Day 32 - Playing Catch Up

Acutally not really. Australia just drew with Croatia to make it into the next round at the World Cup. By the way peoples, this Prague keyboard is weird and I can't work out how to make an exclamation mark or brackets. So I may seem a little sedate in this edition but it's really not my fault.

When I last expunged my thoughts properly on this blog was Day 27 when I was about to leave Budapest. On route to Vienna I did a stopover at Bratislava, Slovakia for a few hours. It's by no means the best city I've ever been to, but like every where I've been it's got its charms. Had a really yummy thai prawn salad there. I was well pleased and surprised. It's gastronomically more advanced than London in my humble opinion. Right after I speed back to the train station to miss my train by mere minutes. Bad Tina Bad. I had people in Vienna waiting to pick me up.

I spent two glorious sun-filled days in Vienna, staying at my Dusseldorf friend Caroline's husband's friend's girlfriend's flat. Emilio and Chris are the most lovely couple you could meet, so warm and helpful and absolute keepers. Thank you both for your hospitality to a girl you've never met but only knew was coming to stay a few days prior. On the first night they took me to a true Viennese eatery. Just outside of Vienna are small villages where by agreement, a collective of farmhouses would open their homes and kitchens to sell products made only on their premise. So for dinner we went to one of these farmhouses, denoted only by a particular branch and light hanging at the front of their house. I ate the most massive meal for various cold meats, as they cannot serve hot meals, with homemade dips and even shavings from the same plant as wasabi is made of. There was also a large selection of wine made by the farm. Delicious. The evening ended with a drive to a lookout tower, specifically a meterological tower with a platform up top where you can go up to. The view of Vienna was lovely. A quick drive through the city itself later was a good orientation for the next two days.

After coming from the Balkans it was a refreshing experience to be in a city not devastated by war, who at one point was part of a huge empire - in fact in 1907 the Austro-Hasburg Empire was the third largest in the world with 51 million inhabitants. Eveything was big and grand. Full of life and culture. I loved being there. Sitting in Cafe Central once patronised by the likes of Sigmund Freud was a delight, a far cry from my experience at the Holiday Inn in Sarajevo.

Literally leaving Vienna wasn't suppose to be difficult as I was getting a flight - what luxuary after weeks of busses, trains and ferries - but goddam Bush invaded Vienna and delayed my flight. I arrived at my Berlin hostel around 12.30am but the fact that I was meeting Tri made me happy. Having seen Berlin in winter all Christmased up a year and a half ago and seeing it now in summer in football fever has been a real pleasure. The city is now decked out in flags, of course the German one most prominent, streets filled with people, and stages set up for special football shows and events. After only one full day in Berlin it was time to come to Prague.

What I've seen of Prague so far matches what the guide books and past travellers have said. It is a beautiful town. But having the heat and weeks of travelling looking at similar things I am tired and my enthusiasm has waned. Perhaps my trip to the castle tomorrow will brighten up my spirit and outlook. The dreaded flight to London has been booked and paid for, and I think about next week despondently. The next four days in the Czech Republic will include a two day trip out to Cesky Krumlov, where I hear it's quiet and peaceful, a pretty town by the river. Egon Shiele, one of Vienna's most revered artist who lived and died in the first half of the 20th century spent many months in Cesky Krumlov and even purchased a home there. However the community caught wind of his questionable relationship with his models and ran him outta town. That last fact aside I am looking forward to seeing a place loved by an artist and hope to re-live all the good times I've had these past few weeks before returning to the real world.