Malaysia

Finding ourselves in Singapore, it made sense to next explore Malaysia.  We were told by two friends to skip the train and take the 5 hour bus ride to Kuala Lumpur.  The highway was very good - the roadside stops.... not so much!  ;-)

Kuala Lumpur is a very modern city of about 2 million people.  My sister Laura is going to kill me, but I just had to include the description she wrote to me in an email.

Kuala Lumpur sounds like a place made up by Walt Disney.  You can expect the very cutest fuzzy little animals falling from the sky instead of rain.  Naturally they just bounce around unharmed and tend to get caught up in one's hair but no one seems to mind as they are just so soft and cute. And they say sorry every time one lands on you (in a cute voice) so you can just imagine the din when there is a downpour.

Good thing it didn't rain while we there.  It was however extremely hot which made it hard to get out and explore the city.  After exhausting the attractions of the nearby mall, we decided the best way to see a bit of the city was to take an air-conditioned bus tour. 

Our hotel Maya was not far from the Petronas Twin Towers for which KL is perhaps best known - they are the tallest twin towers in the world.  Not all that impressive during the day, at night, spectacularly lit up against the dark sky, they look are straight out of a futuristic movie.  Our hotel had a skyview lounge which provided a great view of the towers at night.

KL is not all that impressive - it's just a big developing city.  We were anxious to get to Cameron Highlands - four hours north of the city, but decided to extend our stay in KL a two more days to fit in a bus trip to Melaka - an old Dutch colonial coastal town.  Mainly you go there to check out the Dutch colonial architecture and Jonkers street - what used to be the main trading thoroughfare in the early days, and now cluttered with antique shops, restaurants and other peddlers.  We were on a tour and a little rushed, so I don't think we got a full appreciation for this strip.  Here we also visited a recreated Sultan's palace.  The sultans ruled Malaysia up until the 500's and at that time many of these sultan palaces existed.  Those that remain are beyond repair as you can imagine what a few centuries of humidity and termites might do to a wooden structure. 

Today in Malaysia there are 3 dominant ethnic groups - Malay, Chinese and Indian.  Can you imagine at the time of colonization the cultural cross road a place like Melaka would be?  You had the colonizing presence of the Dutch, Brits, French and Portuguese and the various traders from the regions - Chinese, Indians, Arabs, and Siamese.  No doubt there were others.

We decided to do Cameron Highlands in style, so we stayed at the Lakehouse in Ringlet.  On reflection, it would have been more interesting to stay in Tanah Rata, the main town there. Nevertheless, it was a lovely, quiet spot.  We joined a tour with a bunch of backpackers to take in the tea plantations.  It was interesting to hear them exchange stories of backpacking experiences.  We sorta kept mum that we weren't part of this "roughing it" crowd.  One young woman complained that she was very cold the previous night, but that was ok because the hostel dorm cost only $10/night.  Waaaaaaaaaaaaa..... definitely too old for that!   Though I must say that speaking with the young backpackers from various countries was way more fun that the brief toot-a-loo from the crusty old Brits we stayed with.  In fact, we have found that our age group is a little underrepresented in the travel circles.  We meet people who are either much younger or much older. 

The tea plantation was really spectacular.  It's a bit of a shame to consider that this used to be all indigenous forest and it's been cultivated, and yet it is still beautiful.   The fog made it quite eerie and we were glad when it burned off so that we could get some good vistas.  The Boh plantation we visited has been owned by the same Scottish family for three generations.  Most of the tea produces serves the Malaysia market and it is not available overseas. 

After leaving the rest of the young hip tour group, we went with a guide to visit an Asli Orang traditional village.  Yes.... this is where you enter into a village home and hang out with the locals.  Marcus calls this eco-"poor"ism and in a way it is kind of voyeuristic, but we learned a lot and enjoyed it.   In another 5-10 years these villages will no longer exist since the younger generations are going to school and choosing to remain in the cities.  My favourite scene that I will take away is the small corrugated metal hut at the side of the road selling some product or service, the owner sitting at a makeshift table and sitting on a cardboard box, talking and doing business on a cell phone. 

