Austria+ ~ May 2016

SZOMBATHELY

On May 3^rd we left from Budapest to Szombathely, 2 ½ hours west on the M1 and M86. We arrived a bit after one to the Park Hotel Pelikán. It is quirky property, a modern glass entrance stuck onto a 1900’s building; the rooms were in need of refurbishment.

We had been to this north-western city in the past. It has a Roman history from 43 CE as an important staging area for the amber trade from the Baltics to Italy. After World War I and the Treaty of Trianon, Hungary lost much of its western territories to Austria. This placed Szombathely only ten kilometers from the new state border, so it ceased to be the center of Western Hungary. To make matters worse, during World War II, the city had strategic value because of its rail infrastructure and aerodrome. It was thus bombed heavily by the Allied forces, seriously damaged and slow to recover.

Still, we visited the very picturesque Szombathely Cathedral and Fó ter, the main square of the city. But our main reason for this re-visit was to further investigate my wife Judith’s short history

St Márton's Cemetery

with this place – she lived here when she was two years old, perhaps for a year or a bit more. Judith also returned for a month after the Hungarian Revolution in the summer of 1957.

Our scouting found the house that she lived in on Hunyadi János ut. Miraculously, we also discovered the grave site of her grandfather and grandmother on her father’s side, as well as a great uncle and an aunt in the historic St. Márton’s Cemetery. These were emotional days to say the least; many more mysteries remain in her intricate family puzzle.

So it was a productive two days, and after breakfast we checked out of the Park Hotel Pelikán and were off to Graz.

GRAZ, AUSTRIA

Graz, the capital of the Styria region, is two hours and 125 kilometers west of Szombathely. We checked into Hotel Schlossberg, a well situated, nice property facing the River Mur which bisects the city on a north-south axis.  Like most European cities with roots in the Middle Ages, Graz is dominated by an easily defended promontory. Known here as the Schlossburg; its steep hillsides rise 400 meters above the Mur and the old town, the Altstadt.

After unpacking we took the modern funicular, the Schlossbergbahn, to the leafy Schlossberg, with its pleasant pathways and wonderful views. A nice lunch was had at Restaurant Schlossberg – tuna carpaccio with Asian spiced vegetable rolls. It was then off to explore; visiting the 1588 Bell

Clock Tower

Tower, the Hacker Lion and Graz’s traditional landmark, it’s Clock Tower, constructed in the 1500’s. We walked back to Altstadt down the Schlossbergstiege, 260 steps traversing the hillside to the Schlossbergplatz. As you may have noticed, there are many places and things named Schlossberg plus “something or other.”

Dinner was at Gasthhaus Stainzerbauer on Bürgergasse, 4; well prepared veal with white asparagus – perfectly in season. A leisurely stroll home, a nightcap at the bar and we were to sleep.

Up to a sunny morning, it was out to see the rest of the city. Graz’s old town spreads south

Graz's Town Hall

from the Schlossberg on the east site of the Mur. It is an impressively clean, regal and lively city. Slackstraße brings you to the main square, the triangular Hauptplatz. Wonderful buildings ring its periphery including the dominating 1850 neo-Renaissance town hall, the beautiful Baroque façade of the Haus am Luegg, Graz’s oldest pharmacy; and in the centre, the fountain of Archduke Johann – its four main female figures represent Styria’s four main rivers: the Mur, Enns, Drau and Sann.

Hauptplatz empties south onto the wide boulevard of Herrengasse. Turning right one enters Landhausgasse and the Landhaus, a masterpiece Italian Renaissance building that hosts the regional parliament. The inner courtyards, open to the public, are a tranquil oasis of round arches and arcades. Lunch was here at the Café Sacher Graz – very relaxed.

After lunch we continued touring by backtracking through Hauptplatz and heading uphill on Sporgasse to another wide pedestrian street, Hofgasse. Right at its entrance there is a splendid wooden shop façade housing a delicious confectionary, Hofbäkerei Edegger-Tax. Further on is the

Cathedral

Cathedral, a former castle church constructed between 1439 – 64. Although some older architecture is visible, including one gothic fresco, most decoration is an explosion of baroque. Adjacent is the Mausoleum of Ferdinand II (1587 – 1637) in the Austrian Mannerist style; another eruption of sculpture and color – cherubs falling all over each other.

Double Spiral Staircase

We continued on to see the impressive engineering of a stone double spiral staircase, built in 1499 in Gothic style, for Maximilian I. Further along is the peaceful Stadpark and Burggarten. Finally, we sat for a drink in Glockenspeilplatz, with Graz’s famous glockenspiel; a sweet maiden and hearty lad clad in traditional costume pirouette three times a day up in a gable of a building on this namesake square - 24 bells play three pleasant tunes.

