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Balkan Express
Justiceiro
Registered Users Posts: 1,177 Major grins
I just spent three weeks on the rails from Mannheim to Istanbul. Actually, I got back about a month ago, but planning for christmas, trying to complete my intentionally crappy first novel, teaching and other things have prevented me from posting my account of the journey. So I'm putting this up to force myself to do it.
For now, here is one of my favorite shots. I'll spend the next week writing, processing, and posting.
In the meantime, I would appreciate it if Jacobevs would quit posting his images of Istanbul. Frankly, they are better than mine, and I find this irritating.
Get ready for THE BALKAN EXPRESS!!!!!!
(was that enough exclamation points, or shall I add more?)
For now, here is one of my favorite shots. I'll spend the next week writing, processing, and posting.
In the meantime, I would appreciate it if Jacobevs would quit posting his images of Istanbul. Frankly, they are better than mine, and I find this irritating.
Get ready for THE BALKAN EXPRESS!!!!!!
(was that enough exclamation points, or shall I add more?)
Cave ab homine unius libri
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My Favorite Photos - Chicago, NYC, DC, London, Prague, Alaska, Yellowstone, Glacier NP, Vermont, Mt. Rushmore, Badlands NP, The Appalachian Trail
The above statement by Alexis Carrel is as true today as when he said it in 1913, although the modes of travel one employs to get from here to there have changed radically- mostly for the better, but in some ways for the worse.<
I can begin my day sipping coffee at my Kitchen table, and by nightfall I could conceivably be almost anywhere in the world. Virtually every continent, with the exception of Antarctica, is reachable in less than a day’s travel- I can wake up in Germany and bed down anywhere from Kalispell to Kuala Lumpur.
In Carrel’s day, the main mode of travel (and the one he was referring to) was by rail. In most of the world Trains today are either lamentably forgotten (as in the United States) or seen as one of a variety of commuter transport (as in Europe). From the 1970’s onwards, and especially with the advent of budget airlines even in Europe, at the beginning of this decade, we usually find ourselves getting on a plane, and getting off somewhere else.
This allows us to get places quickly, and cheaply. But we’ve lost something along the way- the experience of the journey itself. Rail travel is still the best way to get somewhere and reflect upon the getting there. Unlike a plane, you can watch the landscape and the people slowly unfold before you, and unlike a car, you don’t have to watch out for other drivers. Riding the rails makes a trip into a journey, with all that this entails.
Signs like this fill the head with ideas that would make Uncle Owen and Aunt Beru weep amongst the wastes of Tatooine.
Years ago, in 1996, I had my personal railroad epiphany. I was standing in the Keleti Palyaudvar (Eastern Rail Station) in Budapest, looking at the old school metal departure board, its tiles clicking and rolling their way through destination after destination. The board announced that, from here, one could depart for Paris, Berlin, Moscow, or Istanbul. I felt as if Is could, instead of headign off to my boring statistics class, I could toss my briefcase in a trash bin, climb aboard one of the trains waiting in the yard, and be headed off to... anywhere, really. The whole world was accessible. All the crazy ass places you have ever wanted to go- there really not that crazy. Not really.
Of course, I didn't do that. I duly learned the importance of levels of significance, and z-scores, and all that other statistical claptrap. Information I can proudly state that I have never used from that day to this, nor do I ever intend to.
But the idea stayed with me. To travel to the edge of the world. Granted, I have a job, albeit one with flexible European vacation, so the edge of the world isn't really feasible. For one, I'm told (much to my surprise) that the world is apparently a sphere, and not a flat plane supported on the back of an infinite regression of celestial turtles, as I had supposed, so that technically the world has no edge to go to.
Fortunately I live in the world of metaphor, and the world has several metaphorical edges- on of them being China (more than four weeks journey, so that was out) and the other, of course, Connecticut, and who wants to go there?
So I settled on the idea of making a journey from the heart of Europe to it's edge- literally the place where Europe ends, and Asia begins. Istanbul, the Red Apple, the city of the world's desire, the second Rome. The only trouble was figuring out where the heart of Europe is. Or, rather, Where, and what, is truly Europe.
