adventure, BeNeLux, Brussels, Champagne Bucket trips, YouTube

Pardon My French: Brussels and Paris 2026 (part five)

Tuesday, March 24th, was to be our last full day in Brussels. We decided to visit the Atomium on that day, a place we missed during our 2008 visit. I knew nothing about the Atomium, but I had seen pictures of it and thought it was really cool looking. So we did very basic research, and after breakfast, decided to make our way to the structure, which was initially built for the 1958 World’s Far in Brussels.

While we were having breakfast, I noticed the bees carved on the door to the restaurant. And when Bill wasn’t looking, I decided I didn’t want a piece of bacon and slipped it on his place. I told him the “Speck Fairy” (Speck is the German word for bacon) had visited him. 🤭

We decided to use Brussels’ metro system to get to the Atomium. It took some time to get there that way, and it required changing trains. This is where things got a little annoying. We spent some time waiting on the wrong track at the station where we changed trains. Getting to the right track involved going up and down stairs, which isn’t as easy for me as it used to be. Nevertheless, we did finally make it on the correct metro line, and got to the Atomium in the mid morning. Below are a few photos from downtown Brussels, in the area where we picked up the metro.

The complex where the Atomium is located is a huge exhibition venue. There are several things to do there, like visit a planetarium and see Mini-Europe, a unique theme park near the structure. The Atomium is easily seen from the metro as it pulls into the Heizel stop. But once you get off the train, you have a ten to fifteen minute walk to the exhibit. And if you haven’t booked tickets online, you’ll need to get them from the ticket counter, which is in a separate building.

Once you get your tickets, you go into the Atomium and wait for the elevator to the top, where you can observe Brussels. It was a little hazy on the day of our visit, but I still managed to get some photos. The elevator operator, who spoke French and English, told us that when the elevator was installed in 1958, it was the fastest in Europe. It’s no longer the fastest, but it was still an impressive, if pretty crowded, ride to the top of this very cool looking iconic structure, which stands 335 feet (102 meters) tall, and is currently one of Belgium’s tallest structures. There’s also a restaurant at the top of the Atomium. We weren’t tempted to eat there, although maybe it would have been fun.

*Mini Europe from the top of the Atomium.*

When you finish gazing at Brussels, you go back to the bottom of the Atomium, and take an escalator to the next level, where there’s more information about the structure’s history. There are a lot of interesting exhibits in this part of the Atomium, which explain the history of the structure. It served as the main pavilion of the 1958 Brussels World’s Fair (Expo 58). The Atomium was designed by André Waterkeyn and the architects André and Jean Polak. Meant as a tribute to scientific progress, it also symbolized Belgian engineering skills in the 1950s.

The Atomium depicts an iron unit cell. It was only supposed to last through the 1958 World’s Fair, but was so popular that it was left standing. It was fully refurbished from 2004-06, after it had been closed because it had fallen into disrepair. The nine orbs were once covered in aluminium, but were replaced with stainless steel, which doesn’t lose its shine.

Once you finish on the museum level, it’s time to see the exhibition, which I thought was very, very cool. It involves lights, music, and watching in awe as the creativity of artists, engineers, and musicians come to fruition and put on a great show for the senses. I recorded a few minutes of the show– up and down the escalators, and a fragment of the actual light shows that were designed for the current exhibition. This is really just a tiny taste of how very cool the Atomium actually is…

This was a surprisingly fascinating place.

I hadn’t known what to expect when we planned to go to the Atomium. I just thought it looked like an interesting place to visit. I had no idea that there would be a light and music show. I really enjoyed that part of the experience. All it required was sitting back and relaxing, enjoying the incredible vision brought together by very creative geniuses. It blew me away! Below are some still photos from the light show, which was done in three of the spheres. The others appeared to be used for booking business meetings and other revenue generating purposes.

Once we were finished visiting the Atomium, we had to go through the gift shop to leave, so we picked up a few more presents for the grandchildren. We had opted not to have our picture taken when we entered the Atomium, so we didn’t have to deal with that horror. I hate it when I visit a place, and they immediately ambush me and want to take my picture, which I’m then supposed to purchase. I don’t like having my photo taken, especially by people who don’t know me and manage to catch all my chins and muffin top. Bill also hates it when random people want to take his photo.

I did laugh at the cashier in the gift shop, who yelled in French at some kids who were horse playing on the escalator on the way up to the exhibits. He really got his point across, especially with the expression on his face, and the sternness of his French. I’m not even sure if the teens were from Belgium, but they sure got the message!

There are public restrooms in the Atomium, but Bill neglected to visit one before we left. Fortunately, there was a public toilet outside of the Atomium– one of those gross ones available all through Europe. I’ve learned the Belgian public toilets, especially on the side of the road, can be particularly horrifying. Nevertheless, Bill decided to brave it, and swung wide of the Jehovah’s Witnesses, who had set up their display next to the potty. We ran into a number of JWs during this visit to Belgium and France!

Below are a few more Atomium photos, mostly taken with the artsy setting on my fancy Canon digital camera…

We decided to head back to downtown Brussels for lunch. There are a few places where one might find food near the Atomium, including the restaurant at the top, and a snack bar on the grounds. But we were in the mood for something a bit more satisfying. What we ended up finding turned out to be that and much more… Our journey back to the city involved changing trains, and once again, Bill got us on the wrong track. 🤨 Consequently, I was a little annoyed when we arrived at our destination.

When we got off the metro in the familiar surroundings of downtown Brussels, we started looking around for a place to have lunch. Nothing seemed to really jump out at us as an ideal place. We crossed the street, and Bill spotted a brasserie called La Lunette. The place actually gets pretty terrible reviews on TripAdvisor, so I’m glad I didn’t look at them before we visited. Otherwise, I would have missed out on meeting our waiter, who happened to be from… YEREVAN, ARMENIA!

When we entered La Lunette, he immediately greeted us, and sat us at a table right by the window, which gave us a nice view of the patio. They were running a special. If you chose one of the daily menu items, they’d throw in dessert. Since we hadn’t had any dessert in Brussels, and we weren’t in a hurry, I decided to order the cheeseburger, which was one of the daily “plat du jour” items. Bill opted for pasta, which wasn’t one of the specials, but the waiter, who spoke excellent, unaccented English, said he’d throw in the dessert for him, anyway.

While we were waiting for lunch, the waiter mentioned that he was Armenian. I perked up and told him about how I’d lived in Yerevan from 1995-97, while teaching English as a Peace Corps Volunteer. He was shocked, because that time in Armenia was very difficult. It was during an energy crisis, so there was a shortage of electricity and running water. It was also just after the Soviet Union fell apart.

The waiter probably wasn’t born during the time I lived in his homeland, but he knew all about it… and he was absolutely delighted when I spoke in his mother tongue to him! He said it made his day! I’m sure he doesn’t get a lot of guests who can speak a word of Armenian, especially blonde ones. At first, he thought we were Germans, because we said we lived there. I guess I can take that as a compliment. I’m no longer an obvious American, I guess.

I can’t say I loved the cheeseburger, mainly because they had mixed in greens with the meat. I shouldn’t have been surprised, since that’s a common thing in Armenia, and the waiter said the owner of the restaurant is also Armenian. However, the desserts were absolutely delicious! I had carrot cake, and Bill had a different cake– He just brought them out; we didn’t choose them. I probably wouldn’t have ordered carrot cake on my own, but I really enjoyed the piece I had at La Lunette! I wouldn’t be surprised if the waiter knew my former student Stepan’s daughter, Susi, who has been studying in Belgium.

