Happy Helena

We departed for Krakow in the morning after breakfast on WIZZ Airlines again. If you have a choice, avoid this airline. Although the plane was fairly comfortable, their baggage rules and advertisements that they were hiring inexperienced people to become pilots in two years was a factor in finding another airline in the future.

Krakow is a city similar to many others in Europe. It has lovely buildings, open plazas, a castle (of course), and a Jewish Quarter. Its proximity to Auschwitz, the Nazi death camp where so many Jews, Gypsies, gay people, and sympathizers were murdered, brings visitors from all over the world. We will be going there tomorrow.

Today, we had breakfast and walked around the center of town. As you can see in the photos, after more than two weeks of blue sky and amazing temperatures, Krakow was gray and chilly. We bundled up as much as possible, while the locals wore shorts and summer attire. For them, this must be a balmy day. We were not fooled, however! We managed to stop often in one of the many coffee shops (really nice ones with great pastries) to warm our hands.

The huge main plaza is surrounded by typical European buildings and restaurants. On one side is their large indoor market, although not many of the shops were open that day. Most of them sold souvenirs, rather than food. There was a fountain totally inhabited by pidgeons. It definitely was worth documenting with photos.

St. Florian’s Gate is the last remaining entrance to the once walled city. The Wawel (pronounced Vavel) Castle sits on a hill overlooking the city on the Vistula River. It represents all European architectural styles of the Medieval, Renaissance, and Baroque periods. I did not take the middle picture, but you can see how large and imposing it is. And, of course, I had to take a photo of another stuffie store, which seem ubiquitous in Europe. They love their stuffed animals and have whole stores dedicated to them. (This is for my grandchildren, who also adore them.)

In the afternoon, we took a golf cart tour of the Jewish Quarter. Similar to others we have seen, it is quiet, noting the few synagogues that are now abandoned, with meager remnants of Jewish life. We didn’t learn how many Jews still live in Krakow, but I imagine the numbers are fairly small.

Helena Rubinstein, a resident of the Jewish community in Krakow and also an American citizen, became the one of the wealthiest woman in the world by starting a luxury cosmetic empire that was known globally. It was a company we, of a certain age, remember well. A hotel with her family’s name still exists.

I love the wrought-iron fence around the park and the many shops selling Jewish-related items. We went by the Schindler Factory and the photos of those he helped escape from Poland, but could not stop to get a closer look. The last four pictures are of former synagogues.

The Ghetto Heroes Square was very moving. Situated in a large open area were metal chairs of all sizes and heights, to commemorate those who were fallen heroes of the war. Many people sit in the chairs to feel the presence of those who were left behind.

After the tour, we had a light dinner and went off to bed. Our flight from Krakow to Rome to Mexico City starts at 11:00 PM tomorrow, so our bags had to be packed and ready for our ride to the airport after our visit to Auschwitz-Birkenau. It will be a long, emotional day.

Today, we began our tour of the many splendors of Prague. We walked to a nearby mall where we saw a very interesting sculpture of a man sitting on a horse that was upside down from the ceiling. Held by chains, we wondered what would happen if it should drop on someone’s head! Can’t happen, because the whole sculpture is made of styrofoam with very little weight. All I could think of is that the man is sitting on the horse’s manhood. It was quite strange.

The other notable feature of this mall was an intricate stained glass window honoring Nikola Tesla, a Serbian-American engineer, futurist, and inventor. He contributed to the design of the modern alternating current electricity supply system in the late 1800’s. You may have heard the name recently connected with electric cars!

We walked the short distance to Wenceslas Square, an area many blocks long, headed by the National Museum on one end, surrounded by the most incredible buildings with unique architectural details. Despite the age of these buildings, the first floors housed pizza joints, outlet stores, restaurants, and many different kinds of retail businesses. It is quite a juxtaposition. We couldn’t miss the pastry store, though.

Our next stop was the Prague Castle, built in the 9th century. Currently, it is the residence and workplace of the president of the Czech Republic. It is the largest ancient castle in the world, occupying an area of 70,000 square meters (750,000 square feet), and the most visited attraction in the country, with almost 2.6 million visitors! Its Baroque architecture is incredible beautiful and imposing, as it sits atop the hill overlooking the city, the city of spires.

