Decrepit dame does Deutschland
Jul 7th, 2016, 02:21 PM
#42
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Pierogi are all over Central/Eastern Europe and Russia.
It's as exotic as having a hamburger in the US
Had to laugh when you wrote "It's always something".
That became our mantra when we engaged on a 3 week road trip through the SW states in May
It's as exotic as having a hamburger in the US
Had to laugh when you wrote "It's always something".
That became our mantra when we engaged on a 3 week road trip through the SW states in May
Jul 7th, 2016, 06:34 PM
#43
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I had arranged for tours with Warsaw Adventure. Here's their link: http://www.warsawtraveltours.com/comunism-tour.html
The three tours I took were the WWII tour, the Cold War (or Communism) tour, and the tour of the Wolfschanze--Hitler's Wolf's Lair. They were expensive but worth it, in my opinion.
The best one was the WWII tour. I'd seen some of these monuments and sites on my own when I went to Warsaw last year, but this tour was more complete. I had especially wanted to see any remnants of the Warsaw Ghetto because I have a memory of seeing the site in the late 60's--I think in 1967--when I was there briefly with a tour.
My memory from that time is that where the ghetto had been, there was nothing. It was a field of rubble. I had wanted to investigate a little further to see if my memory had played me false--after all, it was 50 years ago. Now of course, the area has been built up, but I was pleased to see that there were at least the two small remnants of the wall.
I'm still not sure if my memory of the field of rubble was accurate.
I saw the Umschlagplatz, where the Jews were loaded onto trains which took them to Treblinka. Inside the walls of the monument are carved typical Jewish names from A to Z, symbolic of those who went to their deaths from this place.
We went by the Ghetto Heroes monument, where Willy Brandt famously fell to his knees in a gesture of contrition for German crimes against Polish Jews. Not too far from there is the impressive monument to the Warsaw uprising. It shows bronze fighters emerging from the shattered brickwork, while others descend into the network of sewers, which through which they moved. We also visited the Pawiak Prison Museum and the Warsaw Rising Museum.
As I said, it was a really interesting tour.
The three tours I took were the WWII tour, the Cold War (or Communism) tour, and the tour of the Wolfschanze--Hitler's Wolf's Lair. They were expensive but worth it, in my opinion.
The best one was the WWII tour. I'd seen some of these monuments and sites on my own when I went to Warsaw last year, but this tour was more complete. I had especially wanted to see any remnants of the Warsaw Ghetto because I have a memory of seeing the site in the late 60's--I think in 1967--when I was there briefly with a tour.
My memory from that time is that where the ghetto had been, there was nothing. It was a field of rubble. I had wanted to investigate a little further to see if my memory had played me false--after all, it was 50 years ago. Now of course, the area has been built up, but I was pleased to see that there were at least the two small remnants of the wall.
I'm still not sure if my memory of the field of rubble was accurate.
I saw the Umschlagplatz, where the Jews were loaded onto trains which took them to Treblinka. Inside the walls of the monument are carved typical Jewish names from A to Z, symbolic of those who went to their deaths from this place.
We went by the Ghetto Heroes monument, where Willy Brandt famously fell to his knees in a gesture of contrition for German crimes against Polish Jews. Not too far from there is the impressive monument to the Warsaw uprising. It shows bronze fighters emerging from the shattered brickwork, while others descend into the network of sewers, which through which they moved. We also visited the Pawiak Prison Museum and the Warsaw Rising Museum.
As I said, it was a really interesting tour.
Jul 7th, 2016, 07:22 PM
#44
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The next day I want to the Wolf's Lair. The website had said a guide would pick me up and put me on a train to be met by another guide at the Wolf's Lair.
That's not what happened. A driver did picked me up, but he drove me to the Wolf's Lair, where he handed me off to another guide. I think I made the Wolf's Lair guide somewhat nervous because I was a little concerned that I'd trip over a root and fall on my nose, so I was pretty tentative. We did see much of the huge site, beginning with a marble tablet telling a little about the attempt on Hitler's life.
The guide pointed out to me who lived in which bunker, where the attempt on Hitler's life was made, etc. At one point he picked up some debris and identified it as part of the camouflage that covered the roofs. It looked like that's just what it is, but I put it in a little plastic bag and now I've lost sight of it. Time to sort out the last odds and ends from the trip, I guess.
