Saturday, September 29, 2007
Warsaw, Poland
So I've now been in Warsaw for a few days, and probably leaving for Ukraine tomorrow (maybe). I'm having a good time here. Met some local salsa people and just relaxing in this metropolitan city. Things have probably changed a lot since my grandma used to live here. There is a huge Ernst and Young building (skyscraper) where she used to live back in the 1920s and 30s. In Krakow, Poland, where my grandfather used to live, I think the building where he lived might still be there; but it's really hard for me to tell... buildings from the 1950s look like they are from the 20s. In the cemetery in Krakow, I found one grave with the name Erlich on it (family name a couple of generations back), and lots of graves with last names of people I know. I'm not able to currently post photos, so I'll write more when I post them. Anyway... people are waiting to use the internet, so... till next time.
Monday, September 24, 2007
Auschwitz concentration camp
Today I did one of the hardest things that I had to do on this trip... go to Auschwitz concentration camp near Krakow, Poland. It's the second camp I went to... the first one being Salaspils right south of Riga, Latvia. I didn't take photos at either one, but I'll try to describe them. If you don't know what happened at these types of camps, please read the above info on wikipedia. If you don't like reading about this stuff, stop reading here.
First Salaspils. It was quite complicated getting there. Most people (even locals) don't know about it. You take the local train to one stop before Salaspils (the town) then walk through a very tranquil pine forest to get to the memorial.
View Larger Map
The memorial (or camp) isn't huge (as you see on the map), but I was the only person there, and that made it seem immense. I was OK until I got to the children's barracks. People bring toys and leave them there. I broke down. Overall, it was a very eerie feeling being there alone; but it let me take in what happened there at my own pace. I ran into the grounds keeper on the way out that sold me a map of the memorial (not how to get there), but it was nice to see a person after the hour or so that I was there alone.
Auschwitz was a very different story. I opted not to go with a tour and do it alone at my own pace. Once I got there I realized that I wasn't going to be alone like last time; even now in the almost off-season (on a Monday) there are tons of tourists. Auschwitz is also huge... split into multiple camps, the two biggest being 3km apart, Auschwitz I and Auschwitz II (Birkenau).
Auschwitz I is like a museum... and you can spend hours (maybe days) trying to read all the exhibits and visiting the different buildings. Most of it is also reconstructed, and simply has a museum feel. I went through it quite fast (maybe 2 hours?), and walked over to Birkenau, 3km away. I got lost on the way and think I wondered upon one of the other camps in the area that was closed to public but seemed mostly destroyed. Birkenau is quite a different story from Auschwitz, it's mostly destroyed and has that same eerie feeling as I got in Salaspils. Not to say I didn't get it (the eerie feeling) in Auschwitz I, but it wasn't as strong. Birkenau had way less tourists, and given it's enormous size, and lack of reconstruction, felt so much more real. Sitting (relatively) alone by the gas chambers and crematoriums, realizing that more than million people were murdered there, I think I finally comprehended what had happened here, and broke down again. I think I'm done with going to camps. Now onto happier travels.
First Salaspils. It was quite complicated getting there. Most people (even locals) don't know about it. You take the local train to one stop before Salaspils (the town) then walk through a very tranquil pine forest to get to the memorial.
View Larger Map
The memorial (or camp) isn't huge (as you see on the map), but I was the only person there, and that made it seem immense. I was OK until I got to the children's barracks. People bring toys and leave them there. I broke down. Overall, it was a very eerie feeling being there alone; but it let me take in what happened there at my own pace. I ran into the grounds keeper on the way out that sold me a map of the memorial (not how to get there), but it was nice to see a person after the hour or so that I was there alone.
Auschwitz was a very different story. I opted not to go with a tour and do it alone at my own pace. Once I got there I realized that I wasn't going to be alone like last time; even now in the almost off-season (on a Monday) there are tons of tourists. Auschwitz is also huge... split into multiple camps, the two biggest being 3km apart, Auschwitz I and Auschwitz II (Birkenau).
