Warsaw, Poland ~ Resurrected from the ashes of World War II

Posted on May 28, 2014 by Tim and Joanne Joseph

Wednesday May 21st ~ Warsaw, Poland

Warsaw Old Town

Warsaw Old Town

With a population of 1.7 million people Warsaw is the capital of Poland.  During World War II, they were devastated with as much as 85% of their buildings destroyed.  Like a Phoenix, they have rebuilt and emerged as not only a restored city, but now the 9th largest city in the EU.

Chopin Monument, Lazienki Park

The Fryderyk Chopin Monument was a long time being erected, the Russians forbidding it and the First World War delaying the project further. It was only completed in 1926, during Poland’s Independence. In 1940 it was blown up by the Nazis and disappeared, but by 1958 had been copied from the original records and was back in place. Today this magnificent sculpture by Waclaw Szymanoski is one of Warsaw’s most famous symbols. Continue reading →

Posted in Europe, Poland | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Vilnius, Lithuania ~ Our ABC day, St Peter and Paul Church, St Anna’s Church, Trakai Castle

Posted on May 21, 2014 by Tim and Joanne Joseph

Monday May 19th- Vilnius, Lithuania

Fortress castle ruins that overlooks Vilnius

Fortress castle ruins that overlooks Vilnius

Morning city bus tour followed by a walking tour through the UNESCO protected Old Town portion of Vilnius.  It seems that Gate 1 has managed to connect the dots, taking us from one UNESCO site to the next.

Our guide, Agnes, said she would make sure this was not an ABC trip (ABC=Another Bloody Church).  I think she did not keep her promise today.  It is a good thing that I enjoy seeing churches. Continue reading →

Posted in Europe, Lithuania | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Vilnius, Lithuania ~ Tidbits about Lithuania and visiting the KGB Museum

Posted on May 19, 2014 by Tim and Joanne Joseph

Sunday May 18 – From Riga, Latvia to Vilnius, Lithuania

Gently rolling green hills

Gently rolling green hills as we entered Lithuania

It sure seems like we have spent a lot of time on buses lately.  I really don’t mind our travel days though.  Today we were on the road for around 4 hours.  Our time is broken up by looking at the beautiful scenery along the way, visiting with fellow travelers seated near us, listening to our guide, Agnes educate us about the local history and culture, take a nap, read, or play skip-bo on my iPad.

Agnes also entertained us with a music trivia game.  For our stellar efforts we were rewarded with a shot of the local liquor, 40% proof.  With an appropriate toast, it was down the hatch.

OMG, it did burn. Continue reading →

Posted in Europe, Lithuania | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Riga, Latvia ~ Art nouveau, snails, market place and blue cheese

Posted on May 18, 2014 by Tim and Joanne Joseph

Saturday May 17th ~ Riga, Latvia

a

The buildings of the Brotherhood of the Blackheads

One of the most famous people born in Riga is the brilliant dancer, Mikhail Baryshnikov.  

Old Town Riga is all about the architecture, and the style is mostly Art Nouveau.  The majority are dated from the late 19th or early 20th century.  One of the most famous architect/engineer here was Mikhail Eisenstein.

“Forty per cent of buildings in the centre of Riga belong to art nouveau, which is more than in other European cities. Moreover, art and architecture connoisseurs believe that it is in Riga that art nouveau found especially powerful and sweeping expression.” ~ http://www.latvia.travel

In fact Riga has over 800 Art Nouveau buildings! Continue reading →

Posted in Europe, Latvia | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 6 Comments

Estonia to Latvia ~ Learning the history, seeing the countryside

Posted on May 17, 2014 by Tim and Joanne Joseph

Friday May 16th ~ En route to Riga, Latvia

Rapeseed fields

Rapeseed fields

The majority of the day is spent on our bus traveling from Tallinn, Estonia to Riga, Latvia. Our seat assignment is front row, right behind the driver.  Gate 1 has a mandatory seat rotation so that every day you have a different location on the bus.  The seat assignment policy is quite controversial with some of our traveling companions.

We seem to have a good-natured group, and once again Continue reading →

Posted in Estonia, Europe, Latvia | Tagged , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Tallinn, Estonia ~ A day of resurrection and renewal

Posted on May 17, 2014 by Tim and Joanne Joseph

Thursday May 15th ~ Tallinn, Estonia

Poor little guy in the back had to run to keep up

Poor little guy in the back had to run to keep up

Today was really a quiet day for us.  A morning city tour with our group which covered much of the same area that we had already seen on our hop-on, hop-off bus.  It was followed by a walking tour through Old Town Tallinn.  After a few minutes of walking, Tim decided he was too cold and wanted to return to the hotel.

I’ve come to the realization Continue reading →

Posted in Estonia, Europe | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

Tallinn, Estonia ~ A free walking tour and time to meet our Gate 1 Group

Posted on May 14, 2014 by Tim and Joanne Joseph

Wednesday May 14th ~ The sun is shining in Tallinn, Estonia!

Gate 1 Tours 12 day Classic Baltics with Krakow itinerary

Gate 1 Tours 12 day Classic Baltics with Krakow itinerary

Next on our travel agenda is a Gate 1 tour that takes us from Estonia, through Latvia, Lithuania and ends in Krakow, Poland.  But before we meet up with our new group, we decided to take a FREE walking tour of Old Town Tallinn (a UNESCO World Heritage Site).

A few years ago Continue reading →

Posted in Estonia, Europe | Tagged , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Tallinn, Estonia ~ And I thought we would be following the sun…

Posted on May 14, 2014 by Tim and Joanne Joseph

Tuesday May 13th ~ Tallinn, Estonia

Where in the world is Estonia???

Where in the world is Estonia???

OK, so maybe I did not think this out very well.  I packed clothing primarily for warm, sunny weather.  Over the past few weeks, we have had rain on several occasions.  We are now the proud owners of two more umbrellas. Continue reading →

Posted in Estonia, Europe | Tagged , , , | 7 Comments

Venice to Estonia ~ Travel Day plus how to take a water taxi to/from the airport to Lido

Posted on May 13, 2014 by Tim and Joanne Joseph

Monday May 12 ~ On the road water and in the air again

I had not given it any thought before, but if there is an emergency on Venice and you need to get to the hospital, how do you get there?

By a boat ambulance of course!

Water (boat) ambulance

Water (boat) ambulance

Getting to the airport

To get from the island of Lido to the airport in Venice was quite easy.   Continue reading →

Posted in Estonia, Europe, Italy | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Murano, Italy ~ An island devoted to blown glass

Posted on May 11, 2014 by Tim and Joanne Joseph

Sunday May 11th ~ Murano, Italy

Venice islands map (courtesy of Wikipedia)

Venice islands map (courtesy of Wikipedia)

Today we once again took a water taxi from the island of Lido (see map above).  This time to the island of Murano.

“In 1291, all the glassmakers in Venice were forced to move to Murano due to the risk of fires.  In the following century, exports began, and the island became famous, initially for glass beads and mirrors.  Aventurine glass was invented on the island, and for a while Murano was the main producer of glass in Europe. The island later became known for chandeliers. Although decline set in during the eighteenth century, glassmaking is still the island’s main industry.” ~ Wikipedia

The island is little more than a collection of Continue reading →

Posted in Europe, Italy | Tagged , , , , | 11 Comments