I would like to have spent more time at the Wolf's Lair.
The site is located in a wonderful forest with very tall trees. The "buildings" are of course bunkers, huge blocks of concrete scattered across the property. Hitler ordered the complex to be destroyed, but with walls and roofs six to ten feet thick, it was really impossible to destroy. The attempts at demolition merely broke apart these huge concrete structures.
When I saw this place last year, and I recalled that Hitler's Reich was supposed to last a thousand years, I kept thinking of Shelley's poem Ozymandias, and I can't resist printing it here.
I met a traveler from an antique land
Who said, two vast and trunkless legs of stone
Stand in the desert. Near them on the sand
A shattered visage lies
Whose frown and wrinkled lip and sneer of cold command
That's not what happened. A driver did picked me up, but he drove me to the Wolf's Lair, where he handed me off to another guide. I think I made the Wolf's Lair guide somewhat nervous because I was a little concerned that I'd trip over a root and fall on my nose, so I was pretty tentative. We did see much of the huge site, beginning with a marble tablet telling a little about the attempt on Hitler's life.
The guide pointed out to me who lived in which bunker, where the attempt on Hitler's life was made, etc. At one point he picked up some debris and identified it as part of the camouflage that covered the roofs. It looked like that's just what it is, but I put it in a little plastic bag and now I've lost sight of it. Time to sort out the last odds and ends from the trip, I guess.
I would like to have spent more time at the Wolf's Lair.
The site is located in a wonderful forest with very tall trees. The "buildings" are of course bunkers, huge blocks of concrete scattered across the property. Hitler ordered the complex to be destroyed, but with walls and roofs six to ten feet thick, it was really impossible to destroy. The attempts at demolition merely broke apart these huge concrete structures.
When I saw this place last year, and I recalled that Hitler's Reich was supposed to last a thousand years, I kept thinking of Shelley's poem Ozymandias, and I can't resist printing it here.
I met a traveler from an antique land
Who said, two vast and trunkless legs of stone
Stand in the desert. Near them on the sand
A shattered visage lies
Whose frown and wrinkled lip and sneer of cold command
Jul 7th, 2016, 07:37 PM
#45
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Oops...
I met a traveller from an antique land
Who said:'Two vast and trunkless legs of stone
Stand in the desert. Near them, on the sand,
Half sunk, a shattered visage lies, whose frown,
And wrinkled lip, and sneer of cold command,
Tell that its sculptor well those passions read
Which yet survive, stamped on these lifeless things,
The hand that mocked them and the heart that fed.
And on the pedestal, these words appear--
"My name is Ozymandias, king of kings:
Look on my works, ye mighty and despair!
Nothing beside remains.Round the decay
Of that colossal wreck, boundless and bare
The lone and level sands stretch far away.'
Sorry. Couldn't help myself. That poem is just so appropriate!
I met a traveller from an antique land
Who said:'Two vast and trunkless legs of stone
Stand in the desert. Near them, on the sand,
Half sunk, a shattered visage lies, whose frown,
And wrinkled lip, and sneer of cold command,
Tell that its sculptor well those passions read
Which yet survive, stamped on these lifeless things,
The hand that mocked them and the heart that fed.
And on the pedestal, these words appear--
"My name is Ozymandias, king of kings:
Look on my works, ye mighty and despair!
Nothing beside remains.Round the decay
Of that colossal wreck, boundless and bare
The lone and level sands stretch far away.'
Sorry. Couldn't help myself. That poem is just so appropriate!
Jul 9th, 2016, 09:27 AM
#47
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The Wolf's Lair is very impressive, with these huge blocks of concrete broken and tumbled against each other, all of them covered by moss or lichen.
I was a little disappointed with the tour because it didn't last very long, but I attribute that to the guide's feeling that I was not too vigorous.
My advice to anyone who wants to see this place is to do it before you're 80.
After the Wolf's Lair, I took a Cold War tour. The guide greeted me by saying "I understand you're a historian." I stumbled around and said, "No, I'm just very interested in WWII and Cold War history." But I wished I could have smiled modestly and said, "Oh, no. I'm just very interested in history," but I didn't have the nerve.
Come to think of it, that's just what I did, but leaving out the "modestly" part. I was flustered and didn't want to claim distinction that I don't think I have. I read a great deal about history, but I remember about 10% of what I read.
