Settled in Budapest

The family is reunited. Spencer left Charlotte at noon, made a connection in Atlanta, arrived in Munich, took light rail from the airport to the train station, purchased a ticket to Budapest, and met Jeremiah at 5:03 p.m. in the train station, having not slept for 30 hours but still amiable and, to Bob and Pam's relief––Jeremiah and Martin have more confidence in their brother to figure out foreign travel––here.

We found a place to stay, also, which was quite a feat considering that the upcoming holiday (here, called Sylvester) has filled up most of the hostels and hotels, which feel free to charge top rate, and although it's not exactly in the center of town, it is near tram lines and a subway stop and, more importantly, a Tesco (Europe's answer to Wal-Mart) where there are aisles and aisles of everything imaginable, including store-brand liquor.

After an uneventful, but somewhat jarring night on the train––traveling through three countries in a night means that one's ticket/passport is checked many times––the day was filled by locating a place to stay and waiting for Spencer to arrive. Once he did, we went to a tourbook restaurant (the kind you "must" eat at) shaped like a barrel, and walked down Adrassy Ut, a ritzy street in the center of town.

Encouraged by Spencer's need to adjust to the time-zone difference, we slept late, and split up for the day, Martin writing this and hanging out in a coffeeshop/bar that shows movies, the kind of place he'd love to be at all day in the States, if such a place existed, and the rest of the family going to museums he visited the last time he was here. Martin also recommends Balkan hip-hop, which he is listening to while writing this thanks to street vendors of bootleg CDs in Sarajevo.

raffaello

raffaello, originally uploaded by xkandle.

One of the many bizarrely-named bars in Sarajevo. Others include Club Bill Gates, Club Elvis and Club Broadway.

playchessnotwar

playchessnotwar, originally uploaded by xkandle.

Old men play chess in a square in the city-center.

holidayinn

holidayinn, originally uploaded by xkandle.

Some of the family, with the famous and posh Holiday Inn in the background. This hotel housed war correspondents in the mid-90s.

closedforpublic

closedforpublic, originally uploaded by xkandle.

This history museum, closed just for us.

bosniacopter

bosniacopter, originally uploaded by xkandle.

A helicopter outside the history museum, which appears to be shut indefinitely.

bslashh

bslashh, originally uploaded by xkandle.

The car decal for Bosnia/Herzegovina.

Escape from Sarajevo

Well we escaped from Sarajevo and are headed to Budapest on a night train. Not too hard to figure out what train to get on-there was only one train in the station but no signs or announcements; also no where to sit in the station unless you bought a drink-we tried to sit down when we got into town and were chased away because you couldn't sit without buying a drink and there was no ATM like everywhere else. Another interesting thing about our trip is that the money is worthless once you leave the country (except the Euro) so we have to spend all the money before we leave-we've been thru 4 currencies so far- the Euro, the Sit, Kuna, and Kmarks; Hungary will have forint which converts like the sit. Sarajevo had the best exchange rate but nowhere was impressed with the US dollar and all money comes from the ATMs.

Our train started late and we were not sure it was the right one (even though it was the only one in the station. All of a sudden another train roared into the station and off came a group of Bosnian soldiers onto our train-they sang songs for about an hour but finally gave up. Our trip will take us through Croatia again so we think the soldiers will get off before the border. We've been playing bridge on the train, so everyone (except Bob) is in 2nd heaven. Not satisfied with our earlier brush with law enforcement, Jeremiah decided to hang some beer out of the train window to get it cold-not sure it is illegal but Bob, who has more sense but little influence, thinks it don't look right but Pam, the other alleged responsible adult is acting as lookout, pulling the beer in at every station.

Heart of Darkness

(see)

