Budapest Day 18

   

Upon rereading this missive, I again realize that the detail may be much more than anyone elsemay be interested in. I have written it to retain my own memories. But if you only want to know what we did or saw, here is the condensed version:

We left the ship to numerous renditions of So Long Farewell.

We were bussed to our new very ritzy hotel.

We went on a Jewish Interest tour in which we saw several memorials as well as the Great Synagogue and the Holocaust Museum.

Lunch was at a Hungarian bistro at which time we could finally check in, rest, reorganize and visit the sumptuous spa, an included amenity.

We dined at another Hungarian restaurant with gypsy music.

Read on only if you are bored and have nothing else to do for the next half hour. You have all been warned so I expect no complaints about my excessive recount.

Today we disembarked from the MS Sound of Music. I can't tell you how many times I heard people singing 'So Long, Farewell'. But our tour is not yet over. We transferred to a five star hotel in the city. I thought the Imperial in Prague was posh, but it cannot stand up to our new hotel, the Corinthia Royal Hotel. It is a huge building. The lobby is a six storey atrium that is spectacular even on a rainy day. The hotel in Prague had every surface adorned in some type of art deco. This hotel calls attention to itself with its quiet elegant simplicity. Orchids and lilies adorn every counter. In addition, most of the rooms face a courtyard and the trams from the street cannot be heard. By the time we were able to check in I both felt and looked bedraggled. I'm sure that if our room had not been reserved by Gate 1, we would have been shown the door.

On the bus, we met our new tour manager. Wow!! She is humorous, fluent, articulate and holds a doctorate in ethno-cultures. She was the one who led the Jewish Interest Tour. Her commentary in the Great Synagogue gave us a great deal of insight into the attitudes and culture of the Jewish population in 1850. The Hungarian Jews like the Germans were very well integrated and considered themselves Hungarians first. By this point in the nineteenth century, many of the affluent Jews wanted to modify their beliefs so that the practices were more in line with those of the Catholic. They were called neologues. They decided to build their own synagogue but instead of hiring one of the many Hungarian Jewish architects, they hired an Austrian named Forster. Unfortunately he knew nothing about Judaism, but conscientiously traveled to Spain to research the design of synagogues there. What he did not realize was that the Sephardic temples in Spain were very Moorish in design. Many of the elements of this synagogue resemble a mosque, but many more are representative of a Catholic cathedral.

These are some of the features the architect got wrong: The many stained glass windows have eight, not six sided stars. The bimah was placed at the front instead of in a central location as was the style then. Two pulpits were built on either side but Jews did not deliver sermons from the sides of the church. All the pews had kneelers at the front although Jews don't kneel during prayers. There are two towers outside that look like minarets. The inside is totally Moorish. In all despite, the conventional  features, it feels far more like a church than a synagogue. The community became concerned about the non-Jewish look and hired a Jewish architect to advise them how to rectify the problems. His suggestions included moving the bimah back to the centre, removing the kneelers and removing the pulpits, but all of these features had already been built and paid for so they stayed. The only 'Jewish' addition was a little roof over each pulpit whose underside had a painted Star of David.

 

                                                                

                                                       The Synagogue Garden

 The women's section was two storeyed and wrapped around the main floor. In this Shul, there were 64 torahs in the ark of the covenant. Most of them were rescued from camps, found after being safely hidden or taken from synagogues that could not gather together a minyan for prayers and remained closed after the war. 

                                       

                                           The women's balcony

We moved onto the garden. When the Jews were confined to the ghetto, they were not permitted to bury their dead in the cemetery outside the ghetto walls. As a result, the dead were buried in this garden, in total, 10,000, one layer of bodies on top of the next separated only by a covering of lye. At the end of the war, the bodies were removed and buried in the regular cemetery. However, family members wanted to commemorate their dead in some way and began placing individual small marble markers back in the garden so now it truly looks like a cemetery. There is also a monument to the Jews who died while in the army labour camps. It is very disturbing. At one end are coffins from which bodies are falling, rising and as skeletons, marching along.

