Erfurt & Nuremberg 埃尔福特及纽伦堡

July 7，2022

After a brief family reunion in Berlin, our daughter flew back to New York today. Two of us headed to the next destination, the city of Nuremberg in southeastern Germany, while our son stayed in Berlin for a few more days to enjoy city life. We left Berlin early in the morning since we were going to have a side trip to Erfurt on the way to Nuremberg. After about a two-hour train ride, we got off the train at the central German city of Erfurt for a half-day visit. Erfurt has a rich history and is beautiful. Unlike most old towns in Germany that were destroyed during World War II and rebuilt after the war, Erfurt's old town was largely intact during World War II. It was one of the best-preserved medieval city centers in Germany. From the Erfurt train station, we took the bus to the town square. The weather was not in our favor, and the sky changed from cloudy to drizzling. The farmer's market in the square had just started, and we glanced at the market but quickly headed to the Cathedral. On the way to the Cathedral, we heard a beautiful voice singing behind the tall fences around the Cathedral. When we got closer, we saw a man singing opera on the 70 steps open-air stage on the cathedral hill while it was raining. Then a couple of other guys went up and sang. We did a quick google search. It was Erfurt Theater at the backdrop of the Cathedral. Probably, the guys were rehearsing or trying the audio system. We watched them practice for a while and wished we could stay for the night for the concert, whatever it was. Cathedral Church of St. Mary is on the hill overlooking the town square. Right next to the Cathedral was the St Severus' Church. Both churches together form the city's landmark. The inside of both churches was beautiful.

After walking around the churches, we headed to Petersberg Citadel. On the way there, mother nature called. But the restroom required a coin to enter, and one of us hadn't carried cash for months, so he jumped over the gate so he could take care of the business. We don't understand the justification for paid toilets in tourist areas. Can they raise the fee to cover the cost of maintaining the facility? It was not the first time we had a toilet issue during our Europe trip, and we learned from the experience to always carry some coins for an emergency. Petersberg Citadel in Erfurt is one of Europe's largest and best-preserved town fortresses. The citadel was built on Petersberg hill overlooking the city. The garden and fortress were well-maintained and beautiful. As we walked around the fortress, the rain stopped, and we enjoyed the view of the city and the stunning Cathedral.

The lunch was at a restaurant next to the square. Of course, we had Thuringian sausage. Thuringian sausage is a unique sausage from the German state of Thuringia, which has protected geographical indication status under European Union law. The sausage has been produced for hundreds of years, and we like the delicious sausage too.

Erfurt was where Martin Luther, the founder of the Protestant Reformation movement, completed college. The city has many historical buildings, such as the Augustinian monastery, where Martin Luther lived, prayed, and worked as a monk. St. Michael's Church was where Martin Luther regularly attended mass and preached. However, the most famous attraction in the town is the Merchants' Bridge, a medieval arch bridge lined with shops and houses on both sides of a cobblestone street. It is one of the few remaining bridges in the world with inhabited buildings. We walked back and forth over the bridge a couple of times.

We returned to the train station in the afternoon and headed to Nuremberg. Our hotel apartment was in the old town center. Next to the hotel was a Japanese ramen restaurant, and business was booming. Luckily, we got seats at the noodle bar and had ramen and sashimi salad, which were excellent.

After dinner, we wandered around the old town area. Our first impression was that Nuremberg’s old town was a bit like Prague's old town, but it was quieter and more beautiful than Prague’s old town.

欧洲游第四十八天：一家四口在柏林短暂相聚之后，今天女儿飞回纽约，我们俩前往下一站德国东南部城市纽伦堡市，儿子则继续留在柏林。一早坐了二个小时左右的火车先顺路在德国中部城市埃尔福特（Erfurt）下车来个半天游。小城历史悠久，很漂亮，与德国其它一些城市相比，算是在二战期间受损不太严重的城市，所以很多漂亮的旧建筑还在。埃尔福特是基督新教发起人-马丁．路德求学的所在地，在那里读完了大学。而埃尔福特最著名的景点是商人小桥，桥上两边是小商店，楼上还住着人家。午餐是当地的香肠,很好吃。在欧洲共同体里，这些著名的当地特产品都是有严格规定的，所以质量完全有保证。

下午再上火车来到纽伦堡市，这次又住酒店式公寓，带厨房的，就在市中心，非常方便。酒店隔壁就是日本拉面馆，生意兴隆，我们也去凑热闹，拉面🍜和生鱼片色拉🥗都非常棒。晚饭后还是老样子先在住的附近转一下，感觉有点像布拉格的旧城，但比布拉格更漂亮。

Painting and Photography 看油画和摄影

July 6, 2022

With the two-day museum passes, we returned to Museum Island this morning to continue our museum tour while our daughter visited her company's Berlin Office. We didn't spend much time outside on the island yesterday, so we went to the island early before the museums opened. The island was quiet and beautiful, and we took many pictures. Then, we went to the Alte National Galerie, where 19th-century oil paintings and sculptures were displayed. We didn't know much about art history, so we rented an audio guide to help us learn more about the art collections in the museum. As we slowly strolled from one collection to another, we appreciated the displayed art collections and the stories behind them. Our next stop was the famous Berlin Cathedral on the island. We climbed over 200 steps to the top and the panorama view was breathtaking. By this time, we had seen countless large and small churches in Europe, and we considered Berlin Cathedral one of the best.

We wanted to visit the Museum of Photography. We took the subway to Berlin Zoo station. By then, the weather had turned windy and chilly, and we did not dress appropriately for the weather. After a quick lunch at a nearby shopping mall, we returned to our hotel to add more layers of clothes. Then we hopped on a bus to the museum, and our son met us there. The Museum of Photography in Berlin is a museum of Helmut Newton's Photography, funded by the Helmut Newton foundation. The collections displayed in the museum were mainly his works. He is one of the twentieth century's great photographers, but we didn't know him at all, and we found many of the pictures displayed in the museum were just too disturbing. We do not mean to discredit his work in any way, just the photos were not what we expected to see, and we were a little disappointed.

Our daughter joined us for dinner after work. We found a restaurant serving Vegan schnitzel. Surprisingly the vegan schnitzel tasted better than the pork schnitzel we ordered, and our daughter was pleased with the restaurant's choice.

We were told at the hotel that all AC units were working now. It was a cold night, and we did not even need the AC to cool down the room tonight.

欧洲游第四十七天：昨天买了博物馆的联票，今天去博物馆岛继续参观博物馆。先去了艺术馆，那里展示了十九世纪的油画和雕塑，反正我们是外行看热闹，听听语音介绍，了解一下历史，觉得那些展示品都很不错。然后又去了在岛上的著名的柏林大教堂，这次来欧洲已经看了大大小小无数的教堂，这个应该算是我们见过的天主教堂中最好的之一。下午回旅馆稍微休息一下就又坐公交车去摄影博物馆，展览的作品不是我们所期待的，有些失望。晚上找了一家有吃炸素肉排的餐厅，没想到他们店的炸素肉排比炸猪排还好吃，女儿也算是没遗憾了。

Museum Island, 博物馆岛

July 5, 2022

When we were in a new place, we always looked for a breakfast/coffee store to experience. We found one this morning to have a brick of roasted pork bacon, and it tasted good.

We bought the two-day Museum passes and started our museum tour today. One island and five museums, a unique collection of buildings in the center of Berlin, make museum hopping much easy. For crowd control, we also needed to get the time entry tickets. We went to the Neue Museum Berlin in the morning, had lunch at the museum café, and then visited the Pergamon Museum in the afternoon. There was so much to see between the two museums. The highlights were the statue of the Egyptian heroine, the golden hat, and the replica of the Iraqi Ishtar Gate. The museum and many of its collections were destroyed during World War II and have been under renovation since the reunification of East and West Germany. In Pergamon Museum, through the protection glass, we observed the staff restoring the collections with cotton swabs.

We were pretty exhausted after visiting two museums in a row. Enough museums for the day, we left the museum island and went to the Turkish market in the late afternoon. The market was huge, selling all kinds of things. We were there a little late, and some stalls had already begun to close. We bought fresh cherries, had the lamb stews and falafel balls from the street food stands. The food tasted delicious, although it took us a while to find one small table with a bench to sit down and eat our food.

Dinner was Vietnamese food. We had a communication issue when we tried to order the food. Since our son was allergic to nuts, we had to ensure that none of the dishes we ordered had any nuts. On top of that, our daughter is vegan, and we would like to have at least one vegan dish for her. It turned out to be a challenge. The waitress did not understand English, and not a single staff did in the restaurant. We had to use the translator on our phone to communicate with her. During the entire meal time, we were worried about the nut allergy.

Berlin was a big city; we had done a lot in just two days and were exhausted. Back to the hotel, we were told that the AC should be back working the next day, another day.

欧洲游第四十六天：今天去了柏林博物馆岛上的柏林新博物馆和帕加馬博物館, 精点展品是埃及女主的塑像，金帽子和复制的伊拉克伊什塔尔城门。博物馆及许多收藏品在二战期间被毁，东西德合并之后一直在整修。P5中隔着玻璃看到工作人员在用棉花棒小心翼翼地修复藏品。柏林的几个好的博物馆光有票还不够，还要专门订进场的时间。连着二个博物馆看下来觉得蛮累的，下午就去了土尔其露天市场，我们去得有点晚，有些摊位已开始收工了。在那里买了点樱桃，顺便尝试些他们的街头小吃。晚饭是越南菜，语言交流有点问题，服务员一点英语都不懂，来欧洲四十几天了还是第一次。为了菜里有没有花生这事搞了半天。柏林有点大，玩得挺累的。

Family Reunion 一家团聚

July 4, 2022

It was the first time the four of us traveled together in Europe. This year, the German government issued 9 euros monthly travel pass for the summer months, June, July, and August. The monthly travel card was available to anyone, including the tourists like us, and could be used nationwide and include all local transportation, bus, ferry, and regional train. It was convenient and inexpensive to travel around Germany with this card.