We were very glad to have gone to Cameron Highlands.  No doubt in a few more years there will be a 5 star hotel like the Westin built in the vicinity.  Where there's a Starbucks the rest follows... look closely at the store on the left.  Of course I had to go. ;-)

More pictures: http://picasaweb.google.com/kristine.d.morris/Malaysia#

Malaysia

Finding ourselves in Singapore, it made sense to next explore Malaysia.  We were told by two friends to skip the train and take the 5 hour bus ride to Kuala Lumpur.  The highway was very good - the roadside stops.... not so much!  ;-)

Kuala Lumpur is a very modern city of about 2 million people.  My sister Laura is going to kill me, but I just had to include the description she wrote to me in an email.

Kuala Lumpur sounds like a place made up by Walt Disney.  You can expect the very cutest fuzzy little animals falling from the sky instead of rain.  Naturally they just bounce around unharmed and tend to get caught up in one's hair but no one seems to mind as they are just so soft and cute. And they say sorry every time one lands on you (in a cute voice) so you can just imagine the din when there is a downpour.

Good thing it didn't rain while we there.  It was however extremely hot which made it hard to get out and explore the city.  After exhausting the attractions of the nearby mall, we decided the best way to see a bit of the city was to take an air-conditioned bus tour. 

Our hotel Maya was not far from the Petronas Twin Towers for which KL is perhaps best known - they are the tallest twin towers in the world.  Not all that impressive during the day, at night, spectacularly lit up against the dark sky, they look are straight out of a futuristic movie.  Our hotel had a skyview lounge which provided a great view of the towers at night.

KL is not all that impressive - it's just a big developing city.  We were anxious to get to Cameron Highlands - four hours north of the city, but decided to extend our stay in KL a two more days to fit in a bus trip to Melaka - an old Dutch colonial coastal town.  Mainly you go there to check out the Dutch colonial architecture and Jonkers street - what used to be the main trading thoroughfare in the early days, and now cluttered with antique shops, restaurants and other peddlers.  We were on a tour and a little rushed, so I don't think we got a full appreciation for this strip.  Here we also visited a recreated Sultan's palace.  The sultans ruled Malaysia up until the 500's and at that time many of these sultan palaces existed.  Those that remain are beyond repair as you can imagine what a few centuries of humidity and termites might do to a wooden structure. 

Today in Malaysia there are 3 dominant ethnic groups - Malay, Chinese and Indian.  Can you imagine at the time of colonization the cultural cross road a place like Melaka would be?  You had the colonizing presence of the Dutch, Brits, French and Portuguese and the various traders from the regions - Chinese, Indians, Arabs, and Siamese.  No doubt there were others.

We decided to do Cameron Highlands in style, so we stayed at the Lakehouse in Ringlet.  On reflection, it would have been more interesting to stay in Tanah Rata, the main town there. Nevertheless, it was a lovely, quiet spot.  We joined a tour with a bunch of backpackers to take in the tea plantations.  It was interesting to hear them exchange stories of backpacking experiences.  We sorta kept mum that we weren't part of this "roughing it" crowd.  One young woman complained that she was very cold the previous night, but that was ok because the hostel dorm cost only $10/night.  Waaaaaaaaaaaaa..... definitely too old for that!   Though I must say that speaking with the young backpackers from various countries was way more fun that the brief toot-a-loo from the crusty old Brits we stayed with.  In fact, we have found that our age group is a little underrepresented in the travel circles.  We meet people who are either much younger or much older. 

The tea plantation was really spectacular.  It's a bit of a shame to consider that this used to be all indigenous forest and it's been cultivated, and yet it is still beautiful.   The fog made it quite eerie and we were glad when it burned off so that we could get some good vistas.  The Boh plantation we visited has been owned by the same Scottish family for three generations.  Most of the tea produces serves the Malaysia market and it is not available overseas. 