In the back section of the temple property is the Holocaust memorial by the same sculptor as the one in the garden. It is called the Tree of Life and takes the form of a weeping willow, but when you look carefully you can see that it also looks like an upside down menorah. The end of the branches have metal leaves with the names of victims engraved. 

                                

                                    The Treeof Life

Further back, there is a stained glass memorial created by a camp survivor. It is called the Inferno and resembles swirling flames rising to the air. Each colour in the piece is representative of aspect of her experience, the yellows the stars the Jews were forced to wear, the red, the crematoria, the black, the ashes, the brown, the Nazi uniforms and so on. The colours become less intense towards the top of the piece representing hope. Of course photos would be much better than my descriptions, but they will have to wait until I download them from my camera.

                                                 

Our next visit was to the Holocaust museum. It is the most moving and chilling one we have seen yet. It is housed on the property of a synagogue that never reopened because there weren't enough Jews for a minyan. The property, however, is encased in a structure that looks like a sarcophagus. Inside the walls, all the angles are askew. Before entering the underground exhibit, there is a four-sided glass wall naming the 1,414 communities in Hungary that were wiped out by the Nazis. The exhibit follows the fates of a number of families through the war years, again giving a very human face to the number six million. The fate of  Roma families is followed as well. Moving from one room to the next is like walking through a maze. Black glass walls painted with evenly spaced white lines border the exhibit. The lines represent the members of the families in the exhibit. At the death of one of these people, the line abruptly stops but the space remains. 

                                        

                        White lines: family members Blank spaces: those who have died

By the end of the exhibit, only a few of the lines still exist. Very effective and frightening. The first rooms portray life before the war and the music is lively, like that played at a wedding. As the rights of the Jews were rescinded, the music changes to marching feet and at the end of the exhibit is the sound of only one beating heart. I have never seen Gila so moved by anything we have seen. Even recalling it brings her to tears. Becoming more in touch with this 'history of victims’ has been one of the most important parts of this trip for her. She is amazed at what she does not know and hungers to get all the blanks filled in immediately. Her interest in the galleries of Budapest has waned in light of what she has experienced.

The final part of the museum is the synagogue itself, built at the same time as the Great Synagogue but far more modest. 

                                              

                                                  The Holocaust Museum Synagogue

Unfortunately, due to time we were rushed through the museum but the impression was nonetheless strong. As impressed as I was with Daniel Liebeskind's museum in Berlin, this one is even more upsetting. That was the end of the tour, but Gila and I both wanted more. We asked our guide if she could recommend a guide. Apparently, she does private tours and we are hiring her to take us around on Thursday morning.

On our return we still could not check in so we went to a recommended restaurant nearby. The waiter asked us where we were from. When he heard that it was Toronto, he wanted to know about the CN Tower!  

                                             

                                                 Lunch at a Bistro

After lunch we finally got to our room. Like the lobby it exudes quiet yet simple elegance. The amenities include a sumptuous breakfast and a SPA! After unpacking, settling in and resting, we headed to the jacuzzi. Nothing could have been more rejuvenating at that moment. I didn't leave the spa until all my skin was completely pruned.

Dinner was at a Hungarian restaurant that played gypsy music while we ate. These were not run of the mill musicians and the music certainly enhanced the attentive service and the delicious food. Beside us was a young Irish couple and we shared some of our experiences with one another. The highlight of the evening was the playing of Hava Na Gila. Of course Gila let the musicians know it was her song and tipped them generously for the performance that evening.

The waiters were in no hurry to get us to leave and by the time we were back in our room it was closing on midnight and the spa was closed. Our day tomorrow definitely will start with a hot tub session.

Budapest Day 17

Before I get into the stories for today, I would like to quote Josh,"It ain't easy writing a daily summary."

Some other observations: We have never been rained out.

There were a few cloudy days but no more than a sprinkle of rain fell.

The temperatures have seldom been lower than 15 by midday.

One day in Vienna is definitely not enough time to get a good feel for the city. I'm trying to figure out how long it will take to see 500 museums at three a day, four when I am more energetic.

