Pope John Paul II & McDo's

Other than being the "crown jewel of Poland" and the country's former capital, another claim to fame of Krakow is that Pope John Paul II is from there (or thereabouts anyway). During a free 3-hour walking tour of Krakow that I went on this morning John Paul's name was of course mentioned. The tour guide also mentioned the interesting fact that after Poland's 1989 transition into democracy, when the first McDonald's opened in Krakow, people waited in line for up to 6 hours for their "first taste of the West."

Land of the Praguers

Belgrade might be the most chic city in Eastern Europe and Ljubljana the hippest, but when it comes to awe-inspiring, mind blowing, jaw dropping architecture, Prague is King.

Searches & Interrogations

Departing from Croatia and traveling north, Slovenia is the first EU country you enter, which means there is a greater chance of interrogations and searches. As soon as we entered Slovenia, officials boarded the train. My luggage was thoroughly searched, and then I was asked for additional ID, as if a passport is not sufficient identification. Welcome to the EU. With about 250,000 people, Ljubljana (pronounced "loo-bee-yana"), the capital of Slovenia, is an attractive green little city with the Ljubljanica River running through it, numerous outdoor cafes, museums, bike paths, and a castle up on the hill. Unlike Sarajevo, there is little evidence here of the early 1990s war when Slovenia decided to break away from Yugoslavia. The war lasted for 10 days and left 66 people dead. While visiting the castle I met a young woman and her aunt from Mexico who are traveling throughout Eastern Europe. They told me they had expected it to be a lot cooler than it is in this part of the world and had brought many warm clothes with them, which is making it much more difficult to travel around. Definitely a major inconvenience, hauling these winter clothes all the way from Mexico City, and now lugging them on and off the trains and buses and ferries of Ljubljana, Prague, Budapest ... But one consolation when traveling heavy rather than lite is that it will whip you into shape. Here in Slovenia I have seen several young travelers that do not seem daunted by traveling heavy. This morning I spotted one of these barefoot itinerant Bohemians walking up a busy street in downtown Ljubljana. In addition to a large pack strapped on her back, she also had attached to her body numerous other items, including a large case for some sort of stringed instrument, a tent, and various other bags and containers. PS I was wondering what all of the locks were for on the one bridge in downtown Ljubljana (photo above) so I asked a woman hanging around nearby and she answered in one word: Love.

Croatian Hemp Burger Deluxe

About 7 and a half hours by train from Belgrade (heading northwest), Zagreb, the capital of Croatia, is smaller, quieter, and not as glittery. Likely due in large part to having lived in the United Arab Emirates for 8 years, I was a little surprised by the painting of a nude (photo above) in my hotel room. Never ever would you see a painting this racy in an Emirati hotel. Some other items of interest in beautiful Zagreb -- the inventor of the fountain pen, Slavoljub Penkala, was Croatian. Also, Zagreb is the first place I have ever heard of (and tried) a hempburger. At the same little restaurant, Green Point, on a Zagreb side street, if you show up in the evening just before the 9 pm closing time you can get a 50% discount, for example delicious seitan tortillas with vegan mayo for about $1.50. And I almost forgot to mention the Zagreb Museum of Broken Relationships, where you can see hundreds of various items such as clothes, writings, albums, even a bicycle, all relating to the breakup of relationships.

Belgrade, Serbia

An 8 hour train ride northeast from Sarajevo, the city of Belgrade is bigger, brasher, louder. It is said to be one of the most vibrant cities not only in the Balkans but in all of Europe.

Sarajevo, Bosnia

Sarajevo, the capital of Bosnia, is a lovely, cool, green little city made up of about 50% Muslims and 50% Christians. During an evening walking tour I was on, the guide commented that the city is famous for 3 things. The first is the 1914 assassination of the Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria, the incident which sparked WWI. The second is the 1984 Winter Olympics which, according to my guide, took place in Sarajevo, finished, and that was that. And the third is of course the early 1990s war. Though today much of Sarajevo has been rebuilt there is still much evidence of that war. Many buildings are pockmarked from shelling and bullets, there are numerous locals handicapped from war injuries, and dates on gravestones in the city reveal that in the early 1990s there was a hugely disproportionate number of deaths.

Istanbul

Am currently en route from Abu Dhabi to Krakow, Poland, often called the Crown Jewel of Poland. Mostly traveling by train, my planned stopovers after Istanbul include (Sarajevo) Bosnia, (Belgrade) Serbia, (Zagreb) Croatia, (Ljubljana) Slovenia, and (Prague) the Czech Republic, before heading east to Poland. I have visited Istanbul several times in the past, as far back as 1988, and the city just seems to get better and better. During this most recent 3 day visit I spent a lot of time near the port area and managed to find a 90 minute sunset ferry tour of the Bosphorus for about $5.