Central Europe - March 2014

For two weeks in March, 2014, I traveled through the very center of Europe by train. My travel was completely independent and not part of any tour. I went where I wanted to, simply put. Most of my time was spent in Austria and the Czech Republic, but I saw small areas of Hungary, Slovakia, and Germany that were located at the periphery of the area in which I concentrated. I used a train pass to get around, and stayed (for the most part) in budget accomodations. I flew into, and out of, Vienna, and used that city and region as a sort of base for my explorations. Cities/ towns visited included Vienna, Salzburg, Werfen, Melk, and Baden (Austria), Olomouc and Brno (Czech Republic), Sopron (Hungary), Prien and Berchtesgaden (Germany), and Bratislava (Slovakia). The scenery, architecture and cultures I experienced on this trip were fabulous, despite the fact that independent travel of this sort was hard work and I was pretty tired by the end of each day. The extensive train travel using a rail pass reminded me of a trip I had taken many years prior (see Europe by train - June/ July 1979). My trip was blessed (for the most part) with warm and sunny weather; there were just two days of chill. In fact, the foliage was actively blooming at the time of my late March visit, and many days felt more like May. Even around Salzburg, when I was in the Alps, the weather was mild and beautiful. Given the length of the trip and the variety of things seen, I will need to post more than the usual number of pictures for this trip. Europe is simply outstanding, and the degree to which old structures and architecture are preserved there is simply amazing.

This is the town hall in Olomouc, Czech Republic, which sits on the main square of their gorgeous old town.

This is me standing in front of St. Wenceslaus Cathedral in the old town of Olomouc, Czech Republic.

Typical scene witnessed by train in the eastern Czech Republic, south of Olomouc (this part of the country is called Moravia). Farms, hills, and quaint towns abound.

Nocturnal clock tower scene in downtown Brno, Czech Republic. Actually this is the view from the budget hotel where I stayed.

This is the well-known and absolutely gorgeous baroque Melk Abbey in Melk, Austria, which overlooks both the town and the Danube River. The abbey is a popular stopping place for cruises that ply up and down the Danube River. I saw one of the river cruise tours while I was there, complete with their tour guides and headset radios. Being independent, I arranged a tour on my own, and fortunately was assigned a guide who had studied at the abbey and knew the place very well.

Interior of the main church in Melk Abbey. This is Baroque styling all the way.

This is a view of Melk, Austria, from the abbey.

Typical Alpine scenery seen on the train ride from Salzburg to Werfen (Austria).

This is the storybook Hohenwerfen Castle which was used briefly in the filming of "The Sound of Music"and which sits on a hillside overlooking Werfen, Austria. Castle tours were closed for the season at the time of my visit, but this did not matter much since the hiking trail was open and I was able to hike right up to the castle.

View of scenery near Werfen from near the castle.

This is a bridge over the Danube River in Bratislava, Slovakia, aptly named the "UFO Bridge". The disc-like structure at the top which gives it this name is, I think, a restaurant/ observation deck. I did not have the time or inclination to go up there.

This is me in front of St. Michael's Gate, a landmark at the north entrance to the old town in Bratislava, Slovakia.

Old town of Bratislava, with the namesake Bratislava Castle in the background, overlooking the town.

The is the scene as the train was ready to leave the main station in Bratislava. Of course I quickly learned that Hlavna Stanica mean train station in Slovak; this knowledge came in handy when I got lost walking back to the train station from the old town.

This is the front of a wonderful monastery-which-was-part-hotel called Benediktushaus, located on the Freburg square in central Vienna. I stayed at this hotel for three days. During this stay as well as other days in the Vienna region, I used the city's extensive metro system to get around.

This is the Belvidere Palace in Vienna, within which is located an outstanding art museum.

This is Vienna City Hall, another example of breathtakingly beautiful Viennese architecture.

Another example of interesting architecture I saw just walking around Vienna.

St. Stephen's Cathedral in Vienna, perhaps the city's most famous landmark. As you see here, extensive renovations work was going on at the time of my visit.