I have had a real education traveling with Gila. I have learned a great deal about art, art history and how to see the elements that make a piece special.

I have learned to be far more patient and I am learning to appreciate the moment rather than worrying about what comes next.

Traveling with Gila is great for me. It's not so much that she accepts my mishigasim. She just laughs at them and then I have a choice. I can laugh too or I can get pissed off, in which case she laughs even more until I just take a meshuggah mint to counteract my behaviour.

Many Americans are loud and obnoxious, especially when plied with alcohol, but on a small ship, it is possible to meet really interesting people from all over the States, Canada and even Mexico.

And finally, the Danube is not blue. Strauss must have had some visual anomalies or he was drunk.

I am all toured out, not a good state for this morning’s outing.

We arrived in Budapest this morning. As we sailed into the city we got a commentary on each of the bridges and prominent buildings. 

                                                                       

Our tour managers are all Hungarian and the pride in their city is evident. As soon as we docked, a bus was waiting for us and we had a whirlwind tour through Pest, the flat portion of the city. Included was the history as well, from the Celts, the Romans, the Huns, the Turks, the Habsburgs, the Republic, the Soviets to the return to democracy. It was just too much to absorb while watching the streetscape and being hustled off and on the bus for photo ops. There were casinos, museums , a zoo, many parks and I really can't remember what else. The only really memorable spot was Heroes' Square which was recently built to commemorate 100 years of I don't remember what. On either side were palaces that have been converted into art galleries. With the wide boulevards and the architecture of various periods, it resembled Vienna on a bad hair day. Vienna was pristine. It is not that this city is dirty. It's not, but rather shabby in some places, requiring more TLC than it has received over the centuries. I am glad that we have an extended stay here so that I can get a clearer impression of what I think may be a charming city.

Then we crossed the river to Buda and the castle area. This is the hilly side of the city and much more expensive in terms of housing. Like Vienna, it was wall to wall tourists. We then had a short walking tour and free time. The area is dominated by the St. Mathias Church, another gothic structure with a ceramic tile roof. Apparently the King's wife was Italian and that was the style on the Mediterranean. This area was heavily bombed during the war and because of the destruction, archaeologists took the opportunity to uncover the remains of castles, castle walls etc. from the Middle Ages. 

                               

                                   Part of an old church

The work is still ongoing. At the edge of the hill is a wonderful look out spot, called the Fishermen’s Ballustrade, built in the later nineteenth century, where on a clear day, you can see all the way up and down the river as you are hustled by vendors selling sweaters, embroidery tablecloths, pictures, paintings and everything else you would expect in a tourist trap.

                                    

                                        View from the Fisherman's Balustrade

The area is under construction as well. An old castle is being transformed into either a conference centre or a museum. Again, it was such a whirl that it can't remember all the information thrown at us.

Gila was fascinated by the pastel coloured paints on the buildings. At close quarters, the cracks in the wall and the peeling paint was very evident. Gila needed to have samples. She very carefully peeled a little piece of paint off the wall of several buildings. One of the shop owners noticed and I could see that he was chuckling. Even though I will not aid and abet Gila's criminal behaviour, picking away at the wall was taking too long. So I helped her by peeling off a large square. Gila was shocked. How was that different from what she was doing? I was just saving time.

Apparently, this castle area is also a posh residential area. Beside the church is a Hilton hotel. The tower of a former defense wall or church has been incorporated into the new modern building. In all of this area, the buildings sported peeling paint, cracks in concrete and lots of trompe l'oeil. On the surface it is charming with cafes and little shops selling paprika and other souvenirs, but because of the hordes of tourists and guided tours, it felt very staged. Mind you, we were only in one area and perhaps beyond the main square there is a more normal type of life.