After leaving the rest of the young hip tour group, we went with a guide to visit an Asli Orang traditional village.  Yes.... this is where you enter into a village home and hang out with the locals.  Marcus calls this eco-"poor"ism and in a way it is kind of voyeuristic, but we learned a lot and enjoyed it.   In another 5-10 years these villages will no longer exist since the younger generations are going to school and choosing to remain in the cities.  My favourite scene that I will take away is the small corrugated metal hut at the side of the road selling some product or service, the owner sitting at a makeshift table and sitting on a cardboard box, talking and doing business on a cell phone. 

We were very glad to have gone to Cameron Highlands.  No doubt in a few more years there will be a 5 star hotel like the Westin built in the vicinity.  Where there's a Starbucks the rest follows... look closely at the store on the left.  Of course I had to go. ;-)

More pictures: http://picasaweb.google.com/kristine.d.morris/Malaysia#

Singapura

Singapore became our first stop on our SE Asia trip. We arrived from Dubai on January 10 and, despite the ominous warning on the customs form (printed in big, red block letters) that drug smugglers will be executed, we did not generate much interest from the customs folk. We cleared customs, made our way to our hotel, had a late night snack at "Kopitiam" (we learned later was an 'upscale' food court because it had air conditioning - open 24/7 and right across the street), after which we crashed.

Despite wanting to take it "easy" in Singapore, we still managed to do a lot and the best thing about our time this city was that we had a social life! 

On our first day we were picked up by our hosts and soon to be friends, Yin Leng and Boon (we were introduced to them via Marcus' uncle who used to work with Yin Leng). They took us a whirlwind tour of the city, starting with a drive through Little India, the Arab sector, the city center, and Chinatown. These ethnic enclaves speak to Singapore's multicultural nature as well as its colonial past at the heart of one of the world's trading crossroads.

In Chinatown, we stopped for a much-needed refreshing drink at the hawker center (their name for an open air food court). These food courts turned out to be a standard feature in this city, as people flock to them for cheap, quality eats. Whereas in Canada food courts are synonymous with bland, chain-store offerings in malls, these places appeared to be a destination of choice for many people.

We had coconut juice and watermelon drinks (we were to have many watermelon juices after that - yummy) and I tried a bit of Yin Leng's Tau Suan dessert: beans sweetened with potato sugar and sprinkled with pieces of sliced donut, which, I have to say, wasn't bad! We headed to Mount Faber for a view of the city, characterized by an seemingly unending expanse of high-rise apartments. We learned that real estate affordability for many residents is low. As such, as much as 80% of the population lives in public housing units, which are subsidized. Still, with costs of some of these units over $500K, home ownership is not for those without substantial means.

We then headed to the Vivo mall, a huge affair that involved a bewildering number of entrances, parking decks, lobbies, and shopping levels. We settled in for some excellent dim sum - our table overlooked the harbour (it reminded us very much of the Pearl restaurant at Harbourfront). We both really liked the bamboo oysters with glass noodles. Next we visited the beautiful botanical gardens which had a stunning display of orchids. At this point, we confessed to exhaustion and were dropped off at our hotel to combat our jetlag.

The next morning, we enjoyed a walking tour of colonial Singapore, which included an engaging account of the city, founded by Stamford Raffles in 1819 as a trading center for the British Empire. His accomplishments continue to be remembered throughout the city, with many buildings, structures, and institutions named after him. Our tour ended at the famous Raffles Hotel, the birthplace of the Singapore Sling...or it's just a good story to sell ludicrously overpriced cocktails. That afternoon found us at the Singapore Art Museum followed by a walk along Orchard Road, the swank shopping district, where we stocked up on books at Borders.