On the Cold War tour, we mostly looked at socialist realist architecture and art. The sculptures decorating the buildings were especially interesting--exaggerated stereotypes of various occupations--a sturdy mother with her equally sturdy son, a railroad man with his lamp, a handsome, healthy-looking farmer with his shovel, a really buff guy in overalls, but without a shirt. Very noble!
Interestingly enough, this art looks a good deal like the art that the Nazis, especially Hitler, favored. Coincidence? I think not...
As an aside here, in 1967, when I went on a tour to the Soviet Union, the people in my group traded odds and ends to the locals for these Communist pins. I got one with a head of Lenin and the word "October," another commemorating the 800th birthday of Moscow. I also got a red star, which looked like it belonged on a soldiers cap. On it are emblazoned a hammer and sickle.
It has finally dawned on me why the hammer and sickle--it's because Russia is supposed to be a society of workers and farmers. Didn't take me long to figure that one out, did it? Just 49 years.
My guide talked about the fact that the Communists wanted to create a society where the workers lived in apartments equally as nice as the higher status people. We looked at some of these apartments, which are still in use now, but my guide said that they're small and are usually inhabited by immigrants--Vietnamese, etc.
We also looked at monotonous government office buildings, and finally at the Communist Party headquarters, which was noticeably more attractive than other government buildings, partly because it was made of white marble. I asked the guide what it was used for now. He smiled and said, "The Stock Exchange." Then we went around to the side, where there was a Maserati dealership and a Villeroy and Bosch store.
A couple of times, he pointed at the steeple of a church and commented that the Communist government had tried to create buildings high enough that the steeple couldn't be seen from the main street. But no matter what they did, the steeple was always there.
I was a little disappointed with the tour because it didn't last very long, but I attribute that to the guide's feeling that I was not too vigorous.
My advice to anyone who wants to see this place is to do it before you're 80.
After the Wolf's Lair, I took a Cold War tour. The guide greeted me by saying "I understand you're a historian." I stumbled around and said, "No, I'm just very interested in WWII and Cold War history." But I wished I could have smiled modestly and said, "Oh, no. I'm just very interested in history," but I didn't have the nerve.
Come to think of it, that's just what I did, but leaving out the "modestly" part. I was flustered and didn't want to claim distinction that I don't think I have. I read a great deal about history, but I remember about 10% of what I read.
On the Cold War tour, we mostly looked at socialist realist architecture and art. The sculptures decorating the buildings were especially interesting--exaggerated stereotypes of various occupations--a sturdy mother with her equally sturdy son, a railroad man with his lamp, a handsome, healthy-looking farmer with his shovel, a really buff guy in overalls, but without a shirt. Very noble!
Interestingly enough, this art looks a good deal like the art that the Nazis, especially Hitler, favored. Coincidence? I think not...
As an aside here, in 1967, when I went on a tour to the Soviet Union, the people in my group traded odds and ends to the locals for these Communist pins. I got one with a head of Lenin and the word "October," another commemorating the 800th birthday of Moscow. I also got a red star, which looked like it belonged on a soldiers cap. On it are emblazoned a hammer and sickle.
It has finally dawned on me why the hammer and sickle--it's because Russia is supposed to be a society of workers and farmers. Didn't take me long to figure that one out, did it? Just 49 years.
My guide talked about the fact that the Communists wanted to create a society where the workers lived in apartments equally as nice as the higher status people. We looked at some of these apartments, which are still in use now, but my guide said that they're small and are usually inhabited by immigrants--Vietnamese, etc.
We also looked at monotonous government office buildings, and finally at the Communist Party headquarters, which was noticeably more attractive than other government buildings, partly because it was made of white marble. I asked the guide what it was used for now. He smiled and said, "The Stock Exchange." Then we went around to the side, where there was a Maserati dealership and a Villeroy and Bosch store.
A couple of times, he pointed at the steeple of a church and commented that the Communist government had tried to create buildings high enough that the steeple couldn't be seen from the main street. But no matter what they did, the steeple was always there.
Jul 9th, 2016, 09:55 AM
#48
interesting, Peg. When we were in Krakow we talked about spending more time in Poland but haven't yet managed to get back there. some people we met there [who lived in Warsaw] said that Krakow was much nicer so that has rather put us off going to Warsaw. Do you agree with them?
