AUSTRIA Vienna

Austria Vienna

Vienna is a few steps into Austria from Bratislava Slovakia. I was determined not to miss the city on my sweep south in the Outback of Europe.

My GPS worked again and was useful to direct me to a parking spot beside the metro. I made sure that i photographed the station so I would not forget where to return to tonight. Vienna was experiencing on of its hottest day this summer. High 30's and reaching in excess of 40 degrees once the big white building started radiating reflected heat. I took a circular tram ride around the city to orientate and find he venues i had circled for further investigation. I played some classical music from Mozart, Beethoven and Chopin on my Ipod as i wandered the streets looking at the massive opera houses where the greats played their music.

The town center was heaving with tourist, ideal if you were a vendor of ice cream and water. I generally avoid the churches but St Peters in the center was well worth a look . Very ornate and gold guilt statues. The Church was cool inside which was another factor in my standing and admiring the architecture and statues. Everywhere in Vienna is a photo opportunity. The amount of top rate statues scattered around the city and in the parks was interesting , Im particularly drawn to the 'Horse and Man', there were plenty of them.

Monday is a bad day for Museum-ing. Staff have worked the weekend when most tourists are about and needed a day off. Never mind there seemed to be plenty to chose from that were open , The fine arts Museum was closed along with the Lipizzaner Museum associated with the Spanish riding school. I could have a tour of the stables and tack rooms but that was at 1500 hrs too late and too hot to linger . The horses are 'at rest', out of the city during the peak of the summer.

I visited the Natural History Museum, I try not to compare the museums but I was very impressed with the presentation especially the bird section. I was able to see birds close up that I have seen on my travels only through binoculars. i.e Cranes , Storks, Eagles, and a vast number of seabirds. The New Zealand section has about 10 Kiwis of the tree varieties in different poses , what really surprised me was the 6 stuffed Kakapo parrots on display in one cabinette. No wonder they are close to extinction.

My next Museum , to escape the heat, was the Palace kitchens , an array of porcelain , cutlery , table settings, crystal, all of varying ages and designs. I thought I had paid to go into the Palace proper but my understanding of the Austrian written language let me down.

The Terracotta Army from China was in town. I planned my visit early to beat the crowds on my second day. Held in a special museum for visiting exhibitions and with the appropriate scene setting representing China I was lead past the introduction of Where, Who, Why, and a 20 minute Video of How, they put together this '8th wonder of the World'. 80 or so warriors , a sample of their steads and a an array of tools and finds, made up the presentation . With the use of lighting and video effects they were able to give a realistic impression of the massive find in China . To look at the unique faces of the warriors , some with smiles , some with stern looks was memorable . I snapped a few photos without flash which illustrate better the variety and intricacy of the warriors .

I took the tram across the Danube River and walked back across to the old town . Tourist boats , pleaser craft and industrial barges make their way up and down the silted waters . This was further than i anticipated a the Danube has two main channels at Vienna and a separate canal which the main town is centered . The two main river sections were a kilometer wide each separated by a meridian island used for sports and recreation.

Vienna city is a loverly city clean, tidy and well organized. I'm sure there would be many more attractions that I will follow up on my next visit.

On to Hungary and Budapest,

I wonder what will happen next

Alvin

SLOVAKIA Tatras

Slovakia

Log Number 20

Grant Chinn's flight was one hour late arriving into Katowice, Poland ,a 0030hrs touchdown. I had trouble finding a park at the airport as it was so busy. The airport services a population of some three million people in the south of Poland. Huge numbers of Poles now reside elsewhere in the EU in search of higher pay and lower unemployment than they find at home. Flights were arriving from the Middle East, Scandinavia and of course London.

It is great to have my travel buddy sitting in the navigates seat again and sharing the driving. It didn't take long for us to harmonize our plans for the next few days.

