Czech Republic - November 2017

Prague

The Guinness

I think there are more Irish bars in Prague than any other non-UK capital city I've visited so far.  I didn't therefore envisage there being a problem sourcing a Guinness there.  So confident was I that I didn't even bother taking an 'emergency can'. 

I hadn't planned on visiting Rocky O'Reilly's bar even though it was quite close to where we were staying.  It sounded a bit like a large sports bar but when we poked our heads inside it seemed ideal.  It was cosy, nicely full and turned out to have a lovely atmosphere and friendly staff.   And what's more, the Guinness was excellent.

Enjoying a tasty Gunness at Rocky O'Reilly's in Prague

I explained to the waitress Lucie my challenge who quickly understood things and kindly picked out my next destination of Riga, Latvia.  To celebrate we had another Guinness poured by the cheery barman Eric. 

Lucie picking out Riga and Eric recovering from pouring a Guinness.

Team make up

Prague was high on Margaret's list to visit so the team sort of chose itself for this visit. 

Margaret wearing a cathedral hat.

Sightseeing

I'd visited Prague once before some 11 years ago and had quite forgotten how full of sightseeing opportunities it is.  In eleven years lots of other people seem to have got to hear about the beauty of this city.  It's now a very popular destination, crowded in certain parts but not spoilt.  Our stay was relatively brief but there would be plenty here to fill a much longer stay we felt.  Some of the roads were very busy at certain times of day but it was possible to avoid these by walking the side streets. 

There are probably three sights virtually every tourist to Prague goes to, the Old Town Square, the Charles Bridge and the Castle.  No to be left out we naturally did the same.

In the Old Town Square sits the large austere Jan Hus memorial sculpture.  Jan was a guy who didn't like the control that the Vatican had over the church and and fought for reform.  He was rewarded by being burned at the stake.  He's become a symbol of Check reform ever since. 

The incredibly old Astronomical Clock, still working and performing its tricks on the hour.  Somewhat tricky for telling the time though. 

One of the many statues that lines the Charles Bridge.  Obviously nobody has told him it is rude to point. 

Prague Castle, sits on top of the hill across the river from the Old Town.  It's not just a castle but a large collection of historic buildings, many religious or presidential in nature.  If you find out where these two workers are you win a free meal in a restaurant of your choosing (sorry, that's me telling porkies again). 

Getting there and around

We flew with easyJet from Bristol then caught the Airport Express Bus into the centre (30 mins / ~£3).  The central area is compact so we didn't use any other form of transportation though I was tempted by the look of the trams. 

Rather weirdly, the city seemed to be full of what I can only suppose are faux vintage cars.

Food and Drink

Margaret did some sterling work researching some good restaurants.  U Sumavy was our choice on the first night.

Some traditional Czech food served up at U Samavy bar and restaurant.  The beer was good there too!

The well stocked bar at U Samavy.  So many beers to choose from!

 The second night we ate in Lemon and Leaf, a Thai restaurant.  And very tasty that was too.

The Accommodation

Something else my wife must take credit for finding, the Salvator Boutique Hotel .  And top notch it was too - with a spacious, clean and quiet room.

The Salvator Boutique Hotel on Žitná.

Quirky Moments

Seemingly very few on this straightforward whistle-stop sightseeing trip, though a few of the attractions were somewhat bizarre.

The 42 individual moving layers of Franz Kafka's head in this 39 tonne sculpture are designed to illustrate the multilayer nature of the human personality.

The Dancing House or Fred and Ginger as it is sometimes known, designed by Vlado Milunić and on the banks of the river. 

Lasting memories

Of a beautiful but somewhat crowded city.

See, I told you it was ugly here.

Moldova - September 2017

Chișinău

The Guinness

Would there be Guinness in Moldova?  I'd been asking myself that question for months.  I was so worried there may not be that I took an 'emergency can' with me - not a cheap option as it meant paying for hold baggage on the flight out.  I needn't have worried though.  The Dublin Pub had what was needed.  

