Gawking up at the stonework that covers the entire side of a mountain in The Sacred Valley, we were truly in awe.
No one knows how the stones were cut, because a metal hard enough to cut granite was not available at the time of its construction and an explanation of how the rocks were moved up the mountain has never been… CONTINUE READING >>
Ollantaytambo is a town that sits at the foot of enormous ruins that share the same name.
The town dates back to the late 15th century, contemporary with the ruins, and has some of the oldest continuously occupied dwellings in South America.
It also serves as the gateway to Machu Picchu, since it is the starting point for the famous Inca Trail (for backpackers) and the narrow gauge railway (for the oh-my-aching-back crowd) that are the only ways to reach the legendary Lost City.
As remarkable as the village of Ollantaytambo may be, the archaeological site is the main attraction.
We entered the site, gawking up at the stonework that covers the entire side of a mountain, and our guide, Eddy, gave us some background.
Originally the royal estate of Emperor Pachacutin, it became a bustling agricultural center, and then during the Spanish conquest, served as a fortress for Manco Inca Yupanqui while leading the Inca resistance.
He went on to point out the many stones left sitting where ever they happened to be at the time that work was abandoned, showing how this site was still unfinished when the Spanish arrived in the 1500s.
The freestanding stones gave us a close up look at some of the amazing stone cutting and shaping involved in the construction.
The bulk of the Ollantaytambo archaeological site is covered by huge stone terracing that was specially designed to transform the impossibly steep hillside into usable crop land.
This not only provided level ground for farming, but also prevented landslides and flooding in times of heavy rains.
Alongside these stair-stepped growing areas are granaries built to store up to five years supply of food as preparation in case of drought, blights or freezes.
This was just one of the methods used to guard against a poor harvest in The Sacred Valley .
Crops were also planted at different altitudes to insure proper growing conditions, and many varieties of each crop were developed.
For example, hundreds of different types of potatoes would be sown.
Each were cultivated for certain characteristics such as resistance to insects, cold, heat or dry conditions.
This was all fascinating stuff, but our natural inclination was to climb, so we did, up over 9000 feet. It’s a touch hard to breath up there, but we huffed and puffed, and I-think-I-can, I-think-I-canned our way to the top.
Above all of the agricultural structures is a temple. This was the part still being worked on when Ollantaytambo was abandoned, so it is not overly impressive, but some of the massive stones are, and the view certainly is.
From the top we could see for miles in every direction and make out the path across the valley to the quarry where the stones were originally cut.
From there the giant rocks were hauled down that mountain, over the river, and back up this mountain, all without the use of wheels.
One of the many mysteries that surround the building abilities of the Quechua people when ruled by the Inca is the lack of the wheel.
Eddy offered the theory that the round shape represented the sun and moon and therefore was sacred, so it could not be used for such mundane tasks as moving rocks.
Possibly, but no one knows for certain why they didn’t use wheels.
Another of the mysteries of Ollantaytambo is exactly how the stones were cut, because no metal hard enough to cut granite was available at that time.
The Quechua language was not written and the Spanish destroyed most evidence of methods used in construction.
Budapest is truly a tale of two cities, Buda and Pest, separated by the Danube River.
Buda, steeped in history and stunning with her castle on the hill, preserves the past.
And Pest, the “New City” vibrant with change, showcases the hope of the future… CONTINUE READING >>
Thanks to Viking River Cruises for inviting us along and providing this adventure! As always, all opinions are our own.
Budapest is truly a tale of two cities, Buda and Pest, separated by the Danube River. Since the Viking Longship Skadi that would serve as our hotel for the next couple of days was docked on the Pest side of the river, we set out to explore what’s called the “New City” first.
Prowling Pest
The Parliament House
New, as is often the case in Europe, can be a relative term, Pest is around one thousand years old.
Although in this case the reference is to the government and business districts which are more modern.
Perhaps the most striking of these is the Parliament House, overlooking the river.
When the two cities united in 1873 to form the capital of Hungary, it was decided that a grand new building was needed to house the legislature. A competition was held to pick a design and in 1885 construction began. The building was dedicated on the 1000th anniversary of the country in 1896, and finally completed in 1904.
Along the water in front of Parliament House there is a poignant memorial to the Jewish people of Budapest who perished at the hands of the Nazi-affiliated Arrow Cross during World War II.
Shoes on the Danube represents how people were lined up on the river bank and shot into the water so the current would carry their bodies away. But first they were ordered to remove their shoes because the footwear was considered too valuable to be lost in the river. Sculptor Gyula Pauer created sixty pairs of iron shoes to commemorate the victims.
Walking away from the river toward St. Stephen’s Basilica we came upon a much more lighthearted piece of artwork.
This bronze Hungarian policeman from the early 1900s keeps an eye on Zrínyi utca (Zrínyi Street).