                                 

                                    An old fountain and wall in the castle district

We returned to the ship for lunch and had to decide what to do with our afternoon. The only thing I was willing to consider was an afternoon at one of the spas in Buda. The one we chose was just on the other side of the bridge and we were able to walk there in about ten minutes. It is a very posh hotel with the spa attached. The complex is a leftover from the reign of the Turks. The whole complex is tiled, marbled and adorned in an art deco style. The spa area is huge and the signs directing people to the various pools (there are eleven of them) and therapy areas must have been put up by our tour manager Balazs who has the unique ability to complicate the simplest thing. If you had spent any time with him as a leader, you understood immediately how confusing the complex was. But the water was hot hot hot and the massage that I had was heavenly. I was reluctant to leave especially since I am coming down with a cold.

By the time we got back to the ship I was too wiped for the farewell cocktails and directly after dinner, returned to my cabin to sleep. Unfortunately, I missed a performance of traditional Hungarian operetta pieces by a local professional group but I needed the sleep more.

Tomorrow we are being transferred to another hotel and so I hastily packed. I foresee some logistical problems about how much can be put into a suitcase and still be able to zipper it shut. In the morning after our transfer, I am looking forward to our tour of the Jewish interests in this city.

Vienna Day 16

     

I have been very impressed by the local guides hired by Gate1. Each one has been outstanding with an excellent command of the English language. First, the bus drove around the city and the guide pointed out all the significant buildings, the votive church, built to thank God for sparing the Emperor from an assassination attempt, the parliament, dominated by a statue of Athena and a circular driveway in front for horses, the town hall, a massive building with a gothic spire that has over 1,700 rooms, the huge opera house that contains apartments for the Emperor as well as rooms for the other members of the royal family and many of the palaces that today serve as consulates, elegant hotels, high end designers, some government offices and the offices for the U.N.’s  large administrative unit in Vienna.

                                 

                                     Hordes of tourists in the pedestrian mall

 The walking tour was much better though. Our first stop was the Albertina Museum that currently has an exhibition on Matisse and the Fauvists. The entrance to the museum is up a steep flight of stairs (we found an escalator later) that was painted in the fauvist style as an advertisement for the show. 

                              

When you stood far enough back, it looked like a huge poster. In front of the museum was a monument for those murdered by the Nazis. It was graphic and powerful. One side represented those who died in the camps. It portrayed a prisoner that resembled a skeleton. There was also a suitcase and a club. The other side showed a woman giving birth in dire circumstances. In front of the statue was another one of a man, on his hands and knees and covered with a net. It represented the Jews who were taken away.

The next stop was what is called the Hofburg. It consists of all the buildings that were part of the Habsburg palace. Today they are the home of many museums. Standing in one courtyard, the walls on each of the four sides were in a different style, but the restoration was needed at different times. Hence the pastiche of styles. The facade was covered with work in the style current for the day. Hero's square was a huge building with a balcony so that the Emperor could sit on his throne while thousands of subjects crowded in the square cheering. It was never used by the Emperor. He died before it was completed. However, it was used by Hitler to announce the Anschluss. The balcony greatly resembled the one in the Zepplinfeld in Nuremberg.

In the late nineteenth century, Vienna was the most important city in Europe. The Habsburgs wanted to see that status continue, so they used a great deal of foresight in city planning. They started building facilities that allowed growth up to five million people. However, with World War I, that growth never happened. The result is a spacious city with wide boulevards and more than enough facilities for its population of 1.7 million.

We then strolled to the Saint Stephen Cathedral, a huge gothic structure. The roof had been damaged, I don't remember when and it was replaced with a zig zag design tile roof because that was the style of the day. This was the spot where the tour ended and we had the rest of the day for free time. With a map showing the Jewish museums in hand, we set out. The first building was nearby. Part of it was closed but we did see a collection of Jewish relics collected from all over Austria and beyond by Max Stein, a man who survived the Holocaust. He donated the collection to the museum well before he died. The audio guide was extremely informative, sometimes too much so. We learned more about Josef II and the freedom edict he was responsible for. In Prague, he seemed like a hero. The Jewish quarter was named Josefov in his honour. At this museum we learned that many Jews in the Empire were not pleased with the edict, because now as equal citizens, they were heavily taxed. The other information on the guide was the number of synagogues destroyed on November 9 and 10, 1938. Forty- six synagogues were burnt to the ground, there were huge bonfires in which Torah scrolls and prayer books were burnt and many Jewish businesses were looted. Another section of this museum had a display about the Zionist movement in Vienna.

