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Post by Owen on Sept 7, 2014 7:05:08 GMT
1 ~ Bohemian Highlights (16days from Canada) - September 16 to October 1st, 2011
This travel tale was written by LKD and relates to a Trafalgar Tour.
It was originally posted on the Trafalgar forum.
BOHEMIAN HIGHLIGHTS ~ LKD September 16th to October 1st, 2011
General Information
This tour would not have been my first choice as a next destination. Initially my Mom was going to go with me and the tour we had decided on was the Best of Germany and Austria. We booked and paid for this tour and then she decided she wouldn't be up to going and cancelled. As I had done the Grand European tour three years ago, approximately half of the Best of Germany & Austria would be a repeat for me. As my airfare had been booked, and paid for, the only other tour that would work with the same flights was the Bohemian Highlights. After reading the itineraries and the tour tales (thanks Chech & Oz) and comparing the two itineraries I found myself becoming more and more interested in the tour and I decided to switch to the Bohemian Highlights. We had also decided to add a couple of days in London on the way home - which I did and did not get home until October 4th.
By changing tours I would no longer arrive in Frankfurt a day early, but would hit the ground running. I flew from Toronto to Heathrow, had a little under two hours to make the connecting flight then a little over an hour to clear German customs, collect my checked bag and meet the TT rep for the transfer to the hotel. Knowing I would get little sleep on the plane all of these factors were taken into consideration.
I took my pedometer with me so I will include the number of steps I took and the distance walked in order to inform others of how much walking is involved.
The Group
There were 51 of us on a 59 seat coach, this figure includes the TD & Driver. This meant that all 8 single travelers had their own seat on the coach, as I was one of them it was very nice to have the extra room. Including the TD & Drivers (we had two, about half a tour each) there were nine nations represented - Australia (9), Canada (2), Chile (3), Czech (Driver), Denmark (TD), Mexico (5), New Zealand (4), Philippines (2), USA (24). The age range was from about 30 - 75. This was the most diverse group of the three tours I have now been on.
Day 1 - Friday, September 16th - Toronto to Frankfurt
I did not have to leave for the airport until about 2:30 pm as I had a late flight. I checked the flight information and found out my flight was going to be about 45 minutes late leaving Toronto. This caused a little panic due to the shortish connection times listed above. I called TT and did not find them to be very helpful - even though they booked my flights. I then called British Airways and found them to be more helpful. I was advised that all I would have to do is advise a flight attendant should my connection time run shorter.
My Mom dropped me off at a friend's house as they would be driving me to the airport - they were going to Munich for Oktoberfest and leaving a little earlier than me. They dropped me off at my Terminal and I went in to check my bag, then I dropped them off at their terminal so they could check in their bags as well. We then went out and had a beer and some munchies at a bar nearby. After that, we drove to the long term lot and got a shuttle to the airport. I still had a couple of hours to wait for my flight. The flight did leave late, but not quite as late as was posted earlier in the day. We were given dinner and drinks on the flight and I tried to get some sleep but was mostly unsuccessful.
3,265 steps - this will vary greatly depending upon where you are departing from.
This travel tale was written by LKD and relates to a Trafalgar Tour. It was originally posted on the Trafalgar forum.
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Post by Owen on Sept 7, 2014 7:05:47 GMT
2 ~ Bohemian Highlights (16days from Canada) - September 16 to October 1st, 2011
Day 2 - Saturday, September 17th - Toronto to Frankfurt continued
Due to the tail wind, the flight arrived at Heathrow only five minutes late. We were given a muffin and some juice before landing. I had to clear security again - even though I hadn't left the terminal and there were no stores in between the gate of arrival and the security point. Got through security with no problems only to find the gate for my next flight had not been posted yet. There was a store just past the security check point that sold only Olympic 2012 items, so I browsed in there and bought a keychain for the daughter of a lady at work that will most likely be participating in the Paralympics. By this time the gate for my flight was posted and I made my way to the gate where we were boarded shortly thereafter. I arrived in Frankfurt on time and made my way through customs and baggage reclaim with no problems. Found the meeting point and waited for the TT rep. When she arrived, she introduced me to one of my tour mates, a fellow Canadian, and we talked for a bit while we were waiting for the transfer. We got on the coach and there were three others on the tour there who had been picked up at Terminal 1 - they were all from Australia.
We arrived at the hotel - Sheraton Offenbach - and met Jeffrey and our coach driver Pavel. We had about 20 minutes before leaving on the orientation tour of Frankfurt - we were driven to Romerplatz and provided with a quick orientation before being given about an hour of free time. Once back on the coach we made our way back to the hotel for our first included dinner. During the drive back, Jeffrey explained about the seat rotation that would begin the next day and handed out a sheet of what he expected of us and what we should expect. The dinner was a buffet dinner and included a drink. The buffet consisted of bread rolls, lettuce, tomato, cucumber, salad dressing (two types). The main course was beef goulash, spaetzel, and mixed veggies. Dessert was mixed berries with some type of cream or custard. It was a very nice meal and as it was a buffet you were able to fill up on something else if you didn't like the meal on offer.
I headed back to my room shortly after dinner as I was exhausted after being up for the better part of about 32 hours - the only sleep being the dozing on the plane.
3,567 steps or 2.14 km - much of this was through the airports
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Post by Owen on Sept 7, 2014 7:06:44 GMT
3 ~ Bohemian Highlights (16days from Canada) - September 16 to October 1st, 2011
Day 3 - Sunday, September 18, 2011 - Frankfurt - Kassel - Berlin
Wake-up: 5:45 Bags out Breakfast: 6:30 Depart: 7:30
Breakfast was the full hot/cold buffet breakfast typical of the tours I have been on previously. There were choices of eggs, bacon, sausages, chicken wings, fruits, cheeses, deli meats, yoghurt, cereals, juices, etc. The breakfast was very good and there were enough options to please anybody's tastes.
We got going on time and had a rest stop at approximately 10:30 at the old East/West Germany border crossing. There are now shops and a restaurant there. Once we got going again Jeffrey explained the optionals and handed out the sign-up sheets, one of which we had to let him know if we were going or not as it was a dinner for that night, Dinner and Berlin by night, and he needed to know how many were attending. All but two of the optionals listed on the web-site were offered.
The Optionals not offered were
BRLT34 Lake District Dinner (Berlin) and
PRGT14 Splendid Interiors (Prague).
