Making the most of the performing arts

It started in Venice, where we were wowed and thrilled with a fabulous concert of opera highlights, accompanied by a small quartet, and a ballerina. The setting and music was great and added to the amazing time we had in this city of arts.

Then in London, heather got us seats at A Night At The Proms, where I was just blown away by the orchestra, sopranos, and 3 choirs. Of course this was all the better as it was held in the Albert Hall.

On the streets of Prague, puppets are on sale everywhere. So it seemed an obvious choice to select Mozarts Don Giovanni marionette show. This was all fun, and while sung in Italian of course, we had looked up the plot prior to attending so could follow the story. The puppeteering was great, and the appearance of Mozart as conductor was an added treat. 

In Hungary performing arts are available at a very reasonable price, and so as we had already done some classical we selected an option for musical highlights. Unfortunately, the women was classically trained, but seemed to force the performance, over dramatise and though I admire anyone who speaks more than one language, her diction added a slightly comical aspect to it all. She was supported by an accomplished pianist but sadly, she seemed to add extra trills to her keys, and thumped it out as though playing in her gumboots.

But that thankfully didn't deter us in Vienna. We only really had 1.5 days here, but Heather was mooching about not attending the opera seeing as we were back in the land of that great composer Mozart. While she went off to look at yet another special building, I made arrangements for us to attend a medley performance that night with a small chamber orchestra, a baratone and soprano, and two dancers. The evening was set in a splendid old space, in fact the very room that Mozart had first performed for the Marie Theresa. We had another WOW night, made all the better by the magic of Vienna, and the lead violinist playing an instrument made in the 1700's. 

Then finally in Berlin, it seemed that we couldn't sample the city without a taste of the local cabaret scene. Heather got us tickets at a show held in a permanent round mirror tent. Though the tickets were the cheapest available, we had great seats. We had thought the show was a mix of German and English, but no! The entire performance was in German. However the lovely Wolfgang with whom we shared a table, explained the story line before the show started, and turned occasionally during the performance to confirm key characters and events. It was razzy and bawdy, with a beautiful cast of boys in drag in a range of amazing outfits. We followed the plot easily, and only missed out on a few of the punch lines. 

These were all treats added on to the wonderful trip we have been lucky to experience.

Berlin

YWe flew into Berlin from Vienna and used public transport into the city where we checked into our apartment. The lift in the building was just tiny, barely room for heather and 2 bags, so I met her upstairs, where Heidi briskly welcomed us and instructed us to follow her and sit. She then spent 10 minutes giving great instructions,tips and commuting information to the key sites around the city, where to shop, where to watch for pick pockets, where to get cheap groceries, and so on. She also provided a great little map, but there was so much info and we just sat there like stunned mullets, then moments later we were briskly pushed out the door with yet more instructions on how to find our apartment, just a easy 5 minute walk away. And so we were in Berlin. It's actually an easy city to commute around, the transport system is reasonably easy though at times confusing with above ground trains, metros, buses... Our apartment was called Hollywood Stars - never did find out why, but we were nestled in the gay area, with shops around us displaying an array of underwear I'd never seen and a wide assortment of black leather. The where to eat guide Heidi had supplied - thankfully was all written out with names, descriptions and map locations, and the two we got to were great, excellent food, good service, and interesting places. The favourite was an evening in a nearby pub, where heather gobbeled roast goose, and I had the light and tasty meatballs with caper sauce. The beer was good, though when I asked if they had a wheat beer I was nicely (yet in that stern German way I was starting to get used to) told that I was in Berlin now, and he selected a local Pilsner. We added wine to this, and then I encouraged heather to break out a bit, and like we had watched so many others do, followed off our meal with some sort of liqueur that the locals enjoy.  Some busking musicians came in for a spell, playing piano accordion and guitar, making this a great night out.

Had fun exploring huge Christmas markets, each with some different touches. One had an ice skating rink, and others open fires that you could sit around while eating and drinking. 