Enna kindly picked out the next destination I have to visit - Prague.

It's the only Irish pub in the country and the only place serving Guinness that I could find.  It's a pleasant quiet pub well off the main thoroughfare but was well worth the hunt on this hot evening.  I explained what I was up to and Enna kindly picked out my next destination of Prague.  We also met Andree, the owner, who showed up around the pub and kindly gave me a bottle of Tullamore Dew whiskey, one of my favorites.  

We liked the place and wanted to prove to ourselves that we could find it again so went back the following evening for food and jolly edible it was too.  We had the local soup which included noodle and chicken followed by some excellent medallions of beef.  

Team make-up

By that I mean who traveled with me rather than what type of mascara did I wear.  This time Ian came with me again as it was one of the countries he wanted to visit as part of his challenge to try and ride a train in each European country.

Ian enjoying the rest in Călărași 

Sightseeing

When people ask me about my memories of my visit to Moldova it will probably be the people that top the list and not the sightseeing.  There are some elegant sights but maybe not more than to occupy a day or two.  No doubt there were a fair few we missed given our lack of any guidebook or leaflet.

Belfry of Nativity Cathedral, Chișinău

If you like markets then you'll be happy here.  I think the Chisinau market is the biggest I've ever seen.

Anyone for cabbage leaves?

Getting there and around

It's not an easy country to get to.  There is a cheap flight once a week from Stansted at very uncivilized times so instead we flew Lufthansa out of Birmingham via Frankfurt and Vienna and then via Munich on the way back.  On the plus side there is a trolleybus from Chisinau airport into the centre costing  just 10p.  In fact there are trolleybuses galore and we had a lot of fun riding them at 20 Lei a ride, paid in cash on-board.

And of course there was the train trip.  That's not easy when there are so few trains per day and many of them are long distance trains.  With the help of our friends at Hidden Europe we did manage to find a suitable couple of trains and went out to the town Călărași for the day.  The train back was the Moscow to Chisinau sleeper train full of couchettes and yes I did grab a quick snooze.

Food and Drink

Whereas sightseeing probably was a little disappointing, the food and drink turned out to be above expectations.  I wouldn't say we ate much traditional Moldovan food but what we did was lovely.

A selection of deserts and  some local cognac to wash it down.

Outside Chisinau

We chose to go to Călărași more because it was accessible by train rather than anything else.  After grabbing some breakfast and exploring the market we were trying to find the museum we had read about but without much luck.  We ended up outside the town hall and who should come up to Ian and offer assistance but the Mayor himself.  He broke the news that the museum was unfortunately closed for repairs but arranged for someone to meet us there.  That led to an excellent afternoon in the company of Marianna and Corina who gave up their time to explain the history of the town, the Jewish history and show us around and used their contacts to enable us to see places we wouldn't have otherwise found.  

A lovely day out in Călărași including a visit to the fire station and police museum.

The Accommodation

We hired an apartment on the main street, the aptly named Chisinau Central Apartment, again not that easy to find but worth the effort.  

Central Apartments in Chisinau

Quirky Moments

Having realised that I would not be able to take the bottle of whiskey home as we would not be allowed to take it trough airport security we were left with a choice - either drink it in two days and spend most of the holiday with a hangover or give it to a worthy course.  I chose the later.

I am a fan of the comedian, writer and philanthropist Tony Hawks.  In one of his books he is set a challenge by a friend to play each of the Moldovan football team at tennis.  If he looses he has to strip naked in the street and sing the Moldovan national anthem.  If he wins his friend has to do so.  After leaving Moldova Tony felt he wanted to put something back into the country so helped set up a centre for children with after became to Tony Hawks Care Centre in Chisinau.

The most inappropriate gift ever given to a children's centre - a bottle of whiskey.

Lasting Memories

I left with many pleasant memories of this small and rarely visited country.  A country where the people ate proud and trying hard to improve themselves but where maybe the politics is somewhat hard to overcome.  

