From prizes to princes

An earlier start today to make sure that we get the most of our visit to Gamla Stan.
Gamla stan, the Old Town, until 1980 was officially known as Staden mellan broarna (The Town between the Bridges), is the old town of Stockholm, Sweden. Gamla stan consists primarily of the island Stadsholmen.


It is a short ferry ride across the inner harbour  in the sunshine this morning, passing four large cruise ships enroute.  There is a slight breeze and the possibility of a shower, so Donna has packed the umbrellas - just in case.Gamla Stan is one of the larger islands in the archipelago that is Stockholm.  It has an area of about 0.26 square kms.  And while we didn't cover all of it,we gave it a pretty damn good shot.  Walked just under 5 kms today so you can imagine how my feet are tonight!  Still I am really pleased with how I lasted and thankful that Donna lent me her arm numerous times on the blasted cobblestones.  There were every possible type of them somewhere on the island - including those little rounded ones that they set on their edges - they are the most painful!
On our way to find the Cathedral (which turned out not to be the church we thought it was) we came across the intricate bronze statue to St George and the Dragon. This dragon was slain in return for the City converting to christianity!  Turns out, this is not the only statue to St George and the dragon, and most certainly one one of hundreds of statues on this elaborate little island.The first major building we entered today is the Nobel Prize Museum. Set in an imposing building facing one of the main squares where the City fountain is set, the interior is dark, although not at all cool!  This centre focuses on the story of how the Prize came about - as the legacy left in the will of Alfred Nobel who had made his fortune in the discovery and development of dynamite. 
Without any direct descendants (although he had large extended family) he decided to distribute his fortune to the recognition of those who excelled in a number of scientific and other fields:

• Physics
• Chemistry
• Physiology or Medicine
• Literature
• Peace

In 1968, Sveriges Riksbank (Sweden’s central bank) established The Sveriges Riksbank Prize in Economic Sciences in Memory of Alfred Nobel. Th Royal Apartments (historic) are more accessible with lift access allowing easy access to the main areas (although there were still steps up from each foyer).  There are two things that strike us Once we had had our fill of the opulence, we retraced our steps to the courtyard just as the Changing of the Guard was taking place. Talk about being in the right place at the right time. We have unobstructed views, unlike the crowds who have just entered the Parade Square and are being marshalled by soldiers! The Guard have some of the best polished helmets we have ever seen!Out through the Parade Square and behind the Palace, we find the Storkyrkan - Stockholm Cathedral, St. Jacob's Church and St. Clara Church.  This medieval church, built from 1279, this cathedral, has been a Lutheran place of worship since 1527.  
By now it is now close to 5 pm and time for us to turn towards the ferry back to Skeppsholmen.  My feet HATE the cobblestones and the uneven roads and pavements, the hills up and down, have taken their toll.  I am really feeling our jaunt today, but thrilled that we were able to traverse most of Gamla Stan.
We return to the Hotel Skeppsholmen somewhat subdued, but happy with the day.
Night all - time to rest the tootsies!

There are not too many people getting off the ferry, although there were plenty on board - so I guess the museums we did over the last couple of days are still drawing the late summer / early autumn crowds.

Gamla Stan has a really interesting skyline with cupolas, towers, spires and the stair-stepped roof-lines reminiscent of those in Brugges and the slightly rounded ones found across many of the other European cities.

Between 1901 and 2018, the prizes have been awarded a total of 590 times.  And there is information on each and every one.  One of the more interesting ways they are presented is on a ceiling mounted tracked system that features each of the laureates on a separate hanging banner.  Other ways they are presented are in decade visual blocks where one can read in detail of the recipient.  And some are featured in special displays.  There is a major display on the works and times of Martin Luther King.  We spent about 2 hours working through the discoveries and works of some of the amazing people who have and are currently influencing our knowledge of our world.

Following our enlightening, we ventured back into the afternoon sun - it is hard to believe that summer is done and locally, everyone is commenting on how later summer is lasting.  After wandering through backstreets, peering down alleyways and into doorways and courtyards, we end up on one of the straight lines that cross the island - Osterlangg, looking for a light lunch.  
The small restaurant Cultur was easy to enter (steps here are everywhere) and in fact, compared to here on Skeppsholmen, very affordable.

Donna had Cod with crab sauce and baby potatoes and I had Chicken with Tarragon, mashed potatoes and white beans.  Washed down with a glass of Italian Pinot it was delicious and very satisfying, providing the energy needed this afternoon.