We were lucky enough to see the guards come out to the front gate at 9:00 AM. They stay for one hour and then are relieved hourly until the end of the day. The guards do not smile, but many visitors take pictures with them (not us). The buildings adjacent to the Castle are equally impressive, including one that has the trompe l’oeil like we saw in other towns like Cesky Krumlov. A typical Czech lunch of various sausages looked good and was very tasty.

We then walked to the Charles Bridge to cross over to the old town. Each statue on the bridge has significance. For some reason, I remember one that looked like a Buddha that beckoned everyone to rub his tummy (which was shiny from all the touching) when I was there about 15 years ago, but it was no where to be seen this time.

At the end of the bridge is a gate where buskers perform and people gather. The buildings in the old town are stunning in their design and details. Prior to having street numbers, each building had a plaque or marking to denote the type of business or family located there.

We went into the center of Prague to the Old Town Square, where one of the most iconic destinations beckons hundreds of visitors hourly. This is the Astronomical Clock mounted on the Old Town Hall. It represents the position of the sun and moon in the sky, with statues of Catholic saints stand on either side of the clock. Hourly, there is a show of the Apostle figures and other sculptures, “The Walk of the Apostles,” and a figure of a skeleton representing death, mounted on the clock, that is supposed to nod its head in confirmation. It dates back to 1410 AD. but around 1490, the calendar dial was added. Over many hundreds of years, it has been repaired and figures were added. It suffered heavy damage in 1945 during the Prague uprising, when the Nazis fired on the Old Town Square. It was renovated in 2010 for its 600th anniversary, and finally in 2018, the last restoration was completed. However, the artist may have put the likenesses of his friends and acquintances into the work, possibly as a joke! It is still the place where everyone migrates hourly to see the movement of the figures on the clock.

Today was a wonderful day to see Prague and enjoy its beauty. Jim went back to the hotel, while I decided to visit the Jewish Quarter. About 15 years ago, the last time I was in Prague, I visited the many synagogues in Prague. The Pinkas Synagogue, was established in 1479. At the end of WWII, it was turned into a memorial for the 77,297 Jews from Czecholovakia killed during the Holocaust. Inside, its walls are covered with their hand-written names, generally together with others from the same shtetl (small town). I saw my name four times, which was more than a little disarming.

The Maisel Synagogue, built at the end of the 16th century, burned in a ghetto fire in 1689. It was rebuilt at the end of the 19th century. Since 1960, it has housed a collection of Jewish items, including books, decorative objects, and silver. The Spanish Synagogue, built in 1868, owes its name to the Moorish interior design, very similar to the famous Alhambra in Spain. It houses an exhibition on the life and history of Jews from Bohemia.

The Klausen Synagogue, founded in 1694, is the biggest of the six synagogues. It features a large collection of Hebrew texts, including a Hebrew bible and Talmud. The High Synagogue, built during the 16th century houses a souvenir shop. And, finally, the Old-New Synagogue, the oldest in Europe, was built in 1270.

One place I saw on my first visit was the Jewish Cemetery, one of the oldest in the world. Although enlarged over the years, it was the only place that Jews could be buried, but never large enough to meet the needs of the Jewish community. Due to the lack of space, bodies were buried on top of each other throughout the years, sometimes with ten bodies in one grave site. There are over 12,000 tombstones, many of which are placed willy-nilly with no space in between, and it is thought that there are around 100,000 people buried in these grounds.

Due to the crowds and my emotional exhaustion, I decided to forego seeing the synagogues and the cemetery this time.

It was now time to return to the ship, to pack our bags and get ready for our next destination, Krakow, Poland. The short flight to Poland will give us one day to see the city before going to Auschwitz the following day.

We had a four hour drive from Passau to Prague to enjoy a few days in that beautiful city. The countryside was unremarkable, but we were anxious to get to Prague.

Our hotel was well located, allowing us to have an easy walk to Wenceslas Square, an area surrounded by amazing architecture. Our guide took us on a short walk to get the lay of the land. The Prague extension from the Danube cruise was an add-on, so only a dozen or so of us got to continue exploring. Heather and Laurie, a fun couple from Cape Breton Island, Nova Scotia Canada, also extended their trip, allowing us to enjoy a meal or two with them.