We entered the heart of darkness as we entered Sarajevo. We progressed from tourist to adventure tourist to kamakazi tourist. The train station was void of map, direction, language and we were picked up by a guy who was renting space in his house, which turned out OK. No ATMs, no place to sit and pretty scary. The boys went off with the guy offering the room and visions of them being kidnapped by gypsies was not far from our minds. However they returned and the guy was fine He was a journalist with good English skills, had a 7th grade son and was the son of a prominent communist who was a WWII hero and had a nice flat. His dad was gone but her got the apartment; it appeared renting his house was a good part of his income because he had to be careful what he wrote in a magazine he wrote for-mostly stories of corruption of police, war crimes, etc. We found the old part of town with all the mosques and churches- an odd lot to see the covered up Islamics next to the nudie magazines and open display of affection-more of a wonder that there is not more conflict. Kinda like if Bob Jones University was located on the Vegas strip.
Today was an adventure that ranged from exciting to sheer terror as we tried to find the airport where there was a war museum and the SPOR or UN forces were stationed. The US Army force left before Christmas and it was now European force- we saw Italians, German Army etc. The buses were like those in Germany in that no one took the tickets. We noticed no one was using them so we stopped on the third day which was a major mistake. As we were headed to the airport we were accosted by the train police who asked for out tickets. People on the train told us not to stamp them so we didn't (except Pam) The police asked for and took our passports and wouldn't give them back unless we paid a 20 mark fine- about $10. It caused quite a ruckus with people who saw what was happening all talking to us, telling the police to leave us alone and the police being insistent- it was like a scene out of Midnight Express- we with no passport and officials in civilian clothes threatening us, Jeremiah physically grabbing one of the police, Pam telling them what bad people they were (over and over again) and me trying to get us out of this deteriorating situation. We finally paid the fine and got our passports back. We given tickets and got off the train- did I mention it was pouring down rain? Since no one else was checked for tickets and Pam's was stamped it was a bit of a scary shakedown. Still undeterred we tried again to figure out how to get to the airport but no one spoke English and dad convinced everyone that we had enough adventure for this trip and we went back to where we knew was friendly country.
We are pretty deep into a scary country where when much is translated, it is into four languages, none of which his English. This is the first country where the music is authentic-none of the 1980s pop like in everyplace else we've been. Odd to hear Frank Sinatra singing New York New York on Christmas day in Zagreb or Michael Jackson's Thriller in Slovinia. The water pressure is still good but we ran out of hot water in the guy's flat. Everyone but Bob is eating native food, betting that he won't get food poisoning. There are fountains throughout the city where everyone (except Bob) is drinking from. Ordering food is still a mystery, not knowing what will show up or what is costs. An odd thing is that there is no tipping.
We bought train tickets to Budapest today, leaving at 8 pm and arriving at 8 am so it’s a continued day of not getting arrested, kidnapped or lost (although Pam and the boys still want to go separate ways and meet up later- again the reference to Kamakazi).

Welcome From Sarajevo

(Note: A multi-authored blog is bound to have an idiosyncratic style, as this post shows)

Sarajevo the word belongs to a list of cities, places, events deigned by the international community (which, as a recently-read book Martin read reminds us, merely replaced the more specific "great powers") as having significance as object-lessons in international crises. You know the other words in this list: Mogadishu, Baghdad, Darfur, etc. Their locales, their people, their situation is emptied out of the word they signify, and it is replaced with this empty lesson about how we (the U.S./the West/the International Community) should have done more, should have stopped something horrible, should have stood up for the dignity of human life, should have committed troops, should not have shut an eye to the crisis.

And, yet, we never change. Disaster happens, people suffer, and the journalists, poets, playwrights, and other chroniclers of the sad chapters of history profit from this breakdown in society. We are left with the words themselves, the feeling that things will be different the next time the same thing happens elsewhere, and the deeper feeling that nothing will change,

But while traces of the war are still evident here––bombed out buildings, museums "closed for public" indefinitely, and a very clear sense that things aren't quite ready for tourism––it's the beauty of the city that really stands out. Even though the war destroyed many buildings, the historic part of the city still is relatively intact, and there are plenty of markets, cafes and mosques to keep one's interest for a while. War is always irrational, but it's hard to imagine why someone would want to destroy such a beautiful city.

cometosarajevo

cometosarajevo, originally uploaded by xkandle.

You should come to Sarajevo, says this picture.

mosque

mosque, originally uploaded by xkandle.

Another view of a another mosque. Pam, Bob and Jeremiah heard the Call to Prayer for the first time today. Even though Martin had grown used to it from his time in Turkey a few years ago, it still was a calming experience.

familyatthemosque

familyatthemosque, originally uploaded by xkandle.

The family at the mosque. We tried to find the madrass, but it appeared to be destroyed.

cistern

cistern, originally uploaded by xkandle.