Moldovian hero Stefan cel Mare 

A full collection of photos from the trip can be found at: Flick album

San Marino - March 2017

San Marino

A full collection of photos from this trip can be found in:- San Marino

The Guinness

Well, I wasn't expecting it to be quite so hard to find a Guinness in San Marino.  After booking my flights and accommodation I had sat down in front of the computer and search desperately for places selling Guinness.  This microstate must be one of the few capital cities in Europe without an Irish bar. Eventually I found the London Pub that may sell bottled but not draught Guinness but would you believe it, it is closed on a Monday night, the only night I had booked to stay.

My new friends in San Marino!  Natalie at the Strange Bar picks out my next destination - Moldova.

On arriving in San Marino I scoured the bars.  San Marino has its own beer - I know this because every bar I went into and asked told me so.  I had managed to buy some 'emergency' Guinness in Bologne on the way but was desperate to try and find some here.  My hours of internet research had found one place which may just sell bottled Guinness, the Strange Bar.  The only problem was it was a short way out of the centre or in San Marino terms - off the edge of the cliff.  The main road in and out of the centre is not designed for pedestrians and any thoughts of walking there were quickly dismissed.  An early evening trip there on the bus therefore was the only option.

You thought I was making up the bar name didn't you!  

Not quite the type of Guinness I was expecting but nevertheless much appreciated. 

Arriving dead on opening time at 6.30 I got some strange looks and even more when I asked for a Guinness.  After Naomi made lots of phone calls, presumably to the bar owner, a bottle of Guinness was found hiding at the back of the fridge.

The pub may have been closed but it didn't stop me having a Guinness there.  

The sightseeing

At the very top of San Marino there are three tower about a kilometer apart.  I never did work out why they had to build towers as they were already on top of a cliff and could see for miles anyway.

A view to die for - it would be if you lost your footing.

I sort of liked and didn't like the city. Some of the architecture, towers and narrow streets were lovely but it was very much geared towards the tourist with almost every shop selling knickknacks and those that weren't sold guns and knives for some reason.  At this time of year the streets were quiet and the place lived up to it's official title of 'the Most Serene Republic of San Marino'.

San Marino

Getting there and around

I flew out of Bristol for the first time on the first flight of the year to Bologne.  Luckily the pilot remembered their way from last year.  It took the train down to Rimini and then the regular bus up to San Marino.  The centre of San Marino is compact - very compact, and everywhere is on a steep slope.  Its a good place to build up your leg muscles.

The food and drink

San Marino pasta is something different.  It's sort of a thick worm in size, khaki in colour and a bit chewy but tasty at the same time.  Their white wine is very nice too but beware - 0.5 I think means half a litre and not half a bottle.

Bologne has some lovely places to but slices of pizza and their cheeses are great too.  In fact cheese is in abundance everywhere!

Fast food, Bologne style.

Outside San Marino

 I spent two nights in Bologne and had a good opportunity to look around this old city with its covered arcades and many churches.  I also took some time out in Rimini on my way back and walked down to the seafront and lay on the sand in the sunshine.  It may just have been possible that I fell asleep for a minute or two.

Rimini and time for 40 winks I think.

Bologne towers

The Accommodation

In Bologne I stayed two nights in the Il BaGatto B&B and I just could not fault it.  It was a  comfortable spacious room in an apartment near the centre.  In San Marino itself I stayed at Hotel Joli and had a lovely view of the mountains from my bedroom window.

The Quirky moments

When you have scoured every bar in the country for Guinness its somewhat ironic to find a shop selling Guinness souvenirs.  I pointed out the irony to the elderly shopkeeper who tried to sell me a bottle opener!

The only Guinness I found for sale in the centre of San Marino!

Romania - October 2016

Bucharest

A full collection of photos from this trip can be found in Romania photo album

The Guinness

The pub of choice for the Guinness was The Dubliner, the oldest Irish pub in Bucharest.  A message the previous day confirmed that they served Guinness so there was no need to look any further.  We had a warm welcome and a free pint. Many thanks.

The next country picked out of the hat by the staff at the Dubliner was San Marino.  I wonder if there is any Guinness available there?

