One Man in Europe

I was fortunate to turn left and exit the building on the riverside rather than returning to the Parliament Square. As you saw in my last post I looked right and left taking in the views but a boat opposite intrigued me. I decided to cross the road and take a couple of photos of this unusual structure. A girl I crossed with carried on down the gangway as I walked to each end to photograph the structure. A group of girls lounging on deckchairs implied that this was a bar or nightclub of sorts there being no visible signage at my level. I decided to venture down and enquire as this was, indeed, an unusual boat. I was very pleased that I did. This discovery ended a topping day! The boat is, in fact, the only remaining Monitor class warship, the original river "Monitor" S.M.S Leitha, her sister ship, the Maros, did not survive. The vessel has been fully restored and is now a  museum-ship permanently moored in front of the Hungarian Parliament building. A fitting location in...

Standing outside the Hungarian Parliament building or Palace here in Budapest the Gothic Revival structure is a far cry from Ceaușescu's "Palace" or "People's House". Once inside the same was true, no depression here, warm and inviting, sumptuous and stylish this is a place to inspire. Polished wooden surfaces, deep carpets, intricate carvings, well padded seats and all that glitters is gold. To me it summed up the total difference in ideologies. As I mentioned before, I pre-booked because a friend could not get a ticket, I wish that they had, this is one of the highlights of my trip. Those sitting in the parliament are constantly reminded of the diverse population which they have served for hundreds of years. Statues abound depicting trades, nobility, farming, soldiery, musicians and scholars. As you walk down the corridors of power the eye is drawn to the gilded arches and scroll work of the high walls and ceilings. The carpets absorb the sound gi...

As I mentioned yesterday I pre-booked tours in Budapest to guarantee a visit to the Parliament building. Searching the internet I found "City-Discovery.com" (the link is on the left of the home page) who provided the staples for the rest of my trip across Europe. With temperatures consistently in the high 30s (96°F) during the whole of July and August; I didn't do much exploring by foot. My day started with "Turkish" breakfast at a cafe around the corner before returning to the hotel as my pickup was at 10:30 hours prompt. A taxi whisked me away across the river to our starting point. No open top bus this time but a luxury, air conditioned coach.

One advantage of staying in the Oktagon district is the choice of breakfast, easyHotels do not cater other than from a vending machine. Thoroughly replete I am, once again, standing opposite the Opera House waiting for a bus. Now this should have been a simple matter as I had the printout in my hand ready to exchange for my ticket however the first big red bus which I approached wasn't the "City Tours" hop on-hop off at all. This one had a giraffe on the front and is a different company. It transpires that there are four different bus operators in Budapest, unfortunately two of them paint their buses red. In several instances the routes and stops for all four companies coincide, they also operate more than one route each. I feel quite sorry for the locals as this does cause some congestion on the already busy streets. I came to pre-book due to a conversation with a friend of mine who was unable to get a ticket to see the Parliament building, I shall explain tomorrow...

It is 06:00 hours on Wednesday 5th July 2017, the sun is shining and I have a couple of photos of military vehicles. I remember being woken up for a passport check by the Hungarian border guards. Had I been dreaming about tanks earlier or is military hardware amassed on both sides of the border? I have tried to locate my position on Google maps without success so I cannot tell you where we crossed the border all I know is that the next station I saw was at Mezobereny some 2.5 hours later. I took some photos of the Hungarian countryside and the stations we passed so that we can follow the route across Hungary to our destination, Budapest situated to the west of the country.

Emerging from the palace I walked across the pleasantly laid out car park. It would appear that members of parliament have plenty of large limousines to drive around in. Leaving the entrance gate I discovered that it is an advantage if you have a taxi number or are familiar with with the bus routes. A number of taxis pulled into the entrance but all seem to have been booked by other visitors leaving the palace. Eventually I 'phoned my hotel reception and they managed to book a taxi for me.

I have an idea, to achieve it I will demolish most of the city's historic districts, including 19 Orthodox Christian churches, 6 synagogues and Jewish temples, 3 Protestant churches (plus eight relocated churches), and 30,000 homes in two neighbourhoods alone. Imagine the uproar in England should our Parliament attempt such a thing. But we are not and Ceausescu is in charge so, in total, one-fifth of central Bucharest was razed for the project. Only the district of Lipscani is left to tell the tale. A popular joke of the time was that the 'Victory of Socialism' Ceausescu had engendered was over the city itself.

