Hi guys and gals,
When we left you last time we were in Budapest about to head off to the Hungarian baths for a swim, however when we got there we discovered that they were going to charge us the equivalent of NZ$18 each just to have a swim.....it wasnt that bloody hot!!! So instead we went and did a bit of shopping, relaxed by the river, and I took some time out to get whipped by a local in a game of chess.... he does sit there all day beating people for 1 euro a game, so I didnt feel too bad that I was no match for him. After that it was off to a group dinner before getting a train back to camp, which gave us a chance to experience Budapest by night, which was awesome!!
The next morning we set sail for Vienna, Austria. Along the way we stopped off in Bratislava, Slovakia... just because we could. On the bus on the way we watched the movie 'Hostel', which is a horror story about 2 american backpackers who go to Bratislava, so Im surprised that anyone got off the coach, but we all survived, and the people were much nicer than you might expect after watching that movie.....who would have known that movies are not always accurate!!
When we arrived in Vienna we stopped off at the Schonbrunn palace before heading to camp. All that splendor and Arnoux could not get past the cute little squirrels...admittedly they did come right up to her...but still!! hahahahaha!! Once we had set up camp the group were headed for the Prater amusement park, but sadly I had come down with a doozy of a migraine, so I wasnt going anywhere, and Arnoux being the loving fiance that she is...stayed with me... apparently we didnt miss too much, and our darling Bianca brought us back some candy floss to help ease the pain!!
The next morning we opted for the drop off back at the Schonbrunn palace, where we saw an apple strudel making demonstration before heading for the labyrinth with a bunch of the others from the group, we can happily report that we were the first to find the centre... small victories are still sweet!! After that we jumped on the train back into the main centre and checked out the natural history museum and the Hofburg palace...sadly David Hasselhoff was nowhere to be seen....what a letdown!!
Next it was off to meet up with the group for the tour of the Schnaps museum. This was definately a highlight...the guy that was taking the tour was actually the latest generation from the Fischer family that owns and runs the schnaps mueusm/factory. He was hugely entertaining, knew his stuff, and most importantly, was the one providing the numerous shots of schnaps at the end of the tour!! We were supposed to get 3 shots each, but after the table was empty the shots just kept flowing!! It could have been a ploy to sell more t-shirts (which worked on Arnoux and I, we bought 1 each), but no one was complaining!!
Once we had finished there we stumbled off to dinner, before retiring to the campsite for a well earned beer!! The next morning we awoke to the sound of heavy rain on our tent roof.... it took 38 days but we finally had to take down our tent in the rain.... not so much fun, but everyone was in the same boat (actually, we could have done with a boat) so all you could really do was laugh and get on with it, and be thankful that it happened once we had perfected the art of taking the thing down, as opposed to the first morning, where we would have been mucking around like newborn foals!!
After we had dried off and had some brekkie under the heaven sent tarp that Jimmy had put up, it was off to Prague, the city where you pay 3 times as much for a 500ml bottle of water as you do for a 500ml beer.... excellent!! When we arrived we had a walking tour with Robbie, where Arnoux almost got left behind because she was too busy taking photos to realise that the group had moved on. We checked out the Hradcany castle, and got some wicked views of the city before heading down the hill to Charles bridge (which we sadly recognised instantly from the movie XXX), before making our way to the town square. After that it was off to Wenceslas Square, the home of the Velvet Revolution of 1989, and the cheapest, hugest hotdog you could possibly hope to get anywhere in 2007!! From there it was onto the train back to camp for dinner and a freshen up before getting right back on the train to take advantage of the almost criminally cheap nightlife in Prague!! Arnoux decided to stay at camp, since the next day was her birthday, and we all know how little she functions with the hangovers that she gets!! I would love to tell you what time I rolled back into camp...but I cant...but I can tell you that I love absinthe...I think...oh, and I did visit the largest nightclub in eastern europe, this I know because I have seen photos confirming that I was there!!