Birkenau II was the biggest death camp ever constructed. We were on site at 0900 hrs. First impression was of the enormous size of the establishment - more than 200 acres of fenced compounds all systematically laid out around the three railway arrival platforms. Between 1942 and 1944 several million incoming Jews, Gypsies, Homosexuals and a range of other 'undesirables' from all over Europe were drafted either for immediate gas chamber death or into the workforce to assist the German war effort for as long as they were physically able. Row after row of crumbling brick chimneys are all that remains of around two thirds of the camp buildings, following the retreating Nazis' desperate efforts to burn the evidence of their hideous crimes. It is difficult to imagine that over 400 tortured souls were crammed into the drafty wooden buildings originally designed to house a few dozen horses.

Snuggled in under the Tatars mountains on the Polish side is the ski resort town of Zakopene. We made this our destination for the end of the first day, a good choice. The centruim was full of activities and events as if it was market day . The structure of the houses had changed to Bigger and bolder . Log cabins and massive hotels and resorts . This town seemed to be buzzing in the summer and i would expect even more busy when the snow covers the surrounding mountains. We wandered the town . Found a nice restaurant on the main street for our evening meal and let the town come to us. Sitting still allows you to observe the traders and hawkers selling their wares . Beggars adopted a very submissive pose on the side of the street. He was given five handouts from varying people as they passed . He soon wandered to the local alcohol take away and topped up his needs .

An early start had us u to the Boarder between Poland and The Slovak Republic. A slight delay of 15 min as the Kiwi passport was a rare commodity in the hills and the senior had to be consulted.

The mountain views are fabulous made better by the abundance of wild flowers and seemingly endless expanse of Spruce forest which extends right up to the snow line. These sort of view necessitated several stops for Cuppa's and photos opportunities. Skiing and mountaineering in Slovakia is also an industry that has become very important to the economy. The ski lifts to the High Tatra's operate during the summer which was to our advantage. Grant took no persuasion to come up to the top . Mountain wildlife was out to play in the sunny morning. Marmot whistled their shrill warnings to their family members , probably a eagle flying high above as i don't think the people on the chair lift would warrant a second glance from them now. We had planned to ride the gondola right up to the top , when i seen the rise of the suspension wires heading into the clouds i was secretly pleased it was fully booked until 1630hrs . Instead we road the triple ski lift up to the south saddle still an impressive rise and afforded the views down into Poland across craggie ridges.

It was time to chew some mile towards Bratislava where Grant had a mid afternoon flight back to London tomorrow . He chose the Unesco acclaimed mountain village of Banska Stiavnica as our Roost for the night. He planned to get an Hotel for the night which would be great so I could have my first bath for 5 weeks. Most o the town was booked out because there was a jazz festival on in town. Medieval displays , music and dancing filled the main town square. We wandered about conscious that we didn't have the entrance fee bangle around our wrists. Two warriors were engaged in a very strenuous sword fight . Which seemed to wax and wane between the two combatants . Sweat and heavy breathing was brought on from the heavy chin link vests and Armour . Eventually Long Hair seemed to inflict a mortal blow and his Green checked Pattern opponent fell to the deck breathing heavily but relieved the ordeal had finished. I met a Slovakian Dr who told me of the history of the town back to the 12 century. Gold and silver was the source of the wealth and economy . The geography is of five volcanoes standing in isolation away from the main backbone the Tatra's bringing to the surface valuable minerals. The area is a mixture of small farming and spruce forests . In the valleys dammed reservoirs, previously for the mining industry , are very scenic and used for recreation. A perceived treat from the Turks in the 15^th century seen the defensive walls go up and the inner scantum centered around the main church fortified . A massive monument has been erected in the town square following the Plague which swept through Slovarkia in the 17^th century.

The entertainment continued up until 2200 hrs, the grand finales was a fire dancing routine. The gypsies dressed in period costume put on a 30 minute display . Most impressed with strenuous crowd appreciation.

Bratislava old town and castle entertained for the last three hours i had Grants company. We walked to the Castle arriving dehydrated and sweating profusely . This is the hottest day i have experienced on this trip . I must be in the High 30s today. I utilized the air conditioning units which hold the ambient temp in the castle to a steady 21 degrees . These where necessary because the silk tapestries some 600 years old would not tolerate the temp fluctuations that I had been experiencing. The Danue river flows below the Castle . Very silty river and fast flowing past Bratislava . Barges heavily laden with Coal and timber slowly made their way up stream.

