Fri. 8/27 - Fri. 9/3

Ok guys, my trip is almost over & I want to go enjoy the rest of it, so here's the quick & dirty version:

Fri. 8/27
Arrived in Prague & got lost several times w/ my ultra heavy bags (I had an extra one I'd been trying to send home, but never got around to) on my way to the hostel

Found hostel (Hostel Elf) and met my two uber-cool roomies from Toronto, Steve & Mike. We went shopping at the local market and had lunch at the hostel's outdoor picnic tables.

Went to dinner w/ three kids from England (Polly, Lorna & James) near the Main Square. The restaurant's food was great, but they ripped us off a bit (only a few bucks, but it's the principle). Had delicious gelato at Dream & Cream. Got a tad lost on the way to the train & it began to rain :) but found train & went "home".

Sat. 8/28
Did "King's Walk" walking tour for 8 hours!!!

Sun. 8/29
Went to the big Castle w/ Kiwis (New Zealanders) Kelly (another one of my roomies), Ian & Rebecca

Mon. 8/30
Walking tour of Prague w/ Steve (a German guy who works in the hostel, is a real character & is VERY opionated & political) & a bunch of peeps from the hostel (made more new friends)

Dinner w/ some cool peeps from hostel/tour/roomies (Charlie (England), Dan (Canadian), Kelli (California!), Pablo (Costa Rica), Tanyin (England) at this cool local restaurant near the hostel. The food was AMAZING!!! Apparently, I was told that Americans think everything is AMAZING...LOL.

Spent my last night up late hangin' everyone in the hostel (it's a party every night there).

Tues. 8/31
Charlie & I went to the Jewish Town, which was cool cuz the day before he had gotten into it (along w/ Tanyin) w/ Steve on the tour re: the Holocaust when we stopped in front of a Synagogue; his grandfathers had fought in WWI & II. I ended up talking to both Charlie & Tanyin re: it Mon. night before dinner, cuz I was upset, though I didn't say anything at the time. All the Holocaust stuff was wearing on me at that point. Anyway, Charlie & I toured the sights there and then went to an excellent Czech & World music concert (classical & Opera) in the Spanish Synagogue (which is absolutely stunning).

We went back to the hostel & I packed to catch my night train to Budapest. All of a sudden, I looked at my watch & realized I had 18 minutes to catch my train. Charlie & Kelli (the female Californian, not the male Kiwi (I was the only female in my room, BTW) made a mad dash w/ me (train sta. is a 10-min. walk) to the station. As we approached it, I realized I was an hour off...teeheehee...so we had time to relax & chill together. We finally did the lil massage exchange we'd been talking about :). And then they saw me off.

Wed. 9/1
Arrived in Budapest & went to my hostel, the Best Hostel, which was a laugh, b/c they were like the freakin Gestapo w/ their rules. My leg was injured from all the walking I'd been doing & I was exhausted from the night train, so I slept from 9:30am-3:30pm. Then, I went to find another place to stay. Ended up at the Hostel Astoria, which was new, clean, nicer, not prison-like & more centrally-located.

Took a hot bath (yes, they actually had a tub!) and massaged my leg

Had dinner at 11pm at a creperie and then tea & dessert (a Hungarian one called dobos torta, which has a hard carmel top, a layer of whipped cream, a layer of custard & a slightly burnt coffee crust).

Thurs. 9/2
Did lots of meditation, yoga & chiropractic exercises.

Had lunch w/ two Americans (big mistake; one was your typical "ugly" American tourist, the other a hyperactive talker (yes, much worse than me, trust me)) at a fab restaurant.

Went to the Szechenyi Baths (where the locals go) & had a soak and an hour-long massage for $32!!! Both were great.

Stopped & bought groceries & cooked dinner at the hostel. Turned out what I thought that what I thought was a rice pilaf (which I bought in Prague) was a sauce for meats...hahaha!

Fri. 9/3
At brekkie, I discovered that the two huge "yogurts" I bought were in fact sour cream :). Thank goodness I'd also bought eggs.

