Koreans Love Zagreb

When visiting Zagreb in the past year, Colleen and I saw very few Asian tourists, but on this trip there are clearly many more. Our tour guide says that they are mostly Koreans! The reason is that there have been very popular Korean TV shows filmed in Zagreb, and as such there is a direct […]

Uncommonplace

One of the aspects of Zagreb I enjoy is that it is so quirky, especially for being in Croatia, known for being a fairly conservative and traditional place. It’s as if most Croatian artists move to Zagreb (they probably do). The following brochure is an example of the kind of surprising things you can find […]

Zagreb, Are You Tired of Seeing Me?

This is my fifth arrival into Zagreb, Croatia. I came back again because I love it here. I don’t know exactly why. I met a Californian outside a ruin pub back in Budapest, and his wife had passed, and so he had been traveling solo up from Georgia (the country) and Turkey. He had been […]

Budapest, Hungary

I arrived in Budapest (Hungary is “Magyarország” in Hungarian, for the curious) on Wednesday. No more Poland, no more Slovakia. I’m still on the Danube, though. Colleen and I visited on a short day trip from Vienna with some friends back in 1998. I don’t remember much about Budapest from that trip, other than the […]

Bratislava, Slovakia

I’m feeling a bit underwhelmed so far in my first day in Bratislava (I strive to be whelmed), compared to the three great cities I visited earlier on this trip. My Airbnb is too far from the action, there aren’t as many sites, and they use the Euro, so things aren’t inexpensive anymore. But I […]

Crazy as a Balloon

On Saturday I took my first balloon ride! Granted, it’s a tethered balloon, but it goes very high and provides great views. The balloon is full of helium and ascends up to around 500 feet (150m). It was overcast that morning, but sunny clear days are not common around here this time of year, and […]

Chakrakow

I had forgotten until just now, but there’s supposed to be one of Earth’s main life energy sources here in Krakow: Adherents to the Hindu concept of chakra believe that a powerful energy field connects all living things. Some believe that, mirroring the seven chakra points on the body (from head to groin), there are […]

Crack Cow

After finishing up with Wrocław, I took another FlixBus ride, this time to Krakow, also in Poland. I was here once before, with my brother in 2005. The past 17 years have been kind to the tourist scene, and while I really like Wrocław, it clearly isn’t on the tourist radar yet like Krakow is. […]

Wrocław’s Gnomes

There are several hundred little brass gnomes placed in locations all over Wrocław. They’re fun to find, and it’s easy to come across several, or even dozens, while walking through the old town. Each is different and has its own theme. Here’s some background on the gnomes (aka dwarves), if you’re interested: https://the-travelling-twins.com/wroclaw-gnomes/ Below are […]

Wrocław, Poland

I said goodbye to Sofia on Tuesday, and to Colleen on Wednesday. By the time you read this, Colleen will be back in Asheville. I took a bus from Prague to Wrocław (pronounced like “vroht-swav”, with the ł character sounding like w), enjoying several hours of the Czech and Polish countryside. Back in November 2017, […]