous) Sacher Torte.
The walking tour was very well done and the guide was exceptionally knowledgeable and just opinionated enough to give it authenticity. We enjoyed it a great deal.
Our guide called this statue of Mozart an Instagram shot. It is a beautiful statue though.
The tour hit all of the highlights of the center of the city, but he pointed out several museums that he highly recommended. My first impressions of the city had been that it was a typical European city, but the further we walked the more I realized that it was indeed special.
St. Stephen Church. According to our guide until three months ago there had been scaffolding on some part of the church for the previous 30 years.
The tour ended with some recommendations for places to visit away from the center of the city and some restaurants and coffee shops to try. By the end I was sold on a longer stop for Vienna.
The interior of St. Stephen Church.
We took a quick dive into St. Stephens to check out the interior but it was really crowded so the stop was quick. At the end we took a slow stroll down one of the main streets to the Opera House where we caught a subway back to the campground.
The stables that are home to the famous Lipizzaner stallions of Vienna.