After reuniting with our son, we spent the whole day exploring the city of Berlin, mainly visiting several attractions related to the Berlin Wall. Much of the Berlin Wall has been dismantled, leaving a small part as the Berlin Wall Memorial. We strolled around Bernauer Street to see the walls, old houses along the wall, and the information stalls to know that part of the history. We had lunch at Zum Schusterjungen, a homemade-style German restaurant. Then we continued sightseeing, including Checkpoint Charlie, a landmark boundary marking East and West Berlin with a white sentry guard house & cobbled border line was the best-known crossing point of the Berlin Wall and a symbol of the Cold War.  

We returned to our hotel for a short break and then went to the hostel with our son. He preferred to stay at the hostel alone, not with us at the hotel. As he was checking in at the hostel, we sat at a Chinese restaurant nearby to wait for him to join us for dinner. But he chatted with his roommate at the hostel and forgot about the time. Eventually, he joined us when we were almost done with the dinner. The restaurant claimed to serve some traditional Chinese cuisine, but we thought the food was so-so. After eating and drinking, we took a bus to the presidential residence. It was a quiet place with no tourists around, except a lawn mower robot working hard on the lawn. Then we wandered around Tiergarten Park to see the Victory Column and returned to the Memorial to Murdered Jews of Europe. We went back to the Brandenburg Gate a third time with a family photo in front of the Brandenburg Gate for the Berlin gathering.

欧洲游第四十五天：儿子今天一早飞到，一家四口在柏林团聚，很开心。这次来德国碰到了好事，今年夏天德国政府发放九欧元一月的交通卡。这交通卡是全国通用，包括所有的地方交通。有此卡后外出就很方便，今天一整天就在柏林城里转，主要去一些与柏林墙有关的景点。柏林围墙大部分已被拆除，留了很小一部分作为纪念，包括查理检查哨等。午饭是以当地的大肉为主，有人还没吃厌😀。晚上在一家中餐店里用餐，说是传统的中国菜，味道很一般，感觉就是骗老外的。吃饱喝足继续溜达又去蒂尔加藤公园看了胜利纪念柱，然后再次回到欧洲被害犹太人纪念碑区及勃兰登堡门。一家四口在勃兰登堡门前照相留念。

Berlin, Germany, 柏林,德国

July 3, 2022

Germany was the last country to visit in our two-months Europe travel plan. This morning we said goodbye to the beautiful Prague old town and headed to Germany. The train from Prague to Berlin took about four hours, and the train was so packed that even some people in the first class could only sit on the ground. Thank god we made our seat reservations for the ride. Since we didn't have time to eat anything in the morning to catch the train, we ordered breakfast as soon as we got on the train. The food on the train was not bad at all and was reasonably priced with an early bird discount. We even ordered the schnitzel for lunch. After the train entered into German, we saw a few policemen hopped on the train and questioned some passengers.

Our hotel unit in Berlin had one bedroom, a living room with a sofa bed, a small kitchen, and a washer/dryer. When we arrived, the front desk staff told us our room AC was not working and should be fixed the next day. We didn't realize that the entire hotel AC was down and the power was off for the AC. The room was warm but bearable. No complaining.

After settling in, we headed out and walked to the Brandenburg Gate. Many people were around the Brandenburg Gate, including a heavy police presence. We were unsure what was happening or if the police were simply for the security of several Embassies nearby, such as the US Embassy and the British Embassy. We did not stay too long, took a few pictures, and went to the Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe. It's a vast area with thousands of concrete slabs arranged in a grid pattern on a sloping field. It was a compelling memorial.

There was a long line for getting into an attached underground information center, and the lady monitoring the waiting line was very strict about the face mask. Not only everyone had to have the face mask on, but they also had to be the right type. Those fabric masks, which were very popular in the US, were not allowed at the museum, and the lady asked anyone with the wrong face mask to change it, including our daughter. Luckily, we brought extra N95 with us. This was our first encounter regarding the face mask in the last 40+ days. In all the countries and places we had visited so far, nobody cared about wearing face masks anymore. The underground information center holds the names of approximately 3 million Jewish Holocaust victims. It had many exhibition halls displaying informative videos, audio, pictures, and letters from the victims to their loved ones. It took us a long time to walk through, and it was a very sobering experience.

Before coming to Germany, we read an article about Berlin's Doner Kebab and thought we wanted to try it on this trip. Although we had already had a simple breakfast/lunch on the train, we could not resist the temptation of Berlin's Doner Kebab and went to one of the popular Kebab places with celebrities' and politicians' pictures all over the walls. The gyro we ordered was good indeed.

After relaxing and recharging, we continued exploring the city. As we walked around the Potsdamer Platz area, we were constantly reminded of the Cold war. Potsdamer Platz was divided between West and East Berlin, and the Berlin Wall cut through the square. A few panels of the Berlin Wall in the Potsdamer Platz provided a history of the Cold War, and many street surfaces were marked with divider lines. We walked past the Brandenburg Gate again. The crowds were gone, and it was much quieter compared to the early afternoon when we were here. The blue sky and white clouds were perfect for taking pictures. We did not have a chance to go inside the Reichstag Building. The roof terrace and dome of the Reichstag Building opened to the public, and admission was free, but advance registration was required, and the space filled up quickly. We just wandered around the area instead.

In the evening, we went to a vegan Thai restaurant. It served various small dishes on ceramic-coated plates, which was very special. Berlin was very Vegan friendly. We had a first good impression of Berlin.

欧洲游第四十四天：二个月欧洲游正在接近尾声，德国是我们计划中最后一个国家。从布拉格到柏林火车大约四个小时，火车上乘客爆满，既使是一等舱也有人只能坐在地上，亏得我们有订位。因为早上为赶火车没来得及吃任何东西，一上火车我们就点早餐，之后又要了简单午餐，觉得火车上的伙食还可以并且也不贵。在柏林的旅馆也是带厨房的，安顿好后就去勃兰登堡门附近走走，参观了欧洲被害犹太人纪念碑和纪念馆。虽然火车上已吃过简单午餐，但挡不住柏林的土尔其烤肉皮塔饼的诱惑，又吃了第二顿午餐😋。晚上去了一家全素的泰国店，很有特色，中晚两餐都还算不错。对柏林的第一印象很好。

Kutna Hora, Czech

July 2, 2022

Today we made a day trip out of the city to explore more of the Czech Republic. We went to a small historical town - Kutna Hora, about an hour by train from Prague. It was a silver mining town and was very rich during the medieval. But the life of miners was full of uncertainty and danger, so many churches were built there to ask for God's blessing. The Historical Town Center with the Church of St. Barbara, the Cathedral of Assumption of Our Lady and St. John the Baptist at Sedlec, the Sedlec Abbey and its Ossuary (Church of the Bone) was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

We first visited the Cathedral of Assumption of Our Lady and St. John the Baptist and then went to the more popular and touristy Church of the Bone. It sounded scary, a church with nothing but bones. At first, we hesitated to go. But curiosity overcame the fear, and we went inside. The ossuary church was extraordinary. Here does the story go. The abbey cemetery was a desirable burial site throughout Central Europe before the mid-14th century, with many thousands being buried. Around 1400, a Gothic church was built in the center of the cemetery, and a chapel was used as an ossuary for the mass graves unearthed during construction or simply making room for new burials. After 1511, a half-blind monk was tasked with exhuming skeletons and stacking their bones in the chapel. Later in the 19th century, a woodcarver put bone heaps into the art form of church decoration. It was an entirely different way to deal with the overcrowded burial site than Jewish did. Taking pictures inside was not allowed; if interested, you can check them on the Internet.

After seeing the Ossuary, we took the bus to St. Barbara's Cathedral. Before heading inside the cathedral, we needed to find a place for lunch since all of us were hungry. We picked a restaurant in the town nearby the cathedral and sat outside with a nice view. Here came a little story about our lunch at the restaurant. Everyone placed orders inside, and the server would find you and bring the food to the table. We ordered sausages, Falafel, and pickle cheese, a famous Czech snack. As we sat at a table in the courtyard waiting for our food, two young guys found a table next to us. As we waited and waited, a waiter brought three dishes just like ours to their table. We thought those might be our food since those two guys came to the restaurant later than us, so we asked the waiter if he might deliver the order to the wrong table. He was agitated a little and asked us to wait. In the meantime, two guys took pictures of the food and enjoyed it. We wondered what the chance was of two guys ordering the same three dishes as ours. After another 15 minutes, our food still didn't show up. We went inside and inquired about our order. A manager-like lady checked our order receipt, then asked the cooker in the kitchen and the waiter who delivered the food to the table. They then realized a mistake had been made and expedited our order. All three dishes were excellent. Interestingly, as we were enjoying our delicious food, the same waiter brought two more dishes to the next table, totally different from the first three dishes. Our guess was those were actually what the guys ordered in the first place. The two guys looked confused. The guys and the waiter did not speak much English, so some effort was needed to explain the situation. In the end, these two guys happily enjoyed all five dishes.

