Bohemia, Bavaria, and Beer, Part II: Budapest

Find Part I: Prague here.

Budapest is the largest city we visited on this trip.  Again, we were surprised by the ease of travel here, with friendly people who all spoke English probably better than we did.  There is great mass transit, so even though its a big city (actually two cities -- Buda and Pest were combined into one) its tremendously easy to get around.

Again we hired a guide, and again we weren't disappointed.  Folks, hiring a private guide may seem extravagant, but it is really very affordable in a lot of places for 6-8 hours of guiding and information you wouldn't get on your own.  Gabriella and her son Robert took us many places we wouldn't have gone on our own, and showed us the best places to shop and to get strudels.

Although the buildings are not as refurbished as those in Prague, the architecture was still beautiful.  Budapest is a town where art deco still thrives.  

 

The beautiful tilework roofs were something good the Hungarians picked up from the Turks, and I couldn't stop taking pictures of them.

  

Another thing the Hungarians kept from the Turk years were the baths.  Yes, I donned a bathing cap and we went to the thermal baths to hang out with all the Hungarian men in Speedos.  It was truly a cultural experience!

   

The Parliament building  is a real gem, both inside and out.

   

Damage from WWII and from revolts against Communism were abundant.  The House of Terror is a museum that was actually the Nazi and Communist secret police headquarters.  The number of people that entered this building and never came out was striking.

  

We took a cruise on the Danube and went to a ballet performance.

 

We wish we had more time to explore this city.  We hope to be back some day.

  

       

Next...Part III: The Night Train

Accountability Wednesday

Well, no surprises this week -- I gained a half pound.  Although I didn't slack on walking, I did make some poor food choices while out of town last week.  On the positive side, I have an appointment with a new OBGYN with a endocrinology specialty next week, and this weekend is my birthday, so I'm not going to worry about what I eat at least for a couple of days.  I'm going to a Pure Barre class tonight, so wish me luck there!

Weight 139.2 (+.5 lbs)
Miles walked: 8.5

Let's Get the Party Started!

I'm so psyched (whew -- flashback to 1992 -- do people still use that word?) to be a guest at Shimelle Lain's Pretty Paper Party!  Her new class starts TODAY, and I can't wait to share with you my layouts using all my pretty paper!  And this is a special party for me, because its my birthday week, and I've been buying pretty paper and shoes like there's no tomorrow to celebrate.  So come on over and party with Shimelle and the crowd!

Bohemia, Bavaria, and Beer, Part I: Prague

We didn't really know what to expect when we landed in Prague.  We had only decided to go there because a German tourist in Rome told us we would love it.  We had originally wanted to do a grand Heart of Europe tour, but after doing a little planning and budgeting, it was painfully apparent we could not visit 27 countries in 12 days, so we whittled it down to the cities that drew our attention most: Prague, Budapest, and Munich.

Since not too many US tourists seem to visit the former Communist Block, there wasn't a whole lot of information on my normal research channels: Fodor's and Tripadvisor message boards.  Combine that with the huge language difference, and you get two fairly nervous but brave travelers.  But when we got to Prague, we knew we were totally wrong to be worried.

The town is beautiful.  Very clean, very very safe, and English is widely spoken.  Prague is very small and walkable, and has undergone a great deal of restoration since "The Change", the term everyone used here and in Budapest to refer to the move from Communism to Democracy.

 

We hired a guide to show us around, since we knew very little about Prague.  Jana with Personal Prague Guide was marvelous.  She took us all over the town, telling us the history and about all the sites.

  Prague's big attraction is the Astronomic Clock that tolls every hour.  A huge crowd gathers and cheers every time it goes off.  Compared to the Glockenspiel, which we saw in Munich this same trip, its much smaller, but I think more fun.

We were also worried about the food, but I don't think I've had better vacation food anywhere as I had on this trip.  I have one word for you:  Goulash.



We toured a couple of breweries, because Mark loves beer, and Czech beer is purportedly the world's best beer.  After a full survey of beers, we would have to agree with this statement.



I highly recommend Prague to anyone looking to explore Europe.  It is a truly beautiful city. 

Next up, Part II: Budapest.

Accountability Wednesday

Just a quickie, since I'm about to catch yet another plane for yet another work trip.  Something must be working a little, because I lost a bit this week.  Maybe its all the walking I'm doing in training for the Breast Cancer walk this month.  At any rate, hopefully things will keep going in the right direction and I'll be able to fit into my clothes again soon.

Weight: 138.8 (-0.8 lbs)
Miles Walked: 7, + 45 minutes on the stationary bike.

Walking for a Cure

Either you or someone you know has been touched by breast cancer.  My mother and grandmother both survived the disease, and my husband's aunt has been recently diagnosed.  My sister and I decided to step it up this year and participate in the local Making Strides for Breast Cancer 5 mile walk.  If you'd like to contribute, you can do so here, and help save the boobies.

Grand Florida Expedition

Accountability Wednesday: Um....

I know, I know, I haven't been so accountable on Wednesdays lately.  With my crazy travel schedule lately, its been a little difficult to get to these posts.  It's no excuse, I know, but its what I'm going with.  Here's a recap of what's happened since our last episode.

Pre-September 17:
I worked out at least 3 days a week, even while I traveled for work.  I was well on my way to 45 minutes a session on the bike. I listened to the Jillian Michaels podcast and tried to follow her recommendations. I cut my calories to 1200 per day. I ate lean meat, leafy greens, nuts and berries like a good girl for weeks on end, and limited my alcohol consumption. For weeks.  And I lost 1 stinkin' pound.

So I asked my OBGYN.  She offered to give me some medication for diabetes (did not recommend the needed blood tests to go along with that) and that my metabolism is just getting slow due to age -- um, I'm not 36 yet.  And even with a slow metabolism, by my calorie calculations, I should be losing more than 1 pound in a month!

September 17:
Vacation!  Two weeks in Europe will not do good things for your waistline, but boy do they taste good!  I mean, I went to Hungary, people!  Those folks aren't known for their vegetarian fare, if you know what I mean.  We're talking bread, potatoes, noodles, and dumplings.  It's a carb-lover's heaven over there!  Oh, and the beer -- they don't come smaller than one-liter mugs at Oktoberfest.  So, needless to say I put on the little I had taken off in the weeks before.  It's OK - you have to live your life, but now its time to take it off.

Beginning this week, I'm back to eating like a small rabbit and exercising.  In fact, I'm working my way up to walking 5 miles for a local walk for breast cancer, Making Strides Against Breast Cancer (if you want to donate, here's my website).  I will be challenged by 2 more trips coming up for work -- I think that work travel might be the death of me -- but I will keep trying.  I can't help but feel like I'm not getting the best advice from my OBGYN, but I don't know who else to talk to.  I have a sneaking suspicion my birth control pills might be contributing to the tough weight loss.  Anybody have any suggestions?

Current weight: 139.6
Miles walked this week: 3

Have you missed me?

You might not have realized it, but I haven't been here for a couple of weeks.  Sneaky me, I scheduled some posts while I was gone so you wouldn't miss me so much.  Where was I?  On vacation!  Specifically, Europe!  Even more specifically, Prague, Budapest, and Munich!  I can't wait to share with you here (and to scrapbook the trip!), but right now I'm super busy editing the nearly 800 pictures from the last 2 weeks.  That's celled down from the 1200 I brought home with me!  Add to that 2 more trips for work in the next month, and my schedule is getting pretty full.  So posts might be a little sparse over the next little bit, but don't worry, you have some great things to look forward to.  Like this:

Just a little something for you to look forward to. ;)