Wien

It seems that with each post I write and with each place I visit, the sites and buildings are increasingly 'majestic' and 'amazing' (I keep running out of synonyms for those two particular adjectives because everything I've been able to experience has been so). Even Dresden found it's place on this chronological scale of ascending grandness. I think the perpetual increase in awe that comes with each weekend destination reflects the impressive nature of most European cities (barring Bratislava) and has little to do with the order in which I visited them. Vienna, on the other hand, defies this. Of all the cities I've seen, the royal complexes in Vienna are the most opulent. The lavishness of the half dozen or so palaces in the capitol of Austria speaks to the wealth and power of the Hapsburg family, who ruled considerable portions of Europe from the 13th Century until World War I. Their 'summer palace' in Prague is one of the largest buildings in the city, so imagine the scale and luxury of their imperial headquarters (it puts the Rockefeller and Carnegie summer homes in Newport to absolute shame).

Molly's third trip to Prague of the semester fell on the same long weekend that our apartment turned into a hostel; eight friends of our roommates' descended on us from all over the continent in one big Tulane reunion. The first few days were great fun, but the two of us opted out of more of the Eastern European club scene for a more relaxing weekend in Vienna, which is only a four hour train ride from Prague. The city, which had just received its first significant snowfall of the year, was alive with Holiday life. The Ringstrasse, a famous five kilometer boulevard that circumnavigates the center of the city was alight with decorations and Christmas spirit. Because the sheer volume of the city's royal, musical, and academic sites is so overwhelming, Molly and I decided that a bus tour was the most efficient way to experience all that Vienna had to offer in our short visit. The hop-on, hop-off style of the tour gave us not only the freedom to explore different locations at our discretion, but a chance to thaw out in between jaunts. The numerous gardens, palaces, opera houses, university buildings, and seasonal markets jam-packed our two-day agenda and reinforced Vienna's reputation as one of the top five most visited cities in the World. The Schonbrunn Palace and St. Steven's Cathedral are among the most famous sites in a city unrivaled in its grandeur, but my favorite place in Vienna was the Hofburg Palace and its surrounding gardens. We walked around the massive building for what seemed like miles, amazed at the elaborate carvings and construction of each of its numerous entrances. The demographics of the tourist population that visits a particular city offer telling insight into that destination's character. The groups of hammered English guys that frequent Prague and the hordes of American teenagers that flock to Amsterdam speak to their respective reputations. Similarly, the older English and American couples that we encountered on the streets of Vienna reflect its quieter disposition. The cost of living might have also had something to do with the absence of college students...

Molly and I in front of the Hofburg Palace. Although we were only in Vienna for two nights, Molly brought 46 kilograms of clothes, boots, and other bags-and guess who carried it? However, pretending I was a fully loaded paratrooper about to jump made sightseeing much more entertaining...

A lack of sunlight in my own picture of the Schonbrunn Palace (below) didn't do the structure the visual justice it deserves. The first picture at the top of this post is an image from the internet and better represents its size and stately ora. The Hapsburgs had this obnoxious rule that once someone of Hapsburg blood stayed in a room for a night, no one from the family could reoccupy it, so the structure was under constant construction and expansion. My family has this obnoxious rule that once someone uses a plate or utensils, they must be washed before touching another Carpenter meal or mouth. I guess that wasn't haughty enough for Molly as she explicitly told me that it wouldn't be a difficult choice were she to find an Austrian prince. 

The birth and climax of classical music, personified by history's most renowned composers-Mozart, Beethoven, Strauss, among others, all of whom spent most of their lives in the nurturing care of the Hapsburgs-occurred in Vienna. Molly and I had the opportunity to see a classical concert, and despite the fact that we were the youngest couple in the audience by at least fifteen years, it was a once in a lifetime experience. Although Molly had her heart set on Beethoven's Third Symphony in E Flat, the concert we had sufficed. Above to the left is the pedestrian sidewalk of the Ringstrasse, the circular boulevard that circumscribes Vienna's most important blocks, and to the right is a shot of one of the city's many Christmas markets.

Once again, apologies for such a belated post; final papers, exams, and a lack of internet in Italy have hindered my efforts to keep this blog updated. Even Molly's urging me to complete the Vienna post, which was "just about her," wasn't enough, but more is soon to come. Posts about our trip to a Czech ski town, my trip with Molly to Italy, and a reflection are forthcoming. In the meantime, Merry Christmas and safe travels throughout the Holiday season!

A Cesky Thanksgiving

I was a little discouraged about spending the Holiday season outside the comfort and traditions of the American Christmas experience, but after an unbelievable home cooked meal in the apartment on Thanksgiving and spending time in Old Town Square's world-renowned Christmas market, I think the Czechs might just have a clue. For a country where religion plays a very minor role in everyday life, (30% of the population declared in a 2005 Eurobarometer poll that they "did not believe in any sort of spirit, god, or life spirit") the Holidays usher in an energetic atmosphere of lights, decorations, and music. Old Town and Wenceslas Square have been transformed into Christmas markets, a Rockefeller Center worthy tree has been erected and decorated, and the Czechs seem a little less suspicious of everything. Christmas spirit is in the air.