Tomorrow, we have a guided tour of the wonders of Prague.

Narrow cobblestone streets and the aroma of fresh gingerbread welcome you to Passau, a Bavarian town nestled on the confluence of three of Europe’s main waterways, the Danube, the Inn and the Llz. One of the homes looks positively medieval and the other looks very modern.

Today, we went to a local farm to see how rural people live. This third generation farmer and his family raise cattle in a mechanized way and create several kinds of cheeses. The cows looked relaxed and went into an area where they were automatically hooked up to be milked. When finished, they left the area (with smiles, no doubt). The floor of the barn had an automated bar that swept what the cows left several times a day (into a place I wouldn’t want to visit!). This is the before and after milking. The cows seems happier after!

They also had llamas, goats, and miniature horses. After the tour, we went into a large dining room where we tasted their homemade beer and the cheeses. It was very interesting, but not our favorite tastes.

We returned to Passau to walk through the town. For the first time in the past two weeks, the weather changed to heavy clouds and rain. As we walked, there were marks on the side of a building indicating how high the water was during floods and the year of the flood. It wasn’t very long ago and the level of water had to be frightening. In 2013, the water rose 12.89 meters, and in 2024, to 10.02 meters.

After walking around the town, we went to the city hall. It is quite impressive from the outside. As we were entering, the sky opened up, leaving us with the decision to walk back to the ship. A nice cup of hot tea awaited me, along with the normal 4:00 PM goodies in the bar area.

Tomorrow, we head to Prague, a city that by all estimations is among the most beautiful in Europe. It was never bombed during WWII, which allowed the Germans to store many of the goods they stole from the people they sent away, never to return to their homeland. After the war, many of the items were spirited out of the Czech Republic, slowly discovered over the decades.

I was always told by my mother that her town was on the Czech/ Romanian border (now Ukraine). This would have been on the far eastern end of the country. But, in doing research, I found that her town, Velky Buckov, was actually in Central Bohemia, west of Prague. This was a revelation to me. I was also told that my father’s town, Kobyl Poljana, was only about 12 km away from her town. This also was not accurate, if the Czech name of the town is correct. It may not exist or is called something else now, because a town with a similar name was quite far away, southeast of Prague near Brno.

I was born, in Teplice, almost due north of my mother’s town, where we waited for the final papers to immigrate to the US when I was six months old. I visited my birth city in 2005 to get a valid Czech birth certificate. My mother only had a worn type-written piece of paper indicating my birth. It took about two months, but voila, the official document was sent to the Czech Embassy in Washington, D.C., and ultimately sent to me. I was finally “official.” Then, I had to have it translated into English and Spanish. It was well-worth it!

Enough of my story. We had long bus ride from Passau to Prague, where we will be for a few days.

We stayed up long enough to experience going through the lock. The river gets higher as you go from Budapest to Prague, meaning you have to traverse through various locks to either raise the level of the water or lower it, depending on which direction you are going.

The boat pulls into a long, narrow corridor. Once inside, the solid gates close behind us and the gates in front open up. Water fills the corridor and you can experience the entire ship rising. The boat is not more than a few inches from the side of the corridor, which is amazing to see. It is done with meticulous care.

This occurred over night, so this morning, we docked in Linz to go to Cesky Krumlov in the Czech Republic, to enjoy this charming town, and another castle! The river. After Prague, it is the most visited tourist attraction, mainly due to how it has remained largely intact over the course of the centuries. Most other towns suffered damage during WWII, but not here.

The gentle river that meanders around the town forms two prominent horseshoe bends that cradle around the central part of town. You can take a raft on the river and go down a gentle rapid, or go on a kayak, which many tourists were enjoying.

Cesky Krumlov Castle (of course, another castle) dates back to the 13th century, and rebuilt in the 16th century by the Rosenberg family, part of the prominent Bohemian aristocracy and great patrons of the arts. Ownership of the castle passed through several families, including the Schwarzenbergs, but it was transferred to the Czechoslovak state. It is the second largest in Czechia, after the Prague Castle, and one of the largest in Europe. The two family names could be thought of as Jewish families, but they were not.

By the way, Budweiser beer started here and has nothing to do with Budweiser in the US. They had the name first!