The gothic style Cathedral of St. Barbara was stunning and magnificent from the outside. It was gorgeous, with many frescoes and sculptures inside, which were from the medieval.

After seeing the church, we visited a few minor tourist attractions in the town, and we loved this place. Before taking the train back to Prague, we found a lovely cafe for a break, having a cup of coffee, beer, and lemon tea, freshly roasted almond and fried potato chips were particularly delicious. Today's outing was very relaxing and enjoyable.

We learned from our tour guide the other day that two percent of the general population in the Czech Republic was Vietnamese, the third largest ethnic minority. We decided to try Vietnamese food tonight after we returned to Prague. We found a top-rated restaurant on Google Maps, which offered excellent food but didn't seem like the traditional Vietnamese food we were used to.

After dinner, we slowly walked back to the flat. On the streets and buildings of Prague, it was common to see sculptures hanging in the air and on the walls. But if you were in a hurry and did not look up, it was easy to miss them. We saw quite a few of them. On our way back, we were attracted by a shop specializing in Czech desserts, just like our glutinous rice balls, which can be filled with various fillings, salty or sweet. We had one salty and one sweet. Both were delicious, and what a perfect ending to our Czech tour.

欧洲游第四十三天：今天去了捷克的一个小镇-Kutna Hora，从布拉格过去大约一个多小时的火车。这小镇中世纪时是白银矿，很有钱，但矿工的人生充满不确定的危险，所以在那里造了不少教堂以求神的保佑。其中圣芭芭拉大教堂，圣母和圣约翰洗者大教堂和人骨教堂是入选世界遗产名录的。先去了圣母和圣约翰洗者大教堂和人骨教堂，人骨教堂很特殊，教堂里装饰全是用人骨做成的，听上去很可怕，真去了也没什么。不让照相，感兴趣可以上网查一下。

看完人骨教堂后就坐公交车去圣芭芭拉大教堂，先在大教堂所在的镇上找了个餐厅吃午饭，我们点了香肠，泡菜奶酪和中东素菜球。哥德式的圣芭芭拉大教堂是非常美丽壮观，里面的壁画和雕塑都是中世纪的。看完教堂后，又去镇上几个小景点扫了一遍，很喜欢这个小镇。离回去的火车还有一个多小时，找了个地方休息休息喝上一杯咖啡啤酒柠檬茶，他们现炸的土豆片特别好吃。今天的郊外游很轻松很开心。

昨天听说在捷克有百分之二的越南人，是第三大少数民族，今天决定去尝试一下这里越南美食，找一家网上排名前列的店，味道不错但好像不是我们想象中的传统的越南菜。饭后又慢慢地走回住所，在路上被一家专卖捷克甜点的店给吸引住了，就像我们的糯米团一样，里面可放有各种各样的馅，说是甜点，但也有咸味的，甜咸各要了一个，真好吃，算是给捷克游画上了一个完整的句号。

Jewish Old City 犹太人旧城

July 1, 2022

We went to the city square in the morning before the most tourists showed up. The square was tranquil and beautiful. One or two cafes on the square opened for breakfast and coffee. We had a cup of cappuccino costing 8 euros, including the currency exchange and tip. It was the most expensive coffee on this trip. But enjoying a peaceful time in the square was worth the money.

The 48-hour Prague tourist card we purchased would expire at noon today. Before it was over, we stopped by the Powder Tower, one of the 13 city gates in Prague, used to store gunpowder in the 17th century. It was difficult climbing up since the staircases were very narrow and steep. The view from the top was fantastic, and there were metal plaques in the tower to help recognize all the city's significant buildings.

Then we visited the Jewish Quarter, one of the unique places in Prague. The Jewish Museum was composed of several synagogues and an old Jewish cemetery. Jewish had settled in Prague as early as the 10th century. Jews' life in the Czech had been terrible, discriminated against, and persecuted greatly throughout history, except for just a few years after World War I and after the decomposition of the Soviet Union. The names of 80,000 Prague Jews who died during World War II are inscribed on the walls of one of the synagogues. The old Jewish cemetery, one of the oldest Jewish cemeteries in Europe, from the first half of the 15th century until 1786, was the most remarkable of its kind. During the more than three hundred years in which it was in active use, the old cemetery struggled with the lack of space but was not allowed to expand beyond the existing plot. Jewish tradition didn't allow to abolish the old graves, so many soil layers were added to the ancient tombs for burial. The grave surface was raised several meters higher than the surrounding streets. Several old synagogues presented their experiences, Judaism, and culture. This was our first time visiting the Jewish community, and it was a great way to see the city of Prague and learn the history of the Jewish people in Prague and Czech. On the way to the Jewish Quarter, we spotted an old Coffee maker in the store window, which was the largest one we had ever seen.

Lunch was Chinese food and tasted average, but it was the first time in 40 days that we had stir-fried bok choy, the authentic Chinese veggie. We did not even take pictures before it was all gone. Every time we visit a new country, we like to try Chinese food if it's available. Sometimes the food would be surprisingly good, but not this one.

Seeing the Infant Jesus of Prague, highly recommended online, was our afternoon activity. A little disappointed as the Infant Jesus was just a tiny wooden/wax statue in a small church. But at least the church was beautiful. On the way back to the flat, we were surprised to see a large crowd in front of the old town hall, a clear contrast comparing to the morning.

After we returned to the flat to rest, wind/percussion music was on the street, and a group of people marched through the street, shouting and singing. We didn't know what religion it was, but they looked happy.

We had tomato, mushroom, and egg soup again. We planned to go out after dinner, but the rain kept us in the flat for the night.

欧洲游第四十二天：买的48小时观光卡今天中午要过期。赶在作废之前又去爬了另外二个城楼，然后就来到犹太人旧城参观。在捷克的犹太人很不容易, 几百年来，除了第一次世界大战后短短几年和苏联分解后，他们一直受到歧视和迫害，几个旧犹太教堂都介绍他们的经历，犹太教和他们的文化。二次大战期间死去的犹太人的名字都刻在其中一个犹太教堂的墙面上。第一次参观犹太人社区，了解了不少。午餐是中餐，味道一般，不过算是四十天来第一次吃上炒青菜。反正每次去一个新的国家总是要尝试一下那里的中餐。下午去看网上推荐的婴儿耶稣，没什么意思，不值得特地跑去一次。回到旅馆休息一下，楼下传来吹打声，没搞清楚是什么教。晚上本想要出去转悠，结果因为下雨就只能乖乖地呆在旅馆了。

Tram Tour 观光有轨电车

June 30, 2022

Unlike yesterday afternoon's pouring rain, it was a little drizzling outside this morning. We made bacon/eggs breakfast and coffee at the flat, then went to the Jewish Old City early. But after buying tickets and knowing the tickets were valid for seven days, we decided to see some other outdoor attractions first since the sky opened up and the clouds were gone. We would return to the Jewish Quarter tomorrow.

Prague has a special sightseeing tram, Line 42, that circles the city center, running from Thursday to Sunday, and the ticket is valid for 24 hours, with unlimited hop-on and hop-off. The trams in use are all old antiques. The first one we boarded was more than 90 years old, and the driver stood up to drive and had to honk his horn with his foot. A young girl conductor, dressed in the 1930s, shouted the names of the following stops and punched a hole in the tickets. It was like a travel back in time as we rode past Prague's most iconic sites.

After circling in a half loop around the city, we got off at Petrin Hill Station. Located at the base of Petrin Hill was this disturbing series of statues we passed by, dedicated to the political prisoners from 1948-1989. We took the funicular up to the top of the hill. Petrin Hill is one of the largest urban green areas in the center of Prague, a favorite spot for local families with children and young couples. The Rose Garden, or rosarium, at the top of Petrin Hill, Nebozízek Garden, and the Seminary Garden were particularly magical. We took the elevator to the Petrin Lookout Tower, a popular tourist attraction for its incredible city views. We also went to the mirror maze and had fun, reminding us of "haha" mirrors at the famous entertainment place called "Big World" in Shanghai when we were young.

We had a quick lunch with the Turkish pita bought from the small cafe near the bus station while waiting for the bus and got onto the sightseeing tram again. This time it was a different car, which was more modern with colorful seats. The historic tram took us to the Dlabacov station on the outskirt of the city. There was not much to see in that area, and we had to wait for 30 minutes to get back on the tram. Before we boarded the tram, we found a lovely coffee shop nearby and had our coffee break. After completing a loop, we arrived at the boat terminal and boarded the river sightseeing boat. Before the tour started, coffee or beer and chocolate-coated ice cream were served. Some trivia facts about the Vltava River in Prague were described during the one-hour tour. The river sightseeing tour was informative and scenic. But the day was not done yet. We had another guided tour at six o'clock in the evening.

We returned to the residence for a quick early dinner, our favorite tomato, mushroom, and egg soup. When we arrived at the tourist office where our tour would start, because only just three of us signed up for the tour, it became a private guided tour. After knowing that we had participated in a large group of old city hall guided tour yesterday, the tour guide lady slightly changed the focus to the things we didn't know from the last tour. She first explained to us some of the histories of the old city government hall that we didn't learn yesterday, and then took us to the streets to some famous places in the ancient city. Having a private guide accompany you to see the place was much better than just self-guided walking. She also explained that the old town center was the city on the top of the ancient city, and under the current road surface, there was the ancient Roman city. It took about 70-80 years to add Gothic architecture to Roman architecture slowly. Most of the Gothic buildings, built after the Middle Ages, we saw today were built on the top of the ancient Roman city. There was often an old Roman church buried underneath the beautiful Gothic church. We learned a lot today.