*The patio… I think this is a place where a lot of people stop for a quick drink.*

After lunch, we walked the two blocks back to the hotel for a rest. Then later, we went out for one last visit to a bar… A La Mort Subite. This historic place is another bar we visited for the first time in 2008, just after seeing Zane Lamprey highlight it on Three Sheets. It was pretty quiet when we went there in 2008, but it was busy on the evening of March 24th. It turned out to be the perfect place to enjoy our last night in Brussels.

We chose a battered table on the right side of the bar room. It gave me a good view of the locals, enjoying after work libations and light food. I decided to have Quiche Lorraine, while Bill went with a sandwich. We enjoyed a couple of the bar’s own brews, while taking in the historic, yet cozy beauty of this classic bar that dates from 1910.

*It was just around the corner from our hotel!*

I enjoyed our waiter, who was one of the younger servers, but appeared to be approaching middle age. He was unflappable and slightly sullen as he brought beers and food to the people who had stopped by. I finally saw him crack a smile when Bill gave him a tip.

We left A La Mort Subite at a reasonable hour, as we had to rise on Wednesday morning and prepare for our onward journey to Paris! I’ll write about that journey in the next post.

BeNeLux, booze tourism, Brussels, YouTube

Pardon My French: Brussels and Paris 2026 (part three)

Featured photo is from the Toone Bar… which is also a historic puppet theater.

Sunday morning, Bill and I woke up, got dressed, and had breakfast in the hotel lobby. We were under the impression that we’d be having breakfast in the lobby all week, since the receptionist had told us the restaurant was under renovation. But it turned out the lounge breakfast was only to occur on Sunday. I was glad of that, since it wasn’t an ideal location.

Because we got there at 8:00 AM, there wasn’t a lot of seating in the lounge. We ended up sitting at a very low table, right next to the drink station. Bill fought with the Nespresso type coffee machine, which wasn’t properly set up. We got the side eye from a European couple, who happened to be at breakfast on three out of the four mornings we were at the hotel. I did fall in love with the marvelous pastries, though… It’s good that I don’t have access to them every day!

After breakfast, we decided to take a walk around and see what we could find in Brussels. It didn’t take us long before we wound up at the Belgian Beer World. This fantastic and very modern museum is in a huge, beautiful, surprisingly ornate building. We thought maybe the museum would be one tenant in the massive location, but it took up the entire edifice, with a cafe, brasserie, rooftop bar, and interactive exhibits on several floors.

We happened to be there at 10:30 AM, which was when the museum opened for the day. And, we were also the first ones to explore the museum on that Sunday morning. Tickets were 21,50€ for adults, but because Bill is 61 years old, he got a senior discount, and only had to pay 19,50€. He took it with good humor!

Below are a few photos from the walk to the Beer World, which was very close to Le Fleur de Ville, our hotel. One thing I love about Belgium is the quirky, and sometimes a bit off-color humor that is often on display there. They don’t take themselves too seriously!

*These kinds of comical murals are on a number of buildings around Brussels.*

And below are a few outside photos of the massive Belgian Beer World, which is an impressive place to explore Belgium’s national drink. As a beer lover, I can confirm it’s a fun place to visit, even for children. There are lots of interactive and multimedia exhibits there, presented in several languages.

We walked up the steps and into the massive foyer… I got more photos of the very ornate interior of this building, called La Bourse… This was just the first floor! Until 1996, this historic building was home to Belgium’s financial markets. Now, it’s been renovated to house a fun and fascinating museum dedicated to beer! What could be a better use for such a grand address? 🤭 La Bourse was designed by the Belgian architect, Léon-Pierre Suys between 1868 and 1873. It is now thought to be “a true marvel of 19th century neoclassical style.”

According to the Beer World’s Web site: La Bourse was the site of heroic action: during the First World War, the Bourse district of the city was the epicenter of the clandestine press, a symbol of the Belgian resistance against the occupier.

Besides housing Belgian Beer World, it also serves as a place for hosting temporary exhibits and events. Below are a few photos of the interior:

After we got our tickets to the museum, we climbed up some steps, and took a journey into Belgian beer and the history surrounding it. Below is a photo dump of all the pictures I got at this place, which entertained us for a good while. We learned that beer, at least back in the days before sanitation, was quite literally a lifesaver!

At this point, we had the chance to taste a couple of Belgian styles. We had a brown beer and a lambic… and once again, I ran into someone who badly needed a breath mint. Fortunately, that was the last occurrence of shocking halitosis on this trip.

After tasting the beer, we climbed another flight of stairs and encountered a truly funny exhibit… The Yeast Theatre! This exhibit involved sitting in a closed theatre, as if we were in a glass of beer, and an animated yeast told us the story of fermentation. I even got some video of it! The show happens continuously every ten minutes or so. You go in and sit down; the doors close, and then the fun begins.

Learning about Belgian beer production through a fun exhibit.

After the Yeast Theatre, there’s more to see in the museum, until it’s time to choose which beer you want to sample in the rooftop bar…

A short video showing how we were recommended “free” beers to try in the rooftop bar…

There were several of these interactive virtual barkeep people, “helping” us decide which beer to try.

After we got coasters with the names of the beers that were suggested for our tastes (we both got the same suggestions), we went to the rooftop bar. This was a great culmination after spending the morning learning about Belgian beers. I had a Blanche de Brussels Rosee, which is one I’d never tried before. Bill’s choice was a bit more run of the mill, although I can’t remember which beer he chose. He did say it was kind of ordinary, which is too bad.

We could have stayed and purchased more beer, if we’d wanted to. They offer “flights” at the museum. But we decided to move on and find some lunch. I got some more photos of the bar and the rooftop terrace, which offered lovely views of Brussels. It was a nice day, with just slightly chilly temperatures. We also could have visited the Archeo Site under La Bourse, Bruxella 1238, which unfortunately, we completely forgot about after trying the beer. I wish we’d remembered to check it out. Maybe we’ll get there next time, if we manage another Brussels visit. I’d definitely be up for another trip to Belgian Beer World.

I had noticed that a bar that we visited in 2008, at the Theatre Royal de Toone, was not going to be open on Monday or Tuesday. I definitely wanted to go there again, since we had such a memorable experience the last time we visited Brussels. So we left the Belgian Beer World, and had lunch at a place called Bier Central Brussels. Once again, I had croquettes, which I think kind of put me over the edge. I love them in small doses, though. Bill had sausage with mashed potatoes and bacon… a Belgian version of “bangers and mash”, if you like.

*Ahhh… the Duchesse… one of my favorites!*

After lunch, we headed for the Toone Bar…

If you’re thinking we drink a lot of beer, you’re right. Ordinarily, we probably would not have followed our beer soaked lunch with a visit to a bar, but I really wanted to visit the Toone Bar, which I discovered very much by accident in 2008. I remember we had taken a day trip to Bruges, and came back to the city, looking for something to do on our last day in Brussels. We were walking around, dodging the restaurant row barkers, when just at the right time, I looked to my left, and saw this sign…

*One of two entrances to the Toone Bar and marionette theater, circa 2008.*

If you have been following my blog for any length of time, you might know that I love to explore alleys and alcoves. I’ve found some of our most memorable and quirky restaurants, bars, and shops that way. The Toone Theatre is a historic site in Brussels, but in 2008, I found it completely by chance. It seemed like no one else knew about it, either, because it was fairly empty on that Sunday afternoon. I remember enjoying several beers there, while the barkeep played awesome 60s and 70s era rock music. I also remember someone smoking in there during our visit. In 2026, that is no longer allowed!