The timeless beauty of the eastern bank of the Mur is starkly in contrast to the west. Two postmodern structures, in my opinion, jolt the cityscape. I’m sure city planners and their architects had the best intensions. The first, Murinsel, installed in the river in 2003, is the work of New Yorker Vito Acconci. It is like a

Murinsel

floating shell of steel with footbridges to the riverbanks that lead to an amphitheatre and café. It hasn’t aged well to say the least.  The second is the Kunsthaus, also installed in 2003, which houses temporary exhibitions and a restaurant. To me it looks like a dead blue beetle rolled on its back. Some say the contrast between tradition and avant-garde is exhilarating – I do not share this view.  To add to the chaos of the senses, a half new age, half grunge band was playing outside in the Mariahilferplatz; conjuring up the disorder, smells and rubbish of a Euro-Woodstock. We soon escaped back to the peace of the Altstadt.

Dinner was at Welscher Stubn, Schmiedgasse, 5-7; good food but so-so service. We strolled back to the hotel on the now quiet streets, had a quick glass of wine at the bar and were off to bed.

SALZKAMMERGUT LAKES

We were up to a pleasant morning for our 2 ½ hours’ drive northwest to the Salzkammergut Lakes region, about 20 kilometres east of Salzberg. It is a picturesque area with over 70 lakes, quaint

Terrace - Schloss Fuschl

villages and breath taking scenery.  Our home for the next few days is at Schloss Fuschl on the southern shore of Fuschlsee. This hotel castle is an exquisite property consisting of 110 rooms, suites and guest cottages with a full range of amenities, including an excellent spa. The walls are adorned with old masters that would make any museum jealous. We settled into our room, number 111, and afterwards had a relaxing lunch on the terrace.

After lunch we were back in the car to explore along route 158; our first stop was St. Gilgen on the south eastern shore of the St. Wolfgangsee. A quick visit and we were off to the northern shore and St. Wolfgang. This village is known for its beautiful 15th century pilgrimage church of its

Michael Pacher's Altar - St. Wolfgang 

namesake St. Wolfgang. Michael Pacher’s high altar is acclaimed as one of the most stunning works of the late Gothic era. The town is delightful.

We were back to the hotel late afternoon and settled on the courtyard terrace for a glass of wine. As we were finishing, a fast moving storm barrelled through; typical of this area. Dinner was in the inside restaurant but still facing the lake. The food was typically Austrian and not too inspiring; we were annoyed by a very spoiled and misbehaved Russian girl a nearby table; grumbling parents oblivious. After a nightcap in the bar, we were off to sleep.

On our second day we drove again on Route 158 south and then east on 145 to reach the village of Hallstätt on Hallstättersee; the Dashstein massif providing a beautiful backdrop. The blue sky and cumulus

Hallstätt 

clouds presented us a postcard view. Our first stop was to the funicular that travels up over 500 meters to perhaps the oldest known salt mine in the world, dating to 3000 BCE. There have been many Iron Age finds here, so much so that this Celtic period (800 – 400 BCE) is sometimes referred to as the Hallstatt civilization.

The town below grips tenuously to the cliff side, some streets are only accessible from the lakeside. We walked the pretty web of lanes, visiting the Pfarrkirche, a 15th century church with a wonderful altarpiece sometimes compared to Pacher’s in St. Wolfgang. After a quick break, we were off to Bad Ischl.

Pfarrkirche -  Hallstätt 

Bad Ischl is known for its saltwater springs. The rivers Traun and Ischl come together here; the riverbanks blend seamlessly into the town. In the 1800s Archduchess Sophie seemingly cured her infertility because of the treatments at Bad Ischl; her most famous offspring was Franz Joseph I. He spent holidays with this wife Elizabeth at their residence here, Kaiservilla, now a museum.

Juxtaposed against the healing powers of its spas, Bad Ischl is also where the declaration of war against Serbia was signed on August 1, 1914 – thus unleashing the death and destruction of World War One; a strange historical footnote.

After some cakes at Café Pfarrgrasse we were back off to Schloss Fuschl, arriving late afternoon. We reviewed our day over a bottle of wine on the sunny courtyard terrace. Dinner was at the hotel; tonight largely abandoned except for ourselves.

LINZ, AUSTRIA – ČESKÝ KRUMLOV, CZECH REPUBLIC

We were up to a nice day and got an early start to Linz, 1 ½ hours northeast of Fuschlsee, and checked into Park Inn – Radisson. After a quick unpack, we were out to explore. In a few words, Linz isn’t worth the trip. We were a short walk to Landstrasse and the city’s main square, Hauptplatz. Everything here seemed bland and tired; the churches, monuments; even the city hall. The Baroque Plague Column center stage in the Hautplatz was an appropriate image for the state of Linz.

We had a nondescript lunch and continued our walk to the Danube, and then returned to the hotel late afternoon. Dinner was at the Radisson.