Jul 9th, 2016, 10:47 AM
#49
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Yes, I do. The Old Town in Warsaw isn't nearly as nice as the one in Krakow. The town in general is kind of grubby, but if you're interested in WWII, the Warsaw Ghetto, the Warsaw Insurgency, the Wolf's Lair (about 4 hours away), and WWII in general, Warsaw can't be beat.
The other town I really liked was Torun, which is about halfway between Warsaw and Gdansk. Speaking of which, Gdansk was also just great. The Solidarity Museum was "extrem sehenswurdig" (extremely worth seeing).
The area along the waterfront near the Hilton hotel, AND the Old Town are also extrem sehenswurdig. I really loved Gdansk.
Unfortunately I didn't go to Westerplatter, where WWII started, but it's not far.
Those four cities are the only ones I saw in Poland, so I can't advise about others.
The other town I really liked was Torun, which is about halfway between Warsaw and Gdansk. Speaking of which, Gdansk was also just great. The Solidarity Museum was "extrem sehenswurdig" (extremely worth seeing).
The area along the waterfront near the Hilton hotel, AND the Old Town are also extrem sehenswurdig. I really loved Gdansk.
Unfortunately I didn't go to Westerplatter, where WWII started, but it's not far.
Those four cities are the only ones I saw in Poland, so I can't advise about others.
Jul 9th, 2016, 11:02 AM
#50
I was underwhelmed by Warsaw, although admittedly I had a cold at the time. Peg's tours do sound interesting but I hated the rebuilt Old Town, it was so very obviously rebuilt. (All the buildings looked the same and had weathered the same.) I loved Krakow, but I do hear that it has got (a lot) more popular since I was last there. Last time I went up to Zakopane and then across the border into Slovakia - loved the Tatras and Levoca.
Jul 10th, 2016, 07:39 AM
#51
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I forgot to say that on my Cold War tour, we visited the Palace of Science and Culture, Stalin's monumental and ugly "gift" to the Polish people.More heroic socialist realist sculptures. I wasn't impressed.
On my last day, I went to the Insurgency Museum and the Museum of the History of Polish Jews. They were both well done, but for different reasons. The Insurgency Museum was especially interesting to me, with photos, films, and displays of printing presses, etc.. There was really a lot to see, too much for an old girl such as Peggy. At one point I sat down on a bench to rest. Pretty soon an old lady sat down beside me and began to talk to me a little.
I said I was sorry, that I was an American and didn't speak Polish. A few minutes later she asked if I spoke German. It was kind of funny because I had thought of asking her if she spoke German but had decided it was unlikely. She said that she had been born in Poland but was German and that after the war the family had had to leave Poland and go to Germany.
She said they were refugees and they had nothing, just what they could put in a backpack. But the Americans had sent packages to them--big, big packages, with food and clothing. She asked me how old I am and said that she was 90 years old--so she was 19 when all this was happening.
I've heard this sort of thing before, and it's always gratifying--one of those things that makes me proud of my country. It reminds me of a woman I met in Heidelberg who told me that her father was a prisoner of war in the United States, and that he liked it so well that he returned after the war and became a citizen.
Later on I went to the Museum of the History of Polish Jews, but I should have planned just the one excursion for the day. The museum was very well done, but I just don't have the stamina to visit two museums in one day, so I just stayed for a couple of hours.
The next day I got up at some outrageous hour to take the Berlin-Warsaw express at 6:00 a.m. I'm always nervous that I'll manage to screw up, so I had reconnoitered the train station on a previous day to make sure I knew exactly where I was supposed to go. When I got to Berlin, I took another train to Dresden.
On my last day, I went to the Insurgency Museum and the Museum of the History of Polish Jews. They were both well done, but for different reasons. The Insurgency Museum was especially interesting to me, with photos, films, and displays of printing presses, etc.. There was really a lot to see, too much for an old girl such as Peggy. At one point I sat down on a bench to rest. Pretty soon an old lady sat down beside me and began to talk to me a little.
I said I was sorry, that I was an American and didn't speak Polish. A few minutes later she asked if I spoke German. It was kind of funny because I had thought of asking her if she spoke German but had decided it was unlikely. She said that she had been born in Poland but was German and that after the war the family had had to leave Poland and go to Germany.