On the Nature of Europeanness
Europe, for Americans and for citizens of the western, more classically NATOish members of the European Union, is a thing relatively easy to define. For most Americans, it's over there, on the other side of the Atlantic, where great grandaddy came from due to either the lack of potatoes or the Czar constantly putting his boot on Grandpap's neck, or other varieties of unpleasantness. Europe is like us, but not us. They have smaller cars, nationalized healthcare, and an inability to grasp the importance of anti-perspirant vs. deodorant. Also, you can drink in public. A lot.
The Author, having become all European and whatnot, drinks heartily from an open alcoholic beverage WHILE IN A MOVING VEHICLE. The can does indeed say "Scrumpy Jack" and it is as good as it sound.
I won't even get into what Europeans think about Americans, as it isn't apropos to this discussion and is mostly scurrilous anyway. Suffice it to say that they are deeply and insanely jealous of our national wonders, such as Mt. Rushmore and David Hasslehoff.
"When we finally catch up with Europe," thinks the old Portuguese Lady "Does that mean I can take this thing off my head?"
Clearly Portugal, Spain and Italy aren't the heart of Europe either.
Spain has monkeys. Ergo, it is not the heart of Europe. This shot is completely gratuitous, but I loves me some Monkeys.
Portuguese politicians are obsessed with Europe. They talk about "getting into Europe" or "catching up with Europe" or, mostly "getting $%%@loads of money from Europe" so that their cousin's firm can pave a road from Gondomar to Fanzeres, two places even Portuguese people don't want to go to.
The courtyard of the European Parliament in Strasbourg. Money is tied up in bundles, and an air cannon shoots it from here directly into the bank accounts of Jose Socrates and Silvio Berlusconi.
In the English language the term for this "money from Europe" is known as "legalized graft," whereas in Brusselese it is called "social cohesion funding." No one that is obsessed with Europe can really be 100% European. It's like being Noveau Riche, except in Iberia without the Riche bit
For "Europeans" the center of Europe lies directly on the Rhine River.
The heart of Europe is located in the middle of the Rhine River, exactly between Ludwigshafen and Mannheim.
How do I know this? It's easy- the Rhine is the only river shared by both Germany and France. Both of these countries a supremely convinced that their country is not only the center of Europe, but also of art, culture, and civilization itself. Just ask them, they will be happy to inform you of this. Granted, they can't both be right about this, but that doesn't preclude at least one of them from being right. Which one is right is a question best not discussed, as it has been acrimonious throughout history, particularly from 1870-1945.
The fact that the Rhine region (Alsace, The Palatinate, and the Kurpfalz) makes an excellent starting point for our journey is convenient for other reasons. Firstly, I live here. So it is actually where I started my Journey. Secondly, it is very near the edge of an earlier incarnation of Europe- the Roman Empire, and I liked the idea of traveling from one edge of the old Empire (the limes) to it's heart- Constantinople.
I could post some of the lousier pics I took im Insanbul , if that makes things better for you.
The Rhine and its adjoining areas are dotted with wonderful elements of European history; from the violence and insecurity of its distant feudal past to its more refined elegance which peaked in the late 19th century, but vrutally dissapeared early in the 20th.
Mannheim
First mentioned in 766 AD, My fair city, the most underappreciated city in Germany. In fact, the last folks to pay significant attention was the Royal Air Force, whose members visited regularly throughout 1944. The results of their handiwork are what turned "one of the most beautiful cities in Germany" (according to the 1844 Baedeker guide) into a mostly charmless showcase of insipid 1950s architecture. Mannheim had the bad fortune to exist, in a time of war and rather faulty navigation, right across the river from what is still the world's largest chemical production site. IF you couldn't see BASF through the fog, you usually just went ahead and dropped your bomb load on Mannheim. Raids started in December 1940 and continued until March, 1945.
In over 150 sorties (an average of one every nine days for a little over three years), 25,181 tons of ordinance fell on the city. On the 15th and 16th of December 1940 the RAF carried out "Operation Abigail" as retaliation for the bombing of Coventry. 45% of the city was destroyed in an attack employing 14,000 incendiary devices.
Mannheim in flames
The RAF continued to target Mannheim, carrying out its largest raid in 1943. According to the RAF's official history:
Major diversionary raid on Mannheim and Ludwigshafen by 395 aircraft - 248 Halifaxes, 114 Stirlings, 33 Lancasters - of Nos 3, 4, 6 and 8 Groups. German fighters successfully engaged the bomber force and 23 aircraft - 12 Halifaxes, 9 Stirlings, 2 Lancasters - were lost, 5.8 per cent of the force.