I wanted to visit the bar again, but didn’t remember exactly where it was. So I used the GPS function on my phone, which was kind of worthless. We did eventually find our way to the bar, although this time, we entered through the other side from where we entered in 2008. I got lots of pictures, and we drank several beers. Unfortunately, the music wasn’t as good this time, and it was definitely not deserted… But the beers were still excellent, and the ambiance was just as quirky and fun!

Here’s a big photo dump… One thing to know about this bar is that the toilets are up some old steps. You get to the men’s room before the ladies’ room, and it reeks a bit of stale urine. One of the ladies’ stalls is extremely small and narrow, though long. The other is not as narrow, but a bit shorter. I hope one day, we can go back to this bar and actually watch one of the marionette shows! It is, after all, a puppet theater, first and foremost!

As you might have suspected, by the time we were finished at the Toone Bar, I was a bit loaded. We decided to go back to the hotel so we could process the Belgian beers. On our way there, we walked through The Grand Place. Unfortunately, this was where I wiped out on loose cobblestone. A shocked waiter witnessed my spill, which resulted in a twisted ankle and sprained finger, both of which are mostly healed now… I wrote about my fall in my main blog. If you are really interested in reading my thoughts right after it happened, you can click here for the story when it was fresh.

*People were lined up at this bakery, which was selling wonderful breads.*

After my fall, I was understandably in kind of a bad mood. We ate dinner in our hotel room, which we picked up from a Syrian restaurant just across the street from Le Fleur de Ville.

*Sometimes it’s handy to book a suite… I drank Coke at dinner time!*

That about does it for our very “beery” Sunday in Brussels. In the next part, I’ll write about our visit to Mannekin Pis, the Friet Museum, and the Chocolate Museum, as well as a restaurant called Drug Opera. You don’t want to miss that, 😏, so stay tuned!

Baden-Württemberg, short breaks, YouTube

A winter break in Waiblingen… Dinner at Bachofer! (part three)

Featured photo was my favorite of the courses we enjoyed at Bachofer.

One of the reasons I chose to book at Bachofer is because of their restaurant, which has a Michelin star. Bill is more interested in the Michelin distinction than I am. My tastes tend to be more boring than his are. But, I always aim to please Bill when I look for places to visit, and I knew he’d appreciate the Asian inspired cuisine at Bachofer. It was easy to reserve a table there on the OpenTable app, which is also a plus. I would highly recommend reserving if you are inspired to dine at Bachofer, as the restaurant seats just 45 people and there is room for only ten people at the bar. It’s a popular place, and they had a full house on a Wednesday night in January!

We enjoyed a nice booth by the front door, and I could hear some of the music on the sound system. I immediately recognized one instrumental that gets used a lot in YouTuber Trek Trendy’s luxury travel videos. 😉 I know not everyone knows who Trek Trendy is, and I’ll be honest, I find him pretty annoying (he obviously channels the late Robin Leach)… But I’ve seen a bunch of his travel videos, and he uses the same music in most of them. So I did have a chuckle when I heard one of his background music choices at Bachofer.

We were immediately offered the house aperitif, which we got gratis, because we were hotel guests. The wait staff also brought out wasabi nuts and regular nuts. On Wednesday night, the staff was pushing the restaurant’s tasting menu, which is up to eight courses. There is also an a la carte menu available, but we decided to have six courses with a wine pairing. For the most part, I liked the tasting menu fine, although there were a few little hiccups and one big offensive BELCH at the end of the service. I’ll get to that in a minute, though. First, here are a few preliminary photos…

I was a little surprised by the wasabi nuts. While I don’t mind them at all, it does seem a little beneath a restaurant with a Michelin star. But then, what do I know? I did enjoy the aperitif, which was very refreshing.

At Bachofer, they put up a little stand on your table, and with each course, they present a little card that lists what you’re eating. I mostly liked that touch, although there were a couple of bungles during our service. I mentioned we ordered six courses, but we actually got seven. There were a couple of times when the wrong card was brought out for the wrong wine. I had mentioned that I didn’t want anything with mushrooms or truffles, but as you will find out, that got a little messed up as service went on. I actually skipped a couple of courses because one had actual mushrooms in it, and one just looked alarmingly like a mushroom (but actually wasn’t). Below are photos of the amuse, which I did really enjoy. Especially the soup!

And below are photos with the rest of the impressive meal, which was mostly fish based. The wine pairings were interesting, and I appreciated that the sommelier (same guy who checked us into our room) offered some information about each wine. Most of the wines were whites, though there was one red and one course that featured Japanese beer. And again, a couple of times, cards were presented for courses we didn’t have.

*This was the bread course, which included picked vegetables and pastrami.*

I was sorry not to be able to try the beef, and I don’t know why they brought it out, since I told them I didn’t want fungus. As I wrote at the beginning of this post, we actually ordered six courses, but we ended up with seven… But then came the biggest surprise of the night… Dessert!

Dessert was a two part affair. The first part, which involved fruit and sorbet, was fine for me… I also enjoyed the Zen garden. But then came the second part, which I didn’t eat. As you can see, it’s a mushroom! And, as someone who has a phobia of mushrooms, this was pretty horrifying for me. I truly do appreciate the creative and artistic merit of the Matsutake styled dessert “mushroom”, but I couldn’t eat it. They might as well have presented me with a cake fashioned like a human baby. Bill ate my portion and said the top was chocolate mousse, but the stalk was kind of savory and “mustardy”, which sounds very strange to me.

It was no big deal. I was plenty full and didn’t need the extra calories, and of course they didn’t know about my phobia, so I can’t hold them responsible for that. But it was a little bit disappointing to be served a “mushroom” at the end of the meal, because as you might know, I love desserts… if only because desserts are usually about 99 percent guaranteed to be fungus free! Maybe I could get therapy for this “problem”, but at 53 years of age, I figure it’s a lost cause. Besides, it kind of makes me more of an interesting person. On the other hand, it’s also something insensitive clods tend to find hilarious. 🙄

Our dinner at Bachofer was around 400 euros or so… once we included the tip. It was mostly worth it. The fish courses were especially nice, as they were extremely fresh, and the flavors were exciting. I can certainly see why Bachofer has merited a Michelin star. However, I do think the service left some room for improvement. If we eat there again, perhaps we’ll try ordering from the menu, so I might avoid being traumatized. 🤭

We got back to the room at about 11:00 PM, which was a late night or us. It was a good thing we didn’t have to travel far from the restaurant! Next, I’ll write about Thursday’s visit to Stuttgart. Stay tuned!

adventure, Baden-Württemberg, trip planning

Just a quick note to check in with my travel readers…

Today, I woke up to more snow. It’s much snowier down near Stuttgart, which is where Bill and I will be headed on Wednesday. But up here, I think we got maybe a little under two inches or so. It’s bitter cold outside and still pretty cloudy. I won’t be surprised if there’s more snow or a few flurries before the sun sets.

I don’t have much travel stuff to write about today, although if I were feeling more ambitious and hopeful, I might write about some other travel related topics. For example, I could write about some of my favorite YouTube creators, who inspire me to look into fancy trips in Europe. A couple of the people I watch regularly are somewhat annoying, but they do go to some interesting places.

Lately, thanks to videos I’ve watched, I’ve been thinking I’d like to visit Finland and do a proper visit up there. I don’t really love freezing cold weather, but I do like coziness and snow… if I can be inside by a fireplace with some wine, that is. 🤣 I’d also settle for a hot tub.

It’s also hard to think about traveling when our government is so screwed up, and people are protesting, fighting, and literally dying in my homeland. It’s not lost on me that Americans aren’t all that popular right now, mainly due to the “dictator” in the White House. Listen, y’all… my disdain for him is about his shittiness as a human being, rather than conservative politics as a whole. He’s not a conservative. He’s a fascist. And he’s making things worse for EVERYONE, except maybe his billionaire “buddies”… who aren’t even his buddies.