A cistern in the center of the old town in Sarajevo. Remarkably, it looks unscathed.

sleeptrain

sleeptrain, originally uploaded by xkandle.

Martin and Pam sleep on the train, missing all sorts of beautiful country villages, many emptied of Muslims during the war. In one town, 16 mosques were destroyed.

castleview

castleview, originally uploaded by xkandle.

This is the view from the castle at Lake Bled in Slovenia. You can see an island, on which there is also a castle. Which would you prefer? Myself, I'd have the castle on the hill, but I'm sure the castle on the island is lovely as well.

hungryj

hungryj, originally uploaded by xkandle.

Jeremiah eats a sandwich at Penguin, a great 24-hour fast-food stand in Zagreb. We were there briefly, and it was dark almost the entire time, so no pictures. But, a beautiful, fun city -- and great sandwiches.

Written While Traveling Through the Bosnian Countryside

We spent the night in Zagreb, it looking pretty grim from the train station but then evolving into another gorgeous but larger city with wide pedestrian malls and stunning buildings. The hostel was not as nice as the last but any port in the storm-we slept well but were glad to move on-we are now on a train to Sarajevo into more pensive territory-the rivers are a beautiful green and all the buildings of concrete block with red tile roofs. At the borders our passports were checked numerous times as were our tickets-we imagine that our checkers wonder what this odd American family is doing on the trains so far off the beaten tourist routes. Many of the villages we are passing on the train appear no different than they might have 100s of years ago-true farmers untouched by the modern world-yet the cities are very modern with touch screen menu boards, price scanners in the stores and everyone with a cell phone. There does appear to be either abandoned or bombed out buildings along our path and the officials look at us with suspicion- lots of uniforms of train and custom officials with interesting logos and hats. Our ride should be 8 hours but the efficiency of the trains seems to have fallen off a bit but we are trained to be on time as earlier the trains left on time with little. Among the mundane wonders of the trip so far is the strong water pressure in the showers and the unusual but attractive cars.

venividivici

venividivici, originally uploaded by xkandle.

Jeremiah, Martin and Pam at Bled. In the background is the castle we climbed, impressing Pam.

Now It Gets Interesting

(on a train from Bled to Ljubljana)

Merry Christmas, everyone! I hope your Christmases have been ordinary and traditional, to counterbalance ours. A summary:

We woke, rushed, at 8:45 a.m., realizing that we had to make a 10:10 a.m. train to Bled, a mountain resort town with a large lake and several castles. We packed up, ate a quick breakfast, and made it to the train station by 9:45 a.m., purchased our return tickets for Bled and our one-way tickets for Zagreb, and boarded a nice train to Germany, with full expectation that it would stop in Bled.

It did, and after waiting for a few minutes for a bus, the taxi driver convinced us that buses do not run on Christmas Day and that we could "ride like kings" to Bled itself in his Mercedes taxi for just $2.50 a person. We did, and soon we were at a misty and blue mountain lake with two castles––one on an island in the middle of the lake, the other on top of a sheer cliff on one edge––that, we slowly realized, was the symbol of Slovenia, or at least symbol enough to put it on their flag.

We started walking on a path around the lake toward the castle on the hill, and quickly found ourselves at the head of a trail: "Grad 1." Martin convinced the rest of the family that grad means castle, and we were all sure that 1 meant 1 kilometer which, for you metrically-disabled readers, is considerably less than a mile. So, with the acquiesce from Pam, we decided to start the long climb up the mountain.

Long it was, and stop we did, often, but we made it, which impressed Pam more than the rest of us, but the castle itself was impressive, and after wandering around the premises we stopped for our lunch of ham, bread and cheese, all left over from our incredible meal the night before.

Quick now, as I'm writing this, stork-like, under the alcove of a building that has free wireless. We made it down from the castle, wandered around the village some, and then got back on the train to Ljubljana, where we'll be for a few hours before taking a train to Zagreb, the capital of Croatia. We'll stay in Zagreb tonight, and take a day train to Sarajevo tomorrow. Wish us luck.

windowsft

windowsft, originally uploaded by xkandle.

The Fairy Tale Village, sponsored by Microsoft.

hostelcelica

hostelcelica, originally uploaded by xkandle.

The Hostel Celica, the most ridiculous hostel in the world. A former jail cell turned art project.

momdadcastle

momdadcastle, originally uploaded by xkandle.