Cloud was present over the target area and much of the bombing was scattered. 21 people were killed, 154 injured and 7,500 bombed out. Many bombs fell outside the city and the local report lists much damage and loss at farms.This was the last major raid on the much-bombed city of Mannheim for 15 months.
Presumably, there wasn't much left to destroy after that.
The view from Mannheim over the river as it might have looked in 1943, when it was likely lit by fire rather than the sunset.
Der Untergang
US Forces reached the city on March 29th, 1945 (the day of my Birthday, strangely, 28 years later). The capture of Mannheim was a harrowing experience, both for the Germans and for the soldiers of the US 44th Infantry Division. The Mayor of the town wanted to surrender, and sent a delegation out to the remains of a blown out bridge to negotate the handover of the city. The Nazi commander was in violent disagreement with this, and delivered an artillery barrage at the meeting point in an attempt to kill both parties.
A day of hard streetfighting ensued, and on the 30th the 12 year nightmare of National Socialism in Mannheim came to an end.
Infantrymen of the 44th Division, Seventh U.S. Army, fire at snipers concealed in a building in Mannheim, Germany, during mopping-up operations on the day of its capture. On the far side of the street, a soldier with a bazooka gun is about to fire a rocket at the position.
The official 44th Divison history can be found here.
Mannheim Today
www.morffed.com
:lurk
Things to do around Mannheim
Mannheim is located at the confluence of the Rhine and Neckar Rivers, as well as the point where three states; Baden-Wurtemburg, Hessen, and the Palatinate (Der Pfalz), join. The area is Known as the Kurpflaz, or Electoral Palatinate, because it thinks it is waaaay cooler than Baden-Wurtemburg, the state it actually belongs to. Mannheim was once the capitol of the Palatinate, and it was home to one of the Electors of the Holy Roman Empire. Those Peasants down in Stuttgart may have Porsche, but do they have an Elector's Palace? Well, do they? No, they do not. Hence the name "Kurpfalz" which applies only to Mannheim and Heidelberg. We Kurpfalzers (note that I am originally from Tennessee, but have taken to the Kurpfalz side of this conflict with the zeal of a convert) had both the world's first car (invented in Mannheim by Karl Benz, thank you very much) and its coolest University (in H-burg). Take that Tubingen!
Schwetzingen
Close to Mannheim (15 km) is the sleepy dorf of Schwetzingen. There's not much to do here and the place isn't large, but it does contain one of the Elector's pleasure Palaces. the Schwetzinger Schloss. Designed in the 1750s, the Palace is most famous for its French influenced gardens.
Worms
Worms is about 20 minutes from Mannheim by train. Its famous for its cathedral, where Martin Luther was harangued for being a Heretic and all that. There is an extremely unattractive monument to him here.
It also contains one of the few extensive Jewish cemeteries in Germany. Worms was once the cultural capital of Ashekenazi Jewry, known as the "Jerusalem of Germany."
Jewish Cemetery
It has a small Synagogue with one of the oldest Mikvahs (Ritual Baths) in Europe nearby. Both were built in 1075. The synagogue is also known as the "Rashi Shul" after a famous Rabbi (Shlomo Yitzhaki, aka 'Rashi') who taught here.
Rashi's commentary on the Talmud is still a centerpiece of contemporary Jewish Religious education. The Synagogue was destroyed during the Kristallnacht of 1938, but lovingly restored to its original state.
"Jewish Alley"
The Cathedral is where Diet of Worms ( that's pronounced "deet") declared Martin Luther to be Heretical, Slovenly, a Fornicator, and (of course) an outlaw. Brother Martin responded with his typical tact, and that's how we ended up with all these Baptists in Tennessee. (It's a bit more complicated than that). Wittenburg is the birthplace of the Reformation, but Worms is where it really started to heat up.
inside the Cathedral
The Cool thing about Heidelberg is that it was totally untouched by WWII. A Gentleman's agreement was struck between the British and the Germans that spared both Oxford and Heidelberg from any bombing whatsoever. After the spirited resistance of Mannheim, American General Beiderlinden was worried he would have to take Heidleberg through streetfighting as well.
