Finally! I'm nearly done getting the over 450 photos edited that I took on my 3 week, 12 county, 4313 miles car trip through Europe in August! What a job. So this will keep all those emails to a minimun from all those fans that "want" to see the results. The first part is up today called Euro Trip One.
It was a really enjoyable way to see Europe...if you have the time and energy. Mainly I wanted to be away from the hustle and bustle of normal tourism and go where I wanted and stop when I was tired. Mainly I suceeded. I pretty much ate and relaxed my way through Europe and visited a few places that have been off limits for Americans for so many years. My route was from Helsinki to Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Slovakia, Poland, Hungary, Austria, Italy, Switzerland, Germany, Sweden and back to Finland via ferry.
The amount of progress in some of the former Communist countries is staggering and even more so with the entrance of each in the EU...money is pouring in to help rebuild roads and infrastructures and still maintain the quaint and unique aspects of the country. Latvia is a joy and I highly recommend it. One can also see the influences of western culture...unfortunately. MacDonalds, Pizza Hut and Baskin Robbins are making their presence felt. No Starbucks, but give them time. There are huge building projects going on to erase any semblance of the former Soviet regimes...some of the housing projects are truly ugly!
Most of the Slovic countries have such a bloody history....which I suppose can be said for just about any country. In Budapest I did something I rarely do...I took a (gasp) bus tour. During my stay there was a Grand Prix was going on and the traffic was a mess. Buses have the right of way so I figure it would be a better deal. The city was quite nice despite being crowded with traffic and people. And the tour was pretty interesting...although if you want to take good photos, never take them from a moving bus with tinted windows! And talk about a bloody history...one story has it that during the 17th Century, a pleasant army fought the nobles of the time and lost. The leader of the revolt...or the man who would be king...was captured and placed up a red-hot iron throne and upon his head, an iron, red-hot crown. Thats bound to give anyone a headache! But if you can hit Budapest at the right time of the year, its a good buy and a must see.
Rolling though the coutryside for me was the highlight of my trip. Poland, Hungary and Austria offer great scenery and plenty of out of the way towns and villages to explore. I, of course, sampled as much of the local food as possible and was even invited to visit the kitchens to learn some local cooking tips! I'll have some great recipes later. I rolled into Vienna, where I have been many times and put myself up at a nice out of the way hotel and slept the clock away! The trip through the Alps to Italy would be demanding and I wanted to be well rested for it......
What beautiful pictures! Thank you for sharing.
Posted by: Leah | September 30, 2004 at 07:31 PM