欧洲游第四十一天：没像昨天下午那样倾盆大雨，今天早上起来外面有点濛濛细雨，在住所吃完培根鸡蛋后早早出门，来到犹太人旧城，但买了票后知道参观票七天内有效，加上那时雨过天晴，我们决定先去一些其它室外景点，明天再回到犹太区参观。

布拉格有专门的观光有轨电车围绕市中心转，从周四到周日，车票是24小时有效，可以无限上下，而且电车都是老古董。我们坐的第一辆车像是有九十多年的老车了，司机按喇叭必须用脚踩。坐着车转了半圈后在Petrin小山站下然后坐索道缆车到山顶再坐电梯上了Petrin 塔，在塔顶上将布拉格全城美景尽收眼底。山顶上有个镜子迷宫，匆匆进去走一圈，有点像小时候去大世界看里面的哈哈镜。午餐是在车站附近买了个土尔其烤肉皮塔饼，这种烤肉摊城里到处都是，既便宜又好吃😋，从来吃不厌。吃完又坐上了旅游观光车，这次是不同的车，比较现代化。转了一大圈后来到游船码头，坐上了观光船。一小时游程中，又送咖啡啤酒还给紫雪糕，还讲解一些有关布拉格这条伏尔塔瓦河的琐事。傍晚六点有个导游讲解游，先回住所吃了个很简单的早晚饭，还是老规矩-番茄蘑菇鸡蛋汤，洗洗昨晚上大块肉的油脂😀。没想到预约的导游讲解游，因为只有我们三位报名了，就变成了私人导游游👍。知道我们昨天有参加过大组的老城市政厅讲解游后，导游先是给我们讲解了一些昨天没学到的有关老城市政厅的历史，然后带我们上街去了旧城里一些有典故的地方。有私人导游陪着讲解要比自己随便看好许多，了解不少事。其实老城中心是城上城，在现在路面下面，有着古老罗马城。后来大约花了70-80年的时间慢慢地在罗马建筑上加哥德式的建筑，在现在所看到的中世纪后所建的哥德式大楼大多数都建在罗马古城上，漂亮的教堂下常常有一个罗马旧教堂埋在底下。

Prague Castle 布拉格城堡

June 29, 2022

It had been forty days since we came to Europe, and we didn't seem to want to go home yet. The weather in Prague was much more comfortable than in Budapest by now. We didn't want to rush today, so we went out for breakfast and wandered around the farmers market nearby. Those fresh fruits in the market looked very good.

We purchased a 48-hour Prague tourist card for each of us from the tourist office and started our sightseeing near noon. Our first tour was the free guided tour to the old city hall, covered with admission to the hall. The tour guide took us around the old city hall and told us how the city hall and the town had evolved over time. The entire old town has been raised by more than five meters over the years. The street floor from seven or eight hundred years ago has now become underground basements or cellars. There was an underground city under the present town. He took us to the basement and showed us various rooms under the hall. The underground structures were only open to the guided tour. But the highlight of the city hall visit was to see the astronomical clock tower and twelve Jesus apostles from the building inside, just behind the clock. After the guided tour, we went to the city hall tower to have a panoramic view of the square.

For lunch, we bought smoke sausages at a stall in the square to make our stomachs happy and then took the bus to Prague Castle on the other side of the river, not far from the Old Town. The castle is home to the most famous and largest Catholic church in the Czech Republic, St. Vitus Cathedral. The Prague Royal Palace in the castle was not as impressive as Schonbrunn in Vienna. Still, some of the other buildings in the castle have some unique characters, including the Golden Lane, where the former bars and the houses of the lower classes were, not too far from the castle.

The private Lobkowicz Palace of the Prince Lobkowicz family is inside Prague Castle. The visit to Lobkowicz Museum was rewarding. The family lost the palace and the valuable collections twice, the first during World War II and the second under Communist rule. The family fled the Czech Republic and went to the United States during the communist period, and of course, all the real estate and collections were "raided." After the fall of the Communist Party, they moved back to the Czech Republic and began to rebuild and restore the former palace. The country even passed a new law allowing their family and others to get the raided treasures back. The collection in the museum was unique and worth the visit.

After a whole afternoon of sightseeing, we eyed a big Czech dinner, a large crispy pork knuckle, a traditional Czech dish at Pork’s. The knuckle was tender inside and crispy outside, very, very tasty. It was ten times better than the last time we had in a German town outside Seattle. We also had pork schnitzel, one of the best schnitzels on this trip. This restaurant knew how to cook the meat. The food was amazing and service was excellent. With the local beer, fried knuckle, and pork schnitzel, the fatigue of walking and sightseeing in the afternoon quickly went away. In addition, we also learned a few things about beer ordering in Prague, Snyt, or Mliko. Snyt beer has 50% foam and Mliko 90% foam. We had one Pilsner beer with 90% foam and a black beer. The Prague beer tasted delicious. Of course, we couldn't finish a big pork knuckle and brought half of it back to our apartment. After we paid the bill, the waiter gave each of us a shot of honey whiskey. Although it was sweet and tasted very good, all we could take was just one sip due to the very high alcohol concentration. While we liked our knuckle, schnitzel, and beer, our daughter enjoyed her Vegan dish too.

After dinner, the sky got dark, and suddenly the rain poured down when we walked across the Charles bridge. We got all wet but found the Old Town Bridge Tower was still open, so we climbed up the tower and got a panoramic view of Prague's old town.

欧洲游第四十天：来欧洲已有四十天了，好像还没有想回家的念头😜。布拉格的气候比布达佩斯舒服多了，今天不用赶路，安安心心地出去吃了个早餐，近中午时才开始外出观光。第一件事是每人买张48小时旅游卡，开始我们布拉格游。先去了老城市政厅，跟着导游转了一圈，包括上到天文钟楼，近距离看到那整点报时出来的十二个使徒。了解了不少事，整个老城区提高了五米多，七，八百年前的底层现在变成了地窖。午餐就在小摊上买了根香肠充饥，然后就去了河对岸离老城不远的布拉格城堡。城堡里有着捷克最著名，最大的天主教堂-圣维特大教堂（St. Vitus Cathedral) 。城堡里的布拉格王室宫殿比起奥地利的要差一些，但城堡里其他一些建筑有些特色，其中金色小街是以前的酒吧和下层人居住的地方。最后参观了洛布科维奇宫，是私人宫殿，属于以前亲王贵族家的。先后失去了二次，第一次是二战期间，第二次是在共产党统治下，全家逃离捷克去了美国，当然所有的房地产和收藏品都被＂抄家＂。共产党下台后，他们搬回捷克开始重建修复以前的宫殿。看了整整一下午的景点后，晚餐是捷克餐。一大个脆皮猪肘子里嫩外脆，非常非常合胃口，比上次在西雅图市外的德国小镇上的好吃多了，再配上啤酒，把一下午走路看景的劳累全带走了😜。另外学了新的东西，啤酒可以要大杯但沫多酒少的那种，他们的黑啤很好喝。当然一个大猪肘子一个人是吃不完的还带了一半回去。

Prague, Czech Republic 布拉格,捷克

June 28, 2022

We were very exciting going to another new country - the Czech Republic. But it was a long travel day, and the train ride from Budapest to Prague, the Czech Republic, took more than seven hours. Since it was raining in the morning, the taxi took a while to show up. Fortunately, the train station is not very far, and it didn't delay that much. We had booked a direct train from Budapest to Prague, but a section of the railway in the middle was washed away by a mudslide a few days ago, and the bus transferred the passengers to bypass the damaged railway section. As we got off the bus, a policeman shouted "passport, passport" to the crowd. We didn't have the passports in hand. When we tried to get our passports, the police officers just waved to let us go without checking the passports. We saw two passengers get arrested because they didn't have the documents. It was the first time we had witnessed such an event in the past 40 days in Europe, and we had crossed the border multiple times. It seemed that the border inspection was profile targeting.

We arrived at Prague's central train station after five in the afternoon and called Uber to get us to our hotel apartment in the old town center. Part of the old town area was pedestrian-only, and no cars were allowed. After getting off the Uber, we had to drag our suitcase through the cobblestone street, which was not easy. Besides the bedroom, the apartment had a large living room, small kitchen, and washer machine, but we later discovered it didn't have AC, and they gave us two fans to cool the rooms down. The apartment was next to a busy alley and was noisy during the day. However, the location was perfect.

After settling in, we walked to the old town square nearby, just in time for the Prague Astronomical Clock to announce the hour. The clock was a medieval astronomical clock attached to the Old Town Hall and was first installed in 1410, making it the third-oldest astronomical clock in the world and the oldest clock still in operation. There were hundreds of people anxiously waiting for the twelve Jesus apostles to appear one by one out of two small doors on the clock. The whole sequence lasted about a few minutes.

After another vegan dinner, we went to the famous Charles Bridge, which was overcrowded. We were uncomfortable with the large crowd, so we left the bridge and returned to the square. There were several food booths, and when we saw big ham being grilled on the stall, our appetite was up again. The ham was sold by weight, starting with 100 grams. We couldn't hold it back and asked for some, which tasted good. Our first impression of Prague was good.