Details of the offered optionals will be provided as they occur. The optionals offered were:
Berlin:
BRLT09 - Berlin by Night and Dinner (€53) and
BRLT35 - Berlin's Secret Past (€24)
Warsaw:
WAWT01 - Chopin's Warsaw (€42) and
WAWT04 - Wilanow Palace (€31)
Krakow:
KRKT03 - Polish Folklore and Dinner (€51) and
KRKT01 - Wieliszka Salt Mines (€46)
Budapest:
BUDT04 - Danube Cruise with Dinner (€55) ,
BUDT05 - Old Hungary Excursion with Lunch and Visit to the Parliament or Opera House (€63) (offered without the visit to the museum and at a reduced price and
BUDT09 - Budapest's Secret Treasures (€41)
Vienna:
VIET14 - Vienna Palace Concert(€47),
VIET21 Dinner with Traditional Music Entertainment in a Local Restaurant (€57), and
VIET04- Vienna's Fabulous Past (€40)
Prague:
PRGT01 - Vltava Cruise and Lunch (€45) and
PRGT13 - Prague by Night (€33)
The total of all the Optionals offered was (€628). I signed up for all of them except for Vienna's Fabulous Past as I had done this optional while on the Grand European Tour three years ago.
Back to the tale, we stopped at an Axxe restaurant at 12:10 for our lunch break and had an hour here. Back on the road to Berlin. Arrived at the Hilton in Berlin in good time and weren't scheduled to leave for the optional dinner until 5:45 so I decided to go for a swim in the hotel pool. It was very relaxing.
Dinner was at Ziko's Grill where there was lots of food, drink and fun. There was a choice of three soups, mushroom, ox tail or tomato, followed by a salad. There was a choice of seven mains - mixed grill, pork shank, half leg of lamb, roast beef, wiener schnitzel, filet of sole, and a vegetarian dish. I chose the ox tail soup and the pork shank - both were quite good and not something I would normally have ordered. Dessert was pancakes filled with ice cream and chocolate sauce on top. The food was very good and there was lots of singing, dancing and fun to be had. Got back to the hotel around 9:30. I went to bed shortly after as I was still quite tired from my overnight flight.
NOTE: Although the itinerary stated we would visit Kassel, we did not. I asked Jeffrey about this and he told me it was not in the operational itinerary he received. It was not a big deal but it is quite misleading - I'm not sure if anybody else even realized the omission as I did not hear anybody else talking about it.
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Post by Owen on Sept 7, 2014 7:09:34 GMT
4 ~ Bohemian Highlights (16days from Canada) - September 16 to October 1st, 2011
Day 4 - Monday, September 19, 2011 - Berlin
Wake-up: n/a Breakfast: from 6:30 Depart: 8:00 for included Orientation Tour; 9:00 for Optional Tour
Breakfast here was very good once again, lots of variety and lots of food. No matter what your tastes are, I'm sure you would be able to find enough food to your liking to fill you up.
The orientation tour of Berlin was good and it gave us a great overview of the history of this interesting city. I did not take extensive notes of this portion of the tour but we saw many sights.
The Optional Tour (BRLT35 - Berlin's Secret Past), guided by a very knowledgeable Ita, gave a more extensive view of the city. We stopped at one of the remaining section of the Berlin Wall and were given time for photos. We had another photo opportunity at the Brandenburg Tor (Gate) during the day this time. A photo stop and a little free time to explore The Memorial to the German Resistance - opened in 1980 in part of the Bendlerblock, a complex of offices in Stauffenbergstrasse (formerly Bendlerstrasse), south of the Tiergarten in Western Berlin. It was here that Colonel Claus Schenk Graf von Stauffenberg and other members of the failed 20 July plot that attempted to assassinate Adolf Hitler were executed (from Wikipedia). Another photo stop at The Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe also known as the Holocaust Memorial (German: Holocaust-Mahnmal), is a memorial in Berlin to the Jewish victims of the Holocaust, designed by architect Peter Eisenman and engineer Buro Happold. It consists of a 19,000 square metres (4.7 acres) site covered with 2,711 concrete slabs or "stelae", arranged in a grid pattern on a sloping field. The stelae are 2.38 m (7 ft 10 in) long, 0.95 m (3 ft 1 in) wide and vary in height from 0.2 to 4.8 m (8 in to 15 ft 9 in). According to Eisenman's project text, the stelae are designed to produce an uneasy, confusing atmosphere, and the whole sculpture aims to represent a supposedly ordered system that has lost touch with human reason (from Wikipedia). Entry into the Checkpoint Charlie museum was also included.
We were dropped off at the hotel around 1:45pm and the rest of the day and night was at leisure. I had wanted to go to the Berlin Zoo and Ita told me how to get there by the Berlin Metro. I went up to my room to freshen up a bit and to get what I would need, then headed for the Metro. I got on the train but it went out of service two stops from where I got on. As I was at Potsdamer Platz I decided to go see the Sony Centre and then walk to the Zoo. The walk was about 3 km so not too far. I took some photos at the Sony Centre then continued my walk to the Zoo. I bought an English Guide book and wandered around the zoo for a few hours. The day had started off cool and overcast but by the afternoon it was sunny and mid 20's (C). After the Zoo I walked across the road to the Europa Centre (a shopping mall) to look for somewhere to have dinner. Nothing appealed to me so I got a taxi back to the hotel (€10.20) as I was too tired to walk much further - I was still recovering from my overnight flight and lack of sleep. I got back to the hotel and looked at the room service menu but found it very expensive. I then went for a walk around the hotel and found a restaurant called Modesto - I went in there and had my dinner. The food was good but I wasn't overly hungry so I didn't eat much of it. After dinner, I went into the chocolate store across from the hotel and bought some treats for myself and for some friends back home. They had huge chocolate sculptures on display of some of Berlin's famous landmarks that were very well done. Back at the hotel I went off to bed.
Pedometer ~ Steps taken: 18,461 or 11.07km (includes the zoo and the 3km walk to get there).
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Post by Owen on Sept 7, 2014 7:10:27 GMT
5 ~ Bohemian Highlights (16days from Canada) - September 16 to October 1st, 2011
Day 5 - Tuesday, September 20, 2011 - Berlin - Poznan - Warsaw
Wake-up: 5:45 Bags out/Breakfast: 6:30 Depart: 7:30
We left the hotel on time this morning, the weather was overcast with the possibility of showers.
At 9:05 we stopped at the old Germany-Poland border crossing for a facilities break and to get some Polish money, Złotys. We left this stop at 9:20, but had to make an additional stop for Pavel (driver) to take care of road taxes as he was unable to do so at the first stop. We drove around this stop for quite a while as Pavel did not know where he had to go.
By 10:05 we were on our way again and arrived at Poznan at 12:50 and we were given until 14:15. I had become friendly with another single female traveler (D) and a couple (D&H) who were all from Australia we wondered around a bit and took some photos of the beautiful square before settling on a place to eat. I had wanted to order pierogy but the waiter told us it would take a long time to prepare, so I settled for some Zurek soup and a Greek Salad. This still took a long time to come, it actually took longer than what the waiter said for the pierogy. However, we finally got our meals and the soup was very good, it was served in a bread bowl. The Greek Salad was massive, beautifully presented and very good, but as the service was so slow we did not have time to finish our meals before we had to get back to the coach.