She said they were refugees and they had nothing, just what they could put in a backpack. But the Americans had sent packages to them--big, big packages, with food and clothing. She asked me how old I am and said that she was 90 years old--so she was 19 when all this was happening.
I've heard this sort of thing before, and it's always gratifying--one of those things that makes me proud of my country. It reminds me of a woman I met in Heidelberg who told me that her father was a prisoner of war in the United States, and that he liked it so well that he returned after the war and became a citizen.
Later on I went to the Museum of the History of Polish Jews, but I should have planned just the one excursion for the day. The museum was very well done, but I just don't have the stamina to visit two museums in one day, so I just stayed for a couple of hours.
The next day I got up at some outrageous hour to take the Berlin-Warsaw express at 6:00 a.m. I'm always nervous that I'll manage to screw up, so I had reconnoitered the train station on a previous day to make sure I knew exactly where I was supposed to go. When I got to Berlin, I took another train to Dresden.
Jul 10th, 2016, 09:37 AM
#52
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I stayed at the Dresden Hilton, which I really like. I had a non-refundable deal, so it wasn't too expensive. On the first day I took one of those hop-on/hop-off tours. Later on I went to the Albertinum again, to see my favorites, the Caspar David Friedrich paintings. I also attended Mass at the Catholic Court and wandered around trying to find the Stolperstein that commemorated the death in Dachau of the young Sorb priest, Alojs Andritzki, from the diocese of Dresden. I did find it eventually.
These were all old favorites, along with the gorgeous Frauenkirche--perhaps the most beautiful church I've ever seen, especially with its clear glass windows making it very light. I wandered around the Zwinger for a while, and also spent some time in the New Green Vault. I'm sure that my bolshevik tendencies are coming out here, but as I looked at room after room of costly knickknacks, I just kept thinking that these folks had way too much money and too much leisure time. Almost none of these geegaws were useful, and they were all hideously expensive. Some of them were just hideous.
I guess if you've been raised all your life to believe that you deserve all this stuff and you have not learned to pay any attention to the poor or to the masses, there's some explanation for it. But I found it appalling.
But what do I know! Maybe Augustus the Strong had a great social services program.
One day there was a massive police presence and a few demonstrators because of the financial summit meeting at one of the gorgeous hotels--the Taschenberg Palais, I think.
Which reminds me that I saw considerable police presence, especially at train stations. Even tiny little Wernigerode station had the required police persons strolling around. As often as not, one of the officers was female.
These were all old favorites, along with the gorgeous Frauenkirche--perhaps the most beautiful church I've ever seen, especially with its clear glass windows making it very light. I wandered around the Zwinger for a while, and also spent some time in the New Green Vault. I'm sure that my bolshevik tendencies are coming out here, but as I looked at room after room of costly knickknacks, I just kept thinking that these folks had way too much money and too much leisure time. Almost none of these geegaws were useful, and they were all hideously expensive. Some of them were just hideous.
I guess if you've been raised all your life to believe that you deserve all this stuff and you have not learned to pay any attention to the poor or to the masses, there's some explanation for it. But I found it appalling.
But what do I know! Maybe Augustus the Strong had a great social services program.
One day there was a massive police presence and a few demonstrators because of the financial summit meeting at one of the gorgeous hotels--the Taschenberg Palais, I think.
Which reminds me that I saw considerable police presence, especially at train stations. Even tiny little Wernigerode station had the required police persons strolling around. As often as not, one of the officers was female.
Jul 10th, 2016, 09:49 AM
#53
"as I looked at room after room of costly knickknacks, I just kept thinking that these folks had way too much money and too much leisure time"
Understand the feeling! Visiting the Armoury in Moscow's Kremlin I wondered why the Russian Revolution took so long. Entering St. Peter's in Rome, I wondered why the Reformation took so long. Etc...
Understand the feeling! Visiting the Armoury in Moscow's Kremlin I wondered why the Russian Revolution took so long. Entering St. Peter's in Rome, I wondered why the Reformation took so long. Etc...
Jul 10th, 2016, 09:55 AM
#54
lovely story about meeting the lady in the museum, Peg. IME these sorts of things rarely happen when I am travelling with someone else, only when I am alone.
they are one of the real pleasures of solo travel aren't they?
they are one of the real pleasures of solo travel aren't they?