Auschwitz I is like a museum... and you can spend hours (maybe days) trying to read all the exhibits and visiting the different buildings. Most of it is also reconstructed, and simply has a museum feel. I went through it quite fast (maybe 2 hours?), and walked over to Birkenau, 3km away. I got lost on the way and think I wondered upon one of the other camps in the area that was closed to public but seemed mostly destroyed. Birkenau is quite a different story from Auschwitz, it's mostly destroyed and has that same eerie feeling as I got in Salaspils. Not to say I didn't get it (the eerie feeling) in Auschwitz I, but it wasn't as strong. Birkenau had way less tourists, and given it's enormous size, and lack of reconstruction, felt so much more real. Sitting (relatively) alone by the gas chambers and crematoriums, realizing that more than million people were murdered there, I think I finally comprehended what had happened here, and broke down again. I think I'm done with going to camps. Now onto happier travels.
Thursday, September 20, 2007
Leaving Prague, heading to Krakow, Poland
I've had enough of this tourist trap named Prague; not to say that it isn't a
beautiful city, but I can't deal with crowds like this... I feel like I'm
in one big amusement park. So I'm heading out to Poland.
I don't have time to write much more, but thought I'd point you guys to a cool project called Global Stone Project. Just thought it was cool, and I took some photos of it in the Central park in Berlin.
Look here (click on all sizes) for a description or visit their website: Global Stone Project.
beautiful city, but I can't deal with crowds like this... I feel like I'm
in one big amusement park. So I'm heading out to Poland.
I don't have time to write much more, but thought I'd point you guys to a cool project called Global Stone Project. Just thought it was cool, and I took some photos of it in the Central park in Berlin.
Look here (click on all sizes) for a description or visit their website: Global Stone Project.
Tuesday, September 18, 2007
Left Berlin, now in Prague
So I'm not in a writing mood, but thought I'd update the blog just to say where I am.
I really liked Berlin. What a nice city... so much history and so much to do... I'll probably go back sometime... but for now I want to keep on moving. I also met my friend Romina from NY in Berlin after the Salsa congress... she came for basically a day and a half, and we walked a lot! Now I'm just going to relax in Prague for a couple of days.
I really liked Berlin. What a nice city... so much history and so much to do... I'll probably go back sometime... but for now I want to keep on moving. I also met my friend Romina from NY in Berlin after the Salsa congress... she came for basically a day and a half, and we walked a lot! Now I'm just going to relax in Prague for a couple of days.
Thursday, September 13, 2007
Leaving Lithuania
I've spent enough time for now in the Baltic countries... it's time to leave. Although I have a feeling that I'll be back. Tomorrow, I head to Berlin for another salsa festival... and then to either Poland or Prague... we'll see.
I've been relaxing the last few days... going to a concert
in one of the local churches
. Hiking with Gabriel (the violist from Germany) to random parks near Vilnius
, and in general walking around town a lot. Nice and relaxing.
But yesterday I managed to have another little adventure. I decided to walk to a little retreat close to Vilnius.
The walk was quite nice, although the town that I walked to (7km one way), was mostly closed (off season already) and I decided to walk back almost as soon as I got there. But... since I wanted to walk closer to the river and off of the main road, I started off that way. I was walking along the river and saw something a little fishy. There were two sport cars in this very shady and secluded area by the river. And it looked like a scene from a movie... both guys had brief cases and guys behind them that looked as if they might have been carrying. So instead of watching, or doing the smarter thing (walking back in the direction I came from), I decided to go quietly into the very thick shrubs and try to walk back up to the main road through this heavy forest/swamp area. The good thing is that I don't think they saw me, since they later drove by me on the main road quite quickly. But I did manage to walk through some vegetation, that although didn't feel bad when I walked through it... it sure did leave an impression. When I emerged from the forest/swamp area, my hands which were exposed, were puffed up, and looked like I had chicken pox. (No photo since I didn't want to touch anything) So I walked until I got to a little area where I could wash my hands and remove most of the vegetation (sharp thorn like things) that had taken over my clothes. After getting back to the hostel, I washed my self and sent my clothes to be laundered. Then went to Rosh Hashana services (hiding my leper hands in my pockets). I was happily surprised this morning to find most of the swelling went down. I was worried that I'd have to call upon my Derm. friends. Thankfully not. Not that I don't want to talk to you guys... but not under that circumstance.
As usual... more photos available.