We left Poznan on time and had a brief stop on the way to Warsaw but did not get there until 19:30 - a very long day on the road (12 hours). On Day 4 (Berlin) I had developed a rash on both my legs just above my ankles (I believe it was a heat rash) and asked one of the nurse's on board if I should get it checked out, she thought I should, so I asked Jeffrey (TD) and he arranged for a Doctor to come and see me after dinner.
We had only enough time to drop our bags in our rooms before heading down to dinner in the hotel. It was nice not having to go out for dinner after such a long day on the road. The meal was quite good and started with a mixed salad with cherry tomato and ginger balsamic reduction, bread and butter. The main was pork roulade with thyme mousse, buckwheat and mushrooms terrine, baked cauliflower, gravy sauce. The dessert was strawberry mousse on a chocolate biscuit with dark chocolate sauce. Followed by coffee or tea. All three courses were nicely presented and very good, although some found the terrine to be dry.
The doctor arrived at about 21:30 and determined the rash was an allergic reaction to something I had come in contact with and gave me a prescription for anti-histamines. After the doctor left I went to the front desk and asked if there was a pharmacy nearby that was open at that time of night. There was one and it was only a couple of blocks away. So armed with my camera I headed off to the 24 hours pharmacy. I had to ring a bell and the pharmacist came and opened a little window in the door - she took my prescription and filled it, then came back with my change. On my walk back to the hotel I took some pictures of the hotel at night as they had a very unique elevator system.
I went to the lobby afterwards to use the internet - had to buy a drink at the bar to get the code, and sent a few e-mails home before heading back to my room for the night.
6,945 steps taken or 4.16km
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Post by Owen on Sept 7, 2014 10:50:23 GMT
6 ~ Bohemian Highlights (16days from Canada) - September 16 to October 1st, 2011
Day 6 - Wednesday, September 21, 2011 - Warsaw
Wake-up: n/a Breakfast: from 6:30 Depart: 8:30 for Optional Tour; 10:20 for Orientation Tour
As I was getting ready for breakfast I went to get my camera, don't go anywhere without it while on tour, and could not find it. I went racing down to the lobby to check the chair where I was sitting last night and they had all been rearranged. I was unable to find it. Before I reported it missing I wanted to make sure that it was so I went back up to my room and took a good look around and was unsuccessful in locating it. I went back down to the front desk and asked them if a camera had been turned in. They asked what kind it was and I told them and also what the last picture taken would have been. He returned with my camera and I turned it on to show him the last picture. What a relief.
There was a very good full buffet breakfast at the Westin in Warsaw. This hotel is quite modern and the elevators are really cool. They move quite fast and are half glass so you are able to see outside and look down the shaft.
We met our local guide, Yolanta, and departed on time for the Optional (WAWT04 - Wilanow Palace). When we arrived, we were a little early so we had time to wander around the grounds and get some pictures before our interior tour. Wilanów Palace (Polish: Pałac w Wilanowie, Polish pronunciation: [ˈpawat͡s vvilaˈnɔvjɛ]) is a royal palace located in the Wilanów district, Warsaw. Wilanów Palace survived the time of Poland's partitions and both World Wars and has preserved its authentic historical qualities, also is one of the most important monuments of Polish culture (from Wikipedia). The interior was like any other palace I have been in - elegant furnishings, floors, wall coverings, etc. We had a little free time at the end of our tour for a facilities break, souvenir shopping and/or more photos.
The rest of the group arrived on the coach around 11:00 for our included Orientation tour of Warsaw, which was to be conducted by Yolanta. Yolanta was a very good tour guide and had a great sense of humour. On the way to the Old Town Square (which is mostly new) we stopped at a large park with a huge statue of Chopin under a willow tree. Another stop along the way was at a memorial just outside of what will be the Museum of Jewish Peoples (under construction). When we arrived at the Old Town Square I again joined up with my new Aussie friends. Yolanta took those interested ot a store that sold amber and other items. I bought a small tree and some amber earrings in the shape of a four-leaf clover with each leaf being a different colour for myself. I was also considering a pendant for my necklace but decided against it. After we finished in the store, the four of us found a restaurant for lunch and we sat outside. D & I shared an order of peirogy and crepes - both of which were very good.
After lunch, I decided to meet the group for a ride back to the hotel, the other three were going to walk back. On my way I popped in to an exchange place to get some more Złoty and buy some postcards and stamps to send home. I got back to the hotel and had an hour before the coach picked us up for the next Optional (WAWT01 - Chopin's Warsaw), when I met up with D, she had just gotten back to the hotel a few minutes before. They had gotten lost on their walk back, I am glad I hadn't stayed with them. The concert was quite good, even though I am not a classical music fan, the pianist is a Professor of Music at one of Warsaw's Universities. The concert took place in one of Warsaw's old summer palaces. Afterwards, the pianist was signing copies of any CD's that were bought. I bought one for my Mom as Chopin is her favourite composer.
By the time we got back to the hotel, we only had time to freshen up before heading back out for our Highlight Dinner in a local restaurant, St. Antonio. The dinner started off with a Tomato soup that had a bit of a kick to it and was quite nice (I don't normally eat Tomato soup). The main was chicken in a mushroom sauce with roasted potatoes and mixed veggies. Dessert was an apple pie/strudel type thing with whipped cream and ice cream, and was followed by coffee or tea. We were allowed two drinks each with dinner. The dinner was quite good and the restaurant was nice as well. Yolanta accompanied us on this dinner, which I thought was a little odd due to my experience on previous tours, so I asked her if Jeffrey was OK and her response was he just needed a break but was not ill. Jeffrey had been largely absent today, staying behind the scenes and leaving us in the hands of Yolanta.
After dinner we returned to the hotel and I noticed a card and a small package in my room. The card was from TT and thanked me for being a returning customer. The small package was an amber heart shaped pendant to go on a necklace that I ended up wearing for the rest of the tour. I thought this was a nice touch from TT and hope they continue to do this. It turned out later that another lady on the tour got the same thing, for the same reason. Another lady who celebrated her birthday on tour also got a card and a pendant as well. I asked Jeffrey after if he had anything to do with it and he stated he had picked it out. I thanked him and told him it was a nice touch that TT was doing this.
8,360 steps taken or 5.01 km
Tomorrow would be a nightmare for Jeffrey - to be continued.
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Post by Owen on Sept 7, 2014 10:52:27 GMT
7 ~ Bohemian Highlights (16days from Canada) - September 16 to October 1st, 2011
Day 7 - Thursday, September 22, 2011 - Warsaw - Czestochowa - Aushwitz - Krakow
Wake-up: 6:15 Bags out/Breakfast: 7:00 Depart: 8:00
Another good full buffet breakfast. The weather this morning is a little overcast and on the cool side. We were all in the lobby and ready to go by 7:50 but there was no sign of the coach and/or driver. Jeffrey called Pavel a little before 8:00 and woke him up, Jeffrey called again about 10 minutes later to ensure Pavel was awake and it turned out he had fallen asleep again. Jeffrey was not happy and understandably so. By the time Pavel arrived with the coach and all the bags were loaded we were an hour late leaving. As today was a long day on the road to begin with, Jeffrey advised he would have to make up time somewhere. Somewhere turned out to be not stopping for a morning break and were advised to make use of the on-board facilities (we were advised at the start of the tour this should be used for emergencies only). We did not arrived in Czestochowa until 12:50 and were given until 14:00 for lunch and photos, etc. By this point many of the travelers were complaining about being hungry, this is why I always ensure I have some snacks with me.