So we next headed to the other end of Gamla Stan and The Royal Palaces. 

With more than 600 rooms, much of it open to the public, we could have spent a full day in this one complex. However, time is short and there is still so much to see.  Donna climbed the many steps to take some photos in the large Chapel - basically one large hall that hosts major ceremonies.

Straight away we are struck by - the amazing chandeliers in all the rooms, and the plethora of clocks -some rooms with more than one - and all keeping perfect time.  Turns out the Palace has its own clock-maker to ensure that these historic pieces all run true!
There are gifts from popes and princes, priceless tapestries and furniture and elaborate furnishings in the king's rooms.  The Council Chamber still hosts meetings of the Swedish Cabinet three to four times a year with the King sitting as Chairman.
And Karl XI's gallery, modelled on the castle Versailles mirror gallery has a series of chandeliers running its length!

It houses the other statue of St George slaying the Dragon that we have seen today.  This one, carved in timber in 1489 is amazing in its detail.

Tomorrow we check out and will take the train to Gothenburg on the other side of Sweden.  At least this way we will get to see more of the countryside.

A Tales of Castles and castes

We began the day nice and early - leaving Bucuresti at 6:30 am with the sunrise as we have a few kms to do and two of Romania's best castles to see.
It is amazing how many people are headed to work at this time.
We often ask people we meet in the tourism industry how many hours they work and the standard answer seems to be 16 hour days.  Guess that goes for more than just the tourism industry.

We head out of the city, dodging the trolley buses and the trams.  Hate driving along the tram lines - your tyres seem to have a mind of their own as they follow the rails!

We are headed to the north west slightly to visit first Peles Castle and then Bran Castle.  we know that the tourist buses leave Bucharest at 8 am to do the day trip, so we want to get there ahead of the hordes. And with the help of one of the main motorways we do.  Amazing to see the motorway without traffic - not like or run in the other day.
We arrive at Peles Castle parking area at 8:30 am, only to be told that the castle grounds open at 9 am and the castle itself opens at 11 am!  We drive up to the top parking area and ask the attendant how far to the castle. He smiles and says enigmatically "5".  Five what we don't know. We haven't actually seen the castle yet. So off we set. Up a 8% slope. Cobblestoned. 

Five? minutes?  Nope, that doesn't do it. Dear God, I hope it isn't 5 km up this blasted hill.  Coronaries averted, we finally view the castle, and the lower buildings - thank goodness, with a coffee shop. Make a bee-line for that and for an sweetened iced coffee to bolster the energy.   It now house residences, a hotel and a restaurant and coffee shop. 
It is actually 1 km up the hill, so to someone that works there, and who does the dash regularly, I suppose that 5 minutes might do it.  Not for me though - give me the flat walking anyday! That slope damn near killed me!

From here, I let Michael head up to have a look inside by himself - there is no way I could manage the stairs after that slope!

When I muse on 'castles' my mind manifests images of masonry, parapets, arrow loops, barbicans, hoardings, murder holes and garderobes. However, nothing could prepare me for the sight I was to behold as it appears more like an Baronial Manor or majestic hunting lodge. Of course, nothing could be further from the truth. No evidence of the Nosferatu.

Now should you, dear reader, decide to visit Romania and its castles a word.... Be prepared for a protracted wait in purchasing your entry tickets. The wait can be longer than the line!

Albeit, pay the additional ticket which enables you to take photographs. The wardens are vigilant when comes to pouncing on patrons who have not paid the 'photography tax'. I purchased mine which was worth the freedom.

As soon as you join your tour group and enter the castle, you shall find yourself entering another world. Due to time constraints, I had opted for the ground floor tour which in reality was enough.

The Peleș Castle was build 1873-1914 by King Carol 1 and occupied by himself and his wife Queen Elizabeth upon its completion. In 1872 the Crown had purchased 1500 hectares of land which the castle occupies. In 1873 construction commenced on building the castle.

In Peleș you will be transfixed by an era of opulence, flattery and obscene wealth. However, I was transfixed by the work of those artists and artisans past who had enhanced the castle with their mastery.

We were directed from the main lobby through the various rooms of state, reception, music, recital and many others. It is very surreal to digest the notion that people actually lived here! Exploring the grounds is a must as many of surrounding buildings were constructed at the same time as Peleș. 