It was good to have had the chance to get out of the driver seat while Grant was with me . He had covered about 800 km with me over the last three days . I dropped him at the 'kiss and wave' at Bratislava Airport. This evening I crossed over to Austria . I pulled into a small village and found a spot to have my evening meal and watch the sun go down over the fields of sunflower, wheat, and barley. 30 minutes before sun set the hares started to venture out onto the open ground. They were initially wary of the van parked in their back yard but soon settle down to feed on new shoots coming out of the ploughed wheat fields . Three deer ventured out of the wood to feed on or in amongst the sunflowers.

I wonder what will happen next

alvin

POLAND Lubin

Poland

Alvin's update

Lubin Plains

Log 19

From Warsaw I headed south east, back to the rural plains around Lubin. All my plans to go back to Warsaw changed after the debacle of not remembering my train station. I soon found a mechanic with a Mig welder, on my way out of the city, who fixed the exhaust leak. I snapped on a new fuel filter which has eliminated the fuel leak. My gas supply remains dubious, i have had to put an oversize Polish cylinder in the wardrobe and run the hose via a new hole drilled in the floor of the WR connecting it to the Gas Cupboard . I remain skeptical about the seal and switch the gas supply off when not needed . This has stuffed my Fridge as it runs on Gas during the day and night, it was time to have a throw out anyway.

I have been telling you all the positive aspects of my travels but the negative can be as interesting as well. Towards mid afternoon the sun was real hot, I decided to take advantage of the heat and attend to the most of my clothes washing , It not easy to find a laundry service in this nick of the woods because there are very few tourists. I have not seen another campervan or tourist bus since i left Warsaw. I filled the ballast water tank to the top with H2O and sought a place where i could scrub and hang the clothes to dry . I found a spot just behind a village where they have their weekly market. The towns sewage plant was nearby but I could not detect any pong from there . A small fire was burning about 100 meters away . Rubbish was being burned, there was the strong smell of burnt plastic pervading the air. I decided to tolerate the smell while attended to the washing.

Once started the wind changed and I was getting the full force of the pollutants from the fire but I persevered and soon had the fence covered in Tee Shirts, shirts, trousers, and my undies, I put the sleeping bags out to air. They felt damp after a weeks rain and little ventilation through the van.

I wandered over to the fire and spread it so it would extinguish itself in time which worked after 30 minutes. I had a range of visitors all wondering who and what i was doing. Several teenagers can and sat in close proximity drinking beer and chatting . Probably marking their territory and tying to encourage me to move on. The rain recommenced , my clothing was 80% dry, still too wet to put away . I utilized a small overhang in the market to put the damp clothing and made my evening meal. Cauliflower, potatoes, Peas and Ham, I ripped open a tin of mixed fruit for sweets.

I watched the bird settle for the evening . Starlings,in their thousands, had a massive roosting tree nearby and were flat out catching up with the days news and events with one another. The Jack draws sat high on the power lines The young birds among them occasional squabbling and causing their neighbor to fly off temporarily. High in the sky six cranes flew by . Their flight was slow and direct. The wingspan must have been two meters and were flapped in a slow rhythmical pattern as they headed west. Their long legs acting as a rudder to keep them on course. A farmer bought in his two cows for the night . The old Frisian cows had been tethered in a field nearby . As they waddled past with massive udders it was obvious they were about to be milked . A permanent chain is fastened around the stub of their horns , the chain being about 20 feet long was being dragged along . The old girls had learnt to walk with their heads to one side to avoid treading on the chain.

The remainder of my clothes still hadn't dried so I decided to camp for the night and get an early start in the morning. I was awake at 0530. Made a cuppa and had some toast with tomato's. I got out through the cabin side door and had a stretch and yawn. Grabbed the still damp clothes and made ready to go. I slid the side door shut and went to the drivers side door which was locked . Then began my problem . I had locked the bloody keys inside. The campervan has additional security, all door lock down on the main front door . Stuff it, was standing in a teeshirt trousers and shoes. I pushed and pulled probed and twisted but no way was the van going to let me back in to reach the tantalizing keys hanging in the dashboard.