People like that don’t really have friends, do they? They just worship money. Money is no substitute for real human connections, love, and freedom. Personally, I think the vast majority of super rich people are hollow inside. They don’t have normal relationships. They don’t live happy lives. They can’t trust people to love them, because people simply want to use them and take what they have. And so, I think they’re very lonely folks, who crave what money can’t buy for them. If you think about it, it’s pretty sad.

Bill is coming home early today, because he’s going to start his very first course at the Jung Institute. The online class he’s taking today will run for five hours. He plans to take a couple more while we’re on our visit to Waiblingen, which starts on Wednesday.

Anyway, I wish I had an interesting trip to write about today, but I don’t. However, I will soon be adding content to this blog, because during our trip to Waiblingen, we have reserved tables at two very nice restaurants, which we booked on OpenTable.de.

I’m sure there will be other places we’ll try, since we’re staying down there until Sunday. Yeah, it seems weird to stay in Waiblingen for four nights, when we could just go see the dentist in a day… but I think it will be fun to go there and hang out in our old stomping grounds. I don’t know if I’ll ever have another chance to live near Stuttgart, but it will always occupy a spot in my heart.

So… please stay tuned for my Waiblingen series, such as it will be. After that, who knows where the road will lead. I can pretty much guarantee that we will be in Switzerland again this year at some point, if we don’t have to leave the continent because of Donald Trump.

Until my next post, bis spater…

Here are a few photos I took of our cozy German house this past week… Bill made homemade scones (by Nigella Lawson) and hot tea for breakfast yesterday, along with a soft boiled egg, a little sausage, and fresh orange juice. The dogs approved!

Also, I sent off a ballot request, so I can vote in the Texas primaries. I don’t know how much good it will do, but it’s something, at least.

Hessen, holidays

Christmas 2025… one for the ages!

Happy Boxing Day, everybody. Bill has gone off to work today, and I’m sitting here tying up loose ends from our Christmas celebration. It was actually a pretty good day for us. The weather was appropriately bitterly cold, so we got to light a fire, which we kept going for most of the day. We got lots of cool stuff, mostly for the kitchen. I got a new banjo, which was a bucket list item for me, ever since I was a child. Bill says there’s more stuff coming; unfortunately, he ordered from a place that is shipping from China. 😬

Our morning started off with Eggs Benedict, excellent Peet’s Big Bang coffee, and orange juice…

Then, after I started our fire going and turned on some Christmas music, we sat down to open the presents. As usual, I bought most of them, so Bill did most of the unwrapping. I got lots of photos of that…

We got some cool Italian designed kitchen and dining gadgets, several new cookbooks featuring cuisine from Turkey, the Baltic countries, and the Caucasus countries, a new coffeemaker and a new blender, tarot cards, glasses and glass drinking straws, and a couple of Jungian books for Bill… I got him two new Alpa sweaters from Finland, and sweater soap, a new pen and Moleskine writing pad, a new bread knife, Chemex carafe, and mixing bowls, bags for the sous vide, food storage containers, and ginger jam… Charlie was there to supervise, while Noyzi stayed in his “room” upstairs.

*This is a really interesting looking book about our favorite chocolatier!*

And then came the most exciting gift of all…

Bill ordered a bluegrass banjo from Ireland. It came from McNeela, the same company that made the bodhran drum Bill got me last year at Christmas. I am very impressed with the quality. It was a lot heavier than I was expecting it to be, which is why Bill is holding it in the photo! I’ve always been fascinated by banjos, and have always wanted to learn how to play one… So we’ll see how it goes. I’m still working on my guitar(s), after all!

*I had to do a little rearranging of my “studio” to accommodate the new banjo. And now I have space for two more instruments!*

Below are a couple more photos of noteworthy Christmas gifts. I was particularly amused by the Eggsecutor, a handy device used to open boiled eggs. I loved the witty description of it on the box! Bill said it was kind of like a guillotine for eggs!

All in all, it was a pleasant holiday celebration for us… and I managed to capture a few moments on video…

My laugh is annoying… sorry! Maybe my mother-in-law will watch this.

And then for dinner, Bill cooked duck legs, roasted potatoes, and green beans, fresh baked bread, Italian red wine, and brownies and ice cream for dessert…

Man… how did I get so lucky? My husband is an absolute KEEPER. He’s a great cook and bartender, and a wonderful lover and friend!

Below is a photo of this morning’s breakfast. Bill made the bread, and “eggsecuted” the egg with our new gadget! At the end of the above video, you can see how it works!

We’ve got one more week to go before this annus horribilus is finally over… But I am grateful that I get to spend this time with my dearest friend and husband, Bill, who always makes me smile and lets me live life in high style. 😘

I hope those of you who have taken the time to read this also had a great holiday! Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to you all!

anecdotes, YouTube

TripAdvisor asked me if I was paid for a review…

AI featured image today…

I had an interesting experience last week, after I reviewed our recent stay at Hilton Istanbul Maslak on TripAdvisor.com. I wrote a very detailed review about our stay and included pictures. I gave the hotel at four star rating, although if I’m honest, maybe it should have been more like 3.5 stars. A couple of hours later, I got this message from TripAdvisor, with the subject line “One more question about Hilton Istanbul Maslak”.

I have been reviewing hotels on TripAdvisor since 2008. At this writing, I’ve written 210 reviews and gotten 314 helpful votes from the community. All you have to do is read the review and notice the many details of it, and it’s pretty obvious that it’s not a fake review. I took the two question survey, anyway. Basically, they asked me if I’d been compensated in any way for my review of the property. I responded that I hadn’t, and that was that. This was the first time I’ve ever gotten such a survey from TripAdvisor. I was surprised and a little puzzled by it.

Now, I suspect anyone who reviews that particular hotel gets this survey, which really doesn’t offer any incentive for being honest. TripAdvisor claims that they don’t “tolerate” fake reviews, which is why they sent the survey. But what’s to stop someone from lying? Especially if they get payment or some other reward for writing a review? It’s not like the person who got paid $10 for a review is going to be honest about it so the review gets removed.

Today, I went back to see if any new reviews had been posted since mine, which I wrote about a week ago. Right now, I count eleven reviews ahead of mine. Ten are very new reviews, and one is the hotel’s “favorite” review, a five star rating from someone in Frankfurt, posted last June. I notice that most of the new reviews are very short, lack detail, and come from people who have never before posted on TripAdvisor and appear to live in or near Istanbul. I notice a couple of them specifically mention a certain employee.

I decided to investigate further, and found some people on Reddit discussing this issue. Some had mentioned that Hilton rewards people for being called out in reviews. Others mentioned that the TripAdvisor rating is of paramount importance to Hilton hotel managers. Here’s a Medium post in which a writer claims that TripAdvisor has basically become a scam.

I know I probably shouldn’t be surprised about this. It seems like most things that start out pretty good eventually turn to shit, as businesses decide that money is the most important thing. But this is the first time I’ve noticed how very obvious the so-called fake reviews are… and it was TripAdvisor itself that pointed it out to me by sending me that bullshit “survey”.

I do still think TripAdvisor is useful. I always make a point of reading the reviews that aren’t five star and consider those over the super short five star ratings. Hilton Istanbul Maslak is a very nice hotel, but I don’t think it rates the inflated 4.8 stars it currently has. There are some obvious drawbacks to staying there that travelers should know about. Moreover, sometimes a good one star review can be extremely entertaining reading and draw more readers to a site.

