Eastern Europe - September 26 - October 10, 1999

For as long as I can remember, I have always wanted to visit Budapest and Prague. I can't exactly say why but I believe it had something to do with my love of history and the realization that both of these cities have experienced a lot of it. However, it took a while to actually be able to visit those cities, and others behind the former Iron Curtain. The Cold War/Iron Curtain/Warsaw Pact, however you want to refer to it, was one of the reason; I'd heard that it was just a hassle to visit those countries while they were "Communist". (Socialist is a better description - there has been no pure Communist country as of yet.) Also, it costs money to travel - airplane ticket, hotels or other lodging, food, sight-seeing attraction tickets, other modes of traveling tickets, and the inevitable souvenirs all add up.

But, in 1989 the walls of Eastern Europe came down and, although some of the former Soviet satelite countries have gone back to some sort of Socialism, it is nothing like what it used to be. This means that it is much easier and nicer to visit these countries. Combine that with enough funds to make the journey, and you have a trip.

Aside from Vienna and Helsinki, which technically weren't part of the countries under the former Soviet sphere of influence but which were influenced nonetheless, Poland, Hungary, and the Czech Republic were very affordable. You could ride the subways or other public transportation for about 30¢. With transfers. Souvenirs were ridiculously cheap, compared to Vienna, Helsinki, or anywhere in the United States. I visited the Warsaw Castle for about $3. You can't do that here. Of course, aside from the Czech Korona, or Crown (that's the name for their money), no one wanted anything to do with the Polish Zloty (pronounced zwoty) or the Hungarian Forint. I only found one place, in Prague, that would exchange them.

Unlike my more recent trips, I went on an organized tour for this trip. Twenty-seven other people were on the trip with me from around the country, about half of them Jewish. Eastern Europe has a long and rich Jewish tradition. Unfortunately, Jewish people haven't always been treated that well in that area of the world, and not just in World War II. Prior to World War II, a large number of the Jewish population in Europe had settled in what is now Poland, and even the Polish were fairly anti-semitic. But the Jews were treated better there than anywhere else in Europe. Until WWII.

Below is the itinerary of my trip, in order.

1. Warsaw, Poland (that's me, above, at the Chopin Monument in Lazienki Park)
2. Krakow, Poland (with trip to Auschwitz concentration camp)
3. Budapest, Hungary
4. Vienna, Austria
5. Prague, Czech Republic
6. Helsinki, Finland

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