It would be another two hours before a mechanic would even be thinking of going to work. I walked the village to locate my options. I soon chilled down as the morning was cold and a light breeze soon lowered my body temperature. The locals where about their routines of sweeping up after the rain, feeding animals and taking yesterdays milk in small cans on push bikes to the collection point. I located three mechanics workshops in the first 30 minutes and soon found myself back at the van . I had kept my frustration under control but the sight of the keys dangling just out of reach was getting to me.

At 0700 I spotted a car turn into one of the garages i had identified earlier. I wandered down and explained my predicament with simple sign language. He quickly understood my plight and offered me a coat. His son could speak English and would be at work around 0830am , he would be able to help. He made me a strong black coffee which was hard to swallow but I welcomed the warmth in my stomach. Feeling warmer I wandered across the road to the rivers edge . Fishermen had their lines in since daylight. I thought I'd wander past and have a look into their catch bags to see if and what they were catching.

From down the river a bit i seen the mechanic and two others drive down to the van and commenced trying to open the lock. I hurried after them, needing to travel 500 meters, and arrived to find they had put and inflatable bag, like a BP Cuff, into the door jam and puffed it up straining the door probably hoping the catch would burst open . I soon put a stop to that stratagie, Their next act was to try to trip the lock mechanism by inserting a wire down the glass of the drivers window . Unsuccessful also.

One of the buggers climbed up onto the roof using the bike rack on the back . He began pulling and lifting the skylights which I knew were only locked down with flimsy plastic catches . Before he would listen to my protestation he had snapped a securing plastic clip which will be hard to replace. He soon understood my stronger language. "Get down off the F****** Thing" . I resolved to cut the rubber round the front drivers quarter window to gain entry before these bugger demolished my van. The mechanic was able to get a second hand rubber surround for about £20.00 . We soon had the new one installed and I was pleased to give him back his coat and point the van towards Lubin.

I wonder what will happen next

POLAND Warsaw

Poland Warsaw

070807

Log 1.

You sometimes do some silly bloody things when you are traveling alone. Yesterday I drove towards Warsaw. I had been warned to "Not Drive in Warsaw"and "Parking very Difficult" so I found a spot by the railway about 10 km out of town. I had arrived at midday therefore had the afternoon to orientate and find the spots to interest me tomorrow in the city.

After my cuppa and small meal of smoked chicken and left over Spuds and Cold Corn, ( I still cook to many each meal so have spud left overs most days ) I walked to the train station only 500 meters away.

The lady at the Kase couldn't understand a word i was saying and couldn't sell me a ticket to Warsaw for some unknown reason. I chanced it and jumped on the express to town. I seemed to arrive at Central in a flash, Gratis of the Polish Rail. Centralna Station Warsaw is big even by London standards. All the station is underground, a maze of tunnels. The signs are excellent if you can understand Polish. I headed for the daylight.

The most imposing of the buildings in Warsaw is the 40 story Palace of Culture and Science . I spotted a sign to the lookout, paid my dues at the Kasi and proceeded to the lifts. From the top, I looked out over post war construction, Glass towers, New Hotels and a substantial financial district. Away in the distance new housing tower blocks dot the skyline in all directions , uniform in height about 10 stories tall. About 2 km on the edge of the Vistula river was the Old Town. I have seen enough Museums to do me for a month or so but I was sure to find some food and sights to entertain me for the afternoon in the Old Town.

I chose the underground, another option was to walk or take a bus or tram which seemed to be going in the general direction. Down in the bowels of Warsaw I had the same dilemma, no signs in English. I bought a 24 hrs ticket for 7.50 Zoloty about £1.20 and charged through the barriers as if i knew what i was doing and where i was going. One stop on the tube, seemed to be about 2 KM of rattling and shaking so I pounced off and headed for the daylight. As I was going up the stairs i was asked direction from a fellow Aussie traveler who it would appear, had the same range of anxieties that i had. I must have looked confident anyway.