Český Krumlov Castle

The following morning after a proletariat breakfast of which Lenin would be pround, were out and on our way to Český Krumlov, a short hour’s drive north into the Czech Republic. This well preserved Medieval town was founded in the 13th century under the Rožmberk Dynasty, which ruled here until the 1600s.

A UNESCO site since 1992, the town is knotted inside the snaking path of the Vltava River, with the castle set upon the promitory. The second largest in the Republic

Český Krumlov

after Prague, it consists of five main complexes that tier upward from the main gate to the castle gardens. The architecture veers between flashy and gloomy, etched in typical Bohemian sgraffito, but the overall effect is pleasing. There are even bears wandering in the moat. Unfortunately, many of the rooms were closed for a film shoot. Leaving the castle, we stopped at the nearby Latrán area and the Minorite Monastery.

It was then over one of the many wooden bridges to the old town, Vnitřni Mĕsto, and its

Námĕsti Svornosti

immense market square, Námĕsti Svornosti. It is ringed with Gothic and Renaissance façades and in its the center, the “mandatory” plague column with fountain. Neighboring the square is the Church of St. Vitus, whose lofty towers seem to counterbalance the Krumlov Castle above. A triple-aisled Gothic edifice of imposing height, it is one of the oldest examples of net vaulting in Europe.

After a late lunch on the balcony of Hotel Ruže, originally a 16^th century Jesuit college, we dragged ourselves back to the car and to Linz. At dinner we decided to cut our stay in Linz by a day and head back to Budapest.

ST. FLORIAN

We checked out early from the Radisson and resolved to make one more stop on the way home. St. Florian is only 30 minutes south of Linz and not much out of our way. A magnificent

Augustine abbey and church were built on this site in the 11th century to honor the martyrdom of St. Florian in 304. A complex of buildings, each a Baroque masterpiece, surround a large courtyard. Highlights of our well-presented tour were the library, with its collection of 140,000 volumes; designed by the renowned Jakob Prandtauer, the Marble Hall, and the abbey church with its Anton Bruckner organ and airy stained glass. Words cannot begin to describe the beauty here.

Anton Bruckner Organ

Marble Hall Ceiling

Library

By early afternoon we were back to the car. It was an uneventful four hour drive back to Budapest as we savored our week of memories.

April 2016: Pécs Plus

We are in Budapest for most of April and May. Mid-month we took a three-day trip south to Pécs with plans for a few outings from there. The city is the fifth largest in Hungary with a population of about 150,000. The Romans pushed out the Celts in the 3rd century and set up a provincial capital here, then called Sopianae. The Magyars arrived and developed Pécs into a regional diocese in 1009; Hungary’s first university was started here in 1367.

The invading Ottoman’s turned things upside down in the 1500’s. Most Christian inhabitants were driven from the city, the churches transformed into mosques. In 1686 Louis of Baden liberated Pécs from the Turks and it was slowly repopulated with immigrants from Germany and Bohemia. There was a cultural renaissance in the 18th century; Hungary’s first public library was established here in 1774. Pécs continues to be a centre of learning.

It is an easy 2 ½ hour drive south from Budapest down the well maintained M6, we arrived just after noon. Our base here is a very nice, recently refurbished boutique hotel, the Adele, at Mária utca, 15.

PÉCS

One enters the old town from the north, along the well restored walls, down Hunyadi ut to the

Prayer Niche

largely pedestrian Széchenyi ter. The northern anchor is the circular Gazi Kasim Paha Mosque. Built in 1579 on the site of a Gothic church, it is the largest mosque in Hungary and a key Turkish monument. After the occupation it was converted into the Inner City Parish Church, but with the calligraphy at the entrance, the painted archways and the tucked away prayer niche there remains an Islamic patina.

Széchenyi ter

We were last in Pécs in the 1990s when the area around the mosque was still a haphazard roundabout. It has since been replaced by the very pleasant traffic free square and the promenade of Irgalmasok, which flows southward. We stopped for lunch at the much raved about Hotel Platatinus on Király utca. If one squints, you can see the beauty of this art deco edifice, but it is rather shabby on inspection – the scruffy food and service in perfect harmony.

Afterward, we viewed the exquisite Holy Trinity and János Hunydai Monuments that share pride of place with the mosque in Széchenyi ter; and further down Irgalmasok, the Secessionist 1853

Zsolnay Fountain with this renowned factory’s trademark blue-green porcelain glazing.

Zsolnay Fountain

The neo-Renaissance synagogue, constructed in the 1860s stands in Kossuth Ter as a sad memorial; 5,000 were herded from here in 1944 by the Arrow Cross government and went to their deaths in Auschwitz.  West from here, we also saw the 16th century Jakovali Hassan Mosque, converted into a Catholic Church in 1714, but the original minaret still stands in silent defiance. In 1975 it was transformed into a museum documenting the Turkish occupation.