The black madonna was not on display so after viewing the church we went to a small restaurant for some lunch, then walked back to take more photos. We left Czestochowa on time and headed for Auschwitz.
We arrived at Auschwitz at 16:15 and were divided into two groups led by local guides. We used their headsets and were able to hear everything that was said by our tour guide very well. He often became emotional and you could hear him trying to compose himself. The tour of Auschwitz brought out many emotions, while it was interesting in some ways it was also very sad and sombre. It is very difficult for me to understand how people were able to treat other people in this way. After learning more about how the prisoners were treated, I don't think I would have lasted very long there. I knew things weren't good there I just didn't realize before how bad the conditions were. After Auschwitz we boarded our coach again, with the guide, for the short drive to Auschwitz II, or Birkenau for a continuation of the tour. We left Birkenau at around 19:00 and headed for our hotel in Krakow where we would have another included dinner.
By the time we arrived at the hotel, we had only a short time to freshen up before going to the dining room. The hotel here was changed from the Park Inn (listed in Brochure) to the Crown Piast (on our tour documents). The beds in the room I was assigned looked narrower than a single bed, I tried laying on it on my side with my knees up and felt like I was going to fall out. I went to the dining room for the dinner, which was a mushroom soup to start, followed by a butterfly pork chop with roasted potatoes and a side of cole slaw. Dessert was some sort of cake with a citrus glaze. The dinner was quite nice.
After dinner I asked at the front desk if they had any rooms with larger beds. They did and I was moved to another room. My new room had a queen sized bed which I was much more comfortable in. The rooms were clean and there was nothing else wrong with them, but for me the small bed just didn't work. This was the only real complaint I had for the entire tour and several others were not happy with the small beds. One couple in the group complained very loudly to Jeffrey and were also moved to another room. I didn't feel it was necessary to get Jeffrey involved when I was able to handle the situation myself. I advised Jeffrey in the morning of my new room number and explained to him the reason behind me changing rooms. He understood and appreciated the fact that I didn't go running to him unnecessarily. I can't believe how some people treat the TD, there has been at least one person/couple on each of the three tours I have been on that treated the TD poorly. I retired for the night shortly after moving to my new room as we would have an early start tomorrow. This had been another long day on the road.
9,707 steps taken or 5.82 km
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Post by Owen on Sept 7, 2014 10:53:09 GMT
8 ~ Bohemian Highlights (16days from Canada) - September 16 to October 1st, 2011
Day 8 - Friday, September 23, 2011 - Krakow
Wake-up: n/a Bags out/Breakfast: 6:30 Depart: 7:30 for optional
We left for the Optional tour to the Wieliczka Salt Mine tour on time and were introduced to our local guide, Barbara. When we arrived at the mine we were divided into two groups and Tomasz was the guide for the group I was in. This was an interesting tour and I thought it was worth the money. Tomasz gave us a good history of the mine and the lifestyle of the miners. The miner's were very religious and some of the more creative ones carved statues and chapels out of the rock. In some areas there were life-sized figures depicting different aspects of mining. They used to use horses to do some of the work and eventually had to put in stables for them as they got spooked going into and out of the mine each day. The tour lasted about two hours and covered approximately 2.5 km.
We had a bit of free time to shop for souvenirs and take some more photos. The coach met us at around 11:00 with the non-optional goers already on board. We then headed into Krakow for our included sightseeing tour. Our local tour guide, Barbara, was very knowledgeable but provided far too much information and I think most tuned her out after a while. The included tour was quite long and everybody was starting to get a little irritable as we were all beginning to get quite hungry by the time the tour finished at 13:30 (7 hours after breakfast). We were given until 3:15 for some lunch and free time before meeting the coach for a transfer back to the hotel. My three new Aussie friends and myself went to a restaurant for lunch and all had Italian food as we would be having Polish food at our Polish Folklore dinner optional later tonight. The lunch was good but the service was slow. After lunch we were able to wander around the square a bit and view the items for sale in the markets. I bought a few souvenirs for myself and some people at home. Due to the massive road construction taking place in Poland, our coach was unable to gain access to the hotel. We were driven as close as possible and then got off the coach and walked back to the hotel. There were a few people complaining about this but I would have much rather walked back to the hotel than sit on the coach for who knows how long.
The departure time for our Optional Polish Folklore Dinner and Show was 18:15 and by this time the coach was able to get to the hotel as the construction workers had finished for the day. The restaurant for this optional was right across the street from the Salt Mine we had been to earlier in the day. The gift shop at the salt mine was still open so I was able to pop across the street and get some souvenirs I failed to get earlier. Dinner was quite good and started with pierogy and Zurek soup, the main was pork and sauerkraut in a large bread bowl with some gravy and additional gravy was provided. I forgot to record the dessert but remember I was quite happy with the meal in general. The entertainment was provided by a small group of musicians and dancers ,both wearing traditional dress. There was a lot of audience participation and the evening was quite fun. We got back to the hotel at about 22:30 and I went to sleep shortly after that.
15,168 steps taken or 9.1 km
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Post by Owen on Sept 7, 2014 10:53:43 GMT
9 ~ Bohemian Highlights (16days from Canada) - September 16 to October 1st, 2011
Day 9 - Saturday, September 24, 2011 - Krakow - Slovakia - Budapest
Wake-up: 6:15 Bags out/Breakfast: 7:00 Depart: 8:00
Today we were directed to another room for breakfast. This room was not nearly as nice as the dining room where we had our dinner on the first night and our breakfast yesterday morning. The breakfast options were the same though and at this hotel there was not as much variety as we had been used to at previous hotels. We left on time today and shortly after leaving, Jeffrey announced that this would be Pavel's last day, initially we were told he would be with us until Prague and we would get a new driver there. As this was short notice for a lot of people, I am not sure how many tipped Pavel and did not see any others doing so. As the envelopes I brought with me for this purpose were packed, I simply got a piece of paper and wrapped it around my tip and secured it with a paper clip.
We made our first facilities stop shortly after 10:00 in order to spend the last of our Złoty's and use the facilities. We were on our way again by about 10:40. Another stop was made at the Poland/Slovakia border so Pavel could take care of the road taxes, etc. We did not get off the coach at this time.