I've been relaxing the last few days... going to a concert
in one of the local churches
. Hiking with Gabriel (the violist from Germany) to random parks near Vilnius, and in general walking around town a lot. Nice and relaxing.But yesterday I managed to have another little adventure. I decided to walk to a little retreat close to Vilnius.
The walk was quite nice, although the town that I walked to (7km one way), was mostly closed (off season already) and I decided to walk back almost as soon as I got there. But... since I wanted to walk closer to the river and off of the main road, I started off that way. I was walking along the river and saw something a little fishy. There were two sport cars in this very shady and secluded area by the river. And it looked like a scene from a movie... both guys had brief cases and guys behind them that looked as if they might have been carrying. So instead of watching, or doing the smarter thing (walking back in the direction I came from), I decided to go quietly into the very thick shrubs and try to walk back up to the main road through this heavy forest/swamp area. The good thing is that I don't think they saw me, since they later drove by me on the main road quite quickly. But I did manage to walk through some vegetation, that although didn't feel bad when I walked through it... it sure did leave an impression. When I emerged from the forest/swamp area, my hands which were exposed, were puffed up, and looked like I had chicken pox. (No photo since I didn't want to touch anything) So I walked until I got to a little area where I could wash my hands and remove most of the vegetation (sharp thorn like things) that had taken over my clothes. After getting back to the hostel, I washed my self and sent my clothes to be laundered. Then went to Rosh Hashana services (hiding my leper hands in my pockets). I was happily surprised this morning to find most of the swelling went down. I was worried that I'd have to call upon my Derm. friends. Thankfully not. Not that I don't want to talk to you guys... but not under that circumstance.
As usual... more photos available.
Monday, September 10, 2007
Vilnius, Lithuania and Siauliai
So leaving the coast of Lithuania, I decided to head to the Hill of Crosses in Siauliai (I still have no idea on how to pronounce it). So, since it's been low season (for tourism), I've been going to a place and finding accommodations once I got there.
So I get to this small town in the middle of nowhere, and it's packed with people everywhere! Street-fairs everywhere, bands playing every corner; big concert in the main park, hot air balloons, i.e. the works. So I first try the town's hostel (which took me an hour to find!)... packed. a couple more hotels... packed. The most expensive hotel in town... packed full! So I head to the bus station to get out of there... missed the last bus out of town by 10 minutes! Ok? So I go into one of the hotels and ask where there might be a hotel with rooms. The guys tells me that there is a hotel a "little bit" down the road that he knows has rooms, so I start walking. I think he assumed that I had a car, since I later found out the hotel is about 20km out of town! So I'm walking in the direction he said, and it starts raining... hard! I'm out of town... nobody around, and by luck... I see this nice hotel in the distance. I walk to it, and go in... and the lady at reception just gives me this hopeless look. So I did something I've never done before... I slipped her some money (a lot for her... very little for me), and said "please find me a room". A little while later... somebody lost their reservations because they were more than an hour late. Actually they ended up being no shows, so I (and the reception lady) didn't feel so bad. So I had to pay for a master suite, but oh well... at least I got dried off, a hot meal with a nice east German couple, and a good night sleep (in a room the size of my apt in NY). I also found out that this festival happens one weekend in a year, and the town is empty the rest of the time... just my luck.
The next day, I didn't want to deal with the town, so I took a taxi to the hill of crosses walked around for 10 minutes, and had the taxi guy take me to the bus station where I took the next bus to Vilnius. I must have upset the Travel Gods, since that bus was the slowest local bus (traveling more half the width of Lithuania) I have ever taken. In every town, it picked up some people on one side of the town and dropped them off on the other side of town. Not the biggest deal in world, but more than 5 hours later (as I was getting off the bus), I found out that the bus that left 30 minutes after me got there in less than 3 hours... go figure. At least I got to see many of the towns in middle Lithuania.
For more photos of the hill, check out my photos tagged with "hill of crosses".
From the most packed town, I got to the emptiest town, Vilnius.
I stayed at an empty hostel with a very cool Japanese "pod" concept". When I say empty, I mean I was the only one there... a little freaky!
I got so bored at night that I was experimenting with light painting.
Anyway... if you are bored... browse more photos from Vilnius.