Veronica seemed to think his belly needed a pat.
A King and a Saint? What a guy!
The small Christmas Market in front of St. Stephen’s Basilica
Szent István Bazilika, Saint Stephen’s, serves as the main church for Budapest. It is named for Saint Stephen I of Hungary, who tradition says became the country’s first King on Christmas in the year 1000. He was canonized in 1083 by Pope Gregory VII for bringing Christianity to Hungary.
The church is quite new compared to most of the great cathedrals of Europe, completed in 1905 after fifty-four years of construction.
Without really knowing what to expect, we bought tickets to go up in the tower. Climbing the seemingly endless stairs, we were feeling certain that there must be something really good at the top. Three hundred sixty four steps later we were not disappointed.
The Parliament Dome is off in the distance in the fog.
From the top of the cathedral dome we had a 360 degree panoramic view of the entire city. It looked to be the highest spot in town, but we discovered later that the dome on the parliament building is the exact same height.
This was done intentionally, to show the equality of political and religious power. By law, no building can be erected higher than the ninety-six meters of these two domes.
Inside the basilica, the king who became the patron saint of Hungary is honored in several ways, including a display of his right hand.
Yes, the one thousand year old mummified hand of Saint Stephen is kept in a glass case in a small chapel at the back of the church.
We know this to be true because we saw it with our own eyes. Just slip a coin into a slot and a light comes on to reveal it, looking like it had the worst case of frostbite ever. We had to get out of there.
In order to see more of the Pest side in our limited time we took a quick bus tour that hit several of the highlights. Many of the city’s landmarks line Andrássy Avenue, along with the homes of prominent residents, so that was where we began.
We passed the scariest building we’ve ever seen, the House of Terror, which served as the headquarters for the secret police of both the Arrow Cross Nazi and Communist regimes but now is a museum…
… and the Hungarian State Opera House, that has been going strong since 1884.
At the end of the avenue we made a circle around Hősök tere, Heroes’ Square, the city’s main plaza.
The center of the square features the Millennium Monument, built in 1896 to commemorate the thousandth anniversary of the founding of Hungary.
Statues of the leaders of the seven Magyar tribes that arrived in the late 9th century from Asia are depicted on one side of the main column, and more modern Hungarian heroes on the other. The column is topped with the archangel Gabriel holding a replica of the royal crown.
On our way back through town we went by the Dohány Street Synagogue. This is the largest synagogue in Europe, and the third largest in the world.
We couldn’t help noticing stark variations and contrasts between many of the buildings throughout the city.
Some have been renovated and look stunning, while others still show evidence of heavy damage from WWII or years of neglect under communist rule.
Happily, signs of ongoing renovation of these beautiful buildings are everywhere.
Checking out the Christmas Market
To finish our day in Pest we checked out the the city’s main Christmas market, a large collection of stands and kiosks all decked out in holiday style.
We were surprised how many of these were selling food or drink as opposed to gifts. It seemed that this market was more of a gathering place for friends and family to grab a bite, hang out, socialize, and listen to music than a shopping venue. Basically a street fair, so we loved it.
We started with a cup of forralt bor, meaning boiled wine, the Hungarian version of mulled wine, or glühwein.
With our cockles properly warmed we were ready to sample some of the local fare.
Everything looked fantastic but we settled on töltött káposzta, cabbage stuffed with meat and rice and served with a paprika sauce and sour cream, then we added a huge smoked meat dumpling with sauerkraut to our meal.
The Chain BridgeTunneling through the old city wall of Buda.
The next morning found us crossing the Chain Bridge, the most famous of the eight bridges that span the Danube between Buda and Pest.
The picturesque suspension bridge was the first permanent bridge across the river when it opened in 1849.
Above the bridge, the domed Buda Castle dominates the valley from its perch on Castle Hill.
Rulers and royals resided on the spot for nearly 700 years. These days, it houses a collection of museums.
Looking up at Fisherman’s Bastion
The area around the castle is like a village in itself, mostly contained within the Fisherman’s Bastion.
As with Hero’s Square and the Parliament House, the bastion was built at the time of the millennial celebration.
Although it looks like a fortress, it was made more as a monument and scenic overlook, with seven towers to represent the seven Magyar tribes that came to the area in 896.
Within the bastion walls the Matthias Church serves as the second most important church in Budapest. A church has been on this spot for around a thousand years, built and rebuilt several times.
It even served as a mosque during the Ottoman rule over Hungary. We’ve learned that many churches were converted under the Ottoman Empire. The current design, from renovations just over a century ago, is in a Byzantine style that reflects the eastern heritage of the Hungarian people.
Outside the church we once again found King, or should we say Saint, Stephen immortalized, this time mounted on his trusty steed amid the fortifications of the bastion.
