2011 Christmas Eve

Yesterday was Christmas Day (December 24th) in the ČR. Once again, time for people all over the country to settle down with the traditional meal of fried carp and potato salad.

Fortunately, I escaped having bath tub fish for dinner. Katka and Steluţa invited me, along with Katka's mom, to have dinner at their flat. It was a really nice time and dinner was awesome. Katka decided to try something new and baked an entire slab of tuna. Not quite the traditional Czech meal but way tastier!!!

Steluţa is going to move back to Bucharest in a few months so who knows if this will be our last Christmas dinner together. Sad. But this is what happens when you have a bunch of expats. Sooner or later, most people return home.

Václav Havel, R.I.P.

On December 18th, Václav Havel passed away at the age of 75. This is a very sad time for many Czechs because he was the dissident writer who became the first president of a post-communist Czechoslovakia.

After the 1968 invasion, his plays were banned and he became more politically active. He was jailed multiple times and remained under constant surveillance by the secret police. He was put in prison from May 1979 to February 1983.

After the Velvet Revolution, he became the ninth and final president of Czechoslovakia, from 1989-1992, and the first president of the Czech Republic, from 1993-2003.

He was a long-time chain smoker and was diagnosed with lung cancer in December 1996.

He will long be remembered as a great man who stood up to tyranny and injustice. There have been three official days of morning from Wednesday to Friday and candlelight memorials took place throughout the Czech Republic. I wonder if there were also memorials taking place in Slovakia?

Here's a video I found out on YouTube.

©BBC

Note:  On Friday, October 5, 2012, the Prague airport was renamed Václav Havel Airport.

Republic of Malta

I'm so excited about my upcoming trip. Miran and I are first going to make a quick stop in Munich before heading off to spend New Year's in Malta. This will be the 25th country I've visited since moving to Euroland in July 2009.

The Republic of Malta is made up of five islands in total. Malta, Gozo and Comino are the tourist destinations while Cominetto and Filfla are both uninhabited. With a size of 316 sq km (122 sq miles), about twice the size of Washington, DC, Malta is one of the smallest countries in the world. However, the population is around 400,000 so it is also one of the world's most densely populated countries.

Malta is right in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, about half way between Italy and North Africa. It is 80 km (50 miles) south of Sicily, 284 km (176 miles) east of Tunisia and 333 km (207 miles) north of Libya. Its strategic location was very important during WWII. It was said that whoever controlled Malta, controlled the Mediterranean. During the war, Malta survived having over 14,000 bombs dropped on it which made it the most heavily bombed place on earth. In 1942, King George VI awarded Malta with the George Cross which is proudly displayed on the country's flag.

History in Malta goes back some 7,000 years. The islands were first settled in 5200 BC by people arriving from Sicily. Over the centuries the islands have been controlled by the Phoenicians, Greeks, Romans, Arabs, Normans and the Maltese Knights. In 1814, Malta became a British colony and in 1964 it finally gained independence. Malta joined the EU in 2004 and adopted the Euro in 2008. It is also part of the Schengen Zone which means that there is visa-free travel with most of Europe. However, this also means that many people from North Africa try to illegally enter Malta in order to make it further on to the continent.

Malta's capital is Valletta and there are two official languages: Maltese and English. From what I understand, Maltese sounds something like Arabic mixed with a bit of Italian. Having been a British colony has left its mark on the country. All of the electrical outlets use the funny British three-prong plugs so I can't forget to pack my travel adapters. But the worst part is that everyone drives on the left hand side of the road. Did I mention that the plan is to rent a car?!! So the first time I decide to rent a car since I received my Czech driver's license and I decide to go someplace where they drive on the "wrong" side of the road. Wish me luck!

Update 2025: Here's a short video I found on YouTube about why didn't the UK annex Malta.

©History Matters

Perpetuum Jazzile

Perpetuum Jazzile is a Ljubljana-based, vocal jazz choir. They are extremely popular in Slovenia. They have also played to sold-out crowds in Czech Republic, Croatia, Germany, Canada and the USA. Last night they put on a concert at a high school in Murska Sobota.

In addition to a few traditional Slovenian songs the group played a mix of songs that ranged from jazz to gospel to pop. They even put in a nice Christmas mix of Nat King Cole and Mel Torme. I was probably one of the few people in the crowd that knew the words to the Christmas medley.