Charles Bridge

欧洲游第三十九天：今天又要去一个新的国家-捷克🇨🇿。从布达佩斯坐火车到捷克的布拉格(Prague)要七个多小时，早上起来下雨了，下雨天叫出租车有些难，还好没耽搁太久，且火车站也不是很远。我们订的是直达的火车，但中间有一段铁路前些天被泥石流冲毁了，只能用汽车来代替。铁路公司安排了大巴🚌将我们从一辆火车送到另一辆。有点吃惊的是刚下大巴就有二名乘客因为没有护照而被抓，来欧洲近四十天还是第一次碰到，但并没有查我们，看来边境检查是有针对性的。下午五点多到了布拉格，叫Uber 来到老城中心的小旅馆，也带厨房的。在安顿好了之后就走去旁边的老城广场，正好赶上天文钟整点报时，精彩点是十二位耶稣使徒们一个个在两个小门里出现。饭后又去了著名的查理大桥，桥上人满为患，匆匆走了一遍。回到布拉格广场看到小摊上正烤着火腿时，食欲又来了，实在是憋不住，要了一百克火腿，味道还真好。对布拉格第一印象不错。

Record Temperature 热浪席卷欧洲

June 27, 2022

The heat wave swept across Europe, and the temperature in Budapest today was already the highest in the last forty days we had been in Europe. Although the temperature was still much lower than in Phoenix, it was really a bit unbearable when we walked under the direct sun.

On a guided tour, we visited the Hungarian Parliament Building early in the morning. The Parliament Building was a symmetrical façade and a central dome in the Gothic Revival style. The inside was golden and magnificent, one of the most luxurious buildings we had seen on this trip. The picture taking was allowed except for the Holy Crown displayed in the central hall. During the People's Republic of Hungary period, a red star perched on the top of the dome, but it was removed in 1990 after the fall of communism. The broken star was on display in the museum.

Then we went to the Central Market for the second time and had Goulashes, a traditional Hungarian dish, which tasted very good. We had tried different Goulash soups in various countries in the past few weeks, but we preferred this goulash today. We were leaving tomorrow but hadn't tried the Hungarian snack – Chimney Cake, yet, and while chimney cakes were all over the town, a top vegan chimney cake store was on the Buda side, just across the river. We took the bus to the Buda side again and had the chimney cake to check off a box on our to-do list.

We returned to our flat to take a break and then took the subway to the Buda side again for dinner. We found a restaurant with seabass on the menu and ordered the whole fried seabass. The photo looked better than the actual taste. After dinner, we went to Fisherman's Bastion, free of charge after dark. From the terrace, the view of the Parliament building at night was magnificent, and we could see bats flying over the building.

欧洲游第三十八天：热浪席卷欧洲，布达佩斯今天的温度也已经是我们来欧洲近四十天最高的一天。虽然气温仍远低于凤凰城的，但在烈日暴晒下走真的有点受不了。一早就参观匈牙利议会大厦，里面是金碧辉煌，宏伟壮观，是我们这次旅行中见到的最漂亮的建筑物之一。然后又再次来到中央市场，在那里尝试匈牙利的传统美食-炖牛肉(Goulashes)，味道还真不错。之前的几周在各个国家都有尝过不同的牛肉汤（Goulash Soup), 还是更喜欢今天这个炖牛肉。明天要离开这里了，可是匈牙利小吃-烟囱蛋糕(Chimney Cake)还没尝过，虽然烟囱蛋糕满街都是，可排名前列的全素蛋糕是远在河对面。我们又坐了公交车去了对岸，也算了个心愿。晚上准备上鱼人堡看夜景，先回住所休息一会儿后，又坐地铁再次来到对岸。先找了一家有炸鱼的饭店，点了个炸全鲈鱼，照片上看着馋人，结果味道一般。饭后来到鱼人堡，眺望对岸，夜幕下的议会大厦非常漂亮，真是名不虚传。

Danube River Cruise 多瑙河游

June 26, 2022

Today's main activity was doing Danube River Cruise. There are two types of river cruises, river cabin cruises and river sightseeing cruises. The river cabin cruises typically provide overnight stay cabins and involve a multi-day itinerary. The simple sightseeing cruises take passengers from point A to point B during the day. It sometimes offers simple tour guides and usually has a small café for food and drink. The river tours cost a fraction of the river cruises with cabins. We already did one river sightseeing cruise in Vienna on the Danube River and enjoyed it. We planned to do a few more on this Europe trip. We had wanted to do a multi-day river cruise with overnight cabins in Europe for a while. Now we started questioning whether river cabin cruises were worth the money.

The heat wave swept many European countries in the past few days, and the Budapest area was also under a high-temperature alert. We often felt exhausted after walking a few minutes in the city. Under this kind of weather, cruising on the river offered a more comfortable way to enjoy than walking in the city.

After having breakfast at a café near our rented flat, we boarded a river sightseeing boat sailing from Budapest to Szentendre, a small town just outside of Budapest, against the river flow. Szentendre was a tourist town full of churches, galleries, museums, and cafes. The one-way ticket for a two-hour boat tour costs only 10 Euros per person. The river view from Budapest to Szentendre was terrific, especially passing the striking waterfront of Budapest's UNESCO World Heritage, such as the Szechenyi Chain Bridge, the Liberty Bridge, Buda Castle Hill, the Hungarian Parliament Building, and Margaret Island.

After arriving in the town, we visited a few tourist attractions first. Passing by a Langos stand along a narrow alley, three of us shared a garlic Langos which was very tasty and cost only 1.5 euros. Lángos is a famous Hungarian street food snack. It's a deep-fried flatbread made of dough from water or milk, flour, yeast, and salt. It is usually topped with sour cream and grated cheese or garlic. We always like deep-fried bread, and this one was no exception.

For lunch, two of us went to a Greek restaurant while our daughter decided to try a Vegan café alone. We had grilled squids and Greek salad, and both were delicious. Earlier, while we wandered around in the old town square, we saw this beautiful ice cream store, Levendula Kézműves Fagylaltozó, decorated nicely with lavender and purple colors. We never had lavender flavor ice cream and liked to figure out how it tasted. After lunch, we went to the store and ordered a small cup of lavender ice cream. Although there was a couple of purple color ice cream in the booth, the girl behind the counter gave us a scoop of lavender ice cream, which was white, and even put it into a white cup despite many purple cups there. The ice cream didn't taste like lavender or smell like lavender. At this point, we still didn't know what she had given us. We were expecting our ice cream would be a purple color in the purple cup. It was a big disappointment, but we laughed it off.

It was hot today. The portable water mists in the town helped us cool a little bit. We didn't return to Budapest on the boat. Instead, we took the 130-year-old intercity train back to the town. There was no air conditioning in the carriage, and all windows were open. The train ride was noisy and uncomfortable as the train shook from side to side while running. It was said that these carriages had been used for more than 40 years on average. It was quite a different experience for us.

Our daughter went to a vegan shop in the city center alone. Budapest had quite a few vegan options, and she enjoyed them very much. We returned to the flat and had tomato mushroom egg soup again. After dinner, the three of us went to the riverside again and sat at the same café we were in yesterday. As watching the sun go down, we drank coffee and chatted. It was a happy family time.

欧洲游第三十七天：今天的节目是多瑙河游。在住宿附近的一家咖啡馆吃了早餐后就从布达佩斯坐游船逆水而上，大约一个半小时后来城外的旅游小镇。这几天热浪席卷欧洲多国，布达佩斯地区也是高温居下，没走几步就满头大汗。坐在船上舒服多了。到了小镇后，就把几个景点先扫了一遍。路过一家油饼小摊，三人分享了一个蒜蓉油饼，非常好吃，只花了1.5欧元。然后在河边餐厅坐下吃了个午餐休息一下之后就坐着有130年历史的城间火车回城。车厢里没有空调，所有窗都打开，车一开车厢左右摇晃叽叽嘎嘎全是噪音。据说这些车厢平均使用年已超过四十几年了。对我们来说也是一种不一样的体验。今晚我们俩又是番茄蘑菇蛋汤，女儿一人去了一家全素店。布达佩斯还是有蛮多的素食选择。晚餐后又去河边打卡，喝咖啡看太阳落山。

Buda Castle & Thermal Bath, 布达城堡和泡温泉

June 25, 2022

We went to a supermarket this morning to buy vegan snacks and small pastries. Things in Budapest were relatively cheap, and eight pieces of small pastries cost only two euros. After breakfast, the three of us took the bus to Buda Castle. We did not take the funicular to the castle and instead went up on foot. Many buildings and the famous Széchenyi Chain Bridge in the city were being renovated, and the castle was no exception. Fortunately, the majority of the castle was still open to the public. After walking up, an outdoor cafe was perfect for a quick break with coffee and freshly made lemonade. We were fortunate to see the guard change ceremony at the castle just in time.

Out of the castle, we went to Fisherman's Bastion, built in the late 19th century. It is one of the top Budapest attractions, without a doubt. The upper towers of the bastion have a small entrance fee to get in. But the panoramic views of Budapest from lookout towers were unmatchable. This fortress had never served as an actual fortification but is now the fantastic backdrop of millions of beautiful photos by tourists worldwide.

The Pest side of the Budapest

We had our lunch near the Fisherman's Bastion and then went to the Parliament building on the other side of the river. Unfortunately, the tour tickets for the inside building were sold out for the day, and then we bought the tickets for Monday. We strolled around the area to see some tourist attractions, such as Shoes on the Danube Bank, IN MEMORIAM 1956 October 25, and a few other memorial statues around the parliament buildings.