Jul 10th, 2016, 01:06 PM
#55
Oh, Peg, Caspar David Friedrich is one of my favorites, too, and I should have gone to Berlin and Dresden to see more of his paintings. I did get to Greifswald and to the Eldena Abbey ruins....very interesting. I had an interesting discussion with the bus driver, too, (Greifswald to Wieck) and he was so helpful.
I do think the opportunities for those little personal interactions with people are so much greater when traveling solo. Those are always some of my favorite memories of trips.
Loving your report.
I do think the opportunities for those little personal interactions with people are so much greater when traveling solo. Those are always some of my favorite memories of trips.
Loving your report.
Jul 10th, 2016, 11:35 PM
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Thanks for pointing out the Caspar David Friedrichs in Dresden - one to add to my list. In return, can I point you to Hamburg, where the Kunsthalle has The Wanderer Above the Sea of Clouds and The Ice Sea?
Jul 11th, 2016, 09:43 AM
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Patrick: Thanks for telling me that. I'd love to see them. Looks like one more trip to Deutschland, maybe a side trip on the way to Spain next April.
I agree. When you travel solo, you really do have opportunities for interactions with others. I ought to count the times I had some kind of little chat with somebody else on this trip.
Travelsolo: Can you tell me something about Greifswald and the Eldena Abbey ruins?
There was lots going on in the square by my hotel--policepersons on horseback through the area, a white grand piano (on a moveable platform) being played by a man wearing a hoodie. Lots of people. I ate several meals at the little nearby café, Eidelweiss.
I wandered around a good deal taking bad pictures. (I'm not a good photographer--too careless and impatient.) I saw a couple of Stolpersteine, this time for Jehova's witnesses, who were killed a month before the end of the war. Such a shame!
I'd been to Dresden before, so I didn't go to the Semper Oper or various other worthwhile destinations, including the Grosser Garten, though I had meant to, nor to Pfunds Molkerei. I did see Pfunds on the bus tour but couldn't bring myself to actually get off the bus. I hate to mention my age again, but it really is catching up with me.
So we say farewell to lovely Dresden...and head to Bad Schandau...by a 40 minute train ride. I stayed at the pleasant Albergo Toscana, a nice little Italian-themed hotel which had the best breakfast buffet I have ever seen anywhere in Europe. I enjoyed the Toscana, except for the three flights of curving stairs I had to climb to my room. The employees were great about hauling my luggage up and down, however.
I had intended to visit Zittau, Bautzen and Görlitz also, but I had foolishly planned badly.
I should have rented a car, and I thought about doing so after a couple slooooow days at B.S., but I knew I needed a driver's licence and I didn't think I'd brought it with me. (Later on, when I checked in my money belt, I found that I HAD brought it.) Too late. Going by train would have meant a train ride west back to Dresden and then east again to Zittau.To Bautzen and Görlitz didn't look feasible without inconvenient train rides also.
However, I did find things to do. One day I wanted to go to the Bastei, and see the wonderful rock formations of Saxon Switzerland. The hotel gave me a schedule for the bus to the Bastei, so I started off one day to find the bus. On the way, a woman spoke to me, and we discovered that we were looking for the same area--she to go to a waterfall somewhere and I to the bus to Saxon Switzerland.
We wandered about but didn't find what we were looking for. Then we met this couple and asked them. They were very helpful and gave us directions. While they were at it, they also recommended that we go to Fortress Königstein. The man said that it was "sehenswürdig." (worth seeing) Then he added "EXTREM sehenswürdig." After which, the woman added a couple of times "Unabhängig von ihm," (independent of him) that she agreed. She thought it was worth seeing, and not just because he said so.
I just thought they were very cute. I'm not sure why, but I really enjoyed the exchange for some reason.
I do have to comment that I understood about half of what any of these folks said. I'm not sure whether it was because of the influence of the Sächsisch dialect or my imperfect German.
So we found the bus stop. On the way, we passed several buildings where the high waters of the Elbe had reached several times. It was amazing! All these places were up the hill from the river, but the marks showed that the water had risen maybe ten or fifteen feet than that. They often reached the second story of a place.
Fortunately the bus was waiting. My new friend took a waiting boat, and I got on the bus.
I agree. When you travel solo, you really do have opportunities for interactions with others. I ought to count the times I had some kind of little chat with somebody else on this trip.