                                        

                                      Archeological beginnings of Vienna

The second site was at some distance away, so while looking for it we took a break in a cafe called Aida. I had a mélange, the Viennese version of cappuccino with apple strudel while Gila had a latte with apricot cake. My drink came in a regular cup, but Gila's was served in a very unique glass. The outside was made of plastic but inside of it sat a glass with a rounded bottom. The outside provided insulation for the inside which was filled with coffee. It was a brilliant design. Gila managed to drop it into her knapsack before we left. I unintentionally distracted the waitress clearing the table by forgetting my fleece. The rest of the day, each cafe and every souvenir shop we passed was searched for a mate to the cup that found its way into Gila's bag. I want it on the record that I aid and abet the pilfering of posters, but definitely not the taking of glassware.

We found the second part of the Jewish museum in Judenplatz. In front of the building was the Holocaust Memorial, a very unique rectangular structure that looked like bookcases filled with books. On the plinth around it, the names of the large camps were etched. The exhibit was about the Jews in medieval Vienna before they were expelled in 1420 by Albrecht.

                                          

One part of display was the computerized 3D virtual trip through the Jewish quarter. The significant buildings were isolated and shown in cross section so that the interior was visible. I tried to film the exhibit, but my battery died. I hope that the video will be watchable. Directly beneath the Holocaust Memorial were the archeological remains of the first synagogue that was described in the virtual tour. It was a unique exhibit and we were so glad that we were able to visit.

                                           Medieval Tapestry

                                         First synagogue in Vienna

 With the time left, we tracked back to the Albertina and the Matisse exhibit. To get there we walked the length of the main street. It was a wide pedestrian boulevard with all the high-end shops. Fortunately, all the stores except souvenir shops were closed so there was more time for the museums. The gallery used to be a palace as well. We only had time for the one exhibit, but it was amazing. Gila was like a child who had won the Willie Wonka's golden ticket. Even the walls were beautifully painted in a deeper purple and white. The colours were so vibrant. Watching and listening to Gila's reactions to the work of Matisse and his peers was an education for me and I was able to see and appreciate the art with a totally new perspective.

Unfortunately, the time was passing more quickly than we would have liked and I had to take on the role of the nag and the bitch to ensure that we made it to the location of the bus that was to take us back to the ship. Of course, Gila was constantly noticing things that pulled her away from my objective of getting to the bus. I developed a new strategy. Whenever Gila wanted to stop, I said no and did not stop. I just kept walking although I did slow down until she caught up. We hadn't had lunch and she wanted to stop for a hot dog. I told her that if we reached the bus on time, the reward would be the McDonalds found at our meeting place. We actually made it with 15 minutes to spare. In a lot, we saw a series of buses and assumed one was ours. While Gila looked for food, I headed to the buses to find that none of them were Gate 1 vehicles. I began to wander further along the street and noticed a Gate 1 sign beckoning me alluringly from the doorway. I then had to find Gila to make sure she didn't go to the wrong place. Ironically, when Gila reached the bus, the driver would not allow food on the bus and Gila had to eat her doner on the sidewalk.

                                                    

                                                        Location of our bus 

The ride back to the boat was uneventful. When it was time to exit the bus, I found that I was so stiff I could barely walk. A shower helped to refresh me but did little about my stiffness. Dinner  improved my mood, but I'm hoping that I will not need a wheelchair to do the tour of Budapest tomorrow. We are now in the home stretch.

Melk Day 15

Today we arrived in Austria, in the small delightful town of Melk. It is on our itinerary because of its Benedictine Abbey. The abbey is amazing to look at, but we also learned a bit of the history and philosophy of the Benedictines and that was even more interesting than the complex.

