A Broad Abroad

On our travels we had stops of a few hours in Bratislava, Slovakia, (from Vienna to Budapest),and Zagreb, Croatia, (between Budapest and Ljubljana). We have friends here who lived in Bratislava for 6 years before coming to Italy. They had told us that though it is the capital of Slovakia, there isn't much to see. Being vegetarians they also said the food, typical in all this area of the world - pork, pork and more pork - was terrible. Well they were right on the first count. Apart from a tiny "old town" center, Bratislava is drab and depressing. It is very run down and so are the very few people we saw around. I guess when Slovakia broke away from the Czech Republic, the innovators and moneyed people headed to Prague which is lovey and prosperous. We did stop for a snack at a nice historic cafe in the main square. They had a window full of beautiful cakes like in Austria but like in Austria the look better than they taste. I know it is probably my American need for overly fatty. sweet things but the famous desserts in this area all taste like whipped cream. Give me New York Cheese Cake people! Better yet, Southern Pecan Pie! And drizzle it with chocolate while you're at it!! Sorry, I digress.

So, many European countries require that you buy a Highway Pass called a "Vignette", (why it's called that is beyond me), as opposed to paying tolls on their highways. It makes sense as it's faster and cheaper but the problem lies in BUYING them. They can only be purchased by licensed dealers who in one country might be located in a little building hiding behind a gas station/truck-stop near the border where in the next country may be parked in a van on the side of the road. One never knows and must be constantly vigilant! Of course the signs are usually not written in any language but their own and the little "Vignette" symbol is often so small, it's easy to miss the only purchase point entirely. The border between Austria and Slovakia was especially tricky. There is a corner where Austria, Hungary and Slovakia all meet. Missing our first chance to buy a Slovakian Vignette hiding as it was behind an abandoned shack near the border, we had to turn around, somehow ending up in Hungary (twice) before finding our way back into Austria miles from where we started, accruing tickets the entire way probably because our Vignette for Austria had expired and we didn't yet have them for Hungary OR Croatia. We have spent the last week dreading the mailman.

The scenery driving was interesting. Firstly, Germany, Austria, Hungary and even Slovakia have fields and fields of windmills for producing energy. These are countries that don't know what wind is. Imagine what Maine could do... Austria is mostly mountains and the drive through was lovely. It wasn't Alpine beauty though. In fact there was no snow just a lot of mist and clouds down in the valleys that froze at night and left villages and fields and trees covered in thick frost. It was very cool. I would hate to live in those valley villages though. Those people don't see sun 6 months a year and damn, is it damp and cold.

After Budapest we went to Zagreb, the capital of Croatia. At the border we were stopped by the Hungarian police and our documents and luggage and auto were all checked. (GP DOES look a bit shifty). The Hungarians and the Croatians are very anti-immigration and this huge influx of refugees has only hardened their stance. They thought we had illegals stashed in with our spare tire. Eastern Hungary and into Croatia the landscape was really bleak. There were huge, flat, completely empty expanses covered in snow and it was very cold. It made me think of Russian Gulag movies. Not a place to get stuck. Zagreb isn't much to write home about. I'd heard it was lovely and maybe under different circumstances it would be. We were tired and cold and it had started to spit snow. There is a tiny upper town that has not yet seen revitalization. It's very rundown and sad looking. The lower town looked to have some nice streets but it had that heavy, depressed feeling you get driving through Augusta or Lewiston in the winter. xxoo me