I always put my true opinions about the places I stay in my travel blog. I know not everyone cares to read the blog, but I’m just pointing out that the information is out there. I’m sure I’m not the only one who writes honest reviews, either. It’s a shame that the hotel industry doesn’t consider that real information is useful to them, and helps them find consumers who will be happy with what they offer. And it’s a shame that TripAdvisor is not being honest about their pledge not to tolerate fake reviews.

I write my reviews in the spirit of how I used to review things on Epinions.com, which really was a site where people posted their honest (and usually very well-written) opinions. It’s too bad that site went under. It was truly valuable. I also met some great people there and made money, not because I got paid by people to promote their products, but because I earned ad revenue from people who hit the site to get honest information.

I also think YouTube can be a good source of information. There are some good content creators out there who really do a great job in showing what you get for your money. Currently, one of my favorites is Walk With Me Tim, who stays in different types of properties all over the world.

Anyway… this is just something I noticed today. I realize it’s been a problem for awhile, but this was the first time it affected me, personally. Be careful out there!

adventure, Middle East, short breaks, Türkiye, YouTube

A quick jaunt to Istanbul… (part five)

At last, it was finally Thursday, the day I knew Bill would be finishing work early, and we could go to Taksim and see a more tourist friendly area of Istanbul. My friend Elaine and I stayed in Taksim when we visited Istanbul in 1996. We spent our first night in Aksaray, which is on the Asian side of Istanbul. That was where our bus from Armenia dropped us off, and we were too exhausted to look for a hotel on the European side. Then, after a night of rest, we moved to Taksim, which is a bit more modern. I didn’t know any of this when Elaine and I went there. She had done the research.

I remembered Taksim, and told Bill we should head there on Thursday. If anything, I could see Istiklal Avenue– the big shopping street I spent a lot of time on, back in 1996. I have a photo from our visit in 1996… and now I have one from 2025. I will post them both, so you can see the differences 29 years away makes! For now, here’s a 35 second video I made of life on Istiklal Avenue. It’s VERY busy… And yet, it was also so familiar, as Elaine and I stayed at Hotel Avrupa, cheap lodging not too far from this bustling area when we visited in 1996. I wish Bill and I could have stayed there last week, because it is a much better area for seeing the city.

I was hoping to catch the ice cream vendor teasing kids, but I wasn’t lucky enough… Now we have a reason to go back.

Bill got back to the hotel at around noon. We made our way to the metro station, which was a short walk from the Hilton Istanbul Maslak. Once again, I was struck by how crowded the area was, as the station teemed with people and noise. I am pretty sure Elaine and I used the metro when we visited Istanbul in 1996, but my mind has probably blanked out actual memories of it.

It’s super easy to use the metro in Istanbul. It’s clean and cheap. In fact, even the ticket machine is easy to use, with an English option that talks to you with a empathetic sounding female American voice, reassuring you that your purchase has been successful. Bill bought us tickets good for three rides. I think it cost the Turkish Lira equivalent of about $4. Below are a couple of photos I took in the metro station while Bill was getting his bearings.

The train we got on was pretty full. We stood for the entire journey to Taksim, which was about six stops away. I got a kick out of the signs stuck to the windows, letting riders know that manspreading is not allowed!

*Make room for others by keeping your legs closed!*

Once we got to Taksim, I heard the familiar sounds of a busker, who was skillfully playing a qanun. I didn’t manage to get a clip of him, but below is a video of someone playing a qanun beautifully in an Istanbul metro station.

For all I know, this was the same guy I heard…

I wish I could have taken a moment to listen longer to the busker, but the station was very crowded and busy, and we were kind of pushed out of there. Besides, I wanted to see if Taksim was how I remembered it. Below are some photos…

*I did remember the many people selling corn on the cob in Istanbul!*

By the time we walked around a bit in Taksim, I was pretty hungry. I paused for just a second near a restaurant and suddenly found myself being harassed by a very aggressive barker. He kept trying to talk to me, trying to entice me to his restaurant. He begged, “Lady, lady… speak to me. Which language?” He tried German, Spanish, English, and French. I cast a dour look at him and walked away. I don’t like it when random people aggressively accost me, trying to score business. It’s a sure sign what they’re selling is likely to suck.

A couple of minutes later, I stopped at another restaurant called Wama’s. They had a large, colorful menu that offered all kinds of food– everything from pasta to tacos! And when I approached, the proprietor was calm and welcoming, so we went in and enjoyed a lovely meal. I had a crispy chicken salad with apples, beets, corn, greens, and tomatoes, and Bill had beef kofre with fries, hummus, and yogurt. My salad was huge and excellent, while Bill said his beef was good, but a little bit “processed”, like it came from a preformed patty. Still, it was a nice lunch. I washed mine down with orange juice, while Bill had a ginger lemonade. I really like the many fruit juices one can enjoy in Turkey!

*This cat was sitting in the outdoor area. Istanbul has many well fed feral cats! Some of them are very friendly.*

I went upstairs to use the ladies room and was amused to find that there was a prayer room offered. Actually, many of the places we visited had prayer rooms, including our hotel. On the airplane, there was even an arrow on the entertainment system pointing in the direction of Mecca. I didn’t see an arrow in our hotel room, as I did when we stayed at the Jumeirah Hotel in Frankfurt (which is now a Marriott), but Bill said it might have been in one of the bed stand drawers.

After lunch, we decided to visit the Church of Sant’Antonio da Padova on Istiklal Avenue. I got some photos of the inside, which was full of people doing the same. I’m sure this church was there in 1996, but I swear I don’t remember it…

We decided to head back the other way down the avenue, as I wanted to change directions and walk toward the Bosphorus Strait, which divides the European and Asian sides of Istanbul, as well as the Black Sea from the Sea of Marmara. I thought I remembered the way, and I kind of did… but we still ended up in a part of town that was unfamiliar. Below are some more photos of the big shopping street, as well as a comparison of views from 1996 and 2025…

1996 vs 2025… I wasn’t standing in exactly the same spot last week, but if you look closely, you can see some of the same buildings. Wendy’s hasn’t been in Turkey since 1998!

Once we got to the end of Istiklal Avenue, we turned right, and walked almost all the way down a street, passing signs for the Aga Hamami, which is the oldest hamam in Istanbul. It was constructed in 1454! My back was killing me, so I kind of wished we could pay a visit. Unfortunately, we didn’t have time. As we were walking, the Taksim area faded into a residential area, and we were going downhill on uneven pavement. My back was really aching and I was getting a little tired and cranky.

I told Bill that we should plan to take a taxi back to the hotel. He was a bit dismayed, but I said that unless we found a metro station close to where we ended up, I was probably going to run out of steam. I couldn’t see us walking back to the Taksim station, which was by that point a few miles away! So he reluctantly agreed, as I passed him the many euros he gave me the last time he had to go TDY without me. I never spend all the money he gives me for groceries when he goes out of town, and I usually end up giving it all back to him! 🤭 Then I said we could keep walking if he wanted, because there was a lot more to see…

We followed a couple of Turkish guys into a complex that was some kind of museum for the arts, where we got a view of the Galata Tower. But then we were on a very busy street that led to an even busier street near the museum of modern art and the cruise port. That area was definitely very posh and not at all like Maslak! It was near the museum where I found a much needed park bench. It was good that we found that, not just because my back needed a rest, but also because we were soon in for a really interesting spectacle.

I heard the sounds of many birds, which mostly turned out to be seagulls. A man was feeding them, and hundreds of the hungry birds converged on the square near the museum and mosque. It was fascinating to watch, as seagulls played tug of war over food, and a couple of cats tried to get in on the action! Another man, who was off camera, was literally feeding other birds by hand. I got some video footage and a lot of photos, only a few of which I shared below.