Bob & Pam at the Ljubljana castle.

dresses

dresses, originally uploaded by xkandle.

Dresses made by Slovenes, as seen in the ethnographic museum.

Tired-out

(Ljubljana)

Another day in the old Soviet Bloc showing that history and culture outlives government. After needed sleep and a reversal of roles (kids wanting parents to get up rather than the other way around) we journeyed of to a one month old museum of ethnicity that, for some reason reviewed the culture of other European countries as well as Slovenia. It was a very nice, new museum with interesting and eclectic exhibits with our family about the only people there. There seems to be a lot of money for things like that here and it is obvious that the country is trying very hard. The ornate and colorful buildings around the river plus the castle on the hill makes the physical plant of the city a hidden treasure that I think won't last long-it should be a major tourist stop in the near future. The only downside is that there is a lot of graffiti-not sure what that is a sign of but if this city wants to become a tourist place, they need to get it under control.
Getting around is easy and even more anti-car-half the very wide side walk is marked off for bicycles and there is little traffic and little bitty cars-most familiar brands but unseen models. There are a number of better looking alternatives to the very ugly but useful Honda Element. After the museum we went to an open air market to get some vegetables to buy for supper tonight that Pam and Jeremiah are now cooking. Some of the hostel rats are being attracted by the smell, which is fine because we brought way too much for ourselves and its nice to share for Christmas. After the market we went to the castle on top of the hill. We waited at a bus stop for a while and then discovered that the buses weren't running so we took a taxi up. The castle was amazing and had a lot of restoration-someone had been doing a job of keeping the castle in good repair. We decided to walk down from the castle which was successful and no one got hurt (we discovered a lot of ice patches on the way down, which was spooky for old people not needing injury so early into a trip). We bought some more food for tonight on the way back but have noticed throughout our stay here that stores have odd hours and that people don't work too long of hours.
So far the weather has cooperated and no snow or rain or wind-just cold that is tolerable. Tomorrow is Bled, a city about an hour away towards some incredible looking Alps that we can see in the distance and then to Zagreb followed by Sarajevo.

garbageman

garbageman, originally uploaded by xkandle.

This is how they will pick up street trash in the future.

dragonballoon

dragonballoon, originally uploaded by xkandle.

This is a dragon and a balloon, just like in fairy tales.

dontgothere

dontgothere, originally uploaded by xkandle.

My father took this because it relates to OSHA, which he discusses in a class. Not knowing this, I thought it was just an amusing picture of bad things that could happen to you if you went in there, like meeting people with top hats.

slohouse

slohouse, originally uploaded by xkandle.

This is the Slovenian White House, as a man on the street told us.

usembassy

usembassy, originally uploaded by xkandle.

This is the United States Embassay. Currently, they are putting up extra security barriers.

A horse is a doorknob.

horseknob, originally uploaded by xkandle.

This is a doorknob shaped like a horse.

Tucked-away in Ljubljana

(Ljubljana)

Perhaps, you wonder now, who is writing this blog? The writing styles are distinctive, or should look so to anyone who notices that sort of thing, as are the topics of focus. So far, just Pam, Bob and Martin have written, so a primer:

Pam's writing style is distinguished by hyphens, which separate connected or not-so connected thoughts. She intends for someone else to turn this writing into sentences, which as of yet has not happened. A sample:

We went to the Alt Museum , which had older pictures including one painted by 17-year-old Leonardo da Vinci of the Virgin Mary and baby Jesus; art critic said he had not mixed his paint correctly, thus had ripples in the face of Mary. Also a number of Ruebens, which Bob was smart enough to not comment on. We also went to the Modern art museum where Bob's German came in handy - we lost Martin, the museum was closing, and the museum staff signaled to us we had to leave - he did not speak English. But we were not leaving that warm museum restaurant for 22 degree weather to wait. Luckily, Bob knew the word for Son - Junge - Thus he helped us discover Martin was already out waiting for us in the cold.