It was truly cold here, though still very early in the winter. So we treated ourselves to new coats, which we were sure would be useful back home, then wished we could stay longer in the north now that we were finally set up better to cope with the weather. 

I loved the Christmas wreaths everywhere, and pine brances for sale

Went into a tail spin in the large department stores, there was just so much Christmas stuff that I love, a whole section on advents - modern and traditional - oh if I only had more luggage space

It was only about 3 degrees this day, but still pretty chilly, and fun to see the ice skating set up at one of the markets

This is an oversized traditional pyramid decoration similar to my special Christmas purchase that we got from the Kathe Wohlfahrt store

Wonderful wood smoke smells as people sit around open fires with hot drinks and wine

Lisbon

Arrived from Berlin to Lisbon on Saturday afternoon and treated ourselves to a taxi into town, seeing as we had saved €50 in Berlin using the local transport to get out to the SXF airport.

Arrived in warm sunshine, but it quickly got cold as the evening approached.

Had a smashing meal at a local restaurant. I scored best with the freshest fried bass fish with a great serving of beans and sweet boiled potatoes. I ordered a jug of Sangria, at only €8 and this went down far to fast and easy, but it was a bit too sweet. While we were eating a few old guys came in and had wines at the counter, and I noticed one had a topping of sprite in his, so this might explain the sweet sangria. 

We had a great little apartment in the Graca area, with a cute local market selling hand made local crafts, and the 28 tram went down the steep hills into town. 

We picked up a few supplies at the local supermarket, and I stood flummoxed at the small wine selection wondering just what to choose with most at €1.99 up to €5.99. I guess at that price if I picked a dud we could grab another bottle. On the way home we picked up some crossiants at one of the many bakeries in our street ready for tomorrow's brekky. 

The next morning we headed into town for a wander around. We passed great little restaurants, and at one they were busy arranging the seafood selection for the day on ice at the front of the store, and the octopus was still moving. There's not much fresher than that. 

We had a great morning shopping, and I was in seventh heaven with a crazy variety of funky nativity sets with heather working hard to tactlfully pull the reins and keep our day within budget. The shopping was awesome, the food fantastic, the prices great, the architecture old and and interesting, the graffiti amazing, and the coffee good AND cheap, always a bonus with us, especially when it comes with a wondrous selection of sweet pastry treats. We love portugals custard tarts. 

These trams clang and rattle and it's hard work if you don't get a seat and have to stand as it twists a jolts around steep hills, tight corners and narrow street. But they're great!

Gorgeous tiles over many of the old buildings

Bacalhau- the dried salted cod the Portugese love

One day in Vienna

Amazing gingerbread houses on display. Enjoyed a gingerbread log filled with fruit and marzipan.

Though we had arrived late in the afternoon the previous day, we only had 1 full day to get out and see the city. 

Queen Maria Theresea, Archduchess of Austria, Queen of Hungary and Croatia from 1740-1780 stood in the middle of the market at the peak of a stupendous statue. She was a ruler who loved her husband, had 16 children - whom she directed to marry for political benefits regardless of her own experience of marriage - and for whom Mozart played for at the tender age of 6, but didn't impress her when he gave her an impromptu kiss. 

Memorial to the murdered Jews of Europe 

Vienna Arrival

An early morning start to get to the bus terminal, and in just an easy 3 hour journey we were in Vienna. We had managed to eek out the last of the Hungarian forints so we didn't waste too much, leaving just enough change for a loo stop and a coffee at the bus station. We snacked on delicious cheese and fruit and nut paste from the market, and some mini bite sized scone type breads I picked up from a bread stand just before boarding - hot from the oven.

The temperature had been dropping over the past week, and getting dark by 4:30, but we checked into the hotel, quickly wrapped up warmly and went out exploring as this was a quick stop over, just 2 nights. The hotel gave directions into the old quarter, and the general direction for the Christmas markets I had selected. But when we got off the underground, we came up into a mostly deserted section of town. Our brains seemed to have trouble interpreting the maps, I think the shock of the cold air. A nice young guy explained we had come too far, so back to the station and try again. By the time we emerged above ground again, it was truly dark, but the glow of lights made it clear where to head.

