Stop #9 The High Tatras are the tallest range in the Carpathian Mountains. The range runs along the border of Poland and Slovakia. I wish I had taken more pictures of the towns that we drove through. Lots of ski resorts and unique looking buildings with high pitched roofs. Very beautiful place. And one […]
Stop #8 Today it is a museum housing the Crown Treasury & Armory, State Rooms, Royal and Private Apartments, Lost Wawel, and Exhibition of Oriental Art. We needed separate tickets for each of them, so we splurged and it was worth it! The State Rooms and the Private Apartments were the best part. The Cathedral […]
Stop #7 The first church built on the site of present day St Mary’s Basilica was built in the 1220s. The views from the tower are a real highlight and have amazing views of the whole city. On every hour, a trumpet signal is played from the top of Saint Mary’s towers. The song ends […]
Stop #6 By far, this is one of the prettiest cities I’ve ever seen. It rivals Prague and Budapest, which are both extraordinary. Highlights: Royal Wawel Castle and Cathedral – Today it is a museum housing the Crown Treasury & Armory, State Rooms, Royal and Private Apartments, Lost Wawel, and Exhibition of Oriental Art. We […]
Stop #5 Birkenau (Auschwitz II) is where most of the mass killings actually took place. The camp had more than 300 prison barracks. Still remaining are remnants of gas chambers and crematoria. At Birkenau from 1942 until late 1944, transport trains delivered Jews to the camp’s gas chambers from all over German-occupied Europe. Jews were […]
Stop #4 It is almost impossible or maybe even irresponsible to visit Krakow without taking a day trip to Auschwitz. We decided that we wanted to enjoy Krakow and ordered our trip to visit heartbreaking Auschwitz first. Auschwitz (Auschwitz 1) is the main camp. Birkenau (Auschwitz II) is the larger camp about 2 km away. […]
Stop #3 Orava Castle (Oravský hrad) sits on a high rock above the Orava river . Dating to the 13th century, Original design was in Romanesque and Gothic style, but it was later reconstructed as a Renaissance and Neo-Gothic building. It is now a National Monument. We were lucky to see it in autumn, with […]
Stop #2 Bojnice is a historical town in central Slovakia. The centerpiece is the Castle, built in the 12th century in Gothic and Renaissance style. The castle wasn’t open to visitors on Mondays, so we didn’t get to tour the inside, which was fine given the day we had planned! Bojnice Castle was originally built […]
Stop #1 We landed in Budapest and immediately rented a car to head to Bratislava, recognizing that we would spend plenty of time in Budapest at the tail end of the trip. We arrived in Bratislava as the sun was setting, and the three most obvious things we saw when we arrived were Bratislava Castle, […]