On the way to the flat, we visited the famous St. Stephen's Basilica, which happened to have a wedding, and there were far more tourists like us than the actual wedding guests attending the wedding. A few churches, like St. Stephen's Basilica, charge a fee to see the church, including the tower. We bought the all-in-one tickets. Since the altar area was blocked for the moment due to the wedding, we decided to first climb up to the lookout point in the tower. The 360-degree view from the church towers made climbing the hundreds of stairs steps worth the effort. We thought we could see the altar in the church after the wedding. To our surprise, after coming down from the tower, there was another wedding. We still couldn't see the altar up close even though we had paid for it. Outside the church was an ice cream shop having many followers on social media, Gelarto Rosa, and the line was long. Regardless of the long wait, the beautiful ice cream did comfort us a little, at least.

The panoramic view from the lookout tower at St. Stephen’s Basillica

Soaking in a thermal bath was a must-do thing when visiting Budapest. Yesterday, we went to Gettert Thermal Bath House to check it out but didn't get in. Today we decided to go to Széchenyi Baths, the largest thermal bath complex in Europe and Budapest's most popular baths. The outdoor section was stunning and huge, as well as the yellow neo-renaissance buildings. We did not have much experience with a thermal bath in Budapest. We went inside the building to check out. It had 11 indoor thermal pools at various temperatures from 28°C-40°C and with different mineral concentrations. We soaked in some of the pools for a few minutes each. Then we went to the outdoor pools and even got into a whirlpool. The tickets were not cheap, but the experience was good. We wished we could spend more time there. The lucky one among us went to Iceland last summer, and she liked Iceland's thermal Bath better.

After soaking in the thermal Bath, we went to a restaurant recommended by our rental host, and the food was delicious.

欧洲游第三十六天：吃全素的女儿到后，今天一早就去超市买了一大堆全素的食品和我们吃的小面包。布达佩斯的东西很便宜，八个小面包只花了二个欧元。早餐后，我们三人坐了公交车去Buda Castle (布达城堡) ,很多建筑都在装修，城堡也不例外。出了城堡，来到Fisherman’s Bastion (鱼人堡)。去了议会大厦，但向导讲解游票巳售完毕，只买到了周一的。在往住所的路上，来到著名的圣伊什特万圣殿(St. Stephen's Basilica)，碰巧遇上婚礼，像我们这样看热闹的游客远多于参加婚礼的嘉宾😀。气喘吁吁爬到教堂上面，360度的景观也算让我们没白费力气。兜了一圈下到教堂，结果又换了另一场婚礼，还是没办法近距离看圣坛，有点遗憾。好在教堂外就是网红冰淇淋店，排长队买了漂亮的冰淇淋安慰一下自己😅。泡温泉是来布达佩斯必做的事，先回到住处拿游泳衣和浴巾，去了欧洲最大的温泉池，里里外外有好几个温度和含矿物质不同的温泉池，人也不少。去过冰岛的人说比冰岛的温泉差多了😛。泡完温泉后去了一家房东推荐的餐厅，味道不错。

Guess who is here? 女儿的到来

June 24, 2022

We got up early in the morning and went to a small café across the street. Although we stayed in a bustling tourist area, and there were a lot of choices for food and drinks during the day and at night, the breakfast choice in the early morning was minimal. Only a hand full of breakfast cafes opened in the morning. The café was small, but the waiter took us to the lovely courtyard in the back. We had Bacon, eggs, and coffee, and it was a good breakfast.   

After coming to Europe, we were curious to find out any historic markers left by the communist period in Eastern Europe. We have visited three former Eastern European countries on this trip so far, and apart from the infrastructure being far behind Western Europe, there was almost nothing left to remind that period of history. But in Budapest, Hungary, they built a small park outside of the city called Memento Park, where they collected some of the statues that had been made under Soviet control.

We took the bus to Memento Park. Budapest had a reasonably extensive and efficient public transport system, including many buses, trams, and metro trains. But taking a bus in Budapest was a bit more complicated than in other countries on this trip. The tickets could be purchased from a ticket machine near some bus stops or downloaded from an app on the phone. A set of ten bus tickets was cheaper than individual ones. The price costs less than one euro for a ride. Each bus fare can only be used for one ride, with no transfer, regardless of distance. The ticket needs to be validated on the bus. There were different ways to validate a ticket depending on the bus you were on, and it could be putting a time stamp on the ticket or punching a hole. As first-timer, we did not know all these, and the machine didn't always work for us. Fortunately, the friendly locals quickly came to the rescue. To get to Memento Park, we had to do a bus transfer. We had a little trouble finding the right stop for the transfer and ended up on the bus in the opposite direction. The bus driver did not speak English, but he was so nice to stop the bus and even got off the bus to show us the one we should take.

Finally, we arrived at Memento Park. There were not many tourists visiting the park. It had three parts: the Statue Park, the Barrack Cinema, and the Photo Exhibition. The Status Park was small, featuring some Communist-era statues, sculptures, and plates. The park was not well maintained and was overgrown with weeds. The Photo Exhibition gave a brief overview of Hungarian socialist history, and the Cinema showed glimpses of the country's dark past with the government spying on its citizens. All of these reminded us of the dictatorship and its fall. In today's Hungary, people live a free life. Budapest was full of tourists as if they had long forgotten the new COVID virus.

After visiting the park, we stopped by the Buda side of Budapest and walked up to Gellert Hill. Unfortunately, Citadella was closed for renovation, but we had a fantastic panoramic view of the Pest and the Danube River at the top of the hill. We didn't stay there for too long as we needed to return to the city center to meet our daughter.

Our daughter flew from New York to Budapest to join us today. We knew she would take an airport shuttle to the city center, not too far from our rented place, and the bus stop for the shuttle. We went to the bus stop a few minutes earlier and had our iPhones ready to tape a happy family reunion. But the empty bus came without any passengers. "Oh, no. The passengers were dropped off somewhere else", we murmured to ourselves. We immediately used Find My on the phone to locate her on the other side of the street. She also planned to videotape us for the reunion but was very disappointed that we were not there when she got off the bus. Ultimately, we were delighted to see each other again on another continent.

We went to a vegan restaurant for dinner, and the food tasted delicious. Afterward, we went to a café on the river for coffee and enjoyed another beautiful night view of Budapest.

欧洲游第三十五天：一早起来就去外面转转，在民舍对面的小店吃了个早餐。然后就坐公交车去城外的纪念公园。在布达佩斯坐公交车比其他国家要复杂一些，一张票只能坐一次车，换车要用新票，上车后还要打时间，但价格还是便宜，一个欧元不到坐一次车。来欧洲后，很好奇想在东欧看看在共产党时期留下的痕迹。已经去了三个前东欧国家，除了相比之下基础设施要比西欧差一些，其它几乎已经再也看不见反映那一段历史的痕迹了。不过在匈牙利的布达佩斯，他们建立了一个小小的公园，把以前苏联控制下所塑造的一些塑像收集起来放在那里。里面杂草丛生，稀稀拉拉没几个游客。如今的匈牙利，人们过着自由自在的生活，布达佩斯满街的游客，好像早已把新冠病毒抛之脑后。

女儿今天从纽约飞到布达佩斯与我们会合，晚上去了一家素食餐厅，味道还不错。之后去河上的餐厅喝咖啡☕️+看夜景。

Budapest, Hungary 布达佩斯, 匈牙利

June 23, 2022

Our time in Austria came to an end, and we were heading to our next destination today. Our original plan was to make a side trip to Goyer for a couple of hours on the way to Budapest. But the summer was getting hotter these days all over Europe as the heat wave swept over, so we decided to go straight to Budapest and give us a break.

After a two-hour train ride, we arrived in Budapest, the capital of Hungary. From the train station, we called a Bolt, an Uber-like service in Hungary, to get us to our rental place. The rented residence was in the downtown area on the Pest side and in a good location, very nicely decorated and comfortable. It had two big bedrooms, a living room, and a kitchen. The apartment had a washer and dryer, which was needed. The owner of the house met us at the apartment and was very helpful in showing us what to see in the city and local food spots. After settling in, we walked to the Central Market. The place was huge, selling vegetables, fruits, and meat and having many snack bars and small shops selling tourist souvenirs. We walked around a little and bought tomatoes, cherries, eggs, and mushrooms. Back at the apartment, it was time for the homemade tomato mushroom egg soup again. The last time we made soup was almost two weeks ago, back in Ljubljana.

After dinner, we walked along the Danube River to see the city's night view. The Buda Castle and Fisherman's Bastion on the other side of the river under the night sky were amazing and beautiful. Although the Buda side of Budapest was the more historic part of the city, it was the Pest side where you truly felt the pulse of city life. The streets were always full of people, and the nightlife lasted way after midnight. There was a bustling atmosphere wherever we turned. Budapest was crowded with more tourists than Vienna, and the river was full of cruise ships.