Seagulls going crazy over food!

We finally got bored with the birds and decided to walk closer to the water. We passed the very expensive Peninsula Hotel Istanbul, which I noticed also had a metal detector and x-ray scanner in the lobby. Then I heard an infectious percussive beat. Some young man was busking, playing a mean rhythm while other men fished, and people walked around… I noticed he was making lots of lira from appreciative tourists.

He’s got some talent!

I got some photos of the Bosphorus Strait, noticing that across the water, there was a whole lot more of Istanbul to see… and sadly, my middle aged body wasn’t having it. We noticed a taxi stand near the cruise port, and decided to head toward there. It was a good thing, too, because Bill was starting to feel the urge to whiz…

When Bill asked a cabbie how much the ride to Maslak was going to be, he said 35 euros. For some reason, the cabbies prefer euros to Turkish money… 😉 (of course I know why– it’s a more stable currency). We started the rush hour ride back to Maslak. It was about 13 kilometers, but it took an hour! The metro probably would have been faster, but we would have had to walk to one, which would have taken time and energy we couldn’t spare. The cab ride turned out to be fortuitous, because I got more photos, and the cabbie entertained us by using Google Translate to communicate. He didn’t speak English, so he typed his Turkish comments into Google and showed us the translations. It was pretty funny!

The cab ride also gave me a perspective of just how loud, crowded, and busy Istanbul really is. It’s a HUGE city, bustling with energy and action, and unless you have a lot of time and stamina, it’s hard to really do it justice. But the cab ride ended up being more expensive, because we were in traffic for so long. Bill gave the guy 60 euros, when all was said and done… and yes, that is probably more than he needed to, but we felt sorry for the cab driver. It was a long way from the cruise port, and we basically crawled back in very heavy gridlock traffic! I’m sure he missed out on easier fares.

Once we got back to the hotel for our last night, we decided to have one more drink at the bar. I noticed they’d put up even more Christmas decorations and fenced off the big tree in the foyer. I also got a kick out of the fake presents that were kind of poorly wrapped. I don’t know much about Turkish customs, but I do remember giving my former Armenian student a birthday gift. He was amused because I had wrapped it in pretty paper. I don’t know that gift wrapping is a “thing” that part of the world. Since most Turks are Muslims, I’m sure it’s not there, either.

As I enjoyed a Hendricks gin and tonic, properly garnished with cucumber, one of Bill’s colleagues showed up. We were talking about other parts of Turkey we’d seen. Bill hasn’t been to those parts yet, but I’ll bet he’ll get the chance. Now that he’s been there, I think he would like to go back. He did tell me that it would have been permissible to stay in a different part of Istanbul, so if we’d been able to find a hotel in his budget in Taksim, we could have stayed there. That’s good to know, in case we get the chance to go back there.

Bill’s co-worker said he was going to take an early flight back to Germany. He reminded me of the traffic woes, so I told Bill that we should probably leave the hotel several hours before we needed to board the plane. After the crawl back to the hotel on Thursday, I figured it wouldn’t hurt to be safe. Because as much as I enjoyed our trip to Turkey, I was ready to go home to Germany and see my dogs!

One more post ought to do it for the blow by blow, and then I’ll do my ten things I learned post. Stay tuned!

art, Hessen

Our new art and one last wine stand for 2025…

On the third Saturday in September, Bill and I took some more art to Kunst-Schaefer in downtown Wiesbaden to get two new prints from Hungary framed, and have some other art re-framed. Bill picked up the finished projects a couple of days ago. Below are some photos of the results. The first photo is of our new Hungarian acquisitions. I always wish I’d bought more art when I get new stuff!

The above photo is of two sketches we bought from Dariusz Milinski in Jelena Gora, Poland, back in 2008. They were originally in platinum with beige matting and plastic, instead of glass. I’m not even sure if they were actual sketches or copies. But our experience buying them makes them pretty special to us. It’s nice to have them in new framing. I wish we could get back there and buy one of Milinski’s paintings. They are pretty amazing, even if he’s a bit of a nutter.

The ones in the middle are paintings we got in Vilnius, Lithuania, all done by the same lady. She was pretty happy when we bought her art. I am happy to see the paintings in new frames, although I wish I’d asked the picture framer to touch up the edges so they aren’t white. But I got some magic markers, so I can fix that issue without too much trouble. Sometimes being the daughter of a professional picture framer comes in handy.

On Friday night, we went to the wine stand. It was kind of cool outside, and the sky was a bit cloudy, but we had a great time. It was mainly because of that friendly German couple who always sit with us, even though we speak little German, and they speak little English. Google Translate is very helpful in that situation. At one point, the lady asked how long we’ve lived here. She probably wonders why I don’t speak better German. I do actually know a lot more than I used to, but it’s hard to speak in German. I have no one to practice with on a regular basis.

I told the lady that I can only sing in German. It’s a bit of a joke, because I did used to sing German songs a lot, when I was in my 20s. When you take voice lessons, that’s what happens. You learn songs by composers who wrote in German or Italian… or sometimes French and Latin.

She was curious about my musical pursuits, so I played a video from my YouTube channel. I chose this one, because the song is short, and I did a pretty decent job with it… Who doesn’t love Dolly Parton?

I think they were surprised…

She mentioned Breckenheim’s pop choir, led by our neighbor and the co-owner of our veterinarian practice, Dr. Konrad Blendinger, who is also a musician and songwriter. She was quick to tell me they do songs in English. I’ve seen them perform a few times. Dr. Blendinger has even written an original song about Breckenheim!

It would be fun to be in a pop choir… sometimes it’s hard to feel like a joiner, when you’re an outsider. But this couple is always so warm and welcoming to us. It makes me smile, knowing that there’s at least one local couple besides our landlord and immediate neighbors, who think we’re okay. 😁 I’m glad to meet locals in Wiesbaden, too. They’re more mature than some of the “friends” I made in Stuttgart.

Our town also just got a charging station for electric vehicles. Apparently, there was some controversy about this new development. I think they’re putting in a couple more stations at the Sportsplatz on the other side of town. Personally, I think it’s cool… just like I thought it was cool that they installed a public WC for events in the Dorfplatz. I love to see the community develop so people can have nice things. I wish Americans were more like this.

I took few photos at the wine stand, because it was kind of dark outside. I think there will be one more this year, but I’m not sure I’ll attend. Bill has to go to Bavaria again, so I’ll be alone when it happens. Maybe I’ll attend solo… but probably not. I like to teetotal when he’s not home. Besides, a lot of times, no one talks to us except the American pastor/lawyer who lives nearby. And she’s a very popular lady, so it’s not like she visits extensively. So, if I did go to the wine stand, it might not be much fun. I might get more out of watching political pundits on YouTube.

Anyway… it was a really nice time. Once again, I’m grateful to live in Breckenheim, which is a great little community with a good manager who makes sure the people are entertained. Bill says there’s a little fair going on at the Dorfplatz as I write this– something they haven’t done there since 2009. And there’s the Apple Fest in Wiesbaden, too, although I’m not sure if I want to go there. I probably should go, since I’m about to be lonely for three weeks. 🙁

But, on the other hand, I’m glad Bill has a job and is still getting paid to work. So, you gotta count your blessings where you find them, I guess. In other news… the vet called us while we were at the wine stand and told us Noyzi’s cytology report came back. He had a raw spot on his leg that we had tested for cancer. It was negative– he just has a bit of dermatitis. So that’s good news, too!