At 12:30 we stopped at the small ski resort in Donovaly, Slovakia. It was a nice location surrounded by mountains and had several options for lunch. My Aussie friends and I, as well as another couple from the US secured a table outside and got our lunch from a cafeteria type restaurant. We all got something different and after eating our lunch walked around the corner to a local market for some ice cream. We had some time left before our departure time of 13:40 so we walked around and took some pictures. There were a number of paragliders gliding down from the mountains and landing not too far from where we were.
We were on our way again by 1:40 and heading for Budapest, Hungary. Shortly before reaching the Hungarian border, one man was quite ill on board and lost consciousness. His wife was slapping his face and yelling his name but he was unresponsive and vomiting. We were all yelling at Jeffrey that we had an emergency and the coach eventually pulled over and Jeffrey came back to investigate. As we were on a two-lane road with no shoulder it was not safe for the coach to remain there for very long. Jeffrey indicated we were close to the border and had Pavel drive on. Jeffrey brought a roll of paper toweling and everybody offered what they had available to help with the initial clean up of both the ill passenger and the coach. Once we were safely able to stop at the border, we all got off the coach and Pavel was able to clean the coach properly. Jeffrey asked one of the people who was sitting at the front if they would change seats with the ill passenger and his wife for the remaining journey to Budapest. We got on our way again and shortly after leaving the border I also began to feel quite ill. I spent most of the trip to the border with my head between my knees and concentrating on becoming ill myself. As soon as we got to the hotel I made a mad dash for the toilet and just made it. Jeffrey made arrangements for the doctor to come and see the man who had been ill on the coach and then advised me when the doctor arrived and so I saw the doctor too. (this was my second doctor visit in three countries). As the doctor saw me second I was given the same diagnosis as the other man - food poisoning. The doctor gave me three medicines that I took with a mouthful of water each, one for pain, one for nausea and one for diarrhea. She also left me some vitamin B6 to take the following morning. I was too tired and ill to attend the optional that evening, the Danube Cruise with Dinner and I was so disappointed as after reading all reports on the Message Board this was a 'not to be missed' optional. I just couldn't do it though. I took my camera down to the lobby where everybody was getting ready to leave for the optional and gave it to one of my Aussie friends to take some photos for me. I headed back to my room, watched TV for a bit - Olivia Newton John was singing on some show with some kids accompanying her and being interviewed in Hungarian. She had an ear piece to hear the question but responded in English which was then translated into Hungarian. It was kind of fun trying to figure out what the questions were. Shortly after that I was in bed and asleep. The meds had caught up with me.
4,056 steps taken or 2.43 km
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Post by Owen on Sept 8, 2014 7:38:43 GMT
10 ~ Bohemian Highlights (16days from Canada) - September 16 to October 1st, 2011
Day 10 - Sunday, September 25, 2011 - Budapest
Wake-up: n/a Breakfast: 7:00 - 10:00 Depart: 8:00 for the included city tour I got up and felt quite a bit better, about 70%, and was determined that I would not miss any more of the tour I had been planning for almost a year. The doctor had given me a diet based on the hotel's menu. I went down to breakfast at about 6:30 and just had a piece of dry toast and a glass of water with a bit of lemon in it.
I attended the city tour and found out that there were eight of us down with food-poisoning all together. We went on the city tour with our local guide Andrea. Andrea was a good guide and did not give us so much information that we were unable to absorb it all. We had our group photo taken in with Fisherman's Bastion in the background. It was unfortunate that there were six or seven that were not in attendance due to illness. We had some free time afterwards to take some photos and make our way back to the coach. I headed back to the coach early as I had not had anything substantial to eat for almost 24 hours and was feeling weak and tired. On my way back, I stopped in at a store and bought a Coke (on the advice of a nurse on our tour), some postcards and a couple of souvenirs. I was the first to get back to the coach and sat and talked to our new driver, Charles, for a bit. Once the others arrived we headed out for the Parliament buildings for our Optional tour - Old Hungary Excursion with Lunch. Those doing the optional were dropped off and those who were not were taken back to the hotel. The Parliament buildings were beautiful and we were able to take photos throughout, although we were not allowed to use a flash in some locations. After the tour, we were met by the coach for the trip to Szentendre (St Andrews). When we arrived, the coach parked and we were led by Andrea to the restaurant, Rab Raby, where we would have our included lunch. Along the way, Andrea stopped at several stores and advised that these were where we could get true Hungarian hand-crafted souvenirs, rather than one's made in China.
When we got to the restaurant, Andrea spoke with the staff and arranged to have a different lunch for me. I was served chicken soup instead of the beef goulash provided for the others. For a main course I had a plain piece of chicken breast with some boiled potatoes while the others had chicken with a sauce on it, roasted potatoes and a salad. My meal was quite good, but after not really eating anything for 24 hours I think anything would have been good. The others seemed to enjoy their meals as well. Dessert was a very moist cake with jam and whip cream and it was very good. After lunch I was feeling much better and not nearly as weak as I had been before. We had some free time to shop before we had to be back to the coach. I made my way there slowly and bought another bottle of Coke and some souvenirs along the way. I was there early and I boarded the coach to dump my stuff then sat on a bench in the shade and waited for everybody else to return. It was a beautiful sunny day and it was nice to just sit and relax for a bit. We arrived back at the hotel at 16:00 and had until 18:00 before the coach departed for our 'Be My Guest' included dinner. I went down to the spa and was able to book two, twenty-minute massages. I had a foot massage and a back massage, both of which were very relaxing. Afterwards I went back to the room until it was time to leave for our dinner. When we arrived at Schieszel Vendéglö Borház we were met in the parking lot by a waiter with a tray of wine soaked apricots. We were then led into a three-hundred year old wine cellar where we had a wine tasting. We were instructed how to taste wine and had a sample of a white, rose & red wines. In between wines, we were served small pieces of bread. The instruction was given by the owner in Hungarian and translated by one of the waiters. After the wine tasting, we were taken upstairs to a large room which we had to ourselves. We were served a nice salad with garlic bread and the main course was braised pork with sauce and it was so tender you didn't need a knife to cut it. This was served with potatoes. For dessert there were very thin pastry sheets sprinkled with powdered sugar laid on top of a custard like cream with stewed plums. The meal was very good and it was an interesting evening.
We arrived back at the hotel at around 21:00 and I went for a swim prior to going to bed.
10,081 steps taken or 6.04 km |
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Post by Owen on Sept 8, 2014 7:39:16 GMT
11 ~ Bohemian Highlights (16days from Canada) - September 16 to October 1st, 2011
Day 11 - Monday, September 26, 2011 - Budapest - Györ - Vienna
Wake-up: 6:45 Breakfast: 7:00 and on Bags out: 7:30 Depart: 8:30 for the Optional OR 10:45 for the others
Breakfast was really good today (missed it yesterday), but I took it easy as my appetite hadn't yet fully returned. Those going on the Optional 'Budapest's Secret Treasures' left on time at 8:30 and Andrea was our local guide once again. Our first stop was St. Stephen's Basilica, where we were able to get into early and have a good look around and take photos. Afterwards we had a bit of free time so after taking some exterior photos, D & I went for a short walk and stopped to buy some postcards and stamps. We met up with the group just in time for the walk back to the bus. The second stop on the tour was Vajdahunyad Castle. The bus had to drop us off a short walk from the castle, on the walk up we had some time for photos and then met up with Andrea in the courtyard.