That evening our hosts treated us to a trip to the east coast.  Everything in Singapore is small scale (the country is an island of approximately 250 square miles, although they are growing by virtue of landfill) and so, while the term "east coast" may conjure up a grand journey of many miles, for Singaporeans it's about a 15-minute drive. The east coast is a refuge from the crowded city, with beaches, rental chalets, amusement parks, and of course, a multitude of restaurants. One memorable sight was that of an automated wakeboarding ride (no boat required). We finished our visit with a terrific dinner of local seafood specialties. Our hosts' daughter, Charmaine, was headed back to Cornell University after Christmas break and was dreading the cold weather. We learned that when Singaporeans head to cold weather locations for business they often get a winter clothes allowance and when we checked out a travel store later in Kuala Lumpur, half of it was luggage and the other half was hats, gloves, and parkas.

We extended our visit for one day, as we learned that a high school chum of Kristine's, Sandra (and her husband Dave), residents of Singapore, were back from holidays. This allowed us to plan a visit to the excellent Asian Civilization Museum, followed by a night out with Sandra and Dave. Drinks at Boat Quay (along the river in the business district) were followed by dinner at a "void deck" Chinese restaurant: void decks are common areas in the subsidized housing units in Singapore and it is not unusual for Singaporeans to visit the various restaurants and shops that open there. In a crowded city, one finds things in the most unusual locations.  Finally, desert was enjoyed in the Holland Village, named after the Dutch presence here many years ago.

Our final day was spent doing some casual sightseeing while doing chores (getting a bus ticket and sending a parcel home). We walked through Kampong Glam the Arabian part of town which was one of my favourite areas. Unfortunately we didn't have our camera along.  We stopped for a spicy Indonesian lunch (oops, excuse me... Padang Cuisine) at a restaurant called Wisury. I was quite happy with my potato/onion omelette and lime juice, while Marcus polished off a shrimp and veggie dish as well as the chicken with green chili.  Afterwards we happened upon some batik along what proved to be the textile street - just wish now I had bought more.

Singapore is an extremely modern city and everyone speaks English fluently so we felt quite at home.  But we also knew that it is not typical Asia, so we looked forward to moving onto Malaysia next.

 

Singapore pictures
http://picasaweb.google.com/kristine.d.morris/Singapore#

Dubai

There is nothing like boarding a plane in sub-zero wintry weather and to emerge hours later in tropical heat.  (Although skinny dipping in Georgian Bay with the northern lights flickering in the night sky above is certainly close!)   

Dubai is exactly as we expected.  A friend of ours once described it as Las Vegas on steroids.  We agree - it's sort of like Las Vegas and Disneyland mixed together.   We decided to stay on the beach resort area and chose the Westin Mina Seyahi Beach Resort which was a fabulous.   It was outrageously expensive (lattes at the poolside were $10 each), but it's that way everywhere in Dubai, except maybe in the old part of town.  So you just have to sign your name and not look at the tally!

We managed to pack quite a lot into the 5 days we were there.  Obviously we spent time by the pool soaking up the sun.  We had one dip in the ocean just to be able to say we swam in the Persian Gulf, but kept mostly to the bath temperature pool.  There was a bit of a cold front coming from Russia which kept the temperatures a bit low, around 25 degrees.  Perfect for sunbathing and sight seeing. 

After our first day of poolside bathing and being very thankful we had left the cold temperatures behind,  we spent the next day touring the old part of Dubai called Bur.  Unfortunately, quite a few things were closed as the UAE was in mourning (the ruler of one the seven emirates died), but we still managed to fill our day.  We took a tour of a typical Dubai home with wind towers.  To me the most interesting architectural aspect were the gypsum decorative panels and of course the "barajeels" or windtowers which supplied some form of air conditioning at the time.

 

 

 

 

 

 

We walked the waterfront, found some lunch (kebabs) at a riverside restaurant and watched the busy traffic of dhows carrying mostly human cargo.  We then explored the souk, but it was not nearly as impressive as the one in Marrakesh.  The textile souk was closed which was very disappointing for me but Marcus was ever thankful.  We then made it to an area called Bastakiya - this is a old trading village that has been totally renovated.  We explored down it's narrow alleys and came across a courtyard cafe that served.... you guessed it.... Starbucks lattes!!!!  It was the perfect afternoon break.