Eastern Europe, Hungary

Back to Budapest– A brief journey back to the Iron Curtain days… part six

On Thursday morning after breakfast, I decided that instead of walking all over the place, I’d go visit that cool looking Retro Museum. So, after doing some writing on my main blog, I headed back out toward St. Stephen’s Basilica, where I had noticed signs for the museum. Instead of turning right on the street named Oktober 6, I turned left. Seconds later, I spotted the museum. It was impossible to miss it, as the facade was in bright red. I might have thought of it as a tourist trap, but actually, I thought it was a fun museum, creatively put together for those of us who remember life before the Iron Curtain fell.

Below are a couple of photos from Thursday morning, before I walked into the museum. I didn’t get a chance to try the chimney cake, but they were being offered all over Budapest. I think I even saw a class offered for making them.

After taking a moment to listen to the many noisy children playing at a nearby playground, I walked into the museum. A man in a red vest immediately said hello and directed me to the ticket counter, where I paid 5500 forints (about $17 or 14 euros) to take a trip back in time, before most people could so easily visit Hungary.

The Retro Museum covers three floors and offers an interactive experience that allows patrons to get a sense of what Budapest was like back in the day. It took me a minute to realize that they had designed exhibits by putting them in what appeared to be mock ups of block style housing. Each “building” had little doors on them that could be opened, revealing an artifact from the communist days of yore. There were quite a few of these “building” exhibits… maybe more than were really necessary. But they did have some interesting stuff in them– schoolbooks, records, toys, books, medals, and even displays of packaged foods from that era. I also noticed they had a display about Hungary’s now defunct national airline, Malev. Bill and I flew on Malev the first time we visited Budapest, but it went out of business in February 2012.

I particularly enjoyed the exhibit about what school was like back in the day. If I had been born in Hungary, that was how MY schooling would have been. I’d also be a Russian speaker, because Russian was required learning for schoolkids until the late 1980s.

There were also some interactive quizzes visitors could take to test their knowledge. Unfortunately, most of them were only offered in Hungarian. I tried a couple of them, anyway, just to see how much I could understand. Not surprisingly, I did poorly. Below are photos from the “building exhibits” in museum…

Some of the stuff they had on display were things I remembered from my American upbringing. For instance, they had a Commodore 64 computer in there, complete with cassette player for computer games. That was a real blast from the past!

Once I got past the faux Soviet era buildings, I encountered a “TV studio”, inviting patrons to pretend they are newscasters. One lady had brought her two children and one of the kids was doing a good job pretending. I heard two older ladies singing in Russian (or maybe Hungarian) along with the music that was playing. Obviously, these were songs most kids learned back in those days, as the school curriculum was uniform across the country.

Next, there was a mock up of a Hungarian kitchen from back in the days before the Iron Curtain fell. I got a kick out of that. It reminded me of the kitchens I encountered in Armenia, right down to the old fashioned refrigerator. Actually, the kitchen was nicer than what I had in Armenia, where I lived in one of those “block style” buildings.

The kitchen led to a living room, where the two singing older ladies had made themselves comfortable, sitting on one of the old couches, watching old TV… They even had an exhibit in which you could stand in front of a green screen and try on Hungarian fashions. I wasn’t wanting to do that, because I don’t like looking at myself in the mirror.

From the living room, there was an elevator, leading down to the first floor, where the space program was displayed using cool interactive exhibits. They also had an exhibit showing other technology. There was one exhibit that I couldn’t quite figure out. The lady with the two kids kind of pushed me out, anyway, before I could determine how the exhibit worked.

And then finally, there was a room highlighting transportation. There was a car from the Iron Curtain era, as well as a “police car” that people were allowed to sit in and try to “drive”. I didn’t attempt to “drive” the police car, because the seat looked like it was made more for children! But I did watch one lady try to interact with that exhibit and heard her shriek with surprise at how difficult it was to “drive” the cop car. They also had old phone booths with recordings of jokes, songs, and newscasts, among other things.

All in all, I really enjoyed visiting the Retro Museum. I probably could have spent more time in there. I will say, though, that there was a lot of stuff in there, and it was kind of overwhelming. And some of the exhibits were a bit limited to Hungarians, and mostly understandable to people from Hungary. I noticed a lot of local people, especially of a certain age, getting the exhibits more than the younger folks. And, of course, some of it was only in Hungarian, which surprised me.

The museum has a bistro, which offers food that might be considered “retro”. I didn’t partake of anything from the bistro. It looked like most of what they were offering were variations of hot dogs and sausages, along with something called “Hungarian Fatty Bread” (yikes). They also had many kinds of non-alcoholic drinks, coffees, beers, and wines. They even offered cocktails! I do think it’s funny that “condiments” in Hungary are considered “dips”. Americans don’t consider ketchup, mustard, and mayo “dips”, and typically, we don’t charge extra for them. But, of course, I ain’t in America anymore, right?

After I visited the Retro Museum, I walked back toward Elizabeth Square. It was then that I noticed something unusual on a tree…

Yes… that is Michael Jackson. Someone in Budapest LOVES him. They made a shrine, and it has not been “molested” by anyone. I was surprised by that, so I took photos. I made the mistake of sharing one on YouTube, and got chastised by someone for “glorifying” a “child molester”. 🙄

I don’t know the truth behind Michael Jackson’s dalliances with children. I have heard the stories, and no matter what, I think that what he was doing was inappropriate. I also think that some of the blame for that lies with the parents of the children, who allowed their sons to spend nights with Michael. It would not have been a choice I would have made, myself, if I had ever had children of my own.

What I do know is that he was a huge star, and has now been dead for 16 years. And, like it or not, he was a big part of my childhood, just like Bill Cosby was. I don’t think sharing a photo of a shrine that I didn’t build is “glorifying” Michael Jackson. I just found it interesting.

I sat for awhile and was visited by pigeons who were almost completely tame. A couple of them got close enough that I could have easily touched their feathers.

Later, when Bill came back after work, we decided to go looking for dinner. We stopped first at the Ritzmajer Downtown. Hungarian Beer Bar. I was curious about the place. Although they offered food, we decided not to eat there after we had a round.

Instead, we turned down a street and wound up at a random bistro, where there was yet another excellent Hungarian gypsy music band playing. I bought another CD…

I don’t even remember the name of the restaurant (it was Rezkakas Bistro). The food was good, but I was mostly impressed by the live music. It started with an older man playing violin with a guy playing hammer dulcimer. Then, an hour later, more musicians showed up, and they moved to the other side of the restaurant. My view wasn’t as good then, but I was really impressed by the second violinist who played. He was much younger, and had real passion. When we bought the CD, the older violinist said it was his son. I was very impressed with him! I wonder if he makes love the way he plays his instrument. If you watch toward the end of the YouTube video below, you can see what I mean. His obvious passion for his music is written all over his young face.

They played everything from traditional Hungarian songs to Coldplay. At one point, they played “God Bless America”, which was very well-received, especially since it was 9/11 on the day of our visit. There were quite a few Americans in the restaurant, and they all cheered.

A sampling of the music we heard on Thursday night. I also thought the bartender was cute.

Again, the food was okay… service was a bit lackadaisical. But I really enjoyed the music. I especially enjoyed the lead violinist’s son, who really was entertaining. Unfortunately I got so emotional that I forgot to take a photo of the restaurant’s sign. But, after some sleuthing, I managed to figure out that we ate dinner at Rezkakas Bistro. According to their Web site, they are currently closed until October 1, 2025.

In any case, we enjoyed our visit to Rezkakas Bistro, especially for the music. It was a very nice evening!

Stay tuned for my post on our last full day in beautiful Budapest and the flight home to Germany!