Went to two main streets: Vaci utca (pedestrian street w/ lots of shops), which ended at Gerbaud (a famous cafe) where I had coffee & Marzipan torte, & Andrassy ut. Discovered a cool park. Climbed to the top of St. Stephen's Basilica. Checked out the Postal Museum (my great gramma was a postmistress in Budapest before emigrating to the states in 1903). Saw the opera house. Had dinner. Went to the train sta. to buy my ticket back to Warsaw, but they couldn't sell it to me from that station cuz it wasn't departing from there. Went to mall to buy duffel bag to carry my stuff that I never mailed home :). Went for tea at a sidewalk cafe (aren't they all...) that had bamboo & palms. Toured Liszt Square. Went for dessert at the cafe I planned on going to. Stopped at synagogue, just to look (right behind my hostel). Went "home". As usual, it was noisy even though it was late. Everyone there seemed to have no respect for those of us who wished to go to bed "early" (I got in around 11:30pm, bathed & meditated, so it was after 1am by then). Ended up in a fight about it w/ two of my roomies, so I packed up & left. Got a cab & at hotel #4, found vacancy...for a fee. Very nice place though. Went to bed around 4am or so.

Sat. 9/4
Woke up around 2:30pm. Got things organized & did some errandy-type things that I needed to do. Now I'm about to go for a sauna & swim, buy my train ticket for tomorrow night, find an internet cafe & download pics, call peeps in Warsaw re: my arrival & have dinner on the Danube. Tomorrow I plan on touring the Jewish Quarter, going to the Buda side (Castle Hill & Gellert Hill & Baths) before catching my train.

Was that brief enough for you? :P

Warsaw & Krakow Sat. 8/21 - Fri. 8/27

Sat. 8/21/04

Spent the day w/ Jaba's (a friend of Olga's) son Miolai. We went to an internet cafe to download pics (I'm averaging about 80 pics/day!!!) and check email. Next, off to the Palac Kultury, which is sort of like Warsaw's version of the Empire State Building. Great view from the 30th floor, except that it was a bit hazy that day. We also looked at their exhibit on the olympics, which was pretty cool. Next, we walked around a marketplace looking for some random things I needed. Had lunch at a kebob place (they're all over the place here), which was dee-lish. Went to mall across the street for some stationary, etc. Went "home".

Had dinner & listened to some free jazz w/ Olga's friends Iola & Wojtek; jazz in Old Town square, dinner in New Town at the Belle Epoch restaurant. The restaurant was very uniquely & beautifully decorated. Walked around New Town.

Sun. 8/22/04

Olga, Dsiadek (Polish for "grandfather") & I walked around Jewish Ghetto via Rick Steve's walking tour & their knowledge :). Had lunch. Went home & played Scrabble w/ Olga. Went to Olga's friend Anusia's for dinner. She has a stunningly beautiful home. We had great conversation. Went for dinner at a Thai restaurant.

Mon. 8/23/04

Dsiadek & I spent the day together at the Jewish Museum/Cultural Institute and Jewish cemetary. I tried to do a bit of research on family who was sent to a concentration camp & never heard of again (other family members of ours were found hiding in the forest by Nazis & shot) but I'm going to have to research it in Prague, since they were from Czech Republic.

We watched a 37-minute film re: the Holocaust, which was very difficult for him to watch. He helped Jews during the Holocaust, bringing food & milk to starving Jewish children. He lived on the border of the Jewish Ghetto (still does, except it's no longer a Jewish Ghetto). He is 74, so he was a boy/teen during this time. We had lunch at Pizza Hut...LOL! It was actually really nice there (fast food spots are much nicer over here) and I had a vegetable wrap.

The cemetary was really special. We didn't have too much time to spend there though, so I'll have to go back another time.

Tues. 8/24/04

Took an early morning train to Krakow. Sat next to & spoke w/ a nun. Checked into my FABULOUS (& cheap) hotel "Bed & Breakfast", right off the main square. The square is actually the largest medieval square in Europe. I had lunch, unpacked & then showered & went down for tea at the TriBeca Cafe :). Wandered around the square & bought gifts for people from the merchants. Had dinner (both lunch & dinner were superb, by the way).