欧洲游第三十四天：原本准备在去匈牙利的Budapest (布达佩斯)的路上顺路在一小镇上停留几个小时，后来觉得这几天炎阳炙人，有点走累了，就直奔布达佩斯，借此机会也好好休整一下。二个多小时后来到了布达佩斯，匈牙利的首都。叫了类似于Uber的Bolt, 几分种后就达到我们租的民舍。这次位于城中的民舍是二房一厅，很舒畅，而且位置也很好。民舍的主人很热心，向我们介绍了城市的景点和当地美食点。在安顿好之后就去不太远的中央市场，那里不仅有卖蔬菜，水果和肉之类的，同时有许多小吃店，还有更多的是卖旅游纪念品的小商铺。我们转了一圈，买了些西红柿，樱桃和蘑菇，晚上又是番茄蘑菇蛋汤了😀。晚饭后去河边散步看夜景，布达佩斯的游客可不比维也纳少，河里全是游船🚢。

Vienna State Opera House 维也纳国家歌剧院

June 22, 2022

Among all the tourist attractions in Vienna, Schönbrunn Palace was one of the must-see attractions. To avoid the peak hour as much as possible, we started early this morning and took the subway to the Palace, only to find that we forgot to bring our tickets. We bought the combined tickets when we visited the Hofburg Imperial Palace the other day, and the tickets were quite expensive, so we returned to the hotel to get our tickets. When we returned to Schönbrunn Palace, the tourist buses had come, and there were many people inside and outside of the Palace. We toured the inside of the Palace first. No photography was permitted in the Palace. There were so many rooms to see, and the audio guide was pretty helpful and informative.

Once done with the inside tour, we headed to the gardens. This royal's former summer residence was massive, with enormous royal gardens and fountains behind it. Even just walking around was exhausting and made us feel hungry. We took the first break in the gardens and shared a sausage and drink from the stall in front of the zoo. Then we continue our walk up the hill towards the magnificent Gloriette. The Gloriette was destroyed in World War II but has already been restored twice since then. It was a long walk to the Gloriette, and the beautiful Neptune Fountain was in front of the Gloriette. The Gloriette housed a café and an observation deck which provided panoramic views of the city. We had our second break at the Gloriette café. We had soup, cheesecake, and coffee. The incredible view came with a hefty price tag, and everything served at the café was expensive.

We returned to the Vienna city center in the afternoon. We always wanted to try Vienna's famous chocolate cake (Sachertorte) and Wiener Coffee. We couldn't book the seats in the original store, Sachertorte, so we tried out the cake at this top-ranked store near our apartment. The taste was nothing special, similar to what we had eaten on the river cruise ship two days ago that costed half of today's price. Some so-called famous foods were often expensive and exaggerated, and we would appreciate local street foods instead.

Today's highlight was seeing an opera play at the Vienna State Opera House tonight. But first, we went to a nearby Chinese restaurant for dinner. We had the signature duck and dried sautéed beef. Since the beginning of our trip, we found that duck and chicken dish prices were very similar in European Chinese restaurants. There were always one or two duck-related dishes on the menu, even in small Chinese restaurants. Since duck was a favorite of one of us, we ordered duck dishes whenever we dined at Chinese restaurants. Today's duck and beef were good, one of the best Chinese meals during this Europe trip.

Going to the Vienna Opera House was the culmination of this Austrian tour. We booked our tickets a few months before our trip. We had splurged a little and booked the front-row seats in the box on the first level. The space was small and crowded since it had three seats in the front row. The gentleman who shared the front row with us had his wife sit in the next box, and they could see and talk each other since they were literarily just sitting next to each other but were separated by the balcony wall. We thought that was pretty funny. Our box was not far from the stage. The sound and visual effects were excellent, and each seat had its own display for captions. We could choose the preferred language in the captions. Tonight's play was the Magic Flute by Mozart, which was Mozart's famous play we did not know about before. Mozart personally directed the premiere of the Magic Flute. The Vienna State Opera House was beautiful, and the show was terrific. We enjoyed every minute of it and checked it off our bucket list. The last time we went to Sydney during our 2020 world cruise, we saw Carmen at the Sydney Opera House. For comparison, the experience at the Vienna Opera House was better than that in Sydney for the similarly priced tickets.

欧洲游第三十三天：说起维也纳，美泉宫（Schönbrunn Palace ）是必看的景点之一。为了尽量避开高峰，今天一大早我们坐了地铁直奔那里，结果到了门口才发现忘记带门票了。前几天参观霍夫堡皇宫时买了联票。票挺贵的，所以决定回旅馆取票，等再回到美泉宫时游客的大巴都来了。这个皇家的昔日夏宫真是大，后面还有皇家花园，喷泉，连走马观花地看一下走得都累，先在动物园门前小摊上要了一根香肠垫饥，最后在凯旋门上小息一会儿，喝上一杯咖啡加奶酪蛋糕，算是把二个主要维也纳博物馆扫了一遍。下午回到旅馆附近的餐厅尝试维也纳著名的巧克力蛋糕（Sachertorte)和维也纳咖啡(Wiener Coffee), 未能在原创店订到位，只能在这家排名前列的餐厅还个愿。味道也没什么特别，比二天前在船上吃的没什么大差别。晚上去维也纳国家歌剧院看戏，先去附近的中餐馆点了招牌鸭和干煸牛，相当不错，是从来欧以来最好的一顿中餐之一。在欧洲中餐馆里，鸭和鸡价格相差不多，既使在小小中餐馆里都会有一，二个鸭相关的菜。去歌剧院看戏是这次奥地利游的高潮，几个月前我们就订好了票，选了一层楼的包厢，包厢前排有三个座位，很挤但离舞台不远，效果很好。看的是莫扎特创作的歌剧-魔笛，以前不知道莫扎特还创作不少著名的歌剧，莫扎特亲自指挥魔笛的首演。上次去悉尼时在歌剧院看了卡门，相比之下维也纳歌剧院效果比悉尼好些，性价比高一点。

Melk Abbey (梅尔克修道院）

June 21, 2022

We planned to visit Wachau Valley today and took the morning train to Melk, a small town on the Danube River. A short walk from the train station up the hill through the town’s main street was the Melk Abbey, the world's most beautiful abbey with more than a thousand years of history. The distinctive yellow-painted monastery was built on the cliff overlooking the Danube River. Converting a part of the abbey into a public high school now, it has a museum and a church and offers a guided tour in English. This place was spectacular in every aspect. The buildings and the surrounding garden were very well-maintained and beautiful. We visited the vast park first while waiting for our tour to start. The guided English tour took us through the museum, the library, and the church. The tour was informative and gave great insight into the abbey's history. Since no pictures were allowed inside, we only had pictures outside to share.

After visiting the Melk Abbey, we boarded the river cruise down to Krems, a charming medieval town located at the eastern edge of the Wachau Valley. While cruising on the Danube River, we saw many gorgeous castles and vineyards along the shores. The weather was perfect for cruising on the river. We had our lunch on the ship, and it was a relaxing and enjoyable ride. We also passed by a couple of big river cabin cruise ships. We had dreamed of taking a week-long river cruise on the Danube before this Europe trip, and today's short version river cruise could reduce our appetite for our dream Danube river cruise with just a small fraction of the cost of the big cabin river cruise.

Krems was a beautiful medieval town with many historic buildings and lots of small alleys with cobblestone streets to explore. Next to the Krems was its neighbor, another little medieval town called Stein, situated along the banks of the Danube River. This little town forms part of the Wachau Valley UNESCO World Heritage Site. Down to the alleys and up to the hills, we strolled from one town to another and had a great time. As we walked around and tried to find a place to eat, this lovely Spanish restaurant caught our attention, and we decided to have dinner there. We ordered Tappas, and the food was excellent.

We took the train back to Vienna. After arriving in Vienna, we decided to check out Belvedere palace. When we exited the subway station, we walked in the wrong direction and ended up at the Museum of Military History instead. When we finally got to Belvedere Palace, it was already closed. The guard at the gate was very friendly, and he let us go to the garden and took some pictures. The palace was huge and gorgeous.

欧洲游第三十二天:一早从维也纳坐火车来到多瑙河边上的一个小镇Melk(梅尔克)。小镇上有号称世界上最漂亮的修道院-Melk Abbey (梅尔克修道院）。这座已有千年历史的修道院建在小镇的山岩上，俯瞰多瑙河。跟着解说向导在里面走了一圈之后我们从梅尔克小镇坐游船沿着多瑙河来到下游的另一个小镇Krems an der Donau (克雷姆斯），沿路在河的二边能看到许多城堡，算是享受过了梦寐以求的多瑙河船游。另外我们还在小镇上吃了顿西班牙晚餐。味道很不错，也算是改善一下伙食。晚上回到维也纳后，又去了另外一个景点，可惜巳关门了，好心的门卫还是让我们进去照了几张照。感觉太阳落山后的维也纳街上游客少了许多，安静多了。

Bratislava, Slovakia 斯洛伐克

June 20, 2022

We went back to the Hofburg Imperial Palace this morning to see the other two museums, Sisi Museum and Imperial Apartment (Kaiserappartements), since we only had enough time to see the silverware collection yesterday afternoon. The Hofburg is the former principal imperial palace of the Habsburg dynasty. Now, it is the official residence and workplace of the president of Austria. The tour of the Sisi Museum, the Imperial Apartments, and the Silver Collection are three tourist attractions open to the public. We purchased combined tickets which covered all these three museums as well as the Schonbrunn Palace outside of Vienna. The Sisi Museum displays many personal objects contributing to the life of Sisi, Empress Elisabeth, and the famous wife of the emperor Franz Joseph, letting us know that money and status do not necessarily bring happiness. The Imperial Apartments are filled with historical fittings and furnishings. It is where Franz Joseph and Elisabeth lived and worked. The picture taking from the Imperial Apartment was not permitted.

After touring the two museums, we went to the Wiener Minoritenkirche, the beautiful 13th-century Gothic Church. The highlight of the church was the exquisite mosaic reproduction of Da Vinci’s Last Supper, commissioned by Napoleon over 200 years ago, and it was amazing.