St. Peter's Cathedral

Heading back to Széchenyi ter it was then to the northwest corner of the old town wall and Dóm tér. St. Peter’s Cathedral stands majestically centre stage. A church has been on this site since 1009, and through fires, looting by the Mongols and other catastrophes has morphed from Romanesque to Baroque to its now Gothic appearance; four corner towers reach for the sky. The interior has elegant chapels in each tower, and wonderful frescos along the ambulatory walls

St. Peter's - Interior

The adjacent Szent István tér is another peaceful square, with two tranquil fountains and a wonderful tree shaded walk.

Dinner was simple and adequate at Jókai Bisztró in Jókai ter. After one more stroll in the in Széchenyi ter’s antique street lamp lit twilight, it was off to bed.

SIKLÓS – VILLÁNY - MOHÁCS

We were up to a nice day and a good buffet breakfast. Our first stop was outside of Siklós, which is the southernmost town in Hungary and a half hour further south of Pécs. The Siklós Castle is the best preserved medieval fortress in the country, dating to 1294. Miraculously it survived without destruction by the Turks or the Habsburgs. There is a small Gothic chapel with two impressive frescos from the late 15tth century, and a compact museum housing a medieval collection of Battthyány family heirlooms.

15th C Fresco

It was then east to the pretty village of Villány, another famous wine region in Hungary; we visited producers Gere, Bock and Malatinszky.

Our final stop was to the battle memorial of Mohács. On August 29, 1526 over 14,000 Hungarian fighters were annihilated by the Turks, lead by Sultan Suleiman I. This site was finally   commemorated in 1976, sixteen years after the ancient mass graves were first discovered.

We arrived to an empty parking lot and met the curator outside tending some flowers. This lovely and educated woman gave us a small private tour of the museum and walked with us around the grounds, which are punctuated with strange carved totems, and mounds marking mass internment sites.

The history here was that the barons had been revolting from the king’s rule; which eventually had these same landed elites fighting among themselves for power and plunder. For much of the beginning of the 16th century there was little focus on the defence of Hungary and its common interest; taxes fell and the army and its infrastructure deteriorated. Thus the army was understaffed and poorly equipped against the onslaught of the well compensated, well supplied Turkish forces – and all paid the ultimate price. Hungary sank into a long period of decline and the defeat, even today, haunts the Hungarian psyche.

Mohács Memorial

Every time I visit one of these memorials, like our visit to Normandy, I’m filled with the sadness of ghosts. So much waste and sacrifice.

After this visit we returned to Pécs and took in two disappointing museums: the Csontváry and the Vasarely. I have come to appreciate both these Hungarian masters, but the exhibits were sparse, gloomy and very lightly attended. Public museums in lesser cities struggle under financial pressure because they lack the mass audiences and big benefactors that the key global art venues enjoy. Who knows if these smaller institutions will survive in the future.

We had early evening drinks at the Fötér Bár overlooking Széchenyi ter and then dinner, again at Jókai Bisztró. We were quickly to sleep.

KUTAS – TIHANY

Hertelendy Kastély

After breakfast we decided to take one more excursion instead of going directly back to Budapest. We had read about a Relais & Chateaux property in Kutas-Kozmapuszta that we were curious about; it was less than 100 kilometres northwest of Pécs; just south of Lake Balaton. Hertelendy Kastély has only 14 rooms and offers a complete array of luxury amenities in the heart of the Somogy hills: a wonderful pool, a spa and wellness centre with medicinal thermal waters, horse stables, a grass airstrip, an Olympic quality skeet field, tennis courts and more. Unfortunately, we learned from the general manager that it no longer is a hotel or within the Relais & Chateaux brand; it now only hosts banquets, weddings and other larger private parties. Too bad, it would have provided a great weekend break.

Lake Balaton

After the visit, we continued north to Szántód on the south shore of the Balaton and took the car ferry across to the picturesque town of Tihany. The town sits on an elevated peninsula jutting into the lake, it forms its narrowest point and provides postcard panoramic views.  The site dates to 1060 and King András. The current Abbey Church, built in the middle of the 18th century, still holds his tomb; the interior is laid out in the Baroque and Rococo styles and is exquisite. The adjacent museum is also worth a visit.

Abbey Church - Tihany

We drove along the northern shore until we reached the M7 and were back to Budapest by the early evening – in all a wonderful trip.

Dangerous Times

My life straddles the Atlantic, one foot in America and the other in Britain and Europe. Because of this, I get to see politics unfold at close range in each spot. Although on the surface there seems to be no theme; actually I think there is a disturbing one.

In a recent piece in the New York Times, David Brooks talked of a widespread “anxiety of impotence.” A large majority of people feel they are powerless. As Brooks writes: “The Republican establishment thinks the grass roots have the power but the grass roots think the reverse…The unions think the corporations have the power but the corporations think the start-ups do. Regulators think Wall Street has the power but Wall Street thinks the regulators do.”