Shortly after, we were able to enter the chapel for our private organ recital. The organist played six or seven pieces ending with the Hungarian national anthem. The recital was short enough to be enjoyable (I say this only because I am not a huge fan of this type of music), the organist was very good and the chapel had good acoustics. After the recital, we walked through the park on our way to Gundel's for our pancakes.
On the way, Andrea asked us if we could spare an extra few minutes. We all agreed so she took us to the thermal spas in the park. These spas were beautiful and very busy - lots of people in the outdoor baths enjoying the beautiful, sunny and warm day.
We then continued our walk through the park and crossed the street to the restaurant, Gundel's. We entered and were shown to our tables and had a choice of a hot and a cold beverage, then we were served our pancakes which were very good.
We then boarded the bus again and were now on our way to Vienna, Austria. We had our lunch stop in Györ around 13:05. My Aussie friends and I decided to go to McDonald's (first fast food of the tour for me) as we had not had much luck at previous stops with sit-down restaurants. We then had time to explore more of the square. We visited the pharmacy, one of the oldest in Europe, and I bought something for my throat as it was starting to get sore. This was an interesting pharmacy with very intricate stuccoed walls and other artifacts from the medical field on display. We slowly walked back to where we had to meet the coach at 14:20. We left a few minutes late as we were missing two or three people. We should be at the hotel, Hilton Danube, in Vienna at about 16:00 should there not be any traffic problems.
We arrived at the hotel shortly after 16:00 and had a couple of hours to relax prior to heading out for the Optional dinner at 18:15.
The optional 'Dinner with Traditional Music at a Local Restaurant' was held at Marchfelderhof. Jeffrey advised us the restaurant was coming up on our left and we all looked out to see the staff in the street waving at us. The coach pulled over and we all got off. When we were all ready to cross the street, the staff stopped the traffic and rolled out a red carpet for us.
They then selected one lady to cut a red ribbon that they had strung across the front of the restaurant. It was kind of corny but fun at the same time. We were ushered inside and I think we were all overwhelmed by the interior of this place. There were pictures everywhere and collections of birdcages, dolls, musical instruments were hung from the ceiling. There were so many things to look at in this place - it was unbelievable. We were shown our seats and were given a choice of eight main meals. D & I went to the ladies room, armed with our cameras as advised by other tour mates. The ladies room was the same as the rest of the restaurant. Collections of stuff everywhere, pictures of men in loin cloths on the walls, hand creams on the counters, etc. Each stall had a chandelier hanging in it, as well as book shelves.
Both D & I ended up taking several pictures. We just had to see what the men's room was like too. So we knocked on the door, then opened it slightly and yelled 'hello'. As there was no response we entered, it was much the same as the ladies room only geared more towards men - photos of ladies in bikinis, hunting items, etc.
Afterwards, we told Jeffrey and he asked us to take him into the ladies room - what a hoot. He had been to the restaurant before but had never seen the ladies room before. Had lots of fun at the restaurant and the food was very good as well. We were given apple schnapps, then a salad with garlic toast, I chose the ribs for my main and dessert was a chocolate, raspberry parfait with coffee or tea. The entertainment consisted of a man on a keyboard, and then three other men with stringed instruments wandering throughout the restaurant while playing.
11,867 steps or 7.12 km |
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Post by Owen on Sept 8, 2014 7:39:49 GMT
12 ~ Bohemian Highlights (16days from Canada) - September 16 to October 1st, 2011
Day 12 - Tuesday, September 27, 2011 - Vienna
Wake-up: n/a Breakfast: from 6:30 Depart: 7:40 for the Optional tour
The Vienna Danube is a nice hotel, I stayed here three years ago when I did the Grand European. The rooms were large and the breakfasts were very good. It is right on the Danube so I was able to get some sunrise photos this morning.
I wasn't doing the optional 'Vienna's Fabulous Past' as I had done it three years ago, but I was able to hitch a ride to Schonbrunn as I was going to spend some time at the zoo, which is located on the grounds of the palace. If you have not been to Schonbrunn before I would recommend this optional, the palace is huge and beautiful. We arrived before the zoo opened, so I went for a walk through the gardens and up to the Gloriette and was able to get some great photos of Schonbrunn and the gardens en route, with very few people in the way. I offered to take a picture of a couple that was there, so they returned the favour and I now have a couple of nice pictures of myself with Schonbrunn in the background. I then wandered back down from the Gloriette and entered the zoo. The weather was beautiful and I really enjoyed my walk around Europe's oldest zoo.
Afterwards, I made my way to the Metro and took it back to the hotel. Jeffrey had given me the option of meeting the coach in town and coming back to the hotel with them. I decided to take the Metro as I was thinking about stopping off at Prater Park, but decided against it as I was still not feeling too great and feeling pretty tired.
On the walk back to the hotel, I stopped at the grocery store to get something for dinner as there was nothing scheduled for tonight. As I was walking along the access road to the hotel, I looked back and our coach was just returning as well and everybody waved to me as they drove by. I got back to the hotel and was able to have a rest before the 'Palace Concert' optional.
We left for the concert at 19:30 and it was quite enjoyable (again I am not into this type of music but don't mind it on occasion), there were also singers and dancers. During the interval, we had a choice of sparkling wine or orange juice. We arrived back at the hotel at about 22:30 and I was in bed shortly after that.
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Post by Owen on Sept 8, 2014 7:40:46 GMT
13 ~ Bohemian Highlights (16days from Canada) - September 16 to October 1st, 2011
Day 13 - Wednesday, September 28, 2011 - Vienna - Tabor - Prague
Wake-up: 6:45 Breakfast: 6:30 and on Bags out: 7:30 Depart: 8:30
Another good breakfast and I am starting to get my appetite back. We left on time and crossed the border into the Czech Republic at about 10:45 and drove through several small towns before stopping at a gas station for a short facilities break just before noon. I think Charles got off the main road due to traffic and then couldn't find a place to stop. We were on our way to Tabor shortly after and it was now less than an hour away. When we arrived in Tabor at 12:45 Jeffrey walked us up to the main square and gave us a brief history of the town. It was a pretty little town square. We went into the tourist information office and got some maps, then my Aussie friends and I wandered a bit for some photos and decided on a restaurant with a patio - we sat outside again (at the end of September) and others from the tour joined us. Ten of us ended up here for lunch. Once again, the service was slow and we had to scramble to finish in time and get back to the coach. In fact, the rest of the group passed us and Jeffrey told us how to get back to the coach. The meal was well worth the wait everybody enjoyed their meals very much. It turned out there were more members of the tour inside and they were scrambling too. By the time we got back to the coach we were about ten minutes late leaving.