Bob's style is more formal, though nearly equally strewn with hyphens, but one can spot it by looking for references to World War II, as seen in this sample:

We ate what was really a snack at the oldest restaurant in Munich (1348) that unfortunately had to be rebuilt after January 7, 1945 (probably need to look in a B-17 bomber's log for where they were that night). We were fishing for change to pay for the meal and the German couple sitting next to us thought we were broke and offered to pay for the meal. Not sure how they got the idea we were broke except we ordered one meal for the four of us. We finally discovered a grocery store and found that the real prices in Germany were really reasonable i.e. a soft drink for 27 cents-we were buying in street markets assuming they would be better-oh well, its just the real stores are not near the town center where we've been hanging out.

Martin's style is distinguished by his critique of his parents' writing style. But, fear not, all the blog is read by all members of the family before or after it is published.

And, also, remember that "now" means our now, meaning when we wrote the text, not the now in blog-time. Just remember that when you're playing the ever-popular game of "Where Are They Now?"

We're now in the Hauptbahnhof waiting for our train to Ljubljana, Solvenia, which everyone assures me is a real country with stores, places to sleep, etc. The train leaves at 1130 at night and gets us in sometime in the morning, saving us a hotel room (not sure how valid that theory is). The public transportation is amazing- a number of really cool things-escalators that stop when not in use and then reverse themselves if you're going up rather than down; also no one takes your money for the subways and trams-totally honor system-just pay a one time fee that no one seems to check. The Germans seem to love speaking English to us so little opportunity to show how bad my German really is. Again, Munich is a beautiful and thriving city that shows what urban life should be-the park was twice the size of Central Park in New York for example and the malls were outside with plenty of room to walk and no interference with cars; bicycles are everywhere and people of all ages are riding them.

We're discovering that it is hard to find places to post these updates so a lot stuff will be on fewer postings. We are now in Solvenia after a long train ride––train was packed and we didn't have reserved seats or platz; people kept getting on and wanting us to move plus we were woken up about every 30 minutes by either the conductor or customs checking passports-so not the best trip-probably try a bus on next journey. We checked into the hostel at 8 am but can't sleep there until 3 pm so bumming around the town which is gorgeous in the old section and like Newark in the new-the Soviets did a crummy job here when in charge and their buildings are falling apart. We're finding prices considerably cheaper here but have to go through another conversion process- in Germany it was $1.30 U.S. to 1 Euro, here it is 175 Sits to $1.00 U.S. We got some money at the ATM thinking we were getting $50 U.S. and think we actually got $250.00 U.S- so we're flush and probably need it all since we might stay here a while-maybe go to Bled or even Venice, Italy which seems close. We're in another café drinking coffee…

And with those ellipses, we'll close for now, as we've not done much else today besides walk and drink (relatively) cheap coffee and eat good food. So--don't feel too sorry for us. It's not even that cold here, though others may disagree.

Swept away by Events

Sorry for not posting earlier. We are still trying to find good Internet access in Ljubljana, which is amazing, by the way, and relatively inexpensive, comparatively. We will try very hard to find access today so we can post photographs, etc. Thank you for your attention and steady reloading of this blog.

lilgreenman

lilgreenman, originally uploaded by xkandle.

Before the terrorists, people had this little green man to fear, as seen in this 15thC painting.

chinatower

chinatower, originally uploaded by xkandle.

This is the Chinese Tower, located in the English Garden. Below are booths filled by vendors selling Christmas decorations.

iceskate

iceskate, originally uploaded by xkandle.

People ice skate in Germany. No, we're serious.

wondermom

wondermom, originally uploaded by xkandle.

Pam poses as Wonder Woman, per this advertisement.

museumheadphones

museumheadphones, originally uploaded by xkandle.

Bob and Pam like to learn about paintings from headphones. Martin, not pictured, does not.

Christmas Calendar

xmaswall, originally uploaded by xkandle.

This is a calendar on the side of a wall in Munich. Number 22 is unlit, as it was flashing while this picture was being taken.

Made it to Munich

(Munich, which is in Germany)

FIRST: A word about the pictures. Somehow, it's become more difficult to post pictures within a blog in the past two years, hence their being posted separately from the text. Soon, perhaps, Martin will figure out how to make this more seamless, but for now, they are separate.

Well, we're here, exclamation point. We're writing this Wednesday morning, after catching up on two days worth of lost sleep and debating what to do today. But, dear reader, you only learn what we did in the past, not what we'll do in the future (debate of the day: which is better, art or technology?)