The first christmas market was noted as especially for children and families, and had the feel of a Rudolf Steiner affair, with a more alternate theme. The merry go round was a clever contraption of old bike parts, scooters, birdcages and barrels, and was turned by two outside single wheeled bikes that the dads peddled. The food was all freshly cooked, and we started snacking on the delicious flat fried bread, smeared with tart berries and icing sugar and more hot red wine as we strolled around. The centre area was a large train ride, where the kids peddled thier own train around the track, and others played in the huge piles of straw. 

Next we moved on to a larger market set below a large church. The Christmas lights here were Spectacular, with the large bare trees lit with huge displays, cupcakes, lady birds, candy canes etc. there were pony rides, indoor cookie baking areas for children, open fire pits around stands and lots of good food, beer and wine. This was a huge market and despite the cold, took awhile to get around, before tired and cold, we headed back to the hotel, remembering our station stop of Pilgrim. 

Funky merrygoround that the adults peddle aroun to turn

We love Prague

We thoroughly enjoyed our time in Prague, had the perfectly location, walked many Kilometers of cobbled streets - which are a killer on your feet by end of the day, though they do add charm to old towns and cities. 

Here we decided to do a Communisim Tour, and had an excellent guide. The young women reminded me so much of our Hana, in looks and passion. She was just 1 year old when her parents took her to the huge public demonstration in the final days of the socialist regime. Here her father held her up as she along with thousands of others jangled their keys in celebration. 

The history she gave was fascinating and completely overroad  my usual impatience for walking tours. The highlight of course being the opportunity to descend into one of Pragues many nuclear bunkers. These we once part of regular life and preparation under Communisim during the cold war, with families all having their own gas masks at home, you could buy new models cheaply at the local supermarket. Monthly drills preparing the people were required, though our guide believed that the bunkers were now mostly forgotten. We were only able to see the first levels underground, as the shelter is apparently still kept intact and operational, ready if needed, though she sceptically explained that the apparatus was untested and probably not modernised. And few people knew they still existed, but she held a set of keys! Her overall message was scathing of the entire defence system, highlighting that the bunkers were probably just a large part of the propaganda machine, as they only provided for 2 weeks of survival, then citizens were reportedly to be transported to a "safe zone". This bunker could accommodate thousands of people, but each person was only allocated .5 of a square meter space and the ratio of toilets per person were scary. The toilets were designed to have no doors, just a curtain, to restrict citizens from commandeering  them, and to reduce suicide risks, were fitted with short weak string for the flusher cord! Not somewhere one would want to be holed up in extreme circumstances for too long.

The building once housed the nazi party, then the state police, and today's police.

Entrance to the bunker - the first level also able to be hired out for nightclubs and parties!

There is some funky weird artwork around the city - this is the hanging man ?!! I think done by the same artist who put giant crawling babies up the television tower. 

A few left overs from the Cold War.

Some of the high tech children's gas mask suits. The babies requires someone to pump the foot peddle every 15 seconds. But still seemed an improvement on some of the other options.

An example of a family, however they are using way more than there available space, and hopefully wouldn't need the gas masks inside the bunker - unless the ventilation system fails...

1950's photoshopping to remove unwanted images of those who fell out of favour with the party line.

LAST DAY IN PRAGUE

We spent our last day in Prague exploring the Jewish quarter. Once housing a vast Jewish population with many synagogues, this population is mostly gone following the extermination  during the nazi regime, and subsequent socialist governments. 

Below Is the old Jewish cemetery which has at least 6 layers of graves as Jewish lore does not permit the removal of graves and so as space was required they just layered more earth to accommodate the burial grounds, hence the dense headstones.

Interesting visits to the Jewish museums that housed and displayed information about the Burial Societies, and daily life. 

Beautiful architecture around the Jewish quarter.