Done with the museums and church before noon, we decided to go to Bratislava, the capital of the neighboring country of Slovakia, just over an hour by train from Vienna. It was a last-minute decision, but it was well worth the day trip. The Old Town was about 20-minutes walking distance away from Bratislava's train station. The bus station was just outside the train station, but since we didn't research local transport options, we thought it would be easy just to do the two-feet option. We walked past the Grassalkovich Palace, the presidential building, and saw the last minute of the guard changing ceremony. Once in the city center, we were eager to find a place to eat and take a break. After having a simple lunch, we strolled around the Old Town.

Bratislava had the fewest tourists compared to this morning's Vienna or any other town we have visited. We walked to the little Blue Church, one of the city's famous tourist attractions, and it was a very unique and beautiful church. From there, we walked to Bratislava Castle. The castle campus and the castle gardens were gorgeous and free. We had a mesmerizing panoramic view of the old and new Bratislava from the castle. Earlier on the way up the hill to the castle, we saw the big Chinese Restaurant across from the castle and thought we might want to have dinner there. But since we had not had authentic Slovakia food yet, we decided to try a different restaurant. On the way back to the train station, we had dinner at Bratislava Flagship Restaurant, the largest restaurant in Bratislava. We ordered the traditional Slovakian cuisine, a combo of sausage, potato, dumplings, and cheese. There were a lot of dumplings, and they were delicious. Now we understand the new meaning of dumpling dishes.

We returned to Vienna by train at night. We did more walk around the city center and went to the St. Stephen's Cathedral. The street was a lot quieter by now and we enjoyed it.

欧洲游第三十一天：今天继续看霍夫堡皇宫里的另外二个景点，Sisi Museum (茜茜博物馆)及Imperial Apartment (皇家公寓)。茜茜博物馆展示了大量的私人物件以及一个真实的皇后，让我们知道金钱和地位并不一定能带来幸福。看完二个博物馆后临时决定去邻国Slovakia (斯洛伐克)的首都Bratislava（布拉迪斯拉发）。从维也纳坐火车一个多小时就到了，去了古城，总统府，蓝色的教堂，城堡和一些景点，在回维也纳前，吃了一顿斯洛伐克的晚餐，那里的饮食还是离不开香肠，土豆，面疙瘩和奶酪。

Vienna, Austria 维也纳

June 19, 2022

Sunday morning was quiet, and almost all shops and the farmer's market were closed except for some restaurants. After breakfast, we went to see the last two tourist attractions of Graz, the Mausoleum of Ferdinand II and the Landhaus Courtyard, before boarding the train to Vienna, Austria's capital and largest city.

The train ride from Graz to Vienna was comfortable, and we had the whole cabin ourselves. Our hotel apartment in Vienna city center was in a good location, tranquil, and about a 10-minutes walk from either the train station or the famous tourist spots, and had a large bedroom, a living area, and a small kitchen with excellent conditions. The old-style elevator was cool too.

After dropping off our luggage, we went straight to the Hofburg Palace. We bought the combined ticket package, which covered multiple palaces and museums. We only had time to see their silverware collection before the museum was closed for the day. The museum closed at 4 pm, which was earlier than we expected. The exhibition was impressive, and some of them were still used in the state dinner. It was too early for dinner, so we walked around the plaza area and took many pictures of the famous tourist attractions.

Dinner was Vienna-style schnitzel, Wienerschnitzel, with vegetable salad. At this point, we had tried so many different types of schnitzels, even homemade ones, and it was the first time to have an authentic Wienerschnitzel. It was unique that the bread coating was "puffy," separating from the meat. Our one order came with two pieces of large-hand size schnitzels, one for each of us. The taste was delicious. Look like we would have many more schnitzels on this trip. After dinner, we strolled around the crowded area near the Catholic Church. We stopped by Holy Trinity Columns for the victims of the great plague.

Austria, and especially Vienna, known as one of the most stunning cities in Europe, has spectacular architecture and beautiful palaces. But we had already seen so many of those buildings since the beginning of this trip that our curiosity started fading away. Walking into the crowded Vienna city center and being surrounded by all those vast structures made us feel overwhelmed, especially since all the famous tourist spots were very busy and packed with people. We definitely missed the Swiss Alps’ peaceful nature and wanted to go back to hike on a sunny hillside or a foggy trail path.

欧洲游第三十天：星期天的早晨非常宁静，除了一些餐厅之外几乎所有的商店关门停业。一早又去看了格拉茨的最后二个景点，费迪南德二世陵墓及Landhaus Courtyard。下午坐火车来到维也纳，住在公寓式酒店，带厨房的，相当不错，离火车站和旅游热点十几分钟的路程。放下行李后就去了霍夫堡宮殿, 因为时间不够就先参观了他们的银器博物馆。晚餐又是炸猪排加蔬菜色拉。饭后去天主教堂附近转转，路上都是游客。奥地利尤其是维也纳，作为奥地利的首都，城市建筑和古老宫殿的确很漂亮，非常壮观。但看多了会产生一些审美疲劳，加上满城的游客，就真想回到瑞士阿尔卑斯山里，徒步在无论是阳光明媚的山坡或者是雾气弥漫的小路。

Graz, Austria 格拉茨

June 18, 2022

Graz is Austria's second-largest city but is not as famous as Vienna and Salzburg in the tourist industry. As such, it has a lot fewer tourists. Last night, the city square was packed with young people drinking and chatting, and the music was loud and lively. Early this morning, we woke up to see a completely different scene. The last night's noisy open-air bars transformed into a farmer's market. If last night was the energetic world of the young generation, it was a paradise for the elderly this morning. Besides the fresh vegetables and fruit, the farmer's market also had butchers, seafood shops, bakeries, coffee and breakfast shops. After buying produce, the locals would have coffee and breakfast there and chat with their neighbors. We joined the locals and bought strawberries, cherries, and smoked meats at the market and then had our coffee and bread there. We always enjoyed a quiet morning in a foreign country and observed the locals doing their routines. There was also a flea market nearby at the square where the concert was held last night.

After breakfast, we started our sightseeing tour. We purchased the 24-hour Graz tourist card and planned to sweep through several tourist attractions. We started at the city center and then headed to Eggenberg Palace on the city's outskirts. The Eggenberg Palace was a private residence of the Eggenberg family and then the Herberstein family from 1460 to 1939, not an imperial or archbishop palace. In today's terms, it was a billionaire's mansion. We had a guided tour in English. The palace was constructed relying on the calendar as a basis. The four towers of the palace symbolize the four directions east, south, west, and north. The palace had 365 windows representing the number of days of the year. The 24 halls conveyed the 24 hours of the day. There were also paintings on the ceiling symbolizing each day, seven days a week. Although Eggenberg Palace was a 17th-century building from the outside, at the core of the palace, there was a square Gothic chapel built in 1470, and large portions of the building dated back to the late middle ages to the early modern era. The palace was expanded continuedly without completely destroying the old constructions. The palace was surrounded by a large beautiful garden where peacocks walked slowly and leisurely. It was the most worth seeing of all the attractions today.

We came back to the city center area and took the Schlossberg Funicular to Schlossberg Hill. Schlossberg was one of Graz's most famous attractions. It once served as a fortress to defend the city but was largely demolished by Napoleonic forces, except for the clock tower, which had stood on the Hill for hundreds of years and was a symbol of Graz. Schlossberg Hill was large and beautiful, with many minor tourist attractions, and it was the perfect place for the city view. We walked down the hill via a set of stairs that zig-zag on the slope of the Hill.

On the way to Schlossberg Hill, we also visited Kunsthaus Graz with the collection of Modern Arts, most of which we didn't appreciate. Nevertheless, the visit let us experience the other side of Graz's culture against the characteristics of the old town. We also stopped by Franciscan Church and Hauptplatz. Another cultural structure we wanted to see was the Murinsel, designed and constructed to celebrate the honor that Graz was designated the European Capital of Culture. The Murinsel is suspended over the river by two bridge walkways. It is a beautiful dome floating on the river. There was a café inside the dome. We enjoyed some cold local beer there and views of the river.

Back at our hotel, we had our dinner in the hotel's beautiful courtyard.

欧洲游第二十九天：格拉茨虽说是奥地利第二大城市，但其旅游知名度远低于维也那和萨尔茨堡。感觉游客并不多。今天大清早发现旅馆对面从昨天晚上满满的露天酒吧变成了农贸集市，完全是一个不同的景象。如果说昨晚是年轻人的世界，今早是老年人的天堂。农贸市场里有新鲜的蔬菜和水果，还有肉店，海鲜店，面包房，当地人买完菜后喝喝咖啡吃个早餐与街坊邻居们聊个天。生活也是同样的美好。

我们也兴冲冲地买了草莓🍓，樱桃🍒和烟熏肉，同时也在那里吃了早餐，咖啡☕️和面包。我们购买了24小时的Graz旅游卡，把几个重要的景点扫了一遍。从近郊的埃根博格宫殿开始，这也是今天所有景点中最值得看的。宫殿的四个塔楼象征着东南西北四个方向。宫殿有365扇窗象征着一年的天数。24间大厅则象征着一天的24个小时。天花板上还有画象征着一周7天的每一天。宫殿的四周是一大片公园，孔雀🦚慢悠悠地走来走去。今天看的另外几个景点包括现代美术馆，穆尔人工岛等都有些失望。还好最后为了看钟塔上了城堡山，上面不仅能眺望格拉茨城区，还有着格拉茨最漂亮的小花园。