For me, Thanksgiving in the States always marks the beginning of the joyous Christmas season, just as New Years summons its somber conclusion. I was worried that, in the absence of the meal, the beginning of the season would be blurred and I would miss everything. Luckily, I live with some amazing cooks who salvaged Thanksgiving from the throes of Central European culture. Unfortunately, I cannot take any credit for the tremendous meal they prepared, but am proud simply by association. I did, however, purchase some candles with a little Autumn flair to bring full circle the apartment's Holiday atmosphere. Paul pre-ordered and prepared a 16-pound turkey, made stuffing inside and outside of the bird, and championed cranberry sauce, gravy, and mashed potatoes. Lana and Emma made homemade pumpkin soup (starting with the pumpkins), mashed sweet potatoes, brussels sprouts, a Lebanese rice dish, and green beans. The one thing that was not prepared in our little kitchen was a pumpkin buy the girls purchased at a local bakery to accompany the homemade apple strudel and whipped cream Lana made for dessert. It felt just like being at home, especially when I was kicked out of the kitchen at crunch time...

The table in all of its Holiday glory. Note the candles and the symmetry they reinforce. To celebrate, we indulged and bought $4.00 bottles of wine.

Lana on the left laboring over the pumpkin soup. Several of our roommates were out of town or out to eat with their families who were visitng, but they still had to cook for eight with the limitations of a humble kitchen and small oven. Paul's beautiful bird on the right. It was his first turkey and was prepared with no guidance but that from and online recipe. Thanks to Paul's culinary brilliance, it was delicious.

The Daugherty clan, in full force, arrived Wednesday morning to visit Tucker for a few days. Tucker's older sister, Nina, studied in Prague through the same program four years ago, so she was excited to visit her ol' stompin' grounds. My mom and Deb's time in Prague overlapped just one day so we made the most of our time together in a pub. Mr. and Mrs. Daugherty, both SLU class of 1975 rounded out the Larry presence in Prague at six, deeming Tucker's younger brother, Tate, the outcast. On Saturday, the Daughertys invited me to join them on their trip to Ceske Krumlov, a small Czech down two hours south of Prague. We had been told that Ceske Krumlov, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, is one of the prettiest towns in this part of Europe. Needless to say, our expectations were thoroughly met. The town, nestled in the Czech hills remained untouched by the hand of communist architects, and is one a few places in Central Europe that reflects Bohemian life before the Communist ascent to power in the late 1940's. The town and surrounding setting were truly stunning and the thin layer of clean snow that had just fallen on the region increased the feeling of nostalgia in the air.

2010 Christmas Card: The Daugherty family above Ceske Krumlov. From left to right: Tucker, older sister Nina, younger brother Tate, followed by Mrs. and Mr. (SLU class of 1975).

In the period between the First and Second World Wars, Czechoslovakia boasted the 7th highest GDP in the world. To give you a sense of the country's economic potential before WWII and a half Century under communist rule, the seventh largest economy in the world today is the United Kingdom. Today, the Czech Republic and Slovakia are by no means rich nations; Prague's splendor reveals an urban-rural cleavage that has become an important political, social, and economic issue in a region where per capita income is less than half of that enjoyed in the States. The skeletal remains of an abandoned industrial infrastructure, the physical indicators of lingering economic problems, dot the countryside and taint the landscape's inherent beauty. Small towns, although pretty and quaint in part, always reflect a level of poverty and stagnation in the dilapidated, crumbling buildings that line certain streets. Ceske Krumlov, on the other hand, preserved by its value as a tourist destination offers a look at what many of Czechoslovakia's towns and cities may have looked like before WWII.

The Daughertys rented a big van for the trek to Ceske Krumlov and the drive down reminded me of the "Sweet Child O Mine" scene from Step Brothers. If you haven't seen the movie, watch the clip below if you want to get a sense of our car ride...

Step Brothers Family Car Ride

Christmas wasn't the only holiday being celebrated at 25 Ve Smechach. Below, Eddie and the two Andrews lighting the Menorah on the first night of Chanukah. The evening was complete with potato pancakes (pictured below) and song.

The first significant snow storm in Prague this Winter dropped about eight inches and drew out the children in all of us. The winter weather was rather magical for a few days until we found out that the local governments don't have room in their budgets for snow removal. If you look closely on the left, you can see all of Lana that wasn't covered with snow. The picture on the right is mid-take down in a street brawl outside our apartment. Because both girls were wearing cotton sweatpants, there wasn't a winner.

To get to know my roommates, whose names often appear in the different posts, here's a shot of (almost) everyone in our apartment. To clarify, everyone in the photo is from Tulane except for Paul and I. From left to right: Emma, Paul (the Thanksgiving cook), me, Mike (Danielle's boyfriend, who was visiting from the States), Andrew Gilboard, Lana, Eddie, and Danielle. Only Tucker and Andrew Mandlebaum (pictured above in the Menorah photo wearing a red hat and shit) are missing. Tucker and I were incredibly lucky to have met this group during orientation and are going to miss them all when the semester is over. The dynamic in the apartment is a perfect blend of work and play, calm and crazy, quiet and loud, and I can't imagine living with a different group..