Of course a trip to Dubai would not be complete without 4x4 dune bashing in the dessert.  It was fun but I am glad it was only for about 20-25 minutes.   I got the impression that the area where dune bashing is allowed is quite controlled, so my conscience was somewhat appeased.  I have to say that the 40 minute drive to and from the event was the most nerve wracking.  Obviously our driver thought he was in a race car - nothing like going through a roundabout at 100km a hour trying to pass a truck.  We went to the dinner in a recreated Bedoin village and tried shisha (otherwise known as hookah).  We had to get a demonstration because we weren't sure if you were supposed to inhale.  Even though we smoked herbal fruits it still made me feel a little sick, but Marcus was happy to finish it off.  I was glad to try it - our old neighbourhood on the Danforth has a store that sells them.  They look so exotic, but really they are quite simple.   

One our fourth day we signed up for the "modern dubai" bus tour which took us to a few malls and some of the main hotels including the Burj Al Arab and the Atlantis.  We were quite enthralled with the aquarium in the new Dubai Mall (which was so big it felt like an airport).  

Dubai Mall Aquarium

 Ski Dubai in the Emirates Mall:

Burj Al Arab Hotel and the 164-storey Burj Dubai (which will be the tallest building in the world)

If you are thinking of going to Dubai, talk to me as I have a place to recommend where to stay - a place that is close to amenities and a Starbucks!  Next we go to Singapore.

For lots more pictures of Dubai:
http://picasaweb.google.com/kristine.d.morris/Dubai#

Christmas in Germany

 Yes, those are real candles on the Tannenbaum...

Christmas 2008 will be the first Christmas we did not spend in Canada, and although we were away from home, we were in the next best place - staying with Marcus' family in Munich.  Rosi, Gerhard and Moni were perfect hosts and we were thrilled to have a place to just hang out and recover from three and a half months of travel.

Rosi and Gerhard had just moved into the newly restored and renovated ancestral home (she grew up there) on the outskirts of Munich in a town called Allach.  Just across the street the Wurm river flows quickly, and if you follow this river for about 1 km in the summer you reach an outdoor bier garden nicely situated among the trees and water. 

Most of our time in Munich was spent planning food, eating food and wishing we hadn't overindulged. In one memorable event, Marcus was invited to Gerhard's Christmas tradition of gathering on Christmas Eve morning at a Munich tavern, where they enjoyed a specialty beer (from a wooden keg) as well as Weisswurst. Beer and sausages are rarely enjoyed at 10:30 am where we come from, but Marcus suggested he could get used to it...

Christmas Eve was celebrated with a meal of goose and potato dumplings, expertly and laboriously prepared by Rosi, followed by an exchange of gifts. The following day, we met Monika's partner, Stefan, over brunch.

New Year's Eve was also enjoyed at home, with a delicious meal of venison, capped off by an incredible display of fireworks across the neighbourhood.

 During this time, we also drove to the town of Oberammergau, where we met with Marcus' cousin Christian, Uncle Franz, and Aunt Eleanor. We shared a meal while catching up, having not seen them in several years. Two days later, we again joined them for a lunch, followed by a visit to the town of Mindelheim. There, we met up with Marcus' cousin Andrea and her husband, Josef, and their two children, Markus and Marina. It was great to see them again and be entertained by this musical family. Marina and Josef played Christmas tunes in a saxophone duet and then Markus showed off his skills on the drums. The older Marcus was persuaded to become reacquainted with the drums, but stopped quickly out of sheer embarrassment.

As our days in Germany neared an end, we became increasingly busy with planning and booking the next weeks' travel...on to warmer climes.

Enjoying a traditional Brotessen in the old Bachmann family home...