This feeling of helplessness is creating dangerous political trends among the opposition parties, and those former opposition parties that have now come to power. In America, the opposition Republican Party is splintering into the “Trump/Cruz” crazies and the increasingly defensive traditionalists. It is hard to see a reconciliation happening in the next few months. Similarly in the United Kingdom where the Labor Party is in opposition, the far left “Corbynistas,” lead by Jeremy Corbyn; is alienating the party’s more mainstream New Labor “Blairites.” Even parties in power are having insurrections. Bernie Sanders is sniping from the far left in the Democratic Party in the United States; Nigel Farage’s far right UKIP haranguing the Conservatives in Britain.

 This “anxiety of impotence” creates a desire for a “savior,” and there are many firebrands lining up for the job. Their strategies have one common thread; create a villain. For Trump it is the incompetence of the political elite, or alternately Muslims. For Cruz it’s Washington insiders. Bernie blames Wall Street; Corbyn, capitalism. The targets around the world include many minorities: Blacks, gays, apostates, crusaders, the “West”, or the “one percent.” Any “other” that taps into the underlying alienation will do. Institutions are also in the frame: the EU, the UN, or the Supreme Court.

Saviors promise quick solutions to simple problems. Unfortunately our current challenges are not simple problems caused by some bogyman; they are a function of displacement by technology, globalization and poor education. Quick fixes are therefore an illusion, albeit alluring to a disgruntled populace.     

Europe may give us some insight as to what might be heading our way in America and Britain: Hungary’s Victor Orban, Turkey’s Recep Tayyip Erdoğan; Russia’s Vladimir Putin and most recently Poland’s Jarosław Kaczyński. These leaders are elected saviors – all very popular and each has told their people who is the bogyman and that the solutions are simple. These regimes have given rise to a new term: “illiberal democracy,” coined by Fareed Zakaria in 1997.

Princeton’s Jan-Werner Mueller insightfully challenges this label in a recent blog on “Project Syndicate.” There is no place for the word “democracy” in the description of these governments. A more descriptive phase would be “illiberal authoritarian.” In every case, under the cover of some vague populist rhetoric, national courts have been packed or muted, the media muzzled and minority opposition squashed.   

In early 1918, Mussolini called for the emergence of a man "ruthless and energetic enough to make a clean sweep" to revive the Italian nation. Fascism was born and plagued the world until after World War II.  I am very worried that our “anxiety of impotence” might usher in some form of populist neo-Fascism for much of the world. This will not solve our problems, merely complicate them. And in the process cause untold misery on many a minority - careful, you might be one of them. 

Kraków: December 2015

Right before the New Year, we took a three day trip to Kraków. From our base in Budapest, it’s a 400 kilometer trip, mostly non-motorway; so the journey takes about six hours each way. The route is almost due north following Route E77 most of the way, bisecting Slovakia en route. The countryside is not very scenic; much less so than Croatia; we passed through innumerable hardscrabble small towns and villages. It really didn’t matter; we were enveloped by fog and mist most of the way there so our visibility was shrouded. We had booked the Sheraton Kraków for our stay, contemporary, sleek and soulless; but it was convenient for sightseeing and had onsite parking.

Before Warsaw became Poland’s capital city in 1596, Kraków was the seat of power for the previous six centuries – and most believe it is still this nation’s spiritual heart. Today the city has 750,000 residents and a well preserved historic center. Kraków, like most European cities, suffered dramatically during World War II, but endured much less infrastructure damage – more on this later.

The Wisła River forms a winding southern border for the Stare Miasto, or old city, and sightseeing is centered on three areas. The anchor is clearly the Wawal Castle, positioned at a sharp bend in the river – a strategic vantage point for millennia. Heading north from the castle, the pedestrianized Grodzka forms the spine of the old city, leading to the Market Square, or Rynek Glówny. Finally, south of the Wawal Castle is the historic Jewish quarter.

WAWAL CASTLE

Since 1038 this plateau has been a citadel of sorts and a seat of power. In the 16th century rulers transformed the Gothic fortress into a magnificent Renaissance palace, hosting coronations and royal burials over the ages.

Kraków Cathedral Exterior

Kraków Cathedral

The highlight of the castle complex is the Kraków Cathedral. Even before the present cathedral was built (1320 – 1364), two earlier churches stood on the site. The current Gothic structure was built in the form of a triple-aisled basilica with a transept and a chancel, built on a rectangular plan, with an ambulatory. The exterior seems pasted together from several competing plans, but somehow pleasingly comes together.

Shrine of St. Stanislaw

The interior is awash in beauty beyond the soaring columns: the Shrine of St. Stanislaw, a silver coffin containing his relics; theZygmunt Chapel, a masterpiece of 16th century Italian craftsmanship; and the ornately carved baroque stalls in the chancel.