So I get to this small town in the middle of nowhere, and it's packed with people everywhere! Street-fairs everywhere, bands playing every corner; big concert in the main park, hot air balloons, i.e. the works. So I first try the town's hostel (which took me an hour to find!)... packed. a couple more hotels... packed. The most expensive hotel in town... packed full! So I head to the bus station to get out of there... missed the last bus out of town by 10 minutes! Ok? So I go into one of the hotels and ask where there might be a hotel with rooms. The guys tells me that there is a hotel a "little bit" down the road that he knows has rooms, so I start walking. I think he assumed that I had a car, since I later found out the hotel is about 20km out of town! So I'm walking in the direction he said, and it starts raining... hard! I'm out of town... nobody around, and by luck... I see this nice hotel in the distance. I walk to it, and go in... and the lady at reception just gives me this hopeless look. So I did something I've never done before... I slipped her some money (a lot for her... very little for me), and said "please find me a room". A little while later... somebody lost their reservations because they were more than an hour late. Actually they ended up being no shows, so I (and the reception lady) didn't feel so bad. So I had to pay for a master suite, but oh well... at least I got dried off, a hot meal with a nice east German couple, and a good night sleep (in a room the size of my apt in NY). I also found out that this festival happens one weekend in a year, and the town is empty the rest of the time... just my luck.
The next day, I didn't want to deal with the town, so I took a taxi to the hill of crosses walked around for 10 minutes, and had the taxi guy take me to the bus station where I took the next bus to Vilnius. I must have upset the Travel Gods, since that bus was the slowest local bus (traveling more half the width of Lithuania) I have ever taken. In every town, it picked up some people on one side of the town and dropped them off on the other side of town. Not the biggest deal in world, but more than 5 hours later (as I was getting off the bus), I found out that the bus that left 30 minutes after me got there in less than 3 hours... go figure. At least I got to see many of the towns in middle Lithuania.
For more photos of the hill, check out my photos tagged with "hill of crosses".
From the most packed town, I got to the emptiest town, Vilnius.
I stayed at an empty hostel with a very cool Japanese "pod" concept". When I say empty, I mean I was the only one there... a little freaky!
I got so bored at night that I was experimenting with light painting.
Anyway... if you are bored... browse more photos from Vilnius.
Friday, September 7, 2007
The Curonian Spit - Neringa, Lithuania
What's a spit? Look at the second definition on Merriam-Webster. And here's what it looks like on a map:
View Larger Map
It's half Russian and half Lithuanian, and I'm staying on the Lithuanian side, right above the Russian border. In the map below, you can see where I'm staying... really nice beach town called Nida.
View Larger Map
Yesterday, I climed the dunes at the bottom of that map at sunset and got to relax a bit and take some shots. Here's one.
Today wasn't as much fun and games. I rented a bike again. The total mileage for today was about 75km (around 46 miles). Almost 2 marathons; I know that's nothing for some people, but for me... it's alot. The bike trails on the island (whoops, I mean spit) are amazing... both in scenery and how well maintained they are.
As you ride, you go through lots of forests, beaches and dunes... and if you just stay on the path, you see everything, but I had to be adventurous, and go off-roading... so I suffered for an hour on dunes - that I couldn't ride on (walked a lot with the bike), and finally got back into a forest, and biked straight till I found the trail again. The only benefit was that I got to see some cute chipmunks playing. (Didn't get a photo). BTW... I saw this gorgeous red fox on the side of the road (alive - not roadkill) when I first got here, but haven't seen too much other wildlife - other than birds... lots of them.
Anyhow... in the town that I biked to, there were 3 things to do:
1. Ended up probably being the wrong season... for birdwatching in one of the largest bird colonies in Europe... oh well... a couple birds less.
2. People (old ladies) selling smoked fish (lots of different types) from a window in the side of their wooden houses... reminds me a little of the coast of Oregon. Given that I didn't have any bread with me, I only bought one (got one for free), and couldn't even finish half... really tastey... as some of you have heard me say... salty snack:
3. This was rather cool. The place is called Raganu Kalnas (Hill of Witches). First a little history on why I find this cool... When I was a young kid, and my family lived (for a short time) in Riverdale, NY. My dad used to pick up small wooden logs (on random walks) and then carve little statues from them... so this is the same... but on a larger scale:
Dad... I want one ready for my next apartment when I get home. Browse my photos to see more life size wooden statues or visit their website to see more photos.
