Sun. June 21-Returning and Reflecting: Arising at 5:00 to have our
bags in the hallway by 5:30am some doing but everything went without a hitch.
The hotel gave us early risers a bag breakfast and put us on a shuttle to the
airport. On the short flight from Prague to Amsterdam they surprised us with a
sandwich and drinks. We flew on a 747 again out of Amsterdam which, with its
personal entertainment screens, makes even a 7 hour flight seem shorter. They
fed us a main meal and later a snack of ice cream and then a cinnamon roll.
Back in the USA I was pulled out to have my luggage screened but then joined
the others. The shuttle bus came in about 15 minutes and we boarded for the
trip back to Valparaiso. On the way Pat ordered a pizza, which we picked up and
ate before slowly making our way to bed. Ross was the first to go at 7:15 while
the rest of us worked on computer stuff. We had been up for 21 hours straight
by then but didn't want to go to bed too early for fear we would be up
according to Prague time. It had been a great trip!
**It was interesting to get the
different perspectives on the Soviet rule in various countries. Granted, they
were individual opinions from the guides but the consensus was that their time
was drab and unwanted by the people of each country. They ran the gamut from
Romania and Bulgaria, where they said they joked and made fun of the Soviets
and just waited them out, to Hungary, where we heard the most animosity.
Several could name good things, like full employment, but more bad things, like
gray buildings everywhere and it taking years to qualify to buy a car. In
Slovenia and Czech Republic, particularly, they have painted the identical
buildings in bright colors to differentiate and make them more attractive.
**Characters I will remember
include Sim and Phyl, whom we really hope to see again; Harry, the still
handsome but aging single man with blond hair and capped teeth who had an
obvious “cruise fling" and then went on the extension without his new
partner; Fred, who learned our names early and made us feel like we connected
with him by using them; Irv and Shirley, from Jackson, MI; and the salty New
Orleans mother named Honey, who travels with her daughter, Honey B, and Barry,
a man they met in 1991 on a cruise and now accompanies them regularly. Honey
announced that everyone agrees that, "If Mom goes down, grab her
purse!"
**Spending time in cities that
were established in the first century by the Romans, or the 8th century by the
Habsburgs, takes my breath away. I marvel at the walls and churches that are
still standing after more than 1000 years, and sometimes 2000 years.
**The smell of the Balkans for me
will be the Linden Trees (also called Basswood or Lime) that were in full bloom
everywhere we went. Their fragrance was heavenly and it’s easy to see why it is
the National Tree of so many of the countries we visited.
**For historical interest, while
we were there in June of 2015:
·
1 US Dollar=3.99 Romanian Ron
1 Euro=4.43 Ron
·
1 US Dollar=1.75 Bulgarian Leva (LEV)
1 Euro=1.95 LEV
·
1 US Dollar=106.07 Serbian Dinar (RSD)
1 Euro=120.49
RSD
·
1 US Dollar=6.7 Croatian Kuna (HRK)
1 Euro=7.5 HRK
·
1 US Dollar=277 Hungarian Forints (HUF)
1 Euro=311 HUF
1 US Dollar= Euro
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