The rest of the drive to Prague was uneventful and we arrived at the hotel in good time, however, it took Jeffrey about 40 minutes to check us in and get our keys - so much for arriving early. The hotel is huge - it is square in shape and in the centre there is a huge atrium. My room was nice, but on the small side. Our included dinner was scheduled for 17:45 as there was an optional tour leaving at 19:30. Dinner was good, we had tomato soup, chicken, vegetable and potato for a main and apple strudel for dessert. We had a little bit of time before leaving for the optional 'Prague by Night'. Our local guide was Alexandra and she was quite good. We drove through Prague and Charles parked the coach and we all got off. We then started to follow Alexandra to the pub where we would have our included drink and entertainment. We were all sitting in the pub when D asked me where V was. We both decided he was sitting in the other part of the bar talking to Jeffrey. After our drink, we met outstide again and D asked Jeffrey what he did with V. Jeffrey went white - V was missing. Jeffrey began asking around and other tour members said they saw V getting onto a train thing that was driving around. Jeffrey advised Alexandra to continue our tour and he would catch up with us. Jeffrey went searching for V. A couple of blocks from the bar, we saw the train thing going by and spotted V sitting on the train. We all started to yell and wave and V got off. He said he realized his mistake shortly after getting on the train as the tour guide was speaking French and he didn't understand what they were saying, nor did he recognized anybody. We all, V included, had a good laugh about this - including Jeffrey once he caught up to us again and was told about our reunion with V. We continued on our walk and stopped in a square with a very interesting (and somewhat obscene, according to some on the tour) fountain, the fountain had a lot of us chuckling and taking photos. I thought it was quite funny. We then continued on our walk to Charles Bridge - Alexandra led the group and provided us with a bit of history, while Jeffrey took up the rear watching for pickpockets. It was a beautiful night and the views were spectacular. It was another late evening but it was well worth it.
Pedometer ~ 9,833 steps or 5.89km |
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Post by Owen on Sept 8, 2014 7:43:30 GMT
14 ~ Bohemian Highlights (16days from Canada) - September 16 to October 1st, 2011
Day 14 - Thursday, September 29, 2011 - Prague
Wake-up: n/a Breakfast: 6:30 and on Depart: 8:30 for the city tour
Alexandra met us at the hotel to lead our city tour, again she was very good. We were provided with enough information to keep our attention, but not too much as to cause information overload. We saw some of the same sights that we visited last night but the views were completely different.
We did our tour of the Old Town Square and saw the astronomical clock go off - it was interesting and there were a lot of people gathered to see it. Afterwards, my Aussie friends and I went for a coffee and a treat and then wandered some more and looked in several shops. I stopped and got a gelato as my throat was getting sore - it was very good and helped to soothe my throat. We wandered, and shopped, some more until it was time to meet for the optional 'Vltava Cruise and Lunch'. The cruise was quite nice and the food enjoyable. It was a buffet lunch so it suited a much wider range of tastes, if you didn't like something there were plenty of other dishes to enjoy. We had another gorgeous day and after our lunch several of us went to the upper deck in order to enjoy the day and take some photos without the windows being in the way.
After the cruise, we had a choice of staying in town or going back to the hotel on the coach. My Aussie friends stayed in town and I headed back to the hotel. I offered to take some things back to the hotel for the others. We made arrangements to meet later that night for dinner as it was not included tonight. We met in the lobby of the hotel and took a 'death ride' (read taxi) back into the square we had been earlier that day. It's a good thing we were wedged in the back seat of the cab, otherwise we would have ended up with bruises on both sides of our bodies from sliding back and forth and banging into each other and/or the doors.
We saw the astronomical clock go off again - it was quite different at night. We found an interesting Italian place and shared some pizza and Greek salad. We went into some more shops and wandered around some more. We eventually found another 'death ride', although not quite as bad as the one earlier in the evening. When we got back to the hotel my friends came and collected their purchases from earlier in the day. I then went to bed and had a good sleep.
11,461 steps or 6.87 km |
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Post by Owen on Sept 8, 2014 7:44:14 GMT
15 ~ Bohemian Highlights (16days from Canada) - September 16 to October 1st, 2011
Day 15 - Friday, September 30, 2011 - Prague - Pilsen - Nuremburg - Frankfurt
Wake-up: 5:45 Breakfast & Bags out: 6:30 Depart: 7:30 for the city tour
We left a few minutes late this morning and arrived at our first facilities break at about 9:10. We stopped at the Pilsner Urquell Brewery and were able to use the facilities there free of charge. Unfortunately the gift store and brewery were not yet opened, however we did have about twenty-five minutes here to take photos. It is a large complex with several buildings. Would have been nice to do a tour or buy souvenirs though.
Our next stop was Nuremburg, Germany and we arrived there at about noon. Jeffrey walked us up to the town square and got us some maps from the tourist centre - we would be here until about 13:30 which was sufficient for our lunch break and some free time for photos, etc. I found a camera store and bought another memory card for my camera as I was currently using my last one (I ended up taking a total of 4,000 photos). D needed to find a post office to buy some stamps so we went in search for one and eventually found one. D got her stamps, but by then it was time to meet the others at the coach. We did have time to buy a few more postcards though.
On our way out of Nuremburg we stopped at Zeppelin Field (the Nazi Party Rally Grounds). We had enough time here to climb the stairs and get a good view over the fields and read the information posted. It was interesting and an unexpected stop on our way back to Frankfurt. We were back on the coach and on our way to Frankfurt which was about two and a half hours away. We ran into a bit of traffic on the highway due to construction and our biggest delay was after we got off the highway and had to fight through the Frankfurt traffic. By the time we got to the hotel we only had about forty minutes to freshen up and meet in the lobby to board the coach once again for our Farewell Dinner.
We drove back to Romerplatz, where we had our orientation tour almost two weeks prior. We walked through the square to the restaurant where we had our Farewell Dinner. The day before, Jeffrey passed around a sheet on which we were to indicate if we wanted beef goulash or salmon. There was bread and butter on the tables and we had a spinach and bean soup to start. This was followed by the main we chose the day before, I had the beef, and then there was apple strudel for dessert. The dinner was quite good and everybody seemed to enjoy themselves. There was lots of picture taking and fun.
When we got back to the hotel, I met my Aussie friends in the couple's room as I had some photos on my camera that they both wanted to copy. On the evening we had a night tour in Prague, D's camera battery had died and D&H forgot to bring their camera. We copied the photos for each of them and said our goodbyes. D was going on to do another TT and would be leaving later the next day, so we would not see her again.