Overall, I've had a really nice time here on the spit - even got to cook breakfast for myself - for me that's a treat - a nice tortilla espanola - and would definitely recommend this place for anyone looking for a relaxed semi-outdoors place. Just try not to over-do-it on the bike... I won't be walking too fast for a couple of days. BTW... for some reason, I feel like everything I'm writing today feels like it's from a 3rd grade book report... Whatever... you're still reading :)
View Larger Map
It's half Russian and half Lithuanian, and I'm staying on the Lithuanian side, right above the Russian border. In the map below, you can see where I'm staying... really nice beach town called Nida.
View Larger Map
Yesterday, I climed the dunes at the bottom of that map at sunset and got to relax a bit and take some shots. Here's one.
Today wasn't as much fun and games. I rented a bike again. The total mileage for today was about 75km (around 46 miles). Almost 2 marathons; I know that's nothing for some people, but for me... it's alot. The bike trails on the island (whoops, I mean spit) are amazing... both in scenery and how well maintained they are.
As you ride, you go through lots of forests, beaches and dunes... and if you just stay on the path, you see everything, but I had to be adventurous, and go off-roading... so I suffered for an hour on dunes - that I couldn't ride on (walked a lot with the bike), and finally got back into a forest, and biked straight till I found the trail again. The only benefit was that I got to see some cute chipmunks playing. (Didn't get a photo). BTW... I saw this gorgeous red fox on the side of the road (alive - not roadkill) when I first got here, but haven't seen too much other wildlife - other than birds... lots of them.
Anyhow... in the town that I biked to, there were 3 things to do:
1. Ended up probably being the wrong season... for birdwatching in one of the largest bird colonies in Europe... oh well... a couple birds less.
2. People (old ladies) selling smoked fish (lots of different types) from a window in the side of their wooden houses... reminds me a little of the coast of Oregon. Given that I didn't have any bread with me, I only bought one (got one for free), and couldn't even finish half... really tastey... as some of you have heard me say... salty snack:
3. This was rather cool. The place is called Raganu Kalnas (Hill of Witches). First a little history on why I find this cool... When I was a young kid, and my family lived (for a short time) in Riverdale, NY. My dad used to pick up small wooden logs (on random walks) and then carve little statues from them... so this is the same... but on a larger scale:
Dad... I want one ready for my next apartment when I get home. Browse my photos to see more life size wooden statues or visit their website to see more photos.
Overall, I've had a really nice time here on the spit - even got to cook breakfast for myself - for me that's a treat - a nice tortilla espanola - and would definitely recommend this place for anyone looking for a relaxed semi-outdoors place. Just try not to over-do-it on the bike... I won't be walking too fast for a couple of days. BTW... for some reason, I feel like everything I'm writing today feels like it's from a 3rd grade book report... Whatever... you're still reading :)
One month
So it's a month to the day travelling... It really doesn't feel like I've been gone that long, but at the same time, I've already done so much (Russia, Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania) that it feels like I've been traveling for a long time. I currently feel rushed since I'm trying to make it to Berlin next Friday, and I want to finish up Lithuania. But I guess it for the better, since it's starting to get colder here (up north). As for site statistics, I guess people are quite bored, since the site (which basically has no content) has hosted 356 unique visitors over the last month. (Many of you coming to it many times over). Thanks for making me feel loved.
Thursday, September 6, 2007
Wednesday, September 5, 2007
Palanga, Lithuania
I'm in Palanga, Lithuania and internet is really expensive, so I'm not gonna write much... just that I'm heading to Neringa on the spit.
View Larger Map
View Larger Map
Monday, September 3, 2007
Leaving Riga and Latvia
I really do want to write some real stuff in the blog, but somehow never find time. Anyway... enjoy this photo from Riga's "Open Air Ethnographic Museum". I've never seen such a Museum... I'll post more photos and description soon... probably?
Tomorrow, I go down to Lithuania.
Tomorrow, I go down to Lithuania.
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