Champagne Bucket trips, churches, former Soviet Union, Lithuania

The Vilnius Series… Tales from the Crypt, and my rainy 53rd birthday… (part four)

While Bill and I were in the hotel room, digesting our fabulous French lunch, the skies turned cloudy and grim. It started to rain. I looked out the window at the cathedral. We were supposed to meet the guide at 4:00 PM for our hourlong guided tour of the crypt. But the rain was coming down steadily and showed no signs of stopping.

I realized that the rainy weather would also put the kibosh on my tentative plans to go hear the US Air Force play with with Lithuanians in the town square. That concert, set for 6:30 PM, seemed like it was going to be doomed with bad weather.

Bill glanced out the window and said, “Hey, there’s a guy out there in a bright red Cadillac Coupe d’Ville, stranded on the street. There’s something you don’t see every day! The guy was on the phone. I felt sorry for the car trapped by the big red land yacht. But it was soon back on its way, and the road was no longer blocked by the striking car.

I said, “Are you really wedded to going to the crypt?” I really didn’t feel like braving the elements.

Bill responded, “Not really.”

I gave some thought to skipping the tour, as my muscles were getting sorer by the minute and I didn’t really want to sprint to the church in the rain. But Bill said that Thursday would be our one and only chance to take the tour in English, so ultimately, we decided to go. I’m really glad we did. It turned out to be a fascinating activity, led by an engaging, witty, and very intelligent guide who told us she’d worked at the Cathedral as an anthropologist for nine years.

I couldn’t help but remember my days at Longwood University, which, at least when I was a student, boasted a really excellent anthropology and archaeology program. I wish I’d taken at least one anthropology class there, as when I was a student, there was a very well known professor there, Dr. James W. Jordan, who was kind of a legendary for his ghost stories. He’s now retired.

In any case, a group of us tourists gathered in the rain and hustled into the church, where the guide took us to a locked grated door. She unlocked the door; we walked down a flight of steps, and she started telling us the fascinating story of the crypts. It started out as a place where only the wealthiest people could be buried… people who had donated land and/or built a church, plus had people who had promised to pray for them forever. As time went on, the people buried there were less wealthy and celebrated.

The church went through several incarnations, all of which were fashionable at the time. I got a kick out of the guide explaining how the cathedral had once had two beautiful towers, but one of them collapsed, and killed people. The people were divided in what they should do… Rebuild the towers? Or redesign the church? It turned out the people with more money were in the camp that the towers should go. So that’s why the Vilnius cathedral looks the way it does now!

The guide also told us about how medieval crowns and scepters were very recently found (as in months ago) in the crypt. Experts knew the trove existed, as it was stashed away after World War II. However, they had not been able to find it in the decades that passed since the war ended. The guide said that next year, they will be available to be seen in the museum, once they are prepared.

We also saw a very old painting of Mary, done by an artist who wasn’t Catholic and had dressed her in red, instead of blue. And we saw the tombs of royalty from hundreds of years ago, and heard the fascinating stories behind their lives and deaths. The guide also invited us to whisper into the corners of the crypt and listen for whispers from a partner. Bill and I tried it, with success!

Lithuania is the last European country to accept Christianity (1387 AD). By contrast, Armenia, where I spent two years, is the first country in the world to accept Christianity as its state religion (in 301 AD). And yet, both were once Soviet countries, where people from Moscow were telling them what to do and demanding that they give up their cultural identities.

It was very poignant to hear the guide talk about things that happened in the Soviet times. Soviet leaders had wanted to turn that cathedral into a warehouse. Fortunately, wiser people determined it was better suited as a concert hall and picture gallery. Also, people who worked in the crypts were wise enough to hide things from Soviet leaders, who would have confiscated the items and taken them to Moscow, never to be seen again.

Below are some photos from the tour:

*A pump that was put in during the Soviet era.*

When the crypt tour was over, I was really glad we decided to go. Not only was the tour interesting and informative, the guide was very entertaining and personable. It was well worth the time and euros to attend, even if I was getting sorer by the minute and we got a little wet.

Unfortunately, the weather was still pretty stormy and dismal after the tour. We decided to have a couple of beers at the hotel bar and, alas, skip the free concert in the town square. As I looked out the windows in the bar, the wind picked up, the sky darkened, and the rain fell harder.

Check out the rain!

I felt sorry for the musicians who had planned for a summer concert, only to be rained on. I’m sure the show went on anyway, but it was still kind of sad. I really was looking forward to attending, but not enough to walk to the square in the rain and possibly have to stand in the weather while my muscles screamed in pain. I thought of my dad, an Air Force veteran and music lover, when he used to encourage my sisters and me to join the Air Force and be in the “Singing Sergeants”. I have to agree, it’s probably a pretty sweet gig, except for when the weather turns to shit and the show is outside.

Still, it was nice to have a couple of beers in the hotel bar. They didn’t have a big selection. We were still kind of full from our French lunch at Balzac, so we ate nuts and cheese (or Bill ate cheese), and then went back to the room, where we watched classic MTV. We made it an early evening.

The next morning was, of course, my birthday… and we woke up to… MORE RAIN! Seriously, it was pouring. We got up and went to breakfast, and a friendly waitress asked us how we were doing. I mentioned it was my birthday– just making conversation. She later brought me a surprise!

*A lovely little cake with a candle. Yes, I made a wish!*

After breakfast, we went back to the room, which was already made up! I made a video…

My parody video “The Things They Do For Trump” was racking up lots of hits and earning me lots of new subscribers. So I made a video from our hotel room…

Then… we decided to do some reading, to see if maybe the rain would let up. It didn’t let up, which honestly was a blessing, because I really needed to rest my sore muscles. I took some Advil, which helped a bit, before we went to lunch at Dionysos, a Greek restaurant right next to the hotel. The friendly waitress who brought me the cake later told us she’d almost worked there, but didn’t like the people running it. We liked the restaurant fine… Bill had three chicken skewers with hummus (that was one too many) and I had ribs with fries, and rose wine made with syrah.

It was still raining cats and dogs after our visit to the Greek place, so we went back to the hotel and read some more. I learned that the Grand Hotel Vilnius used to be a telegraph station, and then served as the treasury building. Now, it’s a five star hotel with 93 rooms. We did like the hotel, for the most part. It was very comfortable. I was grateful for that, as the rain fell on my birthday. I hate to waste a day sitting in the hotel when I travel, but honestly, I’m not sure how well I would have done walking around Vilnius with so much muscle stiffness and soreness!

Finally, the rain let up, and we decided to go to a bar that specialized in craft beers. In retrospect, I wish we’d gone out for dinner, but lunch at the Greek place had left us rather sated. I have missed craft beers, too. We do have them in Germany, but they aren’t always easy to find. Like… you can’t necessarily go to the local drink market and find exotic beers in Germany, although you will find excellent German beers. So I was excited to visit Nisha Craft Capital, which was very close to the hotel.

Bill and I spent a couple of hours at this bar, trying all sorts of craft beers and listening to the same loop of excellent classic rock songs. Seriously, though, I think they need to add to their playlist. We heard the same songs at least three times during our first visit (we went back twice more). The other two times we visited, we sat outside in their beer garden.

After our evening of beers, we went back to the hotel for birthday bubbles… I didn’t need the bubbles, but hell, I don’t turn 53 every day. It was fun watching the well dressed people showing off in the bar and restaurant.

Finally, it was time to call it a night, so we did. The next day, we had much better weather, and saw a lot more. I’ll write about that in the next post!

The Traveling Overeducated Housewife

…the wanderings and ramblings of a boring housewife…

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