MARKET SQUARE (Rynek Glówny)

From the castle, one moves north along the Grodzka. About half way or so, there is a smaller square housing the Church of Sts. Peter and Paul, twin domed and one of the most beautiful examples of early Baroque in Poland.

St.Adalbert's Church

Continuing, the pedestrianized boulevard opens to one of the largest squares in Europe: Rynek Glówny. In its center stands Cloth Hall, an ornate market hall dating to the 14th century, restored in the Romantic style in 1879. Toward the southwest corner, the Gothic City Hall Clock Tower is all that remains of the old municipal building; and in the southeast, the small and now out of place St. Adalbert’s Church, which predates the current square’s massive proportions. Still, it is a Romanesque jewel.

The Christmas markets interrupted the square’s natural lines of sight, but the façades were all pleasant; many restaurants and shops dotting the ground floors. Leading out of the northwest; there is a fashionable street, Ulica Floriańka, which ends at the medieval royal gate and the old “king’s road” to Warsaw.

Church of St. Mary

All these interesting sites circling Rynek Glówny are dwarfed in size and beauty by the Church of St. Mary; its brick Gothic exterior majestically rising 260 feet to Hejnal Tower and its ancient trumpet call to arms (made famous by Eric P Kelley’s 1929 children’s book, “The Trumpeter of Kraków”).  The church was started in the mid thirteen hundreds, its main patron Casimir III the Great; but building and renovation continued to transform it well into the 16th. The Baroque entrance is a grand pentagonal porch from the 18th century. Neo-gothic paintings cover the walls among the many side chapels. All this is capped by the Altar of the Virgin, a great three meter carved polyptych completed in 1489. We visited twice.

Altar of the Virgin

THE JEWISH QUARTER (Kazimierz District)

Kazimierz was founded in 1335 and soon developed into a thriving Jewish neighborhood. Czech and German Jewish refugees joined the community in the 15th century; the area bears witness to centuries of co-existence with Polish Christians. The Jewish population centered on Szeroka ulica, later known as New Square; a hub of Judaic culture and learning. Synagogues dot the surroundings. We only visited the Temple Synogogue, but walked the streets to see many others including the Old Synagogue and the adjacent Synagogue on the Hill; and the High Synagogue, unfortunately in much distress. There is also a large walled cemetery on Jakuba ulica.

Much of this area suffered greatly in the early months of Nazi occupation, but it has recovered somewhat, even if more slowly than the other areas of the old city. Galleries, cafés and bars are numerous.

DARK SHADOWS OF WORLD WAR II

Early on in the war, Kraków became the capital of a Nazi pseudo-state, which included the southeastern half of present-day Poland, and southern Ukraine. Overseeing it all was the infamous Hans Frank, who took Wawel Castle as his base. The Nazis under Frank’s leadership delivered a reign of terror on the populace, but infrastructure was preserved. The Jews suffered most; in 1941 the Kraków Ghetto was established in the Podgorze district south of the Wisła River.

The ultimate horror that followed is well known. At the nearby Auschwitz and Birkenau, just 70 kilometers west of Kraków,  one and a half million people were murdered, a quarter of those who died in the Holocaust. Unfortunately, time didn’t allow us a visit here.

But we did visit a death camp in 2004. On May 2 of that year, we travelled to Buchenwald, 8 kilometers northwest of Weimar in Germany. The day fit the visit - dark, cold and drizzling; as we remembered where 250,000 passed through and 50,000 perished. The memorial, including the crematorium, barbed wire, foundations of prisoner barracks and the museum were a moving experience that still sticks with us.

These were not mankind’s best moments; nor are the present barbarities of ISIL. But we also can take some hope from the past; Oskar Schindler saved hundreds of his workers at his Kraków enamelware factory from extermination. The Schindler Museum is now located in the sprawling administration building of the defunct plant at Lipowa ulica, 4; in the city’s grim industrial district of Zabłocie on the right bank of Wisła River. It seeks to retell his story against the backdrop of such horror.

SUMMARY

We saw a lot in what amounted to just one full day of sightseeing. The drive was long, but our memories will be longer. The city has an upbeat vibe; people seemed to walk the streets with purpose. Capping things off, we had a few good meals. A nice dinner on our first night at “Szara Kamienica” in Rynek Glówny; and even better, dinner on the second evening at the Relais & Chateaux’s “Restauracja Copericu”. Nicolaus Copernicus, the renowned Polish mathematician and astronomer lodged in this residence during his stays in Kraków in the 16th century.  The food was “heavenly.”

Kraków at Night

What If Bukharin Won and Had "Big Data"?

I have been fascinated by economic systems since my college days. At that time, the late sixties, the West was in a very similar funk about itself as it is now. There was a fascination with hybrid economic systems blending laissez faire capitalism with central planning; individual freedom balanced against collective welfare.  Yugoslavia was the “darling” to be studied at this time; its ten year GDP growth (1961 – 1970) was estimated at 5.5% per annum. The “USSR” (Union of Soviet Socialist Republics) was also in the frame of study.