I found this next video, from 2008, of the group performing Toto's Africa. They did the same number last night it brought the house down.

2011 Ljubljana Christmas Market

Last night Miran and I drove to Ljubljana to see the Christmas market. Everything was quite lovely but it wasn't what I had pictured. Granted there was a bit of wind and rain but it was still worth it.

There were the usual wooden stalls selling Christmas ornaments and homemade crafts. Not to mention the stands selling hot mulled wine, roasted chestnuts, honey schnapps, sausages and sweets. Though there weren't as many stalls as say in Brno or Bratislava. However, there were a lot more lights. Quite pretty!

The market wasn't as crowed as I would have expected for a Friday night. But then again, there was a chilly wind and some light rain. But still worth the trip.

2011 Graz Christmas Market

Christmas time in Graz is really beautiful. First, there's the traditional Christmas markets which are always fun. With all of the lights and the cold weather it really puts one in the Christmas mood.

Then there's the Grazer Krippenweg (Graz Nativity Trail). As part of the Advent festivities, the shops on Stempfergaße street put up lights and roll out the red carpet.
Many of the stores incorporate various types of nativity scenes in their window displays. Participating stores have a gold star but sometimes the challenge is finding the manger scene in the window.

The real draw is the Eiskrippe (ice crib). Since 1996, sculptor Gert Hödl has been producing life-sized ice nativity scenes in the Landhaus courtyard. This year's nativity scene used 54 tons of ice. The design varies a bit each year so it is always unique. It remains on display until January 6th. Here's a video from CCTV that I found out on YouTube.

©CCTV

Graz, Austria

Graz is in southeast Austria and the country's second-largest city with over 290,000 people. It is 200 km (120 miles) from Vienna and 50 km (31 miles) from Maribor, Slovenia.

The city is the capital of the federal state of Styria. It's also a student city with six universities and more than 40,000 students.

The historic city center is quite charming with medieval walls, Baroque churches, Renaissance palaces and lots of cafes. In 1999, the old town became a UNESCO World Heritage Site.


The Rathaus (town hall) is beautiful. From 1999 to 2000, over €4.5 billion was spent on renovations.

Schloßberg is a hill with a castle on top of it. It is 475 meters (+1,500 feet) high and has great views of Graz. I've often joked that some of these old European castles and forts really do need a few elevators. Well Schloßberg actually has one! Of course, it's much nicer to actually walk down the hill.

The Uhrturm (clock tower) is the city's most famous landmark. Originally, it was used as a defensive tower. The clock hands don't function in the usual manner. The larger hand marks hours and the smaller one is for minutes because the minute hand wasn't added until much later.

The Landhaus, built between 1557 and 1565, is a renaissance palace that holds Styria's federal state parliament. At Christmas time, it also hosts a life-sized nativity scene carved out of ice.

Next time, I would really like to visit Schloß Eggenberg. It's a Baroque palace and museum on the western edge of the city. In 2010, it was added to old town's existing UNESCO World Heritage Site status.

Christmas Trees

Well I just set up my "Charlie Brown" Christmas tree. It's early by Czech standards but late for Americans. In the USA, most people put up their Christmas trees right after Thanksgiving (the 4th Thursday in November). The trees come down right after New Year's Day. It's usually bad form to have your tree and decorations still up past the first Saturday in January.

In the ČR, people do not decorate their trees until December 24th. To me that just makes for a very busy day especially when everyone is off preparing their dinners of fried carp and potato salad. Most Czechs leave the decorated trees up until January 6th for the Epiphany, the Feast of the Three Kings.

I don't understand putting the tree up so late in December. Christmas is basically over by the time the tree actually goes up. I'm sort of compromising this year which is why my "tree" went up half-way through December. Since I'll be in Malta for New Year's, I'll take it down when I get back to Brno.

Postcards

I always send six postcards back to the USA when I travel. Part of my routine is that I find a nice little cafe somewhere, have a latté, and write out my postcards. It helps me focus my thoughts for possible blog posts later. With every card I actually try to write something of substance as opposed to "Greetings from where ever" and "Bye".