The town itself is charming. We had lunch with some new friends from Canada overlooking the water before heading to the Castle. In all of the pictures, if you see what looks like bricks or three-dimensional art, it is all trompe l’oeill. The artisans who built the Castle used various means to make the outside of the buildings have dimension. The term in French means “fool the eye,” which it does. And, it is everywhere!

If you enlarge the pictures, you think you are seeing bricks or stones on the outside of the buildings. It is an amazing feat to create something so real, yet the walls are flat!

Another interesting feature is that just outside of the Castle, there are two bears (brother and sister), who live on one side of the ramp to go in, and mama bear lives on the other side. Unfortunately, the bears were hiding or too dark to see. They have been there for years.

The last picture with the deer and boars is a shout-out to the hunting that was done from this castle. And no, they are not trompe l’oeill, but real sculpture.

We returned to the boat to relax for our overnight to Passau. It was another great day.

Today we had a leisurely day floating on the river, stopping at the charming town of Weibenkirchen in the Wachau Valley. This medieval town is a very prosperous due to the grapes grown for its special wine, with storybook houses and a fortified church complex. It boasts the oldest elementary school still in its original building.

As you walk around, it feels like you are at Disney World showcasing a charming Alpine village, not a real place. The houses are all painted perfectly, most with bowers of flowers in front of the windows. The streets curve just right and are immaculate.

As we slowly meander on the Danube, you see vineyards up the hills, but mainly one castle or cloister after another.

Now, we are on our way to Melk in the Wachau Valley in Austria, noted for its large Abbey, which is also a Benedictine school. Our guide was a young women who was a recent graduate. Additionally, the Abbey offers worship services, cultural events, exhibitions and a library. Since 1089, the monks have been living and working in the Abbey uninterrupted. Originally a castle, it was gifted to the Benedictines in the 11th century. It is also home to some of the most important medieval manuscripts.

It was a relaxing day today with only two stops. We are heading to Linz and Cesky Krumlov overnight, with at least one lock to get from the lower Danube to the upper Danube. The first one will be in the evening and we are looking forward to experiencing how this long ship fares in the lock.

We arrived to Vienna, with its sweeping boulevards, the birthplace of breakthroughs of music and psychology. The city encapsulates the opulence of the Hapsburg Monarchy and their ornate Baroque palaces. The day began with a guided bus tour of the Ringstrasse, their ring road filled with beautiful buildings. They are detailed with statues, making Vienna one of the most beautiful cities in Europe.

The St. Francis of Assisi Cathedral is out of a fairy tale book, with spires and rotundas.

We then started our walking tour of the city, walking first to the Imperial Palace, the winter residence of the Hapsburgs, while their summer residence was the Schonbrunn Palace near Salzburg. Since 1946, it is has been the official residence and workplace of the President of Austria.

Built in the 13th century, with additions over the years, the Hofburg Palace has details that make it unique from every perspective. The green dome is new (relatively), while the black dome is original. It is a huge building, difficult to take in one shot, but you can see the amazing details and gold accents on the building.

As you walk around the town, you see narrow residential streets. It is obvious that the buildings were built hundreds of years ago, before car traffic, but there was a specific, and very smart, reason they were located like this. The buildings can not accommodate air conditioning and with the hot temperatures in the summer, so having buildings opposite each other meant that they didn’t get a lot of sun exposure. It was “natural” air conditioning!

By the way, the coffee shop on the right side of the street is one of the oldest in Vienna. We enjoyed a nice tea and coffee respite, as many people must have over the centuries. Across the street is the Steiff store, famous for beautiful stuffed animals, especially bears.

As we walked around the corner to the square, we saw the St. Stephen’s Cathedral, with its amazing roof tiles and giant spires. Juxtaposed across from a modern hotel, the church is iconic in its detail, compared to the rather bland glass and metal structures nearby. Built in 1147, the inside is just as imposing, with ceilings that must be five or six stories. There are 256 stairs from top to bottom! No, we didn’t even try.