Just when I thought that I would start to get the blog moving along nicely.... .... I slipped on a greasy floor an dislocated my shoulder. Normal service will be resumed as soon as I get back on track lol  - this was published on 11th August 2017. With the help of Google docs, a microphone and one arm, hopefully we progress...

Finally departing the railway station after a good look around the model railway displays and reading the history of this royal station itself I departed by taxi for a winding trip through Sinaia up the mountain side to visit the castle. The Carpathian mountains were shrouded in cloud but the views were still dramatic. The whole of the town reflects the royal influence from hotels to spas, mansions and gardens. A very pleasant week could be spent here. My taxi driver points out various landmarks as we pass.

It is 15:45 as I arrive at Ruse Railway Station. It wouldn't do to miss the first train of this epic journey across Europe. I said a long time ago that I would try to spend a year in every country in Europe but fate decrees otherwise so here we go, a one month "Interail Global" ticket in my hand and a reservation on the first train out of town. It's the daily train to Bucharest actually. The temperature is 42 degrees C (locally reported at 44), Plamen helps me with my case to platform 3 where the train awaits. We work out where my seat is and load the cases. "It's cooler outside" recommends the guard as he informs us that there will be an hour delay. You see, at the end of my train there isn't an engine. Nothing to do but wait as I say goodbye to Plamen and, ultimately, Bulgaria. A Romanian engine arrives, couples up, and we are on our way.

A few weeks ago I posted a link to this album on my Facebook page @onemanintheworld so that friends in Bulgaria could see them. My first trip to Ruse was made in December by train, my second in June by bus. As always I am playing catch up but why did Ruse become so important that it merited two trips? I have much more to write about my first visit and the good friends I made along with several photo albums to add but the second visit became necessary after the UK decided to leave the EU. Ruse became my departure point from Bulgaria on 1st July 2017 and the start of a great train ride across Europe which will, ultimately, end in France.

A casual message from a young friend whom I met in Dobrinishte last September, at this point your screen should wobble and we would be at that moment in time just as the old TV programmes used to do, unfortunately I still haven't caught up with that part of the blog so we must press on. Elena is a member of a Folk dance troupe and was in Pomorie where they would be dancing in front of the Municipal building at 11:00 hours on Saturday (the 17th). I wished her luck and hoped that she would enjoy her holiday. That evening (Thursday) I inquired about buses to Pomorie over a glass of Rakia as I sat outside the garage with my neighbours. It was opined that mini buses ran quite frequently from the little bus station destined for Burgas. I had heard of this station before but never established its location so thought no more about it.

I awoke to a sunny morning and, after orientating myself, made the decision to walk down to the Botanical Gardens. Jordan told me that it only took 5-10 minutes but it seemed further in the car. I was wrong, even stopping to take some photos on the way I was there in no time at all. The entrance to the garden is down ul. Akad. Daki Yordanov which forms a triangular entrance of the main road into Balchik and is pedestrianised during the season. My first priority was breakfast. Turning into the road I discovered that it is crammed with souvenir shops and places to eat all the way down to the main entrance. I picked the "Castle" restaurant mainly because it had gnomes and my sisters like gnomes!

About six months ago whilst enjoying a meal in Candles Jordan, the proprietor, mentioned that he was starting a new venture. He had taken over an hotel in Balchik and was refurbishing it for the next season. He wondered how to get rid of the out of date photos from the likes of Google and Trip Adviser. I must admit that I had often wondered about this myself having noticed the frequency with which businesses changed hands in Tenerife. There is a lot of duff information out there. A couple of weeks ago I asked Jordan when he was opening and here I am. We met in Candles so that he could drive me here. On the way we passed through the village where he has his other venture, a bar. Like Blackpool off season, the main street looked desolate and deserted. Next month it will be a hive of activity followed by a life of its own when the season starts. All this work and profit has to be made in the two month window of July and August here in Bulgaria.