Following the walls back toward the castle we happened to wander up just in time to see the changing of the guard at Sándor Palace, which now serves as the presidential palace. It was heavily damaged, along with most of the buildings on the hill, by Allied bombers in 1944 and wasn’t rebuilt until after the fall of communism in 1989.
Eating Like a Hungarian: Getting Goulash
On our way back to Skadi the chill was starting to set in again when we spotted a sign advertising the oldest restaurant in Pest.
We couldn’t pass that up, and some steaming hot soup sounded like just the ticket. The little basement dining area looked authentic enough, definitely old, if not the oldest, and proudly offered many traditional dishes.
Goulash and fish soup are both classic, typical Hungarian dishes, and what better place to try them the the self-proclaimed oldest restaurant in town?
The name 100 Éves Etterem, One Hundred Years Old Restaurant, doesn’t really tell the whole story since it was adopted upon the establishment’s centennial in the 1930s.
One hundred eighty years old would be more accurate, but hey, they can’t go changing the name every year now can they?
No matter, a soup by any other name would taste just as Mmmm, Mmmm, good.
Both were heavy on the paprika, this is Hungary after all, and served piping hot in pewter pots.
The goulash was full of meat, potatoes, and carrots, and the fish soup had big chunks of fish with hearty noodles.
A Magical Send Off
We were feeling pretty warm and fuzzy, but had to get back to the ship for what turned out to be the highlight of our entire stay in Budapest, leaving.
No kidding, the cruise up the river in the dark gave us an incredible nighttime view of the bridges and landmarks.
On the Buda side, the castle and Fisherman’s Bastion stood out like fireworks lit against the night sky.
While over on the Pest side of The Danube, The Parliament Building was absolutely stunning, glowing in the foggy darkness.
That fond farewell left memorable imprints on our minds after two remarkable days in Budapest, and an indelible desire to return someday… when it’s warmer.
Although it looks like a fortress, it was made more as a monument and scenic overlook, with seven towers to represent the seven Magyar tribes that came to the area in 896.
Outside the church we once again found King, or should we say Saint, Stephen immortalized, this time mounted on his trusty steed amid the fortifications of the bastion.
Following the walls back toward the castle we happened to wander up just in time to see the changing of the guard at Sándor Palace, which now serves as the presidential palace.
It was heavily damaged, along with most of the buildings on the hill, by Allied bombers in 1944 and wasn’t rebuilt until after the fall of communism in 1989.
Szent István Bazilika, Saint Stephen’s, serves as the main church for Budapest. It is named for Saint Stephen I of Hungary, who tradition says became the country’s first King on Christmas in the year 1000… CONTINUE READING >>
The Christmas Market in front of St. Stephen’s Basilica.
Szent István Bazilika, Saint Stephen’s, serves as the main church for Budapest. It is named for Saint Stephen I of Hungary, who tradition says became the country’s first King on Christmas in the year 1000. He was canonized in 1083 by Pope Gregory VII for bringing Christianity to Hungary.
The church is quite new compared to most of the great cathedrals of Europe, completed in 1905 after fifty-four years of construction.
Without really knowing what to expect, we bought tickets to go up in the tower.
Climbing the seemingly endless stairs, we were feeling certain that there must be something really good at the top.
Three hundred sixty four steps later we were not disappointed.
The top of the dome from the inside.The Parliament Dome is off in the distance in the fog.
From the top of the cathedral dome we had a 360 degree panoramic view of the entire city.
It looked to be the highest spot in town, but we discovered later that the dome on the parliament building is the exact same height.
This was done intentionally, to show the equality of political and religious power. By law, no building can be erected higher than the ninety-six meters of these two domes.
The Christmas market in the plaza in front of the basilica – note the skating rink!
Inside the basilica, the king who became the patron saint of Hungary is honored in several ways, including a display of his right hand.
Yes, the one thousand-year-old mummified hand of Saint Stephen is kept in a glass case in a small chapel at the back of the church.
We know this to be true because we saw it with our own eyes. Just slip a coin into a slot and a light comes on to reveal it, looking like it had the worst case of frostbite ever.
We’re heading to Queensland in a week – and couldn’t BE more excited!
It’s our first time visiting Australia and while doing our pre-game research / planning / drooling we discovered that, sadly, our knowledge of Aussie colloquialisms was limited to dated Crocodile Dundee movies and Outback Steakhouse commercials.
We’re heading to Queensland in a week – and couldn’t BE more excited!
It’s our first time visiting Australia and while doing our pre-game research / planning / drooling we discovered that, sadly, our knowledge of Aussie colloquialisms was limited to dated Crocodile Dundee movies and Outback Steakhouse commercials.