Travelsolo: Can you tell me something about Greifswald and the Eldena Abbey ruins?
There was lots going on in the square by my hotel--policepersons on horseback through the area, a white grand piano (on a moveable platform) being played by a man wearing a hoodie. Lots of people. I ate several meals at the little nearby café, Eidelweiss.
I wandered around a good deal taking bad pictures. (I'm not a good photographer--too careless and impatient.) I saw a couple of Stolpersteine, this time for Jehova's witnesses, who were killed a month before the end of the war. Such a shame!
I'd been to Dresden before, so I didn't go to the Semper Oper or various other worthwhile destinations, including the Grosser Garten, though I had meant to, nor to Pfunds Molkerei. I did see Pfunds on the bus tour but couldn't bring myself to actually get off the bus. I hate to mention my age again, but it really is catching up with me.
So we say farewell to lovely Dresden...and head to Bad Schandau...by a 40 minute train ride. I stayed at the pleasant Albergo Toscana, a nice little Italian-themed hotel which had the best breakfast buffet I have ever seen anywhere in Europe. I enjoyed the Toscana, except for the three flights of curving stairs I had to climb to my room. The employees were great about hauling my luggage up and down, however.
I had intended to visit Zittau, Bautzen and Görlitz also, but I had foolishly planned badly.
I should have rented a car, and I thought about doing so after a couple slooooow days at B.S., but I knew I needed a driver's licence and I didn't think I'd brought it with me. (Later on, when I checked in my money belt, I found that I HAD brought it.) Too late. Going by train would have meant a train ride west back to Dresden and then east again to Zittau.To Bautzen and Görlitz didn't look feasible without inconvenient train rides also.
However, I did find things to do. One day I wanted to go to the Bastei, and see the wonderful rock formations of Saxon Switzerland. The hotel gave me a schedule for the bus to the Bastei, so I started off one day to find the bus. On the way, a woman spoke to me, and we discovered that we were looking for the same area--she to go to a waterfall somewhere and I to the bus to Saxon Switzerland.
We wandered about but didn't find what we were looking for. Then we met this couple and asked them. They were very helpful and gave us directions. While they were at it, they also recommended that we go to Fortress Königstein. The man said that it was "sehenswürdig." (worth seeing) Then he added "EXTREM sehenswürdig." After which, the woman added a couple of times "Unabhängig von ihm," (independent of him) that she agreed. She thought it was worth seeing, and not just because he said so.
I just thought they were very cute. I'm not sure why, but I really enjoyed the exchange for some reason.
I do have to comment that I understood about half of what any of these folks said. I'm not sure whether it was because of the influence of the Sächsisch dialect or my imperfect German.
So we found the bus stop. On the way, we passed several buildings where the high waters of the Elbe had reached several times. It was amazing! All these places were up the hill from the river, but the marks showed that the water had risen maybe ten or fifteen feet than that. They often reached the second story of a place.
Fortunately the bus was waiting. My new friend took a waiting boat, and I got on the bus.
Jul 11th, 2016, 11:41 AM
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Oh Peg, your report is so inspiring. I've always been reluctant to travel solo but I might do it after reading your report. No one else I know wants to go to Poland but I do. My grandfather came from there in 1916 and I'm dying to go. Thanks.
Jul 11th, 2016, 11:53 AM
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The bus went part of the way, then we transferred to another bus and journeyed through the forest for a couple of hours. I mused, as I always do in forests, on Frost's poem,
"Whose woods these are I think I know
His house is in the village though,
He will not see me stopping here
To watch his woods fill up with snow."
..."The woods are lovely, dark and deep..."
I can't help it. I have a poem for every destination.
We were dropped off a little short of the restaurants and other installations. I love a good Bratwurst and Brot, which, along with a coke, was my snack. Then I wandered toward the Bastei rocks and took pictures of the rock formations and the Elbe Valley below. I started down the path toward the Bastei Bridge, but within a short time I thought, "What are you doing, woman? You'll never get down to that bridge and then back up. They'll have to send a rescue helicopter to get you out."
I regretfully turned around and went back up to civilization, muttering to myself, "I coulda done it 20 years ago. I coulda been a contender." I loitered in the area, stopping admire a little "Hundebar," with bowl of water that one of the many dog-loving Germans had set out for any thirsty dogs in the neighborhood. I'd seen that kind of setup in other places. Finally I stopped at the Panorama Restaurant and had something unmemorable. After that I walked down to the bus station and read my book while I waited.