View of Salzburg, Austria from the hilltop on which the signature landmark Hohensalzburg Castle is located. I climbed the hill and toured the castle, but the views of the city were perhaps the most outstanding feature.

Scene from the train ride coming into Salzburg. This was a rare example of snow and cold weather during the trip. A brief cold snap had produced the snow. These quaint Alpine towns are everywhere in this region of Europe.

Myself on the grounds of Hohensalzburg Castle in Salzburg. The castle is extensive and well-preserved and it takes a while to see everything there, including the views of the city, and the museum displays inside.

This is a view of the Bavarian Alps across Lake Chiemsee in southernmost Bavaria, Germany, at the town of Prien.

This is the scenery I encountered while hiking on a mountain park right alongside the urban area of Salzburg. Even though I climbed only about 600-700 feet above the surrounding city, there was snow at the top - courtesy of the cold snap a day before.

Scene from Berchtesgaden, Germany. The mountain in the background, Watzmann, is Germany's third-highest mountain.

This is the Beethoven House in the spa town of Baden, Austria, located about 20 miles southwest of Vienna. This house was one of the composer Ludwig von Beethoven's residences and he is said to have stayed here while finalizing the Ninth Symphony. I toured the inside and saw lots of interesting memorabilia and manuscripts, and an old piano (then called "pianoforte") from Beethoven's years.

Old town in Sopron, Hungary. The old town here is supposedly one of the best-preserved and beautiful ones in the country. Sopron is located very close to the border between Austria and Hungary. Both Hungarian and German are used here because of its border location. The town was beautiful but I struggled here because it was very difficult to find English speakers, at least compared with locations in Austria and Germany. The structure in the picture is the Firewatch Tower which dates from the 12th century.

Gorgeous view of Salzburg, Austria, with the castle (Hohensalzburg) in the background. This photo was taken from a bridge across the river, joining the old town and the business district.

This is the famous Goat Church in Sopron, Hungary, located on the main town square.

Train station in Sopron, Hungary. Seeing these telltale trackside town signs was a sure indication that it was time for me to get off the train and start sightseeing.

Here, I am standing on the one of the main squares of the old town in Berchtesgaden, Germany. This town is located in the very southeast corner of Germany, a short bus ride from Salzburg, and is a charming town in itself but is also the gateway to a national park and Alpine vacation region.

Street scene in Sopron, Hungary, with colorful buildings lining the streets. There is a wealth of historic architecture and sights here.

This is a park in Schwechat, Austria, with vibrant spring foliage and flowers. Schwechat is an industrial town just outside Vienna. I stayed here my last night in Europe because it was convenient to get to the airport for an early morning flight the next day.

This is the scene from the airplane window as I was flying across Quebec on the way home to the U.S.

Ecuador - January 2014

In January 2014, I traveled to Ecuador with Adventure Life, the same company that had taken me to the Falkland Islands two months earlier. The tour was 8 days long and focused on the Andes highlands. Sights included in my trip were The Bellavista Cloud Forest, Otavalo, San Antonio de Ibarra, the Mitad del Mundo area, Quito, Cotopaxi National Park, Quilotoa Crater, and Banos. As part of the tour, I also saw several Andean rainforests and waterfalls. There was also a lot of magnificent countryside. Ecuador is an outstandingly beautiful country, as I hope the pictures below make clear. As part of my lodging arrangements, I stayed in two wonderful haciendas - one near Otavalo, and another one near Cotopaxi. Starting from a parking lot at a somewhat lower elevation, I climbed up to the 16000' elevation level on Cotopaxi; this was a thrilling (if slightly breathless) mountain trek. I also saw the early stages of an eruption of Volcan Tungarahua, an active volcano just outside of Banos.

This is me standing on the main plaza for Cotocachi, a pleasant town near Otavalo where there is said to be a retirement community.