9,347 steps taken or 5.6 km |
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Post by Owen on Sept 8, 2014 7:44:36 GMT
16 ~ Bohemian Highlights (16days from Canada) - September 16 to October 1st, 2011
Day 16 - Saturday, October 1, 2011 - Frankfurt - London, UK (for me anyway)
Wake-up: 5:45 Breakfast & Bags out: 6:30 Transfers: 7:15 or 9:30
Unfortunately, I was on the early transfer to the airport - this would have me arriving four hours prior to my noon departure time. The later transfer would arrive with only two hours to spare and as it was a Saturday I was advised to arrive as early as possible. Most tour members using the free transfer were on the early one.
Our first stop was at Terminal 1 where most of those on board got off - there were no good-byes from those leaving and it was almost like another facilities break, only it wasn't. The coach then went to Terminal 2 where the rest of us were getting off. Once we got our luggage we made our way into the Terminal. Some just disappeared into the crowd but others said their goodbyes to each other. After I checked my bag I went wandering around the terminal . It was very crowded but I ran into the Aussie couple I had been friendly with - they told me they had to pay 150 Euros for overweight bag(s), I am not sure if it was just one bag or more. My flight to London was uneventful and I was met at the airport by a friend of a friend. It was a nice surprise and very unexpected. He stayed with me until my transfer arrived and I was safely aboard the van.
I got to my hotel, checked in and was able to get into my room right away. I took some time to unpack a few things then relaxed for a bit. Later, I walked to the Mark's & Spencer store around the corner from the hotel and bought some groceries for my three nights here. When I got back to my room I had some dinner (munchies) that I had bought and retired early as I was exhausted.
9,464 steps taken or 5.67 km |
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Post by Owen on Sept 8, 2014 7:48:56 GMT
17 ~ Bohemian Highlights (16days from Canada) - September 16 to October 1st, 2011
I've recently returned back to Australia after doing this tour dep 24 Sep-8 Oct. As you're doing a comprehensive tour review there's no need for me to do the same but thought I'd add a few thoughts of our experience on the same tour. I travelled with my daughter who celebrated her 22nd birthday in Poland.
39 travellers: 19 US, 9 Canada, 9 Australia and 2 Philippines. 19 people had previosuly done a Trafalgar tour. We had a great tour group - everyone was on time pretty much the whole tour and there didn't appear to be any "whingers".The TD - Malcolm is a Kiwi based in Belarus.
We had a change of hotel for our 1st night, the Sheraton Congress. After travelling 26 hours and arriving at the hotel just after 10a.m. it was a welcome relief to be greeted by Malcolm with our room keys. A shower and a snooze made us feel more human.
The 2 Sheraton hotels we stayed at (1st and last nights) did not have tea/coffee making facilities or a safe. All the other hotels did and usually had an iron and ironing board. We found the meals to be very good, especially breakfast. The further we went east the broader the range of food - everything from chocolate cake to pickled cheese for breakfast! The included meals were all pretty good - we certainly ate everything and it was nice to have a glass of wine/beer included at some dinners. We only did 2 of the optional tours - the salt mines and the Danube cruise. I was surprised that the majority of people did all of the optional tours.
We enjoyed exploring and walking in each city. I wish I'd taken a pedometer with me as it would certainly have been interesting to see how many kilometers we'd walked. The TD was very helpful with ensuring that we had maps and knew how to get back to the hotel. I asked him whether many people did the tour the way that we were doing it and he mentioned that may be only a dozen people during the season. My impressions from talking to people who were doing all the optionals was that they didn't have much free time as their days were pretty much planned for them.
We had the most fabulous weather. A cold morning in Warsaw and a cold day on the last day travelling Prague-Frankfurt. A slight bit of rain (but mainly whilst we were on the bus). It was 28 degrees C in Budapest - we got sunburnt! Unfortunately we hadn't packed any shorts and my daughter eventually bought a Hungary baseball cap to shield from the sun. Enjoyed lots of gelati (very cheap) along the way.
The hotels were very good, our favourite being the Berlin Hilton due to it's location opposite the square. In my daughter's words - swank! We managed to find our way around the cities ok. We caught the train in Budpaest and Vienna back to our hotels. All the rest were in walking distance to the cities. Budapest was our favourite city and yes the Danube looked blue (I'm sure due to the blue sunny skies). We ran in to (excuse the pun!) the Berlin Marathon (arrived in to Berlin the afternoon that the race had been held) and the Budapest Marathon (being held the day we walked around the city - great atmosphere with a string quartet on 1 street corner that played every time a runner passed and a dj playing music and calling out encouragement in a range of languages). We walked across the chain bridge which was really nice.
Prague was not as spectacular as I had thought it would (I was not alone with this observation). May be if we'd done Prague before Budapest I may have a different view. Walking across the Charles Bridge there was didgeridoo player (not Aboriginal) playing which didn't quite gell! The Vienna Hilton was right on the Danube with vast windows that you could open. We slept with the curtains open so that the sunrise would wake us. Took some fabulous photos of the sunrise.
Before leaving Australia I had researched on the trip advisor website for a restaurant in Krakow to go to for my daughter's birthday. We went to a French restaurant - La Fontaine just off the main square (it's mentioned in the guide book in the hotel). We enjoyed a fabulous meal for a late lunch: guinea fowl and foie gras for my daughter and I had wild boar and doe; a carafe of French red wine; chcolate orange tart and raspberry tart for dessert; coffee - all for approx 60 Euro. Bread and butter was brought to the table as well as a little "taster" of an anchovy mayonnaise with a few vegetable sticks. As we were paying the bill they also gave us a glass of grappa with blackcurrant juice! Was it any wonder that we strolled slowly back to the hotel and had an early night.
I wish now that I had researched for restaurants in the other cities although we didn't do too badly with those that we found. We ate such a huge breakfast that it pretty much kept us going until dinner - we usually only needed ice cream of coffee and cake or some other snack during the day. The morning we finished the tour at the Sheraton Offenbach the breakfast was less than desirable - no scrambled eggs, no bacon and no chef around to ask! Not much in the way of pastries and fruit either.
I was surprised/disappointed that the scenery along the way wasn't much to look at - the best scenery day was Krakow-Budapest, travelling through Slavakia.
After the tour we flew to London. We went to Canterbury in Kent (visiting friends) and enjoyed the cathedral and the pedestrian shopping precint - saw the witches ducking stool.We returned to London and visited the British museum. We had an early dinner at Jamie Oliver's Jamie's Italian restaurant (Leicester Square/Covent Garden vicinity) and enjoyed a great meal, my daughter had spaghetti bolognaise and posh chips (chips with parmesan and truffle oil), I had Tuscan boar sausges on brown lentils; dessert: chocolate raspberry brownie and vanilla ice cream, chocolate espresso tart with orange creme fraiche; coffees and glass of Prosecco for me - 45 pounds.
We then went to see The Mousetrap (an Agatha Christie play running for 59 years).
Flew back to Australia the next day. The message boards are a great research tool for planning your trip and I hope that my comments and LKD's tour review assist anyone planning to do the Bohemian Highlights tour in the future.
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