We left Peles at 12:30 pm so that we could travel around to that other famous castle - 'Dracula's Castle - Bran Castle. A mere 48 kms away, the GPS is telling us it is 90+ minutes - with slower than usual traffic due to roadworks and congestion.  Turns out that we discover later that at the time of the year, Wednesday is the most popular day to visit the castles - go figure, we thought that we would be safer mid-week.

Soon enough we arrive in Bran - and if there were people in Peles, you can triple the figure here. Parking is a nightmare, and there is a climb up many steps to the castle itself. Still recovering from the climb a couple of hours ago, I send Michael up alone!  I mean, he can't come to Romania without seeing 'Dracula's Castle' - right?

Bran Castle is for more forbidding than Peleș. Being a medieval castle it displays those hallmarks of a fortress - a rabbit warren - albeit, one of the most beautiful castles in Romania. 

Situated on the border between Transylvania and Wallachia, Bran has no tangible correlation to Bram Stoker's fictional character - Dracula. However,the name 'Dracula' is derived from the surname of Vlad the Impaler's father, the Dracul, he was a member of the Dragon Order.

One has to navigate this wonderful building through halls, rooms, narrow passages and humanity. Gaining entry into the castle is just as daring. One passes 

through 'alleys' and purveyors of souvenir porn. Then you the end of the queue to purchase your entry into the castle.

It is truly a place to discover and appreciate the level of conservation undertaken to restore Bran into the jewel it is today.

By 4:15pm, I am messaging Michael to say that we need to get going.  We are booked in to an agrotourismo venue in Bogdana just outside Onesti tonight - half way to the painted monasteries that we intend to explore tomorrow - and it is a 3 hour drive away.  Well, it is only 169 kms, but if we have learned anything, it is to throw away any preconceived idea of how long it takes to travel between places in Romania -

what with the road conditions and local traffic, time loses meaning! And the Roma people are out in hordes at every lot of roadworks hawking fruit and bric-a-brac.  You have to hand it to them for their persistence.  We find that a closed window gives the clearest message.

As we travel though Busteni, we can see that this bustling town is part of the reason for delays - everyday life gets in the way of the tourist travelling through.  High above the town on the peaks of the Carpathians above the town, there is a huge cross. Hopefully not an omen.  And then it is on through Rasnov, a partner to Brasov with its cheeky Hollywood styled sign just below the citadel.  impossible to get a photo without the blasted power wires in the view.

We are the only ones here tonight at La Ferma Veche - on weekends it must pump - lots of sun lounges, a huge dining room and a large inflatable pool.

Our host speaks no English, and us very limited Romanian.  Pictures on the menu soon have us eating cevapi, fries and a small salad with dijon mustard - it does the trick!  I have the better part of half a bottle of local white - a little rough around the edges, but very drinkable as spritzers with sparkling water. Michael just has the water - poor him!

Penultimum - almost there

Gosh. Everything is galloping along now. Its time to leave Wingham and head for the City. While we enjoy the buzz of being in large cities, it is the smaller towns that we prefer. This actually stands us in good stead for our return to our home in Maryborough. For those who are not local to us, we live in a regional city on the sourthern central coast of Queensland with a population of around 28,000 people.

It is a vibrant City that I am getting more and more excited about returning to and seeing through different eyes. For the visitor, there is so much to see, and for the resident, there is so much to get involved with - it is one of the most connected and caring places I have known. And it is just such a nice place with a balance of great history and modern conveniences!







Anyway, we are not there yet, but getting closer! Our room at The Dog Inn has been amazing. But if we thought ours was good, the four poster room next door that we see as we are about to leave is even grander (but it only has a bath, no shower, so no good for me ). Built in the 13th century this building has been adapted to encompass all the modern conveniences so that the rooms are all comfortable to be in whether they are one of the eight rooms or the public areas. We finally leave Wingham after saying farewell to Austin and Tim (it's Dan's day off - bugger).

Passing through rural southern England we pass one of the warning beacons that were established throughout much of England as a warning mechanism at the time of the Spanish Armada threat in the 16th century. We have set Kate to the 'avoid motorways' options so that we can spend our last little bit travelling through the countryside. We pass through the Herne area and see a second windmill for the day, but this one is close enough for us to pause for a few moments and have a look - only from the outside though as it is only open to the public for a couple of hours on Sundays in the summer! Ah well, an outside look will just have to do.