At times, the biggest challenge is just getting stamps. Every country is a little different. Sometimes you can buy stamps from a postcard kiosk on the street. Sometimes you buy stamps at a tobacco shop or a newsstand. Sometimes you can purchase stamps in hotel lobbies. And other times you have to go to the post office. When I arrive at a new destination, one of the first things I find out about is the post situation. Especially if I arrive someplace on a Saturday morning because you never know at what time the post office will close.

In Kosovo, the only place you can buy stamps is at the post office which, of course, is closed on Sundays. In Prishtina, I even went to the Grand Hotel to see if they possibly had stamps I could purchase. They did sell stamps. Great. However, on Sundays, the stamps are locked away upstairs and no one on duty had the key. Not so great. So my Kosovo postcards were all mailed from Albania.

I always ask for a postcard stamp to North America. Some countries charge different prices depending on where the postcard is going. For example, in Germany an international postcard stamp costs €0,75 regardless if it goes next door to Austria or all the way to Australia.

France charges €0,75 for the European Union and Switzerland but €0,89 for the rest of Europe or the USA.

Italy is expensive. There it's €0,75 for Europe, €1,60 for the USA and €2 for Australia.

In the Czech Republic, it's 20 Kč for Europe and 21 Kč (~$1.10) for the USA. I just budget in $20 for stamps and postcards on every trip I take and I'm covered.

There are normally mail boxes at airports and train stations. Most hotels will also mail things off for you, if you don't have time to find a box or the actual post office. In Albania, there are no mail boxes. The only mail boxes in the entire capital are in front of the post office so you have to go to the post office to mail anything.

My niece has a map of the world on her bedroom wall and she tacks up all of the post cards I send her. Someone else has a special album filled with the cards I've sent. My mom had the most creative idea. She pastes recipes on the back side of any postcard she receives and then puts them in an actual post card rack. Pretty clever.

Update:  2014 - Czech Post raised the price of a postcard to the USA to 30 Kč ($1.50).

Vienna Day Trip

By train, Vienna is only 1.5 hours away from Brno. Miran came up from Murska Sobota for the weekend and we took a day trip on Saturday to do a little sightseeing and visit the Christmas markets. I can't believe that I've been so busy this year that this was the first time I've been to Vienna in 2011, aside from going to the airport.

Wien is a great city!! It's always funny to me that people consider Vienna as part of Western Europe and Prague is viewed as Eastern Europe when Vienna is actually further east than Prague. I know it goes back to the days of the Iron Curtain. However, one thing is for sure, Vienna is a major capital city with one of the highest quality of life standards in the world.

We started the day of by walking around the Schönbrunn Palace which used to the the summer residence of the Habsburg imperial family. It is one of the most impressive Baroque complexes in Europe. It was built to rival Versailles in France but the Habsburgs didn't quite have the funds necessary to outdo the French palace. The Schönbrunn complex contains the Gloriette, massive gardens, a palm house and a zoo. The entire complex is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. This was the first time I've been to Schönbrunn. I really want to go back in spring when all of the flowers are in bloom and, of course, to take a tour inside the palace.

However, my first visit will be to the zoo before next summer. Built in 1760, it's the oldest zoo in the world. Plus it has pandas! In 2010, Fu Hu was born but he will return to China in 2012 so I need to get to the zoo before he leaves.

Stephansdom, St. Stephen's Cathedral was built in 1147. It's in the city center and for many years its 137 meters (~450 feet) made it Europe's highest building. The cathedral is nice enough but the exterior has been undergoing renovation since before I moved to Europe and the inside is quite dark. Stephansdom is also very crowded but worth the visit. Here's a Rick Steves video I found out on YouTube.

©Rick Steves

I much prefer Peterskirche, St. Peter's Church. The medieval Baroque church was built in 1733. Many experts believe that the church was adapted from a previously secular building because it has three alters with an apse in the south instead of the normal eastern orientation. Renovation was completed in 2004. The inside is bright and quite lovely. Highly recommended.

There is always so much to see and do in Vienna but it seemed that everyone else had the same idea we did which was to visit the Christmas markets.

It was such a nice day and the markets were great as usual. Granted it was a Saturday but it seemed so much more crowded this time compared to last year and the year before. I heard more Czech, Slovak, Slovenian and Hungarian spoken than I did German.