A Rick Steve's tour is truly Europe through the Back Door
So the first question you'll probably get is "Why do you want to go there?" It happened to us too. But the simple answer is...."Because we want to experience Eastern Europe before it becomes too Western Europe"
Our impression of Eastern Europe is how its people maintain a sense of history with an eye to the future.
This tour was an outstanding opportunity to see countries that growing up 40 years ago we only heard stories about. It was our opportunity to get a sense of what these people lived through during WWII, the communist's reign and how they have changed since the Iron Curtain fell and the beginning of their new capitalistic systems. In fact, it was amazing to learn of all the occupations, invasions, and coups that these people endured over the past centuries. It was our opportunity to meet and blend with the countries cultures and the people.
Traveling by bus allowed us to see small villages and large cities. Incredible vistas of the mountains and sleepy valleys with rivers and waterfalls. It was amazing to pass by industrial buildings housing divisions of companies Ken works with in North America. And it brought a sense of realism driving by buildings and homes still bearing the scars of bullets from past conflicts. At the same time new construction and rebuilding is everywhere. Streets and highways were being updated, buildings were being rehabilitated and brought into the 21st century. Sky cranes were everywhere in the major cities as new construction is changing the skylines.
We were constantly engaged with stories from our tour guide, bus driver and local guides not only about the long and fascinating history of each place we visited but also about life both during and after the Iron Curtain fell. It was amazing to learn that everyone in the Czech Republic has the opportunity to further their education if they have the ability to meet entrance requirements with the cost paid for by the state. Even our guide's Granny was able to become a Medical Doctor while in her 70's. During our visit to Hungary we were stunned to hear our local guide say that she had never seen a Russian soldier in Budapest when she was growing up because they stayed within their camps. And who wouldn't be amazed to know that the salt mine outside Krakow, Poland had been producing salt for almost 1,200 years.
The elegance of Krakow will pull you in and embrace you with it's incredible beauty. The main square calls you in to sit, sip an espresso, enjoy a beer, listening to the bugler playing every hour from St. Mary's watchtower. The Island of Rab in Croatia will be your time to inhale the wonder of the Adriatic Coast, maybe taking in a concert in the square. If fact you will find yourself enjoying concerts, mimes, street performers everywhere on this tour. Finish off this tour with a long relaxing walk around Lake Bled. But remember to walk counterclockwise around the lake because that's how the "locals" do it.
But during this entire tour there seemed to be one recurring theme that held true of almost every stop. The persecution of the Jewish people and the undesirable non-Jewish people, not just during WWII but long before that as well. Every city had its own "ghetto". These people had been segregated by the other local people for centuries living in defined areas and allowed only to do business with each other. The tour of Auchwitz/Birkenau was humbling and a bit frightening. After touring Schindler's Factory along with various ghettos in other cities one begins to wonder HOW this atrocity could happen? After reflection we couldn't help but think of the old phrase "If one ignores history one is bound to repeat it"
SO do we recommend this tour......ABSOLUTELY! We have visited other areas of Europe and Scandinavia, this was a unique and incredibly interesting trip. The countries are beautiful and the people are warm and welcoming.
Our impression of Eastern Europe is how its people maintain a sense of history with an eye to the future.
This tour was an outstanding opportunity to see countries that growing up 40 years ago we only heard stories about. It was our opportunity to get a sense of what these people lived through during WWII, the communist's reign and how they have changed since the Iron Curtain fell and the beginning of their new capitalistic systems. In fact, it was amazing to learn of all the occupations, invasions, and coups that these people endured over the past centuries. It was our opportunity to meet and blend with the countries cultures and the people.
Traveling by bus allowed us to see small villages and large cities. Incredible vistas of the mountains and sleepy valleys with rivers and waterfalls. It was amazing to pass by industrial buildings housing divisions of companies Ken works with in North America. And it brought a sense of realism driving by buildings and homes still bearing the scars of bullets from past conflicts. At the same time new construction and rebuilding is everywhere. Streets and highways were being updated, buildings were being rehabilitated and brought into the 21st century. Sky cranes were everywhere in the major cities as new construction is changing the skylines.
We were constantly engaged with stories from our tour guide, bus driver and local guides not only about the long and fascinating history of each place we visited but also about life both during and after the Iron Curtain fell. It was amazing to learn that everyone in the Czech Republic has the opportunity to further their education if they have the ability to meet entrance requirements with the cost paid for by the state. Even our guide's Granny was able to become a Medical Doctor while in her 70's. During our visit to Hungary we were stunned to hear our local guide say that she had never seen a Russian soldier in Budapest when she was growing up because they stayed within their camps. And who wouldn't be amazed to know that the salt mine outside Krakow, Poland had been producing salt for almost 1,200 years.
The elegance of Krakow will pull you in and embrace you with it's incredible beauty. The main square calls you in to sit, sip an espresso, enjoy a beer, listening to the bugler playing every hour from St. Mary's watchtower. The Island of Rab in Croatia will be your time to inhale the wonder of the Adriatic Coast, maybe taking in a concert in the square. If fact you will find yourself enjoying concerts, mimes, street performers everywhere on this tour. Finish off this tour with a long relaxing walk around Lake Bled. But remember to walk counterclockwise around the lake because that's how the "locals" do it.
But during this entire tour there seemed to be one recurring theme that held true of almost every stop. The persecution of the Jewish people and the undesirable non-Jewish people, not just during WWII but long before that as well. Every city had its own "ghetto". These people had been segregated by the other local people for centuries living in defined areas and allowed only to do business with each other. The tour of Auchwitz/Birkenau was humbling and a bit frightening. After touring Schindler's Factory along with various ghettos in other cities one begins to wonder HOW this atrocity could happen? After reflection we couldn't help but think of the old phrase "If one ignores history one is bound to repeat it"
SO do we recommend this tour......ABSOLUTELY! We have visited other areas of Europe and Scandinavia, this was a unique and incredibly interesting trip. The countries are beautiful and the people are warm and welcoming.
Dekuji Katka, Hvala Bojan, Thank you to our tour friends, Rick Steves and staff
This quote sums up what you did for us during this trip:
This quote sums up what you did for us during this trip:
"Our days are identical suitcases-all the same size-but some people can pack more into them than others"
- Bits & Pieces
You definitely pulled back the curtain to Eastern Europe, leaving us with wanting more. You scratched "the itch" we had and with this trip Europe finally feels complete.
A few tips we took in preparing for this trip
|
Need more space or less weight in your suitcase?
We used our Rick Steve's convertible backpack, love the suggestion to buy what you need in country, used compression packs to make more room, used packing cubes, used binders for our guidebooks, didn't pack a hairdryer as our hotels websites listed them as an amenity.
We used our Rick Steve's convertible backpack, love the suggestion to buy what you need in country, used compression packs to make more room, used packing cubes, used binders for our guidebooks, didn't pack a hairdryer as our hotels websites listed them as an amenity.