As I mentioned in my previous post it started with a ship. Friday 28th April 2017. Suffering from cabin fever I decided that, despite the weather, I needed some fresh air. As the No. 82 bus arrived first I decided to have brunch at the cafe next to the railway station. I thought that I would have a walk along the coastal path past the port. To my surprise where the yacht had been moored a large naval vessel now dwarfed the Port Varna Terminal building. The yacht was the "Lady K" and the ship turned out to be the destroyer HMS Daring. What has this got to do with the Bulgarian Navy read on...

It all started with a ship in more ways than one but I shall talk about that on another post. Today I relate the tale of Bulgarian Naval personnel on parade, senior officers arriving under military police escort and a gathering crowd of civilian spectators waiting on the beach in the vicinity of the "Sea Terrace". Meanwhile not long after 10:00 hours I was sitting comfortably drinking coffee with friends at the "Morki Rei" trying to see the edges of the bay and a few feet into the air. The show was scheduled for 10 but I knew that there was no chance of anything getting off the ground.

The following morning (see previous post) my doorbell rang. My good friend and neighbour from the apartment next door beckoned me to meet him downstairs at 10 for photos. What a coincidence! We had talked about this over a glass of rakia last week when he proposed taking me to a place with a good view of Varna. Unfortunately the trip never took place due to the weather. As I got myself together I wondered if we were going to retrace our footsteps of yesterday. Hopes were raised as we turned left instead of right at the bottom of the street. Driving into the centre of Varna we joined the queue to cross the Asparuhovo Bridge which is again under repair. The bottle neck created during the working week is truly amazing, no quarter given by drivers in Bulgaria!

When I leave my apartment to go to the CBA "magazin" opposite or walk down to the bus stand I often pass the time of day with a Bulgarianwho sits in his car listening to the radio and watching the world go by. "Dobur den", "Ich gehe zum kino", "Kak si?"...  - "Good Morning", "I am going to the cinema", "How are you?" - the conversation haltingly exchanged in  a little Bulgarian, German and English. On occasion he will open the passenger door and I will sit and share his time. He is a pensioner in his 70s existing on 200 leva per month as do most of my neighbours who are not working. On this occasion I was passing with supplies for my fridge so declined his company. Having stored my provisions I changed my mind and returned to pass some time with him. "Ah, navigator." he said as I climbed into the passenger seat, reaching across to make sure that my door was closed and prompting the fastening of my seat be...

Did you know that the Canary Islands, of which Tenerife is one of seven,  way out there in the Atlantic somewhere off the coast of North Africa is actually a province of Spain.  I had visited Spain for a month in July and August way back in 1970 as a guest of the Spanish Air Force under the regime of General Franco. This was the first "International Air Cadet" visit to the country and gave an insight to a county where civil rather than international war had moulded recent history, a fact wasted on us youths as we were more overawed by the scenery and the romance of the place.

Sunday evening of the 26th finds me back at the Varna Festival and Congress Centre. This is my second opportunity to hear the magnificent pipe organ which frequently forms the backdrop to the stage. Constructed and installed by Schuke Orgelbau, Potsdam, Germany in 1988, at that time situated in the GDR as the wall just excluded the district from West Berlin. According to  Wikipedia  the organ has III / P manuals and 53 registers. There is an extensive account of the company founded by Alexander Schuke in 1820 which has many illustrious organs to its name. The page makes fascinating reading bound up not only with the manufacture of great organs but also the collapse of communism and the nearly disastrous affect on the company.

Emerging from my burrow on the first day of March 2017, it has been a long hard winter. Temperatures are still pretty low and a cold wind blows however there is a blue sky as the sun struggles to bring forth spring. It is Baba Marta day once again. I wrote in detail about this annual event in my blog last year. Once again stalls have been selling martenitsi in the lead up to this celebration and will continue to do so until the end of the week. You can see a friend of mine in the photo. with her mother many weeks have been spent making these. The best are made from local wool and beads. This year I receive seven, worn on my wrist, from my increasing circle of friends. 'Pizho and Penda' are hanging on my door. Text messages are exchanged with distant friends containing images of cards just as we would once have sent cards through the post in my youth. New decorations have been installed at the "Compass" on the way to the sea garden. To celebrate I have lunch at ...