Receiving a warm welcome at The Dubliner

We happened to arrive on quiz night and enjoyed our attempt at failing to upstage the locals.  One of the picture rounds was on famous bridges.  You would have thought I would have recognized the Second Severn Crossing given that I had visited and photographed it the week before but no.


Team make-up

I had a new travelling companion this time, Ian.  We know each other from a trip to the old USSR back in 1987.  A lot of water has passed under the bridge sine then but we have stayed in touch and suddenly found that in retirement our hobbies coincide.  Ian likes travelling by train in as many European countries as possible and Romania was one still on his list so it seemed a good idea to team up for this one, especially as I like train travel too and Ian likes a beer!

Me and Ian enjoying a Guinness at The Dubliner

The Sights

I didn't know much about Bucharest and admit to being pleasantly surprised by the city.  It is full of fine historic buildings, something I wasn't expecting at all.  Everybody tends to associate Bucharest with the giant Palace of the Parliament building but there is so much more to see there.

Library of the University of Bucharest

Palace of the Parliament that evokes mixed feelings.  The heaviest building in the world.

Transport

We flew with Blue Air from Liverpool to Bucharest and returned with the same airline from Cluj-Napoca. We spent just the one night in Bucharest before travelling though Transylvania by train spending time in Brasov, Sighisoara and Cluj-Napoca.  Booking the trains online before we went was straightforward and inexpensive.  The electric trains were comfortable and slow, just what was needed to admire the lovely scenery of the region.  The buses, trams and metro were also experienced and relied on buying single trip tickets from kiosks before boarding, again straightforward, especially if you rely on Ian kindly doing the purchasing.

Sighisoara station (before the flood)

Away from the Capital

Brasov, with its ancient town square reminiscent of many fine European squares lies between the hills.  The medieval walled town of Sighisoara was the opposite in that it is built on a hill surrounded by flat plains. Cluj Napoca is a larger university town.  The town of Transylvania had a very distinctive Germanic appearance reflecting the history of the region.  For the most part we were blessed with fine autumnal weather apart from a bit of drizzle that greeted us on arriving in Bucharest and leaving in Cluj-Napoca.

Brasov Town Hall

Sighisoara Clock Tower

Accommodation

We used booking.com and Ian's discerning eye to choose our accommodation and some fine choices he came up with too.  In Bucharest we stayed near the station in the Hello Hotel where the rooms were larger than I was expecting.  In Brasov we stayed in an apartment very close to the centre, again fine once we'd overcome the problem of finding it in the dark.  In Sighisoara we were in the excellent and very old Pension am Schneiderturm adjacent to one of the town gates.

Pension am Schneiderturm, Sighisoara, dating back from 1797

Finally in Cluj Napoca  we were in another apartment in the middle of town, the excellent Matei Corvin Deluxe Apartment where we felt more like film stars than backpackers.


Food and Drink

The quality of the food throughout was excellent. In Sighisoara in particular we got some very good recommendation from the Pension as to where to eat and enjoyed some fine Romanian food.  Soups followed by pork dishes with potatoes and a thick sauce were most enjoyable. The local Ursus beer was a good accompaniment.

When the menu said chicken in corn flakes I thought it was poor translation, but no.

Quirky moments

Ian's attempt to use the public toilet in Sighisoara resulted in disaster when the cistern fell off the wall and water began to fill the room.  Two of us ran around the station trying to draw the attention of an official to the impending problem i.e. that they were about to get flooded.  I can understand their nervousness of being cajoled into a toilet by non-Romanian speakers but we had their own interest at heart.  We beat an ignominious exit as our train was about to depart. So if you ever pass Sighisoara station and see it under water you now know why.

We were about to complain about the lack of towels till we discovered .........

Lasting Memories

This wasn't the country full of horse and carts and dreary buildings that I had half been expecting. This was a modern, vibrant country where we felt perfectly safe and welcome, even thought the UK had recently voted to exit the EU.