General Beiderlinden, who had been an avid reader of the German Classics and Mark Twain (who loved the city above all others in Europe) very much wanted to avoid the destruction of the town on the Neckar. Having captured a functioning telephone exchange in Mannheim, and being fluent in German, he attempted to negotiate Heidelberg's surrender.
Heidelberg, seen from the Philisophenweg
A group of six German soldiers, under Feldwebel (Sergeant) Grimm, crossed the river to negotiate with Beiderlinden. He informed them of the precise time that he intended to cross the river (quite a risk if the German's intended to resist) and that if he faced opposition the city would be totally destroyed. During their return, Sgt. Grimm and his party came under shellfire, were wounded, and found that the bridges across the Neckar had been destroyed.
One of the Bridges, since rebuilt
Sgt. Grimm feared that the terms would not be delivered, until 16 year old Anni Tham offered, under shellfire, to ferry them across the river. On April first the 10th Armored division entered the city unopposed, and thus Heidelberg today looks much as it did in the 18th Century.
marktplatz
Though getting through the second world war relative unscathed, Heidelberg has seen its share of conflict. In 40 AD it was a camp for the 24th Roman Cohort and their North African allies. In 1622, during the thirty years war, it was captured by the Catholic general Tilly, who sent the famous Biblioteca Palatina a collection of some 5,000 volumes, to Rome- where it remains to this day. 37 books were later acquired by Napoleon and then returned, upon his fall, to Heidelberg rather than Rome.)
The most spectacular sack of the city, however, took place in 1689, when the French razed it to the ground and destroyed large chunks of the Heidelberg castle, which looms on the escarpment over the city. According to Bradshaw's Handbook to the Turkish Empire: Volume I", a travel guide published in 1875 which advises on the best way to get from London to Constantinople, "the ruins of the Heidelberger Caste... embody the German mind, which as it were they have petrified." The guide also claims that one can take a Donkey up to the castle for 24 crowns. I could find neither crowns nor donkeys.
The ruins of the Heidelberger Schloss
The castle is exactly as one would imagine a castle ought to look like. It is Romantic, with a capital "R." The sunset in the Area are often quite brilliant with pinks and oranges, and the surrounding hills are rather more decidious than usual in Germany (Germany has a lot of pine trees) so fall colors are fantastic. The best place to photograph the castle itself is from the other side of the river, the top of which can be reached by a path called the Philosophenweg (Philospher's Way).
Those of you who travelled in Germany, or other bits of Western Europe, in the 90s or earlier will be shocked by the changes in rail travel. Most noticable is the expense. The first destination of ours, outside of Germany, was Prague. It's essential to buy a ticket ahead of time, because the Duetsche Bahn has adopted the Airline model of ticketing and advanced purchases can make an enormous difference in price. This isn't really the case in Central Europe, so pick up your tickets at the Station when you are in that part of Europe.
After having spent a couple of days seeing The Rhenish towns, you shouldn't have blown your schedule that much anyway. You have two options to get to Prague- you can take the quick, cheap, and thoroughly unromantic Bus/Train combo (Train to Nuremberg, special DB bus to Prague) for around 35 euros, or you can catch the overnight sleeper from Frankfurt (about 100 euros with bunk). I'd suggest the RailBus, as the sleepers are cheaper and better later in the trip.
Here's the website to pre-book your ticket.
Each of the major capitals of Central Europe is linked by a night train that leaves the city around 9 PM and gets into the next city about 8 in the morning. The farther away that you get from Germany, the cheaper it becomes. Prague to Budapest is about 100 Euros in an Austrian sleeper that is nicer than some Sheratons that I have slept in. Budapest to Belgrade should cost about 70 Euros. Belgrade to Sofia is around 35, and Sofia to Istanbul also about 35. So all told you should be able to get to Istanbul from Frankfurt for well under 500 Euros.
Prague- City of a Thousand Spires
Jiraskuv Bridge with Castle Hill Behind
What new can I say about one of my favorite cities in the world? Many of you have probably been there already- Prague receives millions of visitors per year. It's one of the few European capitals never to have been sacked, not even in the thirty years war. Campared to it, London is a dingy heap, Paris a dreary bore of monotonous modernity. Prague, like Rome, is supposed to be built on seven hills, although many of these are very hard to discern. It consists of three main areas; the old town and castle hill, the new town (new as in only 4 or 5 hundred years old), and Vysehrad.