                                      

                                          Houses along the Danube

The abbey was built in 1718 on the site of a former castle, therefore it is high up on a hill. It is according to our guide, built in the baroque style, translate very ornamental or in simpler terms, angepatchked.  It was built with Numerology in mind. There are seven courtyards, for the days of the week and a total of 1365 windows for the days in a year. I'm pretty sure that there are other significant numbers as well, but I can't remember them. Maria Theresa was the Empress of the Holy Roman Empire (which was neither holy, nor Roman) at the time and more than half of the abbey was set aside as the imperial quarters for her highness and her small entourage of 300. There is no furniture in these rooms because, Maria Theresa brought all the furniture she needed on her visit. Although she reigned for forty years, she visited the abbey only twice.

The abbey was restored I don't remember when, but it was not restored to its original grandeur. Whatever could not be fixed was replaced by its modern equivalent. Therefore there are modern sculptures in the courtyards, frescoes in a modern style on some of the walls and stylized paintings of flowers on the bases of the altars. The reason?  The Benedictines are forward looking and roll with the times. It was very disconcerting seeing these modern elements beside the very baroque.

                                        
                                            
                                            Baroque nave with modern painted flowers

One of the rooms looked like it was made entirely of marble, but it was actually stucco painted like marble. Although it was more expensive to install, it was easier to maintain and warmer as well. This is not the only trompe l'oeil. One of the ceilings looks like it is vaulted, but it is entirely flat. It is the way the columns in the room are set and the way that the ceilings are painted that give the illusion of vaulting. 

                                               

The library was incredible and the only place we could not photograph. It contains only 9000 books in 17 different languages. The rest of the 17,000 books are stored elsewhere. All of the books in the library were rebound in leather so that they all look alike. This is a functioning library. The books can be used for study and research but they cannot leave the premises. The complete contents of the library are also online. One interesting fact, there are secret doors that swing open to allow in fresh air and light. Another, no fires were allowed for heating. Heat was provided in an indirect method to keep the books safe.

                                        

                                            The staircase to the chapel

Today the abbey houses a public high school of which our guide was a graduate. At its inception, there were 99 monks. Today there are only thirty, the youngest being in his thirties. It was a fascinating visit. Then we climbed down the winding stairs to the town itself. It seemed much less a tourist trap than some of the other towns we have seen, with lovely winding cobblestone streets and stores selling apricot products. Apparently, every garden in the town has an apricot tree. You can buy apricot jam, jelly, wine, beer, liqueur and schnapps. The walk back to the boat was through a beautiful wooded area. Gila stopped to take some pictures and lost track of time. The tour manager came out looking for her. The gangplank was being taken up as we arrived. The boat would have left even without the tour manager if we had not arrived when we did.

                                                  

                                                       On our way back to the ship

The afternoon was spent sailing through the Wachau valley. It is the wine growing area of Austria, mostly white wine. It reminded me of the Rhine, with it's terraced vineyards and castle ruins high up in the hills overlooking the valley.  

                               

The weather was beautiful and we sat on the sun deck listening to a running commentary about the sights as they came up. Later in the day there was a lecture about the Habsburgs, in power for 600 years, it should have been diverting. Instead, it was not only boring, but annoying as well. The Internet proved to be a better source.

                               

At dinner we docked in Vienna. All we saw were the bright lights of a big city. After we ate, we boarded a bus into Vienna for a concert in the Auerspear Palace. The Palace was a huge disappointment after the abbey. It was almost austere by comparison. There were statues in niches, some fountains, and had semi ornate cornices, but no paintings, no chandeliers, little marble.

                                                     

I thought it was a public concert, but it was one in a small room (more ornate than the hall) reserved for us and another tour group. It was a pastiche of the music of Vienna, a little Mozart, a little Strauss, senior and junior, a little ballet (on a 5 by 4 stage) and a little opera, followed by a sip of champagne at intermission and ride home via Ringstrasse. 

                                         

                                                                       

                                       The concert stage, the ballet dancers, the opera singers

At the ship, they were serving goulash for the late night snack. The thought of food at any hour on this trip, at this point, was nausea inducing. Too much food too often. I think everyone on the cruise is on a seefood diet and will have to follow a lessfood diet once they are home. Tomorrow we have a full day in Vienna.