University Square, Bucharest

Finland - June 2016

Helsinki

A full collection of photos from this trip can be found in the Helsinki Photo Album

The Guinness

Molly Malone's provided a good venue to have a Guinness in Helsinki.  A bit of research and message exchange before mt trip  confirmed that they served Guinness so I had confidently arrived in Helsinki without my 'emergency can'.  It's always a relief therefore to walk up to the bar, order a pint, and find that it hadn't run out the night before.

Enjoying a pint in Molly Malone's, Helsinki

An hour before at my hostel, I had met Ben who had flown in from Australia that day, but nevertheless readily agreed to be my official photographer for the evening.  I explained to Carl the barman what I was up to and he quickly understood.  That's probably because he was from Manchester and not Helsinki .  Thanks to Carl's selection of random straws my next destination is going to be Bucharest.

A trip to Romania is on the cards next thanks to Carl

It was the midst of the European Football Championships and Iceland were busy punching above their weight on TV but drinking too much Guinness on an empty stomach is not necessarily a good idea so we headed out in search of food.

Giving my official photographer a break.

The Sights

I liked Helsinki I must admit.  For a European capitol city its seems relatively small, easy to wander around with wide roads and lots of green spaces and a lot of sea font to walk along.  It probably has got museums and alike but I just found it pleasure to explore the city.  After all it never seemed to get dark.

The Polka Dot trees exhibition by the artist Kusama

Transport

I flew with Finnair from Manchester to Helsinki Airport from where there is an easy and affordable train into the centre of town. I went out of town one day for a geocaching trip and again used the trains which ran regularly even on a Sunday.

Helsinki train station

To get around Helsinki I either walked or used the trams.  I made good use of the day 8 Euro transport day ticket on a couple of days

The oldest tram in Helsinki

Geocaching

I don't always mention my geocaching adventures in this blog but on this trip it played a major part so a shame to leave it our.  There was one specific cache I was aiming to find and it was called Sun Gear.  It was hidden in a forest about 30 minutes north of Helsinki and significant in that its the oldest cache in Finland and one I needed to find to complete my Jasmer challenge.  The Jasmer challenge is based on finding a geocache that has been hidden in every month since the hobby started back in 2000.  I had just one gap to fill, September 2000, and there are only two such caches in Europe, one in Denmark and this one.

After getting the train to Savio I still had a 30 minute walk to the edge of the forest and then about a 15 minute walk through the trees to the place the cache was hidden.  Fortunately it was an easy find. The mosquitoes didn't seem to like me being there so after taking a few photos I beat a hasty retreat.

Geocaching also kept me very occupied in Helsinki itself and took me to lots of pretty corners of the city that I probably wouldn't have discovered with just a conventional guidebook.  The Helsinki Geopoly series comes highly recommended.

Accommodation

I chose to stay in Eurohostel which is just a little way out of the centre on Katajannoka to the east.  It's next to a tram stop so easy access to the centre.  Most of the rooms seemed to be two-bedded as opposed to the normal large dorms.  May be it was once an office block of some sort.  The facilities were good and although the breakfasts were a bit pricey at 9.50 Euros they were of hotel standard and good quality.

The clean and functional bedrooms in Eurohostel

The only time Eurohostel almost broke my heart was when I was quietly watching Wales defeat Russia in the European football championships.  On the verge of probably ales's greatest ever win I was asked to vacate the kitchen where I was watching the match as it was being locked up.  I was almost in tears.  Luckily I persuaded some people watching the England match in the reception area that the Wales match was more important.

Food

As I was traveling alone on this trip I relied on the very adequate breakfasts in the hostel and mainly street food from then on.  The stalls selling hot food in Market Square provided most of my meals although beware of the dive bombing birds if you eat here.  I saw one man loose his ice cream in one swoop.

Frying time in Market Square.

Lasting Memories

Of a city by the sea.  You are never far from the sea in Helsinki and is a great place for exploring on foot.

'happiness' ... is walking along the seafront in Helsinki ..... but nicer again later in the day when the sun came out

..