We continued our walk through Vienna and passed by the famous Spanish Riding School, featuring the Lipizzan stalions. They are incredible horses, who train for nine years before being allowed to perform. We just missed seeing the horses go from the exhibition arena to their stables, but once inside, they were treated like the celebrities they are. Their heritage came from the occupation of Spain by the Moors in the early 8th century, ending in 1492. The Moorish influence resulted in the cross-breeding of Arabic and Iberian horses, combining elegance and strength. The Archduke, Karl Franz in Austria decided to establish a stud farm in the late 16th century to breed his own Spanish horses. Interestingly, they are born dark and gradually lighten with age, not achieving the white coat for which they are known until 6-10 years of age.

Time to return to the ship for a wonderful dinner, then off to our next stop up the Danube.

Traveling overnight, we arrived to Bratislava in the morning. Seeing this rarely visited city, at least by friends who are avid travelers, we loved the beautiful parks with plenty of seating to enjoy seeing the families and young people there. It was the first day of school, so after their studies, many students stopped by to get together with friends.

Slovakia became an independent country in 1993, and since then, Bratislava has flourished as a new capital and cultural center. We walked the cobblestone streets in the ancient town center and admired the Gothic and Art Nouveau buildings. We then went to the Bratislava Castle, which looked like it had been plucked from the pages of a fairy tale. Every town, it seems, has a castle. The architecture varies from Boroque, to Gothic, to more contemporary (late 19th century) with ease. During its last re-building, it captured a Renaissance style.

As we approached the city from the Danube, it looked like a very modern city. You couldn’t see the gorgeous old buildings in the city center. The bridge going across the river has a tower on one end that houses a restaurant. The locals call it the UFO! On the other side of the building just to the left of the UFO is Austria.

Living in Vienna, an hour away by train, is very expensive. That is why many Slovakians live in Bratislava and commute. According to our guide, the annual income in Bratislava is 17,000€ per year, while in Vienna, it is 70,000€. That makes it significantly better to live in Slovakia and commute to Austria. If you look at the building to the left of the UFO, Austria is just on the other side of the building.

As soon as we landed, we saw a time gone by. There were what we used to call “street cars” in Pittsburgh, electric trolleys that move on tracks. They provide travel all over the city, inexpensive, resulting in fewer cars on the streets.

We began the day going toward the city center, where the main square is dominated by the Slovak National Theatre. It is stunning. As we walked into town, we enjoyed the curved flat cobblestone streets (flat being the best part). We worked our way toward the Castle, passing through Primate Square (not a monkey in site!), surrounding the square. One side is dominated by Michael’s Gate, leading to St. Michael’s Church. The inside of one of the buildings was an amazingly ornately painted ceiling. Each of the buildings surrounding the Square are of a different era.

Primate Square consists of many different buildings, each with its own distinct character. Everywhere we looked, we noticed something architectural and interesting. The pictures above are of some of the unique buildings surrounding the Square.

As we worked our way back toward the main square, we saw a sculpture that is definitely one that always brings a smile to the faces of visitors. Everyone wants to rub his head, hence the lighter color on the helmet!

After our full day of touring, we returned to the ship for another incredible meal, with a plan to return to town that night. It was a wonderful idea, allowing us to see some of the beautiful buildings in a different light.

Tomorrow, we head for the big city itself, Vienna. I was there in 1969 (yes, I am old!). It was beautiful then, and most likely, it will still be.

Although there were threats of rain in the morning, it never materialized. We boarded a bus with our guide, Nora, into town to view the beauty close up. The Buda side of the river is full of hills, where wealthy Hungarians choose to live. The Pest side is flat and very prosperous, the financial part of the city. They used to be two different cities, but once many bridges were built to connect the two sides of the river, they became one city.

We walked the Castle Hill, viewing St. Stephen’s Basilica and the Matthias Church. The view of the city below was beautiful. Interestingly, as you get to the area of the churches, there is a Jamie Oliver restaurant. For those who do not know him, he is a famous, creative chef. Many years ago, he went into a school, in Oklahoma, I believe, where he created menus for the school lunches, and taught the students about eating better. The parents participated, losing many unwanted pounds on the way. Going back to the Castle Hill, the tiled roofs of the Matthias Church is amazing. There are statues and lookout spots, too.

We drove near the Jewish Quarter, but we were unable to go in there. It seemed that there were many road closures, perhaps for a marathon or other event. I was there before, in the former Ghetto, which kept the Jews separated from the regular population during the war, but always was a separate enclave of the Jews of Budapest.