Realizing this had to change, we hit the Twittersphere and asked a simple question:
Hey #Aussie friends! Doing a post about going to #Australia-could you tweet us a word we need to know & definition? We’ll spotlight you!
We had NO idea that women are not supposed to use “mate”! This information is quite well received – Veronica does NOT want to misuse the term when skydiving onto the beach in Coolum – who knows what may go awry? Safety first, we always say. (We not only had a successful skydive, but ended up on Aussie TV because of it!)
It would have been tragic not to know this one – seriously. We’re worthless without our morning cuppa. We want to be fully awake when we feed crocodiles (!) in Gold Coast. (Yep, successful croc feed accomplished – all limbs accounted for, barely!)
Thanks Emma! Though we’re a bit confused about the sango/sanger discrepancy. Is this a Perth/Sydney thing? Which do they use in Queensland? Emma has more in store for us later…
Let’s practice: Maybe not. That’s a real mouthful of words, and all of our attempts at putting them together into a sentence seem to come out like some sort of crazy, down under mad-lib. (Not putting those words together was a good choice – the fun-loving folks in Gold Coast would have had a field day with that!)
We ciphered out budgie smugglers (there is a lot of scary slang for these from all over the world that we won’t repeat here!) – speedos. But servo, bottle-o or g’donya mate?
Let’s practice: G’donya mate! You stopped at the servo AND picked up the grog at the bottle-o?
We THINK we just said: Good for you buddy! You stopped at the gas station AND you picked up a pint at the liquor store. Well, David said the “mate” part. 😉
WHEW. Good stuff. We could have gotten into trouble not knowing that. After cuddling koalas in Brisbane, we never know what we might say! (We DID get to cuddle koalas! Everything we’d dreamed it would be – and more!)
Perhaps Queensland herself is worried we might be buying too many rounds as well, because they tweeted this:
YOUR TURN: Do you have any more slang to round out our education? Any travel tips for Australian newbies? Thoughts on us jumping out of an airplane (we do, but are afraid to vocalize them!)?
Underbrink’s Bakery is a trip back to a simpler time when baked goods were made with care, by hand, from scratch and with really cool vintage equipment.
Owner and baker extraordinaire, LeRoy Rossmiller the self-proclaimed Nut Roll Nazi, maintains old fashioned ways. He showed us all of the inner workings while delivering a running commentary popping fresh with humor and sarcasm.
Since opening as a traditional German bakery in 1929, this little shop near… CONTINUE READING >>
No trip to Quincy is complete without a visit to Underbrink’s Bakery, and a trip back to a simpler time when baked goods were made with care, by hand, from scratch and with really cool vintage equipment.
Since opening as a traditional German bakery in 1929, this little shop near Quincy University has been doing just that.
In 1990, the current owner and baker extraordinaire, LeRoy Rossmiller, took over with a commitment to maintain the old fashioned ways. He showed us all of the inner workings while delivering a running commentary popping fresh with humor and sarcasm.
In a nod to Seinfeld’s “Soup Nazi,” he calls himself The Nut Roll Nazi.
WATCH: It’s all in good fun (or is it?) Get verbally abused by the Nut Roll Nazi!
The staff’s new babies get their turn in the mixer!
In the customer area, with its display cases that were well worn by the time we were born, LeRoy showed us some of his prized artifacts.
There are hulking antique Hobart mixers, campy trinkets and nic-nacs, and autographed pictures of stars — even a president, all with a slight dusting of flour.
Through the back of the shop we entered the kitchen, where all of the magic happens. Every surface was covered with dough, before or after baking.
There were sweet rolls and “snails” being formed, cookies getting decorated, and cakes being iced. Huge bags of flour, hundreds of eggs, and giant boxes of shortening stood at the ready.
There are no shortcuts, LeRoy explained, the dough must be prepared two days ahead of time in order to bake properly.
Next he showed us the quintessentially low-tech ordering system, a bunch of notes clothes pinned above a table, all the while muttering about dealing with customers.
Veronica attempts to sneak a lick of buttercream frosting.
Behind the character it’s obvious he loves his work and it shows, not just in this phenomenal little shop, but in the outstanding cakes and pastries that come out of it.
By the end of our visit, his gruff demeanor had sweetened to the point that he let us try our hands at icing and nutting some of his famous rolls. Then he presented us with the specialty of the house, angel food cupcakes.
Meet LeRoy Rossmiller. It’s all in good fun (or is it?) Get verbally abused by the self-proclaimed “Nut Roll Nazi!”… CONTINUE READING >>
LeRoy Rossmiller, took over Underbrink’s Bakery with a commitment to maintain the old fashioned ways. He showed us all of the inner workings while delivering a running commentary popping fresh with humor and sarcasm. In a nod to Seinfeld’s “Soup Nazi,” he calls himself The Nutroll Nazi.