The next day was Arnouxs birthday, so after breakfast under the Happy Birthday banner that our beloved cook Marissa had put up, we set off into town. We started with a spot of shopping before meeting up with a few of the others for lunch, where Arnoux was presented with her first ever Chocolate-Brownie-Tower cake!! From there we headed for the Museum of Communism, which was an incredible, if slightly disturbing, story of the communist era in the Czech Republic. I enjoyed it so much I had to buy the book.... although Im not sure that the girls were too thrilled with constantly having to wait for me while I read each and every last word. Once we were done there we made our way to the Jewish Ghetto, which is an area that Hitler specifically left as a 'living musuem of an expired species'. Thankfully thats not what it ended up being, but there is an amazing cemetery there containing over 20,000 jews that were buried there between the 14th and 17th century. It was the only place jews could be buried in Prague at the time, so it it a long way above street level from where they had to take out the tombstones, put new bodies on top, then squeeze in new tombstones on the new 'surface' of the cemetery.
From there we headed back to the town square to meet up with about 9 others from our tour group for Arnouxs birthday dinner. It took us a while to find a place that would take 11 of us, but the one we found was definately worth the wait!! After dinner Arnoux and I headed back to Charles bridge to buy a print that we had seen earlier, before heading back to camp.
The next morning we boarded our trusty stead bound for Krakow. Once we had set up camp we had a free evening to relax, so after discovering that Transformers is not out in Poland for another 3 weeks, we got a few beers and had a chill out night in camp with the rest of the group. The next morning we boarded the local tram into the city, where we started the day with one of Robbies famous walking tours. From there we headed off to meet our local guide for the Schindlers list tour of the city. This included a Jewish Cynagogue that is still used today, as well as the old Jewish ghetto from WW2, and the factory that Oscar Schinder ran during the war, from where he was able to save over 1100 Jews from Nazi persecution. Once we had stopped for lunch to recharge the batteries, we jumped in a mini bus for the half hour ride out to the salt mines. We were not exactly sure what to expect but we had been told that it would be well worth our while...which it certainly was!! The tour took us over 130 metres underground into an entire city underneath a city!! As well as the numerous tunnels, winches etc etc that were essential to the mining of the salt, there are also loads and loads of statues, as well as 2 huge Cathedrals, and a restaurant... all underground!! It truely was absolutely incredible!!!
From there it was back to the mall over the road to check out what can only be described as the mother of all supermarkets!! We also picked up some dinner in the food court, and Kiwi Sam and I went halves in a bottle of vodka, which was (supposed) to last us a few nights.... so when we woke up the next morning with splitting headaches and an empty vodka bottle...we were left wondering what had gone wrong!! Nevertheless we picked ourselves up and dusted ourselves off, for this day held a truely anticipated highlight of the whole tour.... a trip to the Auschwitz concentration camps.
We started off at the main camp, Auschwitz 1, which was originally army barracks and was chosen by the Germans for its remote location. For once I dont really know what to say... our guide was incredible, and the grave nature of the place that we were in was not lost on anyone...even Sacha the American was quiet the whole time, which is like watching monkeys use tools for the first time. The tour took us through a lot of the barracks, which have been set up as a museum. Obviously we did not take any photos inside, but needless to say it was an experience that does not need photos to be remembered. From there we headed to Aucshwitz 2, Birkenau, the largest of all the Nazi camps. There is honestly not much that either of us can think to write about such a place. It is something that has to be seen, but at the same time not a pleasant place to be.
Once our time at Auscwitz had come to an end, we boarded the coach for a very quiet trip to our next stop, Warsaw. Once we had set up camp we set out on a driving/walking tour of the city. Taking in a place that was almost completely flattened in WW2. The info that we were given was that 90% of the city was rubble, which makes what you see there today all the more impressive. We also had a chance to check out the Chopin monument... even if neither Arnoux or I have any idea what his music sounds like... arent we so very educated!! Hahahahaha!!
From there it was back to camp for dinner and a completely alchohol free evening. This morning we caught the bus into town, and we have spent the morning doing admin stuff like putting our photos onto DVD, and of course updating the website. From here we have no idea what we are up to be honest..... I guess we'll let you know next time :-)
We hope you are all well, and that the weather in NZ is getting better...
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