The plane ride was smooth enough, though Martin is ready to start an airline that chooses to leave its passengers in the dark long enough to sleep, rather than waking them up every twenty minutes to offer them yet more tomato juice. We went through customs without a problem, and waited too long for our luggage. When it arrived, it was time to change shoes.

We took the cleanest, quietest subway train in the world to the Bahnhof and met up with Jeremiah who had somehow already checked into the hotel. After a shower and dumping off our gear we headed to the city. Munich is breathtaking, a combination of New York City and Rodeo Drive with evidence of a middle ages boom town that survives today. We spent the day just walking, shopping in open air markets. Martin met with a friend from grad school who is in Turkey on a Fulbright and needed a break from no pork. She is doing well (check her blog, One Eye Closed , in spite of living in a place that is extraordinary noisy and often confusing.

We found the Hofbrau house and couldn't get images of Adolf Hitler out of our minds (he had his start here as a young politician). There was Omp Pa Pa bands and huge steins of beer that we mistakenly ordered two of ( we keep ordering food that we're not totally sure what it is or what it cost). The hofbrau house is next to the Hard Rock Café, which has internet so we've spent time in both places.

Tuesday night Jeremiah, ever the college student, had the idea of going to Manhattan, a restaurant on the 19th floor, the top of a … college dormitory. We ate macaroni and cheese and nachos, two of Germany's finest food offerings for students. Pam and Bob went back to the hotel to sleep, while Jeremiah and Martin went to yet another bar, where stolen cake and hot wine were to be had.

Sleep came easy, as it does when you change time zones and don't sleep for a day, and we were ready to adapt to European time.

jeremiahHB

jeremiahHB, originally uploaded by xkandle.

A little enthusiastic, perhaps?

momsready

momsready, originally uploaded by xkandle.

Pam submits this as evidence that she is always ready.

trees

trees, originally uploaded by xkandle.

These are Christmas trees at the Munich airport.

townhall

townhall, originally uploaded by xkandle.

New Europe, Same Family: A Missive

(Charlotte, N.C.)

Welcome to "New Europe, Same Family," the Johnson family blog for their winter holiday trip to Eastern Europe. Why Eastern Europe, you may ask? Well, we are wondering that ourselves. Let's recall how we got here.

While holidays for many people may be about coming home, relaxing with the family and spending a week doing nothing, for the Johnson thing, the opposite is true. Every holiday season for as long as any of the kids can remember, we left home, went to either South Carolina or New Jersey, where our grandmothers live, spent a few days there, and the rest either going to New York, Savannah, Charleston or interesting spots in-between. Late December has always been a time to do things, not to just sit around and think about what things we could do in the following year.

As the family aged, the kids got more restless while the parent became, well, more settled. Every year when the kids wanted to go somewhere, we asked our parents and they said, well, I think we're going to stay in Hendersonville this year. Last year, for the first time ever, we had a holiday apart, with Jeremiah and Martin in New Jersey and Pam, Bob and Spencer in Hendersonville. Everyone, meaning Pam and Bob, was sad. Spartacus, the ever-cheerful dog, and Persia, the ever-bitter cat, were not enough.

So--this year, the kids had a plan. Rather than debate between going to New York, or South Carolina, or staying at home, why not go to Europe for the holiday? The two biggest impediments were first Bob, then Spencer. Bob ,who generally has better sense and Spencer who has a girlfriend, Brittany. Bob succumbing first, thinking it more like a parachute jump where you just went out the door and hoped for the best. Spencer was harder but eventually caved under extreme duress from his brothers and acquiesce from his girlfriend. Adding to the mystery was finding of the passports, three of the five were lost anywhere from two months to four weeks to 12 hours of the trip.

But, we made it. Jeremiah left last week, having spent a few days in Prague before returning to Munich, where he will meet Pam, Bob and Martin––who leave in a few minutes––Tuesday morning. Spencer, after spending Christmas with Brittany and her family, leaves on Tuesday, Dec. 28, and will meet up with the rest of the family in Budapest.

You ask––where are we going? A rough itinerary, using our initials.

PBMJ––Dec. 21-22, Munich; Dec. 23-25, Ljubljana; Dec.26-28, Sarajevo
PBMJS––Dec. 29-Jan. 1, Budapest; Jan. 2-3, Vienna; Jan.4-6, Munich

With, of course, many stops in-between, many of those yet to be determined. More to come––including photographs, of course, very soon.