But why the title: “What if Bukharin Won and had “Big Data”? This requires a bit of historical background. As the Russian Revolution was winding down in 1922 after five years of bloodshed and deprivation, Lenin was trying to patch together the communist utopia. Pragmatically, he relaxed the nationalization of production that had occurred in War Communism and introduced a somewhat mixed market system dubbed the NEP (“New Economic Policy”). Reluctantly, Nikolai Bukharin, a rather brilliant theoretician, economist and party luminary, came around to this thinking and became its chief exponent. By 1925, the Russian economy was turning a corner, industrial and agricultural production were back to pre World War I levels – life was improving, albeit from a terrible starting point. However, with Lenin’s death in 1925 a power struggle interfered with governance. Trotsky, Zinoviev and Kamenev wanted to scrap NEP’s decentralization and liberalization with a totally centralized system; Bukharin dug in on the merits of the NEP. Stalin, the savviest and most ruthless of the Central Committee sided with Bukharin in order to defeat Trotsky; afterward abandoning the NEP for centralization.  Eventually through Stalin’s manipulation, Bukharin was discredited, declared disloyal and executed in March 1938 – tossed upon the scrapheap of history.

Beginning in 1928, the economy was re-nationalized. In this year, the first Five Year Plan covering 1929 – 1933 was introduced; there were a total of thirteen Five Year Plans, the last issued in 1990 for the period 1991 – 1995. Alas, the last was never implemented, the USSR was dissolved and Gorbachev resigned as its leader on December 25, 1991. It had lasted as a political entity only 69 years (actually five days short of 69).

I wonder about an alternate history. What if Stalin had been bested by Bukharin and his more right leaning Central Committee members? What if the NEP was renewed every five years and decentralization remained in place? Another query comes to mind. What if computing power was what it is now, or even that of 1980? The Soviets did understand the early power of this; they nationalized the Odhner Factory, an early manufacturer of tabulation equipment quite early on, and they were a large customer of the newly formed IBM in the 1930s.

Computation power has been expanding and its cost dropping relentlessly. MIPS/$ (“Million Instructions per Second”/US Dollar) have been increasing at annual rates from 20% to 52% since 1978. Data storage and retrieval are ubiquitous; if not at times dangerous and invasive. Bukharin couldn’t dream of this power in the planning and implementation of NEP.

This train of thought logically leads one to contemplate The Peoples Republic of China (“PRC”). PRC just might be a reincarnation of this alternate history. Mao and his Cultural Revolution kept China mired in its peasant past until his death in 1976.  Deng Xiaoping reversed course out of adversity, much like Lenin in 1922; he posited that “socialist” and “market” were not mutually exclusive – at a point where IT, computers and peripherals were exploding onto the world scene. There have been many challenges to this mixed market tack, especially after Tiananmen Square in 1989; but the “decentralists” have remained in power.

Now fast forward to Xi Jinping. The PRC was born in 1949 as Chiang Kai-Shek retreated to Taiwan. If Soviet history is to be repeated; will The Peoples Republic of China also disintegrate in 69 or 70 years – that would be around 2020? The recent wobbles with the currency devaluation and stock market free fall has dented the omnipotent image of China’s ruling elite. Xi also is a new breed; replacing the “socialist construction” with what one might call a new “Chinese nationalism,” and is consolidating presidential power at an unprecedented rate. No one still believes the GDP growth rates that are officially published; actual rates might be as low as three percent. How will the world’s second largest economy handle the transition from the factory of the world to a domestic products and services consumer?  What will follow? In the end, will a mixed market strategy and “Big Data” save the regime and let it live past the USSR’s inevitable “sell by date”?

Nils Bohr, Physics Nobel Laureate, perhaps said it best: “prediction is very difficult, especially if it's about the future.”  That said, who in 1986 would have predicted that the Soviet Union would be no longer five years hence. My sense is that China will overcome the current turbulence, in no small part because it kept away from total centralization and because of the miracle of computation power.

Still, now that I’m retired and 45 plus years from those college days, I realize I’m (and we) are not as smart and clever as I (we) thought we were. It isn’t easy to plan anything, so a national economy is a bit of a stretch. In my college years I was very much in tune with Bukharin. Today I am more free market, which is inherently more decentralized and flexible. And I’m less enamored with computational power as strictly a force for good. There are dangers lurking everywhere, but I am keeping more of a wary eye on solutions involving central planning and on big data solutions than I am on markets and individual freedom.

In spite of it all, Nikolai Bukharin remains a individual to be admired.

Mallorca | August 2015

Friday, August 14, 2015

We left London on Friday, August 14 for Mallorca (Mallorca is Spanish Catalan; Majorca, the English spelling), the largest of Spain’s Balearic Island chain; (the other members being Ibiza and the lesser known Formentera and Menorca). Like most other Mediterranean isles; the Balearic’s have been contested and fought over for thousands of years: Phoenicians, Greeks, Carthaginians, Romans, Moors, Turks and even Mussolini’s Fascists all took their turn. In the 13th century the Catalans settled here; their dialect still predominates.