Gyor, Vienna and Salzburg

Now, I know what you're thinking... "Vienna...absolutely and Salzburg I get, but Gyor, where the hell is that and why would you stay there?"  That is a very valid question.  We asked ourselves the same thing.  Alas, sometimes what dictates your decision to stay in a town is not the town itself but the accommodation you find.  For much of our trip we used the http://www.holidaylettings.co.uk/ website to secure apartments.  (It lists rental properties throughout the world mostly owned by Brits.  This facilitates arrangements since the owner speaks English!)  Through this site we found an apartment in Gyor and decided to use it as a base in which to visit both Vienna and Bratislava (capital of Slovakia), it being a one hour drive from both destinations.   We did make it to Vienna, but truth be told, the weather was miserable and we mostly hibernated in the apartment to read books and watch TV.  It is much more pleasant to do that sort of thing when you have a nice apartment. 

View of the River from our apartment in Gyor 

To be fair, Gyor was rather charming.   It is hard not to like the curved cobblestone pedestrian lanes and the stuccoed buildings painted in muted yellows, pinks and greens that are common to many towns in this part of Europe.  The Christmas market was in full swing and we came across the booth selling funnel like cakes just as our tummies started to get that mid-morning pang.  We had seen these in Zagreb and Hungary and I was very eager to try one.  It was quite good - one is plenty big for two to share.   

The Ràba River runs east through the  town where it eventually meets up with the Danube and it's lazy but powerful route passed our balcony by mere meters.  

I will always remember Gyor as the place that gave me a black eye.   About 30 seconds into a run I stepped on a plastic Xmas tree binding and caught my other foot in the loop - I went down in an instant, banged my brow bone hard on the pavement (oh yeah, I was on the street when I did this in front of the market selling Xmas trees - it was busy with cars and people.... oh and it had been raining so there was a big mud puddle right where I landed).  I wasn't hurt, but surprised because I couldn't imagine why I went down so suddenly.  I picked up the nasty culprit, gave a mean look to the guy selling Xmas trees and continued on my way.  I received quite a few stares but I thought this had more to do with the fact that no one runs here.  It wasn't until I got back home that I realized I had mud all down one side of my face and big swollen eyebrow!

Looking better here...
 

Vienna!  What does one say about this amazing city without sounding trite?  I figured that one must not visit Vienna without taking in some musical entertainment.  So we drove from Gyor to Vienna to catch an evening with the Vienna Imperial Orchestra (doesn't that sound grand?).  The route into Vienna took us through the industrial area with smoke stacks and a huge OMV (oil) refinery - I couldn't believe this was beautiful Vienna!  The airport comes after this zone so most tourists making their way into the city would not experience this wrong side of the tracks.  Downtown, we quickly found some expensive underground parking, made sure we would be able to find our way back before leaving, popped into a hotel for a map and restaurant recommendation, and then walked a quick tour of the major sites.  We weren't quite sure what to make of the young men beside in the restaurant who wore cow bell's around their necks!  The pedestrian zone and St. Stephensplatz were very busy with shoppers and buskers and the Christmas light displays were spectacular.

    

At one of the Christmas markets (there were several) we came across a outdoor concert with gospel singers.  They were very good so we listened to them while Marcus sipped a Glühwein and I downed my first Starbucks latte in months.  Heaven!  Before too long we had to head to the orchestra. Luckily we had scoped out the location just after parking the car because it was not easy to find.  The master of ceremonies introduced each piece of music in both English and German obviously catering to the many tourists that visit Vienna at Christmas.  The hall itself was quite beautiful with wooden painted ceilings, gold-leaf biblical scenes and I took pictures of the trompe d'oeil stone walls hoping to one day recreate it in a room in our next home.

This looks easy, don't you think?

The orchestra put on fun show playing typical pieces you'd recognize like the Eine Kleine Nachtmusik, and we were also entertained by two opera singers and a pair of ballet dancers.  We quite enjoyed it.   On our way back home in the car, we both agreed we'd come back to Vienna for a much longer stay.