It is a city full of wonder, of tragedy, of fear, and menace. Until you have been to Prague, you cannot understand Kafka. And you cannot understand Prague without having read Kafka. It appears to be bright and shiny, but there is an occult darkness in the back alleys and in the hearts of the people.
I'm currently stealing away from the Christmas Festivities here in Portugal, and I really need to get down to the river to take some shots. But let me leave you with a few pictures to wet your appetite, and when I return to Germany I will tell you the story of Prague-Mater Urbis.
Travelling alone is, in my experience, unsatisfying. When one discovers an extraordinary mountaintop view, or a strange shop nestled in a bazaar, it always intensifies one’s pleasure at such a sight when someone is there to share it with you. My longsuffering CFO and hetero life partnerbeing unavailable due to her having entered into the indentured servitude of business school last year, I took along with me my brother in law and my sister. Given that the last time I visited Prague with my sister, in the early nineties, she developed a vicious case of Central European flu and I inadvertently (or at least semi-inadvertantly) stowed her away in a flophouse where she was ministered to by a pair of alcoholic EFL teachers of Norwiegan extraction who were under the impression that Becherovka is a miracle tonic capable of curing all ills up to and including brain cancer (thus their prodigious daily consumption of said vile liquor as a prophylactic measure), her agreeing to accompany me was quite an act of bravery.
In addition to people my favorite travelling companions are books. I like to read obscure historical works about wherever I am travelling before I go (the more esoteric and loony the better) as well as received standards. But you can’t tote along a library, even in a 5,000 cc backpack- particularly when you are humping a ton of photo gear and haven’t even received your long promised smugmug strap.
Historical<o:p></o:p>
The Ottoman Centuries, by Lord Kinross
For a general survey of Ottoman history, Lord Kinross’ work simply can’t be beat. It’s major advantages are that it is comprehensive, covering the entire territory and events of that late lamented state. It was also written before Historians fell under the sway of the idea that whetever is serious cannot be interesting- it’s a popular history with plenty of bizarre anecdotes. Given that late Ottoman history is pretty much a series of bizarre anecdotes, it’s important to have this.
Anything by John Julius Norwich
The Acme of Byzantine Historiography is JJ’s “Byzantium Trilogy”- The Early Centuries, The Apogee, and the Decline and Fall. Advantage- it’s not only comprehensive, it is quite literally magisterial. Fascinating and, unusually, highly readable.
A) Nationalistic Diatribes that try to prove that [insert name of town] was always [insert name of nationality], and not actually [insert name of nationality currently not owning said town]. These usually appeared after 1989, are total crap, and often attempt to prove that Columbus was actually Lithuanian. Don’t laugh, I’m not making that up.
C) Anything written by ex-Whitehall or Washington Apparatchiks trying to prove that, appearances to the contrary, Western Mediation of the Balkan wars of the 90’s were actually a success. Please don’t even lift these off the bookstore shelves, they my leave a vile smell on your fingers for weeks.
The Best thing to do is bring some novels from the region along with you. Ultimately, the best way to understand Central Europe is through its literature.. Walking around these countries by day, and reading these works by night, will give you an unparalleled insight into the nature of these cultures. I recommend the following:
Prague Tales, by Jan Neruda (Czech)
I Served the King of England, by Bohumil Hrabal (Czech)
The Houses of Belgrade, by Borislav Pekic (Serbia)
Be Faithful unto Death, by Zsigmond Morics (Hungary)
Enough talking. MORE PICTURES!
What can I say about Prague. It's the biggety. You may not find that in "Let's Go," but it's true.
Prague is basically divided into three sections: the Old Town (Staré Město), New Town (Nové Město), and Vysehrad.
I started out in the Old Town. It may or may not be the oldest part of town, but it is certainly the best.
Burying (or not) the Bodies
I'll Start with one of my favorite bits of Praga Mysteriosa, the Church of St. James in Malastuparska. If you're a fan of inappropriate public displays of human remains, then the Czech Republic is the place for you. St. James isn't as freaky as Kutna Hora, but it's weird.
St. James Church
The Church is located just across the street from the Big Ben Bookstore, and is a beautiful example of Baroque religious architecture. It's unimpressive from the outside, but explodes with gold and color inside- housing a famous statue of the Madonna to which many intercessory miracles of healing have been attributed.