The largest Jewish place of worship outside of New York City, the Moorish-style Great Synagogue is one of Budapest’s most eye-catching buildings. Built in 1859, the distinctive structure, with its crenelated red-and-yellow glazed-brick facade and two enormous towers. The Quarter is quite different than it was originally. Built outside of the walls of Pest, it was where the Jews lived and worked. There is a small community still there, a fraction of what was there before WII.

Our next stop was in Pest near the Museum of Fine Arts. Across the street is Heroes’ Square, a beautiful area where many a demonstation was held, given its openness. We then went to the huge food market. Because it was a Sunday, many of the stalls were closed. Fortunately, I was able to purchase some local paprika (of course), for me, as well as our housesitters and housekeeper. There were so many varieties and options, including paprika pastes, both sweet and smoked. I have no idea how to use them, but will enjoy exploring the various ways to use them.

After a wonderful day of visiting Budapest, which we heartily recommend, we returned to the ship for an evening cocktail, relaxing until another sumptuous meal was served on board. It was a good day.

Tomorrow, we go to Bratislava, the capital of Slovakia.

Our flight on WIZZ Airlines was interesting. This Hungarian airline is a low fare option. However, we were unable to check in online or purchase the fee for our carryon bag. This left us in the position to go to the counter in the airport, finding out that the cost for two carryon bags was 74€ each, much more than the cost of the flight itself! Lesson learned. Of course, anyone can become a commercial pilot in two years with WIZZAIR! This says it all.

Once in Budapest, we were picked up at the airport by a driver supplied by Emerald Cruises. The arrivals area had representatives from several other river cruise companies, including AMA Waterways, and Viking. So far, we are impressed with the assistance we received from Emerald. Lots of river boat cruise ships waiting for passengers.

We arrived to the dock to begin our river cruise on the Emerald Star, a beautiful boat docked on the Buda side of the Danube. The boat holds 178 passengers, but had 168 on this cruise. Our stateroom is very nice, despite not being the largest or fanciest one on the boat. There is a lot of storage for our clothing, full-time high-speed internet (yeah), and very friendly staff.

The passengers seemed to all be English-speaking, from the England, Scotland, Ireland, Canada, US, Australia, and us (the only people who live in Mexico!). That seemed to be of interest to some of the other passengers. We had a buffet lunch in the lounge, which was excellent, and then had time to get settled in our cabin, and an opportunity to check out the boat’s amenities. There is a small indoor pool, a gym, and facilities for massages. No casino, no children, and no shops – thankfully. We met a lovely couple at the pool from outside of London, Jan and Steve. We became friends quickly.

Around 6:00 PM, the Cruise Director, Captain, and First Officer welcomed us, giving us a preview of what to expect for the next eleven days. An hour later, we had an amazing meal in the dining room. There was a menu with many options to choose from or items to eat from the buffet. We sat with a couple from southern California who have visited Melaque annually for over ten years, but now retreat to Puerto Vallarta during the winter for a few weeks, Laura and Chris. Again, we immediately clicked and enjoyed our dinner together.

After dinner, we were regaled with a traditional Hungarian band and dancers. They were awesome. Much of the music sounded like typical Jewish Klezmer music, which always makes you want to get up and dance. It was the music of my family in Czechoslovakia (but of Hungarian heritage). They picked Jim and Chris to participate in a typical “hat” dance. They were a hoot! I took a video of it, but was not able to add it to the blog.

The boat, then, began to go up the Danube to show us the beautiful lights of the Buda and Pest (pronounced Pesht) sides of the river. The bridges and buildings were lit up, giving us a spectacular view of Budapest at night. We went up to the sun deck, which was a little wet from a light rain earlier in the evening, to take many pictures. We were all mesmerized .

Tomorrow morning, we go on a walking tour of Budapest. There are two tour options in the afternoon, but we decided to just stay on the boat or maybe even take a swim while many on board are away. Instead, I worked on getting the blog caught up and will be adding more pictures.

A nice option with this cruise line (Emerald) is the ability to do the regular walking tour at each stop, a more athletic hiking tour, or an electric-assisted bicycle tour. Many people chose the active tours, but we wanted to enjoy the slow pace and guided tour information, rather than using all of our energy to climb and pedal!

Tomorrow, we explore Budapest in depth. It was a good first day.