 

 

We had one last stop before heading to Munich and that was Salzburg, Austria.  We'd been through Austria once before in 1996 when we drove from Munich south across the Alps to Merano, Italy.  Most of our memories from that trip had to do with big mountains and this was the image we had in our heads when we headed across the top of Austria.  But somehow we made it the whole through Austria on a flat highway without encountering any mountains!  Where did they all go? 

In Salzburg we stayed at the Marriott.  It was about a 20 minute brisk walk along the river into the downtown.  Since we had done the castle on the mountain once before we felt we could bypass the steep climb to the top of the hill and wander throughout the pedestrian zone along the base of the hill.   In addition to the wonderful metal work signs above each shop door, many windows were adorned with very creative Xmas decorations.  We hadn't seen this anywhere else and they were quite delightful to look at.  We bought cookies at the Christmas market and black bread at the St. Peter flour mill.  To give you an indication of how heavy it is, it was priced by kilogram.  We found ourselves once again charmed by the cemetery and catacombs at St. Peter's church.  The elaborate scrolled ironwork that marks the graves are beautiful - each a work of art.  The beds are carefully maintained and planted for Christmas.

More pictures:  http://picasaweb.google.com/kristine.d.morris/Gyor#

Buda or Pest?

Budapest was our next stop after Zagreb. We were lured there by it's old European charm, ongoing growth after decades behind the Iron Curtain, and the promise of a kick-ass apartment going for cheap.

We headed out of Zagreb in a torrential downpour (shocking!), but were eventually relieved to see the rain taper as we drove west. We reached the border of Hungary quickly and then headed out on the spanking new M7 towards Budapest. Along the way we passed many trucks loaded down with Christmas trees no doubt to supply the Christmas markets.  We learned that one has to purchase a vignette to travel on these highways (they don't have toll booths), but only after reading about it at a rest stop. Unfortunately, this was after we passed a vignette control vehicle, snapping photos of passing vehicles. Hopefully the ticket will get lost in the mail.

We arrived without further ado in Budapest, and were met at our apartment by Giovanni, a young, entrepreneurial Italian ex-pat living in the city. The apartment was as advertised, a stunning renovation in a downtown building that took inspiration from, and would not have looked out of place in, any home design magazine.  We were very impressed, but also distraught that it was only available for four nights. At 50E, it could not be beat. It also came with a Nespresso machine, so our much-missed morning lattes returned to our morning routine, at least for a little while.

Budapest is actually made up of two cities - Buda and Pest.  And so the question for every local and tourist is which city do you like best - Buda or Pest?  Buda is on the hill that overlooks Pest and it is the quiet part of town with museums and official looking buildings.  Pest is where the life is - shopping, restaurants and the pedestrian zones.  It's hard not to prefer Pest.

The weather was lovely, despite being a little cold, and we were able to spend some time seeing the sights.  Our first was the Budapest Christmas market, which was extremely busy on the Sunday we went. This added to the festive atmosphere, a feeling that was further enhanced by liberal doses of glühwein and a hearty lunch of potato pancake, cabbage roll and sausage.  After seeing Christmas markets in several cities, we think that this was one of the best.  Kristine saw some pottery she would have loved to purchase.... but it's heavy and breakable.  Maybe next time (or e-bay).

Other notable sights included the Parliament buildings (reportedly the largest in continental Europe), the Chain Bridge (built in 1849 and a symbol of Hungarian liberty during 1989 demonstrations), numerous structures and buildings reminiscent of Austrian-Hungarian times, Castle Hill, the funicular (does every European city have one?) and the Monument Park, to name a few.

We enjoyed an excellent meal at a local, traditional Hungarian restaurant called Kispipa. This featured veal paprikash, goulash soup (when in Hungary, do you need to specify Hungarian goulash?), cucumber salad, and a Hungarian speciality dessert called somloi.

On reflection much of what we did was walk and eat.  Budapest is a definite repeat destination, especially in the summer. We were reluctant to leave our Budapest apartment, but we had Vienna to look forward to, so we left taking a one day trip to Szentendre - a small arts and craft town about 20 minutes north of Budapest, before heading to Gyor - our next stopover. 