This is a view of Cotopaxi, Ecuador's second highest mountain, and which is one of the highest active volcanoes in the world (though it has been fairly quiet in recent years). Usually the summit was shrouded in clouds during my trip; this was a rare glimpse at the summit.

Burros were a common sight in the Andean highlands, including on Cotopaxi where I saw this one.

This is me in front of the Hacienda Porvenir, a wonderful place to stay which is located in the highlands near Cotopaxi National Park, at about 12000' elevation. The appearance and architecture of the place is highly interesting.

This is the early stages of an eruption of Tungarahua, a 16000' active volcano overlooking Banos. Seeing this was absolutely spectacular, and I was incredibly lucky to just be standing there looking at the mountain, camera in hand, when the ash and smoke started billowing forth. Three full-fledged eruptions followed two days later, which made the world news.

 Beautiful rugged countryside of the Andean highlands on the way to Quilotoa Crater from Latacunga.

Quilotoa Crater, a volcanic crater lake 70km west of Latacunga. This was a spectacular sight reminiscent I suppose of Crater Lake in Oregon, United States. At 12000' elevation, though, it was chilly and windy on this overlook.

This is Zumbahua, a town spectacularly situated in the Andes highlands a few miles from Quilotoa Crater. There is a strong Native American population there, and many arts-and-crafts handiworks to buy at various places in the vicinity. 

This is me at the 16000' level of Volcan Cotopaxi. The snow line started not too far above this in elevation. The sign beside me designates a refuge which was under remodeling construction at the time of my visit. It was about a 1000' elevational hike from the parking lot to this area. Absolutely beautiful views, even though high-altitude clouds swirled around me and occasionally obscured the view, and even dropped a few ice pellets.

Along with burros, llamas were a common sight in the highlands.

This is me on the porch of the Cafe del Cielo, a restaurant that is part of the Luna Runtun hotel in the mountains just to south of Banos, overlooking the resort city. Banos can be seen off in the distance. The view is spectacular. The hotel overlooks the city by an elevation of about 1000 feet.

This is the swirling, thundering base of the spectacular Patron del Diablo waterfall located between Banos and Puyo, in Tungarahua province

This is a cascada (waterfall) that I saw in the Bellavista Cloud Rainforest.

This is one of many beautiful, richly colored hummingbirds that I saw in the Bellavista Cloud Rainforest. The variety and abundance of birds were amazing, providing a rich opportunity for birdwatchers.

This sign is Spanish for Ecuador in the Middle of the World. The red line is the supposed location of the Equator (0 degrees latitude), and this is located in the Mitad del Mundo museum complex. Staff at the museum will show you oddities and tricks that are supposedly due to the geographical landmark, for example that water in a sink will swirl down the drain one way on one side of the line, and the other way on the other side of the line.

This is the front facade of the beautiful Hacienda Pinsaqui outside of Otavalo, where I stayed for a couple of nights as part of the tour. This hacienda has beautiful landscaped grounds, and an approximately 300-year history.

In a few places, the deeply green, patchwork-quilt appearance of the Ecuadorean countryside reminded me of England or Ireland.

Typical Ecuadorean road directional and mileage signs near Otavalo.

Beautiful church located in San Antonio de Ibarra, in the north of Ecuador.

More beautiful Andes highlands scenery. The scenery in this area reminded me of parts of New Zealand, Crete, Hawaii, and the American West, yet somehow managed to show its own unique beauty.

This is me trekking up Cotopaxi between 15000' amd 16000' elevation. The Jose Rivas Refugio Hut is visible in the far distance.

The famous Otavalo Market where seemingly every kind of arts-and-crafts handiwork is for sale. It is amazing. The true market is actually on Saturdays, but I was there on a weekdays when many of the same things are for sale but it is much less crowded.

Colorful rectangular rows of houses along a hillside in Quito, the capital of Ecuador, and its second-largest city.

La Cienega, a beautiful colonial style hotel in Cotopaxi province, where I did not stay but instead my tour guide brought me for a midday visit.