trains

Budapest, Hungary

Published September 26, 2019

Budapest

Uber for 4 to Vienna’s Haupt Bahnhof, first-class train stubs to Budapest-Keleti. FIRST CLASS. Yep, that’s how this family rolls. Day 2. Hungary. Land of the Magyar & Zsa Zsa Gabor.

BUDAPEST. Warmer day temps, no head-to-toe apparel. Jacket/scarf/sweater (Austrians love to bundle). Goulash & paprika, swarmy & humid. More litter, less cookie-cutter colour.

Day’s all-star player: Sis’ husband, Paul. I’m a good navigator, this dude’s a GPS pro. Metro traffic, foreign language, street-signs pasted sides-of-buildings – EU’s 10^th largest city. Notta problem.

Hop-on Hop-off bus pass, all the city sights. Gotta/hafta/must: Buda Castle, St. Stephen’s Basilica.

BUDA CASTLE. Rode the vernacular UP. Castle indoors, renovation-closed. Outdoor walk-about? BESTEST views of the city. Parliament Building & St. Stephen’s high across the Danube.

Day’s all-star climb? Thin spiral staircase UP UP inside St. Stephen’s dome. Life memory ❤️

5 o’clock Hop-off & a fast-paced city-mile jog to Keleti. Got a train to catch? Paul’s absolute your guy. On-time/early with 10 minutes to spare. ‘Nuf time for a Hungarian Mickey D’s heart-attack. Truth. Menu-pointed, language-struggled but SCORE – little taste of USA for the train ride home 😊

Tomorrow: VIENNA, Austria’s capital gem. St Louis in da house! Morning Fleet-Feet run planned to Riesenrad (city’s skyline Ferris Wheel). Sisi Museum. Schönbrunn Palace. The Hofburg.

More Americans, more laughs, even more adventure.

: Keleti Station

: Heroes’ Square

: Hop-on Hop-off

: Széchenyi Chain Bridge

: Liberty Statue

: Castle Hill Funicular

: Prince Eugene of Savoy

: Oroszlános Gate

: St. Stephen’s Basilica

: Parliament Building

: McMenu 🍔

: Budapest Day ❤️

: Welcome to Hungary

St. Stephen’s Basilica

: Twelve Apostles

: UP inside the DOME

: FOREVER memory

Budapest, Hungary

Posted in Europe | Tagged kyrkan, museo, rivers-lakes, trains | Leave a comment

Bratislava, Slovakia

Published September 25, 2019

Bratislava

3 European capitals in 3 days. Each their own Habsburg drama, every capital a CASTLE.

Downstairs at 8am, piled-in our driver’s 4-door, crossed EU borders an hour later. Country farms, brightly-coloured town centers. Every 6 years, Austrian gov’t helps subsidize a fresh bucket of paint.

Welcome to Slovakia. Hand-off to Luba at Bratislava Castle (Bratislavský hrad). Likeable gal, our guide – but think Sis signed us for the Brainiac edition. 3 hours later, I’d be JEOPARDY ready.

Slovakian authors. Beethoven recitals. Fall of the Austro-Hungarian empire. The Socialist era. Communists. year Czech & Slovak cultures nationalized. So much info. Breathe, Luba, breathe.

Bratislava Castle wow’d. Built high above the Danube. Panoramic view of the Slovak capital. Picturesque gardens. Cathedrals. Cobblestone filled our path DOWN to city center.

Restaurants, flowers, shopping & CHOCOLATE. We’d backtrack here after exams 🙂

Bestest weather. Mix of sun, comfortable temps. Authentic Slovak dining; Maria Theresa stories came to an end. Whatta wealth of knowledge! “I think you know” – well, I certainly do now, Luba.

Unplugged, brain off, bring on the chocolate. Warm BOWL of it, please. Strawberries, coconut, banana, mountain berry toppings – red chiles my personal pick (dig spice in my life) 🌶️

Train station find on Google, one-way ticket back to Vienna. Hotel-home for schnitzel.

Tomorrow: Budapest. A Hungarian Hop on-Hop off adventure awaits.

: Bratislava Castle (907 A.D.)

: Danube River overlook

: St. Martin’s Cathedral

: Welcome to Slovakia

: ‘UFO’ Bridge

: Michael’s Gate

: Slovak-Magyar-Deutsch

: Old Town Hall

: traditional Bratislava roll

: Slovak National Theatre (Opera)

: post-TOUR reward

: hot CHOCOLATE 🌶️

: SCHNITZEL dinner

Bratislava (short 15-sec clip)

Posted in Europe | Tagged kyrkan, museo, rivers-lakes, trains | Leave a comment

Deadwood Day

Published June 1, 2019

Lotta planning goes into completing a 50 State journey.

Work, home life, travel, weather, expense. Places you wanna see, times of year you wanna see ’em. Running all the continents, all of Canada (ok, maybe that’s just me). But – when down to your last dozen states, ya start thinkin’: Where am I gonna finish? Like picking a burial plot, kinda a big deal. My first Quest was super strategized/organized/planned. Since marathon 10, knew my journey would end in Colorado. No HOME TURF REPEAT – May’s Colfax medal was Colorado #18.

Fast forward 2019. South Dakota or Wyoming. Just two states left, west of the Mississippi. Seemed poetic to complete at Bighorn (after 2 fails). Then, Pistol (in March). Far too much (self-imposed) pressure to finish BIG at goal races. Finish, finish with a smile. Go there & enjoy the day. Still registered, flying to Sheridan, running mid-June but… taking the mental outta Bighorn this year.

CHOSE the Black Hills of South Dakota for my Round 2 finish.

Scenic, historic. Right time of year & only 5 hours from my Colorado front door.

Land of Wild Bill Hickok. Lived/breathed THREE WEEKS here, yet he’s Deadwood immortalized (gunned down, buried here). Statues, billboards, black-n-white museum pics, name of my downtown Hotel. Not your typical marathoner journey (casinos, booze, cigarettes). But…the Wild West it is.

Deadwood Mickelson Trail, a runner favourite. More folks race-registered than town residents. Will complete marathon ONE HUNDRED FIFTY tomorrow. Add to the list; it’s a good one.

3 highway hours Friday, sleeps in Lusk [Wyoming]. Chuck wagon omelette, minutes from the border. South Dakota: Great Faces, Great Places. Bib pick-up, hotel check-in – all business done – 1pm ticket, Boot Hill bus tour (cash only please). Wild West stories. Gold claims, poker cheats, saloon girls, a U.S. President & the death of Wild Bill Hickok. Railroad Museum, Adams Museum, Days of ’76 Museum, a shootout on Main Street. Pre-race HISTORY NERD holiday, LOVE LOVED! Deadwood Social Club for dinner ❤️

5:30am, look for the trolley. 50 State road ends in Deadwood. SOUTH DAKOTA!