The next day I went to the Königstein Fortress. As I recall, I took two buses, transferring from one to the other, which was waiting. It began to rain somewhere along the line and it continued during the whole outing, which dampened my enthusiasm. The fortress is impressive, rising over 800 ft above the river and containing many historical buildings. However, the rain continued and I was too miserable to do much but huddle near a fireplace in a little restaurant, drinking lukewarm cappucchino.
I gave up and went back to the bus.
Bad Schandau was filled with healthy-looking middle-aged German couples, there for the hiking. Many of them were on the the two excursions I took.
Those two little trips were all I did, really, except for wandering around admiring the architecture and looking for something to eat. I generally found it, too. I gained about five pounds during this month. I'm not sure whether that was the pizzas or the ice cream. I don't allow myself to eat either one at home, but all bets are off when I travel.
"Whose woods these are I think I know
His house is in the village though,
He will not see me stopping here
To watch his woods fill up with snow."
..."The woods are lovely, dark and deep..."
I can't help it. I have a poem for every destination.
We were dropped off a little short of the restaurants and other installations. I love a good Bratwurst and Brot, which, along with a coke, was my snack. Then I wandered toward the Bastei rocks and took pictures of the rock formations and the Elbe Valley below. I started down the path toward the Bastei Bridge, but within a short time I thought, "What are you doing, woman? You'll never get down to that bridge and then back up. They'll have to send a rescue helicopter to get you out."
I regretfully turned around and went back up to civilization, muttering to myself, "I coulda done it 20 years ago. I coulda been a contender." I loitered in the area, stopping admire a little "Hundebar," with bowl of water that one of the many dog-loving Germans had set out for any thirsty dogs in the neighborhood. I'd seen that kind of setup in other places. Finally I stopped at the Panorama Restaurant and had something unmemorable. After that I walked down to the bus station and read my book while I waited.
The next day I went to the Königstein Fortress. As I recall, I took two buses, transferring from one to the other, which was waiting. It began to rain somewhere along the line and it continued during the whole outing, which dampened my enthusiasm. The fortress is impressive, rising over 800 ft above the river and containing many historical buildings. However, the rain continued and I was too miserable to do much but huddle near a fireplace in a little restaurant, drinking lukewarm cappucchino.
I gave up and went back to the bus.
Bad Schandau was filled with healthy-looking middle-aged German couples, there for the hiking. Many of them were on the the two excursions I took.
Those two little trips were all I did, really, except for wandering around admiring the architecture and looking for something to eat. I generally found it, too. I gained about five pounds during this month. I'm not sure whether that was the pizzas or the ice cream. I don't allow myself to eat either one at home, but all bets are off when I travel.
Jul 11th, 2016, 12:28 PM
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Great report.
Actually my mother would have told you the same stories about US being nice and helping. Thier logistics was great but nevertheless they weren't supposed to share what they had yet they did on many occasions.
There was a black guy (my mother told me they were all impressed since nobody had ever seen a black before) who came every morning in my mother's street and would put chocolate on thresholds of houses with kids.
They called him 'Pappy' I supposed it meant he was above 30 !
Since my greatmohter spoke english, which was a rarity at the time, she was actively seeked to facilitate communication, so my mother had plenty of anecdotes to tell.
Anyway, great report - However I'm sorry I wouldn't blame too much the accent of saxony, which is not as 'pure' as in Hamburg but 10 times more comprehensive than bavarian accent (often mixed with slang to make it easier to understand).
Actually my mother would have told you the same stories about US being nice and helping. Thier logistics was great but nevertheless they weren't supposed to share what they had yet they did on many occasions.
There was a black guy (my mother told me they were all impressed since nobody had ever seen a black before) who came every morning in my mother's street and would put chocolate on thresholds of houses with kids.
They called him 'Pappy' I supposed it meant he was above 30 !
Since my greatmohter spoke english, which was a rarity at the time, she was actively seeked to facilitate communication, so my mother had plenty of anecdotes to tell.
Anyway, great report - However I'm sorry I wouldn't blame too much the accent of saxony, which is not as 'pure' as in Hamburg but 10 times more comprehensive than bavarian accent (often mixed with slang to make it easier to understand).