A remnant of Soviet times, afoot now only in Monument Park.

More pictures: http://picasaweb.google.com/kristine.d.morris/Hungary#

Split and Zagreb, Croatia

While still in Montenegro we spoke with George and Santa via Skype and they said that Split was worth seeing.  So we headed back up the Dalmatian coast and made Split our next stopover.  Split was the location of Diocletian's retirement palace.  He was the only Roman emperor (who ruled from 284-305) to actually retire from political life making way for a successor.  It is a town that has evolved over the years re-inventing itself and making use of the ancient buildings that are smack dab in the middle of town.  The only intact building remaining of the entire Diocletian palace is the church. Gardens once surrounded the church but this was later filled in with homes for the locals.  Today the old town remains a busy neighborhood.  As we explored the upper level of the sea facing walls of the ancient palace we came across a group of kids playing football (soccer) in a small square, their sound of their play echoing back and forth as their cries bounced off the ancient palace walls that still stand today.  The town has a wide new promenade lined with palm trees on the one side and shallow cafes and shops that are built into the front of the old palace wall.  Wicker seating invites you to sit and relax with a cup of kava and a slice of "torta orah" as you watch the tourists come and go in the ferries, although not much of that was happening while we were there.  They have installed large modern retractable awnings no doubt to provide shade from the hot summer sun.  Even on this cold day we could feel the heat of the sun enough to shed our bulky jackets as we basked in the sun for about an hour before it started to rain again. 

  I will always remember Split because by now I was anxiously looking for signs of Christmas and this is where we first encountered Christmas festivities in full swing.  Small booths lined the promenade selling Christmas crafts.  We made our way to the busiest booth - the one selling fruit sherries of course and tasted some blackberry sherry.  English Christmas carols - "baby, it's cold outside" - played over a loudspeaker and thousands of Christmas lights dangled overhead as you made your way down the main pedestrian lane.  Finally, on December 3rd Christmas had arrived in Europe!

Next stop - Zagreb!  It is the capital of Croatia with a population of about 1 million.  It's location in the northern part of the country near the Hungarian border is reflected in the mostly European architecture you find here.  We made good friends with the doorman at our hotel.  He parked our car for us, carried our luggage and provided us with umbrellas.  Later on we saw him entertaining the two children of some other hotel guests.  Seemed a very congenial sort and he matched the old world elegance of the Palace Hotel Zagreb.    

We took an evening stroll through town and the Christmas market following our noses until we found the sausage man!   Despite it being dark out (it was about 5pm) we decided to follow a walking tour that was outlined on the city map we received from the hotel.  In about an hour we saw many of the sites Zagreb has to offer including Ban Josip Jelacic Square - the main public square with the requisite statue of King Tomislav, the funicular that links the Lower Town with the Upper Town, and the Stone Gate - the only remaining medieval city gate from the 13th century.  The gate itself is a chapel - Chapel of the Virgin of the Stone Gate.  Below the archway, a few pews were provided for those wanting to send a message to the patron saint of the city.  St. Mark's Church was built in the 13 century as well - it is well known for it's multi-coloured roof tiles depicting two shields....  These were added in 1880.  We even managed to see one unintended site (because we took a circuitous route back to our hotel) - the Croatian Fine Artists' House - a circular colosseum like structure designed by Croatian sculpture Ivan Mestrovic.  

Our favorite find was Tkalciceva Street which the guide says is a pleasure-center for young Zagreb people.  That is, there are lots of bars and cafes!  This is where you also find some of the more boutique type stores, unlike Jelacic Square which is lined with Zara, Massimo Dutti, the Phone House and all the chain stores you see in every European city center.   

Puffins in the window of an art gallery

For more pictures:  http://picasaweb.google.com/kristine.d.morris/20081201MontenegroCroatiaPart2#5287103766073064962