Eastern Europe: Germany, Czech Republic, Slovakia, and Hungary
In the spring of 2015, we (Paul and Grace Pitzer) took an Overseas Adventure Travel (OAT) land tour titled Jewels of Bohemia. We started with a pre-trip in Berlin, Germany for three nights, and Dresden for two nights, arriving in Prague, Czech Republic. The main trip started in Prague and ended in Budapest, Hungary. We were three nights in Prague, three nights in Cesky Krumlov, two nights in Slavonice, two nights in Bratislava, Slovakia, ending with three nights in Budapest, Hungary. Since we had also booked a Danube River Cruise from Budapest down river to the Black Sea, we stayed over for three days in Budapest until boarding the ship. That trip will be on a different page.
Berlin,
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It was amazing to spend time in Berlin and to see how it has changed from the "cold war" days when we first went through on a train in the middle of the night. Our tour took us to three remaining sections of the "Berlin Wall" and to Checkpoint Charlie.
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Wittenberg &
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On the drive from Berlin to Dresden we first stopped in Wittenberg, famous for its connection to Martin Luther. Then we stopped in Torgau where American and Russian soldiers first met in WWII and the home of a 16th-century castle.
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Dresden |
Dresden, founded in the 12th century sits on the Elbe River. It was a cultural hub until WWII when the allies dropped incendiary bombs that burned the city to the ground. Thousands of civilians were killed. It has been rebuilt to look like it was before the war. The golden building was photographed with my iPhone before sunset. The same building was grey during the day.
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Sudetenland
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On the way from Dresden to Prague we stopped to visit a farmhouse and museum and then enjoyed a home-hosted lunch in an old home being renovated. In the afternoon we visited the Jewish ghetto in Terezin which was really a concentration camp.
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Prague,
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We arrived in Prague and the beginning of the main trip, and meet the rest of the group. Prague sits on the Vltava River and survived WWII basically intact. A tour of the city began at the landmark 9th-century Prague Castle which is still a seat of power. We explored the large cathedral and watched the famous mechanical clock strike the hour. Under the iconic Charles Bridge sat the John Lennon Pub and a famous graffiti wall. Since our hotel was some distance from downtown, we enjoyed using the modern subway system at times. On an optional tour we visited the Skoda Auto Museum and had dinner at the 18th-century Sychrov Castle.
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Vojna Memorial
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On the way to Cesky Krumlov we stopped for a short visit to the Vojna Memorial, a WWII German POW and political prisoner labor camp for mining uranium. Then we had lunch in the 13th century picturesque Bohemian town of Pisek on the Otava River.
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Cesky Krumlov,
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Cesky Krumlov was established in 1250, and became a major stop on a trade route with Italy in the 14-16th centuries. It sits inside a loop of the Vltava River and is now a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The castle sits on a hill across the river from the lovely small town with winding cobble-stone streets. While there we had a chance to raft down the river, through three rapids created by weirs. One outing was to visit the Vyssi Brod Monastery which is Cistercian and goes back to the mid 13th century. The resident monk came to visit with us and showed us through the vast library housed there. We also visited the home of a local musician.
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Budweiser,
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Transfer days are always filled with interesting stops. Our first stop on our way to Slavonice was at the famous Budweiser Budvar Brewery in the Bohemian regional capital of Ceske Budejovice. This brewery was founded in 1876. The next stop was in Trebon, which is a 12th century walled village, known for fish farms and spas. In the afternoon we stopped in Jindrichuv Hradec of the 13th century to visit the castle museum with the worlds largest mechanical Nativity scene, and the Gobelin Museum to see a tapestry collection. That was a lot packed into one day.
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Slavonice,
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Our next stay was in the small charming village of Slavonice, which has not changed much since the 13th century. The walls of its Gothic and Renaissance homes are adorned with sgraffito designs from the 14th - 16th centuries. From there we visited the large 13th-century ruins of Landstejn Fortress and then some WWII era concrete bunkers. Our guide also made a quick stop for us to see one of the few remaining pieces of the "Iron Curtain" in the area. Since the war, the pottery business has returned and we had a chance to decorate pieces to take home. This is where we enjoyed a "Home Hosted Dinner" with a local Czech family. The fields in the area were blooming bright yellow with rape seed plants, used for cooking oil.
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Trebic &
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Heading for Bratislava, Slovakia, our first stop was in the ancient Monrovian city of Trebic. The Jewish ghetto is the best preserved in Europe and was made a UNESCO World Heritage Site because of how well the Christian and Jewish cultures co-existed from the Middle Ages until the 20th century. There are no Jews living there anymore, however. Then on to Lednice, another UNESCO Site, known for its lakes and streams. We toured the Lednice Castle and enjoyed the huge connected greenhouse.
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Bratislava, Slovakia
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Bratislava became the capital of Slovakia after the "Velvet Revolution" in 1993 when Czechoslovakia split peacefully into the Czech Republic and Slovakia. It sits along the Danube River, close to the borders with Hungary and Austria. Our hotel was located beside the river and a block from the US Embassy right in downtown. The town was filled with people as they were having a very large "Fun Run" that week-end. We did a walking tour of the Old Town, visiting a number of 14th and 15th century buildings including the palace and cathedral and drove up to the hill top to visit the Batislava Castle, dating back to the Roman Empire. From there we could see across the river and the stretches of block housing projects from the communist-era. Our group was spit into thirds. Each small group visited a local homes in the projects for a chance to learn how their life was and is now. This was very interesting. One evening we had dinner and wine-tasting in a local wine cellar.
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Roman Ruins at Carnuntum
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Leaving Bratislava, we made a short detour into Austria to visit Carnuntum, and ancient Roman city which has been excavated and is being rebuilt, but by bit. At one time it was a Roman army camp that housed some 50,000 people. From there we entered Hungary on our way to Budapest. Our lunch stop was in the ancient city of Gyor, where the Danube, Raba and Rabco rivers join. Its pedestrian-only center allowed us to enjoy the Baroque and Neo-Classical buildings. This is where the Audi cars are made.
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Budapest, Hungary
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We arrived at our final destination for this trip: Budapest. Our hotel was right across from the Opera House and in walking distance from many things we would visit.
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