Little do we know that indeed from here all roads lead to London and that as we go en-route to Heathrow where we are staying for the last three days, we pass one street away from where we started this epic journey in December last year in Earls Court!

The travelling is very slow as we crawl through the outer inner suburbs of London as we head for the M4 and another section of the great ring road that takes traffic around the outskirts of this great city.

We have yet to finalise the packing and when we empty the car for the last time on our arrival at the Premier Inn Heathrow, I look at all our 'stuff' (and that does not inclide the 40 kgs we posted home from Germany last week) I wonder how in the hell are we going to fit it all in!

The Premier Inn is one of the Accor chain of hotels and is one of the closest to Heathrow. Sitting just on the other side of the M4 motorway, there is a connecting shuttle service to Terminal 3 where we will leave from on Sunday morning. They also offer a combinaton package for accommodation and meals and we have booked 3 nights. The last thing that we need to do now is sell the car . . . (after giving it a very good clean first!)

Dinner is from a restricted menu that is still extensive enough to offer choice. And as the restaraunt is run by Indians I reckon the curry just might be a good choice! From the menu we choose:
Entrees:
Soup of the day (White onion and Blue Cheese) served with warm rustic ciabatta bread (Michael)
Crispy seeded chicken strips served with Mandarin chilli sauce (Maria)
Mains:
Sausage and mash - Premium pork sausages and mashed potato served with garden peas and caramelised onion gravy (Michael)
Chicken Makhani curry - Chicken breast marinated with yoghurt and spices in tomato and cream curry sauce served with basmati rice and naan bread (Maria)
Michael opted for Profiteroles filled with whipped cream and drizzled with chocolate flavour fudge sauce for dessert while I had a second glass of Pinto Grigio! Cheers

In a place out of time?

Ah yes, that glass walled shower on view for all the room to see was interesting to say the least! Breakfast at the motel was expensive to say the least so Michael took a walk to the train station and came back with great coffees and pastries. Graz like many other cities is having road works done so we dodge them to get across the river and closer to the old city that we want to see.

Parking is not too much of a problem here - while there is no street parking nearby, there are plenty of parking stations that have been located underground. And these parking stations are like none others we have come across - spotlessly clean, very well lit, plenty of space with the spots marked by a sensored pad on the ground, piped music etc etc etc! And affordable!

They are all located at the peripheries of the main tourist areas, which makes it easy to get to things to have a look. The city sits in a valley and up the slopes of a steep hill that is crowned by the Schlossberg (castle hill). We will finish our time here with a trip up to there. But we start down in the main square, which is just around the corner from the car park. The tourist office here has put out an excellent brochure that is divided into three walks through the old city allowing you to tailor your time.

We begin our stroll in the Hauptplatz (main square) near the town hall with its domes, statues and clock. In the Square in front of the town hall there is a market place with permanent stalls selling souvenirs, food, flowers and newspapers. They are set all close together so that along with the modern settings, you still get the atmosphere of the markets places of old. There is the Archduke Johann fountain just outside the town hall. All around the sqaure (on the outer sides of the tram lines) there are a number of buildings with amazing facades of stucco or sgraffito high on their walls (including the amazing 'Painted House') and with arcades from the streets into inner courtyards. Many of the facades date back to the early 1700s!

Around behind the town hall lies the Landhaus - a masterpiece of the Italian Renaissance that looks like it should be sited in Venice. Turns out that it was designed by a northern Italian architect so no wonder it looks like it does. Not only is the facade beautiful, the inner courtyard with its lamps and wells and its arched porticos is just as stunning. The Styrian parliament (the State that Graz is capital of) sits here.

From here we head up. The streets are not too steep, but the cobblestones are painful - how I hate them. And no, even after almost a year, my feet have not grown accustomed to them! And to add insult to my injury, we enter into a medieval courtyard where the cobbles are made from river stones that are laid on their edges - ouch ouch ouch! We see the Glockenspiel and buildings that have operated as various enterprises for hundreds of years, including a bakery with an amazing carved and inlaid timber store front.

I pass the shop of a tailoress who is selling traditional clothes. There are hand knitted jumpers and cardigans on a rack out the front and I can't resist buying a special little girl a special little one. It will come in very handy - no not in Darwin, in Kapooka! We heard from Antony this morning that he has been promoted to the rank of Bombadier and is being transferred to Kapooka near Wagga Wagga on the New South Wales / Victoria border as of early January as a Cadet Instructor! Anyway, back to Graz - this seamstress must be pretty good, there are three couples in there buying clothes - all Austrians!