Wed. 8/25/04

After breakfast, I went to the hotel's reception desk to ask a question and happened upon a young woman asking about how to get to Auschwitz. I told her that I was going, if she wanted to join me. Spent day w/ her (her name's Ipin -- she went to NYU for a year & now lives in SF) at Auschwitz & Birkenau. I was really glad I went, even though it was painful; I really felt more connected to my family & ancestors -- it was an important journey for me.

Ipin and I got separated at the end of the day & as I was leaving the hotel for dinner, she was coming in, so I waited & we had a late supper together. We had a wonderful time. Also, Ipin is Taiwanese, but moved to the U.S. at age 13. Her father is half German, half Chinese & Buddhist & her mom is Chinese & Catholic. Ipin had recently been baptized & was on somewhat of a pilgrimage. We had some really interesting conversations & really felt like old friends right away.

Thurs. 8/26/04

Ipin had hired a guide & invited me along for free! She had scheduled her from 9am-12pm, but ended up hiring her all day (we were w/ her until 7pm!!!). It was an absolutely amazing day, touring the entire city. We ended in Kazmierz (the Jewish quarter) & saw many places where Schindler's list was filmed. Next, our guide drove us back to the hotel to pick up our bags & we went to Sister Faustina's cathedral, where Ipin decided to stay for mass. I headed over to Klezmer Hois for dinner & music & then caught a night train to Prague. Roomed w/ a British family who were really cool. Also met a sweet Polish guy while waiting for my train & a Canadian guy in the middle of the night after having trouble sleeping after the border crossing/passport check.

Fri. 8/27/04

I was told to go the wrong direction from the train station, so am about to catch a bus to my hostel :). "Talk"to you guys later...

Warsaw -- Friday, August 20, 2004

This morning I meditated and did yoga as well as some exercises & stretches from my chiropractor. Next, my father, Olga and I did some grocery shopping. After that the tourist stuff began. We did the "Royal Way" walk and the "Old Town" walk. Everything is so gorgeous and interesting. The reasonable prices are great too (especially for a student). Since I took over 100 pictures yesterday alone, I am in an internet cafe again to have them saved on disk. I am with a Polish guy named Mikolaj (the son of Olga's friend) who is showing me around the city today. He has his degree in history, so I'm sure he'll provide me with wonderful information. He is very kind and patient :).

Warsaw

My flight to Warsaw was fantastic. I flew Swiss Air and the economy class on their plane is like first class on a domestic flight! The flight crew were very helpful and friendly and we were fed several meals. Even alcohol is free (my new friend Imran, who is Pakistani but has lived in Paris since age 10) got his "buzz" on :). The flight went by quickly, as Imran and I had some great conversations. I slept on and off, so I was very tired by the time I got to Zurich to change planes. I did a bit of gift shopping at the duty free and then it was off to my flight to Warsaw.

When I arrived at airport here it only took about 10 min. to have my passport checked and to pick up my bag. I saw my family (Dad, Olga, Olga's dad Tollek and Olga's sister Lidka) right away. Tollek brought me some beautiful flowers (lilies -- the "traditional" Polish flower). We took a taxi home. I'm staying w/ my dad & Olga at a friend's "rental" apartment (i.e., she rents the apartment to vacationers, but of course we get to stay for free). I unpacked my things and took a much-needed nap.

Next, we walked over to an outdoor cafe near Tollek and Lidka's apartment for dinner. The food was delicious! We took a nice stroll through some gorgeous parks, which included the Memorial of the Unknown Soldiers. We were fortunate enough to see the changing of the guards there (this occurs once/hour; it is guarded by two soldiers 24/7). As we walked throughout the city, we saw many old, Communist-style buildings as well as tons of new buildings (Capitalism has certainly arrived).

As you might have guessed, Poland is not very diverse but they do have a small population of Vietnamese and Turkish folks. I've also seen several Black people :).

Right now I'm in an Internet Cafe on one of the main streets (read: Tourist Traps...lol) on the "Royal Walk". More to come later...