The Madonna
I would not suggest mucking about with the Madonna in any way. Some four hundred years ago a thief tried to steal some of her jewelry, whereupon the stony hands of the statue came to life, clamped down on the thief's arm, and refused to let go. Local butchers had to amputate in order to extract him.
Here comes the grossness!
The mummified arm of the thief still hangs from the ceiling.
The Astronomical Clock
This may be the most famous symbol of Prague. It is iconic.
Everyone sees it. But can everyone read it? Let me steal from Wikipedia in order to explain.
The Clock dates from 1410- a rumor associated with it claims that the emperor put out the eyes of the designer, so that he could never create something as beautiful again. (unfortunately, it isn't true, but we can suspend disbelief for a while while we stand in front of it.)
The Old Town is the logical place to start a tour of the ancient city of Prague. It is, as the name suggests, the part of the city first founded. It's unknown exactly when this occurred. Legend places it in the 8th century, when a Princess named Libuse had a vision, reflected in the quote above. She found a lowly plowman name Premysl, married him, and founded the city. Romantic, but unlikely.
In reality we know that Prague existed at least as early as 973, when it was made a bishopric.
Old Town Square
The Old Town Square is the heart of this part of the city, and the location of most of its iconic markets. Records indicate that a saturday market existed here since at least 1100 AD, so the carts selling rolls and curios have quite a pedigree.
Old Town Square with Town Hall
The most important building is the town hall- it was built in 1364. Town halls are instructive in Europe, and how they look can tell you a lot about the social and political nature of the city. The three key buildings in Medieval European history were the cathedral, the palace, and the town hall; representing, respectively, the church, the prince, and the merchants. Whichever faction dominated the city dominated it architecturally as well. Thus the great town halls of Gdansk, Porto, and Prague tell you that these cities were rich, and likely more "free" (albeit in a way significantly different than we would understand today) than cities dominated by a church or a palace (such as Speyer, Mainz, or even Mannheim).
In fact, one can read almost the entire history of Prague merely by looking at the buildings on old town square, if one knows how to look at them. The oldest is the town hall, of course. The city was bourgeois and mercantile, dominated by the merchants in their hall, until the time of troubles.
Lutheranism before Luther
Moving to the center of the old town square, we can see one of the most influential figures in Bohemian, and indeed in world history (although his role in radically transforming European civilization is little known outside of the Czech lands).
"Love each other, and wish the truth for everyone"
Jan Hus was born in 1370, shortly after the town halls construction. He was destined to grow up in a time of struggle. Tensions were rising between the German and Czech inhabitants of the kingdom of Bohemia, there were multiple Popes anathemizing each other, and the recent invention of block printing was spreading new and unsettling ideas about God, man, and society.
Hus ended German domination of the university of Prague, in alliance with King Vaclav. He also called for the gospel to be preached and disseminated in the vernacular, and laid the foundation for a conscious based resistance against ecclesiastical authority that would ultimately culminate in Luther's doctrine of Justification by Faith. Unsurprisingly, he was burned at the stake after being offered safe conduct to the council of Constance.
Vaclav, who had been Holy Roman Emporer at the time, lost his imperial crown in the turmoil (but remained king of Bohemia). Four years after the burning of Hus, he died, and his restraining influence over Bohemian proto-protestants collapsed. In 1419 the radical Hussite party threw the bodies of seven pro-Catholic city councillors from the window of the city hall tower, onto the pikes of the city Militia below, raising a revolt that was to last for fourteen years.
The roof of the Church was built in 1450, although the towers were added only in the 1500's, by which time the Hussites had been defeated and their heresy mostly contained. It is no accident that the newly Catholic Prague, and most importantly its rulers, would make a statement by building such a church, which literally overshadows the city hall.
This is what I mean when I say that Prague is a city of Darkness. It is Golden, it is beautiful. But it's glitter hides menace. This church is not simply a precursor of Disney, it as a threat- a threat that was well understood by those for whom it was intended. When you stand before the astronomical clock, you are standing on a place of execution, where angry mobs howled for blood- and where victims of atrocities from the 14th century to the twentieth have paid for resistance with their lives.
So far the photos look great. Keep them coming!
Photos that don't suck / 365 / Film & Lomography