Well here I am, Istanbul, last stop for my jaunt through Europe. A great place to end this trip, jampacked with history, colorful traditions, intoxicating sights and smells and a first-hand glimpse of Islam. Istanbul quite literally stradles Europe and Asia,with Bosphorus strait dividing the city. It's a huge city of 15 million but the sights are tightly packed in a manageable area. The Old town and most of the historical sights are in the western/ European part. I'm staying at the hotel Hanedan just behind the Blue mosque and (would you believe it) just around the corner from the Istanbul [View Full Entry]

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A bustling home to 4 million, a reputation for being congested/ polluted and with over 7000 years of history, Athens was once a daunting city to explore for toursists. However with the tourism infrastructure vastly improved for the 2004 Olympics, it is just as easy to explore and just as convenient as most major European cities and still relatively inexpensive. Most guide books discourage staying in Athens for more than 1-2 days but I think lovers of big cities can stay longer. My stay consists of 3 days and spent mostly in the historical center. For convenience I have listed the [View Full Entry]

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Hello ladies and gents! I am in Greece. I arrive in Athens rather late Tuesday night because I missed my connecting flight in Brussels and had to wait 5 hours for the next flight. So far I've only spent one day in Athens and will tell you more about it on a later entry. For the past 2 days I've been in Napflion,only 80 miles from Athens but itseems a world away. Located in the Peloponnesian peninsula and spared from the recent fires, this small town is very popular with Greeks as a cheap and convenient alternative to the islands. While [View Full Entry]

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Arrived from Krakow on a night train last Saturday and though sinusitis was bothering me, I plunged right into sight seeing. My first impression of the city, formed while trying to locate my hostel, was that of faded grandeur. Budapest's heydays were in the late 19th century when it was one of the capitals of the the Austro-Hungarian empire. Walking down the wide boulevards amidst the imposing buildings, gave me the impression that this was once a very important and grand place. Since then though the city has gone through 2 world wars, Soviet invasion and almost 60 years of communist [View Full Entry]

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Today is my last day in Krakow and I set off for Hungary tonight. Yesterday went to the famous Wieliczka Salt mines just 5 miles outside the city. They have been mining salt here for altleast 800 years! As a result it reaches up to 900 feet deep and has 2000 chambers, our tour of 2 1/2 hours only covered 1% of the mine itself. They showed us the mining conditions (which seem to be downright cushy compared to coal mining nowadays), several statues carved from salt rock, a couple of underground lakes, and a fantastic chapel (as big as a [View Full Entry]

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Oswiecim and Brzezinka are the Polish names of the villages. When the Germans took over in WWII they told the locals to evacuate and from then on the villages became more famously know by their German names: Auschwitz-Birkenau. Site of the ghastliest of crimes, about 1,500,000 people (no one knows the exact number) were mudered here. It is imposible to describe what it's like to visit this place. I have no words to describe what it must have been like for the prisoners so I will borrow some: "Never shall I forget that night, the first night in camp, that turned [View Full Entry]

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Dzien dobry Everyone! After a less than comfortable 8 hour night train from Prague I made it to Krakow very early today. Luckily I was able to check it at my pension the luxurious Trzykafki Guest House, the best accommodation in Krakow for under $30 dollars/night. It is a 15 minutes walk to the old town center and even though the mattress has seen better days and the linen a bit threadbare (relics of the communist era), I'm very satisfied with my choice in lodging. It is impeccably clean and has none of the peculiar aroma so common in hostels. I [View Full Entry]

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Today we travelled 100 miles away from Prague to Cesky Krumlov. An incredibly well preserved medieval town on the snaking Vlatva river. Complete with a castle (2nd biggest in Czech Rep.), moat with bears (real live ones), gothic churches, winding cobbled streets and a square where witches were burned, it was the perfect town to explore. While we usually prefer explore on our own, sometimes a good bus tour is all you need for a stress free sight seeing day. We signed up for Premiant Bus Tours, though a little on the pricy side (about $90), it was well worth it. [View Full Entry]

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The weather has made a turn for the better. It has been sunny (so far) and as you can see from the pictures Prague is beautiful as ever. It is my second time here in Prague, my last visit being 5 years ago. Back then Prague was reeling from the worst flooding in decades, the river Vlatva overflowed and kept most of the tourist away because some of the sights were closed. What a difference 5 years make. Physically the city has not changed much, all the sights are open and it seems more crowded. The big change was in the [View Full Entry]

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Guten Tag everyone! We have been quite busy since arriving in Munich last Thursday. Finally found some time and a reliable internet cafe to update this blog. Tomorrow we will take the midnight train to Prague. It has been mostly overcast with some rain here, everyone says that this is unusually bad weather for this time of the year. Nonetheless we are enjoying this city and making the most out of our time. We have visited several castles built by the royals of Bavaria (the Wittenbachs) including King Ludwid II. A late 19th century eccentric monarch. His most famous legacy might [View Full Entry]

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