Judy. The last month has been a whirlwind of visits to people we
love and places we wanted to see. We’ve actually been too busy to blog!
We returned to
Budapest and took off with Chris, Dilyana, and Nicky for a few days in the Hungarian
city of Eger—lovely little city in a wine country area. It was great fun
walking the town and spending quality time with family.
On our return to
Budapest, we celebrated our 40th wedding anniversary with a day
visit with friends from home, Nancy and Mark and Sarah and Ralph, who had
finished their river cruise there. We
met for lunch at a small Hungarian restaurant, where we surprised Ralph, who
didn’t know we were there. After an afternoon of chatting, they invited us to
their cruise boat for dinner. It was a super way to honor our anniversary.
The next day we
took a train to the town of Visegrad, on the Danube, and hiked the mountain to
an ancient castle, then returned to the river and took a boat back to Budapest
to share champagne and cake with family.
Then it was time
to leave Hungary and head to Germany to meet our grandson Parker.
Our friends
Bettina and Klaudius and their daughter Paula, who live in Backnang, hosted the
three of us for a few days, taking us around the town, driving us for a
gorgeous day on the Bodensee (Lake Constance), and hosting a barbecue with some
of the Syrian refugees Betti has been helping resettle. That evening, they told
us stories of leaving their home—some at age 15—to travel from the war to
safety. It’s a visit we won’t soon forget.
From Backnang, we rented a car and drove through Nuremberg, where we visited the Reichs Coliseum, which Hitler built to host his rallies. The museum explored his rise - a great lesson. Interestingly, when the museum was built on the site, a hallway was placed as a "stake through the heart of the coliseum." Pretty powerful.
We lunched in the
square of the beautiful city of Nuremberg, and headed out toward Budapest to
drop Parker for a few days to spend time with cousins.
What were Ted and
I to do for three days? We headed to Pecs, another Hungarian town near the
Croatian border.
We absolutely fell in love with this little city. In 2001, it was named a European Cultural Capital and so it has retained sculpture, music, art and history. Our hotel resembled The Grand Budapest Hotel and it was just off the plaza so we walked all over, including to see third century Christian gravesites and to the Zsolnay Cultural Center to see Zsolnay porcelains and tiles. It was terrific.
Back to Budapest
to pick up Parker (who, incidentally, had a fantastic time), and a drive
through Brno and Prague in the Czech Republic before arriving in Oybin, Germany,
where our old friends Heinz and Ulrike still live.
We first visited
them as a family in 1984. Oybin was then in the DDR—East Germany. Heinz was a
Lutheran pastor, and therefore, a dissident. They had so very little at the
time, but shared all they had with our family. For years, a photo of two of
their children and Leslie hung on Leslie’s bedroom wall. Heinz was so ill
during our first visit; we found out later that he had chronic dysentery due to
shots given him by his doctor, on orders from the Stasi (secret police).
When the Berlin
Wall fell, he was one of the few people untouched by ties to the Stasi, and
served for a while in politics in Saxony. Now he is retired and they still live
in the beautiful mountain village where we first visited. We walked into areas
once forbidden to us—they were on the border of what was then
Czechoslovakia—and climbed to the ruins of the Oybin Kloster, which has now
been restored, and sometimes used as a venue for concerts. Once again, we were treated as royalty—they
even drove us to see the Black Madonna of Rumberg in Czech! Their sons were
able to visit with their families, although their daughters live too far away.
It was an absolutely joyful time, and hard to leave.
BUT, it was time to head to Berlin, where our friend Robert, from Poland met us for the three days. He arrived with a Polish dinner - smoked meat, homemade pickles, beer and a potent alcoholic beverage! Great celebration in our tiny hotel room. Parker and Robert headed off on their own a couple of times. We hope Robert's son, Piotr, also 15, can visit Parker next summer.
For me it was
great to take a photo with Parker at the former Checkpoint Charlie, where in
1984, we crossed with Leslie and Stefan with so much fear. Now, it’s almost
like Disneyland. We did quite a bit of walking and didn’t see nearly enough of
the city, but there just wasn’t enough time. For Parker, the highlight was
going to Just Music Flagship store (7000 square meters of musical instruments),
and playing a 2500 euro bass for thirty minutes.
OK, I admit
it. We overbooked ourselves in Europe.
But there are
friends we really wanted to see, and places we wanted to visit. I’m not sorry
about any of the wonderful places or people who make my life fuller and more
interesting, but we are exhausted.
Here in Europe, we
are on somewhat familiar ground, and wanted to see everyone and do everything.
I’ve loved every minute of being with friends and seeing new places, but the
driving in unfamiliar territory has been rough on both of us.
So this whiney part
of the blog is a reminder that you can do it all, but you’ll pay the price in
one way or another. Note to folks who try this—find down time. Note to friends
we’ve seen—hope we were not annoying. Note to family at home—we’ll need to sit
a bit.
Still, it has been
a dream come true.
And deep thanks to
family: Chris, Didi, and Nicky for enveloping us in your arms and lovely apartment; to Bettina, Klaudius, and Paula for showing us beautiful parts of
Baden-Wurtemburg and feeding us like good Germans. You guys gave us the quiet
time we needed. And thanks for welcoming Parker and sweeping him into your lives
for awhile.
To Heinz and
Ulrike and their family, thank you for embracing us with so much love and care,
for giving us quiet time, walks, amazing meals, and a German breakfast we’ll
never forget.
And to Robert, who
traveled by train for ten hours to be with us, you are family. Thank you for
Polish gifts and food, and hours of walking and chatting.
Back to the US now, for much-needed hug time with family and a change of clothes before we take off again. Next post from the USA.
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