We continue to walk up and come to the Cathedral built in 1438 - 1464 and the close by Mausoleum. Neither are open so all we can so is admire them from outside. In the architectural gems of the surrounding areas there is a Jesuit College and the 'Old' university that was founded in 1585. There are more squares with statues and more churches including the Parish Church that is a nice mix of old and new. We are now winding our way back down to the main square through narrow pedestrian streets filled with narrow shops selling all many of goods from sporting equipment to jewellery, from confectionary to eye glasses. People walk or ride pushbikes here - though not too many of them are riding uphill, just a couple of very fit young men - most people get off and push their bikes!

Now its time for lunch. Well, I'm not sure what you call the meal that covers both lunch and dinner - lunner? Kind of like brunch at the other end of the day. Anyway, whatever it is, we are having it now. We walk away from the main square looking for somewhere that takes our fancy and we find the Keller Restaurant through an alleyway and a courtyard. We are hungry, but boy, these meals are huge!
Entrees:
Champignon gebacken mit Sauce Tartare (Deep fried champignons with Tartare sauce) Michael
Emmentaler gebacken mit Preiselbeeren (Deep fried Emmentaler cheese with Cranberries) Maria
Mains:
Gemischter Grillteller mit Reis, Bratkartoffeln und feinem Gemüse (Mixed grill with rice, pan-fried potatoes and vegetables) Michael
Fiakergulasch mit Ei, Gurkerl, Würstl, Servietterknödel (Beef goulash Fiacre style with egg, gherkin, sausage, white bread dumplings) MariaWe had been eyeing off the breaded apple slices for dessert, but the meals are so big that we can't finish either of them, so there is definitely no room for desserts! Our hunger pangs put away, we head back out into the afternoon sun to head towards the Schlossberg high on the hill overlooking the city. There are three ways you can get up there - on foot up the hundreds of steps, using the funicular or via a lift that goes up through the centre of the mountain - our preferred choice today. For the tiny sum of €2.80 we both get return tickets!

Now this has been my eagerly awaited highlight of the day. The clocktower that sits high above the city and is visible from almost every part of it is the best known symbol of Graz. Trouble is that the clock's hands are back to front with the small hand showing the minutes and the large hand, the hour! And while we don't have time to climb all the way to the castle, we do spend some time at the clocktower, admiring the scene over the rooftops of Graz and the Mur River. The hoarding around the top of the tower was erected as a lookout for the fire brigade. And then there is the bell tower just a little further up the hill that Michael dashes up to see.

But dont think for a minute that Graz is trapped in some time warp. Just as the old city shines, there are a number of very futuristic buildings that have been commissioned. Most notable are the Kunsthaus Graz built in 2003 to host exhibitions, and the Mursinel - a floating structure in the Mur River connected to the banks by two weaving footbridges. It houses a restaurant and an amphitheatre. They sit shoulder to shoulder with the architecture of times long past, complementing rather than competing with them. And their wierd shapes seem very much at home amongst the myriad of towers that were there long before them.

And so our time has come to leave Graz and head for Munich. We have a four hour drive ahead of us which means that we won't get there until after 8 pm. As we are leaving the city, the afternoon light is fading fast. Gosh, it wasn't all that many weeks ago that it was light until the late hours of the night!

As we travel across Austria we are heading back into the land of the high snow capped mountains (and yes, they have already had snowfalls high on the peaks)! For quite some time we are actually travelling throug the mountains in a series of tunnels - the longest being 8.3 kms long is the longest we have travelled on our trip. When we see the last breath of the sun gently washing the wispy clouds with a soft rosy hue, and the mountain tops gleaming in that last light of the day, with small villages burrowing down for the cool night in the valleys below (it is now 4°C), I understand why my Dad loved this part of the world so much and kept coming back.

We are travelling the motorways and as soon as we reach Germany, just past the city of Salzburg, the speed limit free Autobahn sees the traffic take off in a frenzy of fast paced racing. Honestly, some of the cars are travelling well in excess of 200 kph - in the dark. Not us though. We keep to a much more sedate 120 kph! We make good time and hit Motel One in Putzbrunn just outside the main centre of Munich about 8:20 pm. Oh for a bed. On checking in, the receptionist Consuela, remembers us from our last stay here in July - now THAT is what you call great customer relations! She does say however that friendly guests make it easy to remember them!! Ain't she sweet.