The Royal castle is the biggest building in the Old town, It was deliberately destroyed on Hitlers Orders. Put back together between 1971 & 84. Inside are 20 or so paintings from Canalleto who's paintings recorded Warsaw's architecture in such detail that they were able to be utilize in the reconstruction of the cities monuments and buildings. A temporary exhibition was currently available, swords, knives, shields and Armour . They wanted extra money, so i moved on to walk the old town, earwigged a English speaking tours whenever i could. I found that i was getting too much superfluous info and began wandering on my own.

The buildings, only 50 years old, looked old especially with broken plaster work and shonkie paintwork to add age to their appearance, The streets were well patronized with tourists buying trinkets , fake fur hats, postcards and an array of novelty items pertaining to Warsaw and Poland. A particular blue grey fox fur hat took my interest, Christ knows where ill get to wear it its not cold enough on New Zealand . The bargaining began soon as a went to walk away the price dropped by 500 down to 450. I asked for his calculator so i knew the conversion to UK pounds . I offered 200 and received an indignant look, I lingered for a moment but no response other than "Very, Very, Good Fox" . The deal remained, not done.

A walking tour from my LP, took me to most of the highlights of the old town. I was very curious about the 'Monument to the Warsaw Uprising' a significant event that happened towards the end of the war, 1944. The short version goes like this. The Poles hoped for more help to liberate their city especially from the British forces who had encouraged oppositional actions and from the Red Army which had advanced to within view of the conflict and were camped across the Vistula river, they wanted them to join and Ousting the Germans. This did not happen and after lengthy struggle and severe bombing the Germans took control , thousands where killed.

On my way south driving to Warsaw, I camped up a side road in a nice secluded spot. I read my Lonely Planet as i settled for the night . Further up the road 10 km was the site of Treblinka 2 the extermination camp. Unlike Auschwitz nothing remains other than the Huge Granite Monument and some interpretation panels showing the layout . Somewhere beneath the grass , mingled with the sand , lies the ashes of some 800,000 thousand human being. ( 3 times the population of Christchurch )

Horse and traps clip clop around the cobbled streets . The horses are shod with special shoes with rubber across the heel to reduce the noise levels in the narrow streets. I noticed they have bags permanently slung under their tails to catch the used oats and chaff as it is ejected . I only suppose that if it was left to drop on the cobbled streets it would be very difficult to remove, stink like hell and by catching it in the bag the shit is able to be recycled and also eliminates the hazard posed to tourists who generally look up not down.

Wandering back towards the central train station I suddenly had a shot of adrenaline when i realized I had not taken note of the station where i had left the campervan at midday. I thought it was Pembertoski or something like that . Stuff it, I should have written it down , Bev would been more diligent but she was on the other side of the globe, asleep. At the central station I found the Kasi and asked for a train to Pembertoski.. The ticket clerk looked at me blankly, she obviously could not understand my language or a station mis pronounced or non existent. I stood out of the que with reluctance to gather my thoughts, looking for someone who might speak the English. Four people just shrugged and walked on , they had a home to go to, unlike me. Two others said there isn't or never was a station called Pembertoski.

I went back up to daylight. tramps, vagrants and other lost souls had begun to select their spots on the park benches. I was looking round to find a lame, weak, clean tramp that i could wrestle his overcoat off. Probably a very rare commodity. In that way I would a least be warm, while aimlessly wandering looking for the camper-van. I retraced my steps to the platform that I thought i had exited the express. It dawned on me that I had about seven or so stops back across the river towards the south. One of the stops was Pradg, the southern suburb of Warsaw. If I watched out for the womens prison that i noted on my way in then i was getting closer to my destination .

I found a train map. Bugger, there was an added complication, Metro, intercity or Tram services , all had different stops. No such name as Pembertoski. Then i spotted the one i needed the sixth stop on the intercity,the one I needed was Sulejowek. How could i have forgotten something so simple.

The sun is shining today, the first fine days for a week . The van is damp from the rain, I need to attend to my house work , clothes washing, replenish the tucker, fix the exhaust which has developed leak after i drove into a road side pothole much bigger than anticipated. Then i need to track down a fuel leak which seems to be getting worse.

I can't get my usual gas bottles refilled in Poland so Ill have to adapt and hope. If the gas connection leaks it will be one sure way of getting a good nights sleep.

I wonder what will happen next

Alvin