Mallorca (and Ibiza even more so) had gotten a reputation for cheap package tours and stag and hen parties gone out of control; so we approached the trip with some caution. But we have travelled before with friends Annie and Joël, and they highly recommended our planned accommodations – we were in their seasoned hands.

Our British Airways’ flight was good from Heathrow to Palma, the Balearic’s capital city. Clearing customs and luggage retrieval went smoothly and we were soon in our Hertz Opel Meriva for the twenty minute drive around the Bay of Palma to the Cap Rocat Hotel in Cala Blava. The hotel and grounds were converted into a hotel from the former complex of the Spanish military battery of Cap Enderrocat. They were built between 1898 and 1930 to defend the port of Palma, although this strategic vantage point has served as a watchtower over the bay for many centuries.

The property is hard to describe; most of the fortifications were dug into the sandy chalk hillsides of the landscape; with wide swaths of cut pathways connecting everything – so the 29 or so suites are a bit dark and confining, although very chic. The exterior architecture is soft yellows, flowing white cotton, torches and candles; with palms stabbed here and there, cedars standing sentry - a distinct Moorish feel. We checked into suite #44 after a quick stop at the pool to say hello to Annie and Jöel who had arrived a few hours earlier.

Hotel Cap Rocat

Later that evening we met them for drinks at the outside bar near reception and then we all had dinner at the hotel’s Sea Club Restaurant above Queen’s Cove. Thankfully we had a table under cover; a sudden and strong rainstorm hit shortly after we were seated; scattering other unprotected guests all seeking some shelter. After a walk back to our room up the carved out military pathways we were quickly asleep.

Saturday, August 15, 2015

The weather forecast looked particularly bleak for the next few days; very uncharacteristic for August in the Med. We awoke to rain and a dark gray sky and had breakfast in the room. The foursome decided to take a short 40 minute drive to Sóller, north on the coast from Palma. Lunch was at the Jumeirah Port Sóller Hotel and pleasant. It was then a visit to Sóller’s waterfront and Plaça d’Espanya; we watched the iconic wooden paneled narrow gauge train pull in to the quayside station from its long winding journey.

 Sóller's Narrow Gauge

Back to the car still dodging raindrops, we headed south on the twisting but beautiful coastal Ma-10, terraced stone hillsides everywhere, to the small village of Deia. Continuing on to the lovely mountain town Valldemossa; forever linked to the French novelist George Sand and Polish composer Fréderic Chopin – both part time residents. After finding a place to park, we all toured the expansive Real Cartuja de Valldemossa, a royal residence and from 1399, a Carthusian monastery packed with interesting local artifacts. We then travelled back to Cap Rocat; eventually having dinner again at the Sea Club. The fresh sea bass grilled and filleted was excellent, along with a local white wine, Ribas. Everyone crashed to bed about midnight.

Sunday, August 16, 2015

We were up to a more typical sunny morning. We spent the day at the pool; stunning views to the sea and a tranquil peace enveloping us. Judith and I read, partaking in both lunch and dinner with our friends at the Sea Club. The day was a preview to heaven, except for my Internet bandwidth headaches – god’s helpline was busy!

Cap Rocat's Pool

Monday, August 17, 2015

Bad weather returned with a vengeance. After breakfast we were off to Palma under heavy rain and struggled to find parking. We waited in line under our umbrellas, shoes soaked and pant legs soggy, to enter the magnificent Palma Cathedral. On the bones of the mosque of Medina Mayurqa, a new cathedral was finished in 1587. Early in the 20th century, the famous Antonio Gaudi created a new high altar, the Baldachino; a wrought iron canopy incorporating lamps, tapestries and a multicolored crucifix. Somehow this does not visually interfere with the exquisite 36 foot stain glassed rose window dating to the 16th century. The whole Gothic edifice is a startling but refreshing attack on the senses.

Gaudi's Altar

Palma's Cathedral

We journeyed back to Cap Rocat, still under a heavy rain and had a late lunch at the bar. We met Annie and Joël and drove back to Palma (thankfully no rain) for aperitifs at the boutique Hotel Can Alomar overlooking the fashionable Passeig des Born; later a nice alfresco dinner of paella at Caballito de Mar. We had made the best of a rather dreary day.

Tuesday, August 18, 2015

A hopeful sunny start when we rose was extinguished by ten, replaced by threatening cloud cover. We were off after breakfast to Andratx, a small and sleepy town in a valley of almond groves on the southwest coast of Mallorca. Its port, five kilometers away, is a different story. Here, in a protected bay, luxury yachts are moored snugly and equally lavish villas dot the adjacent hillsides.

The rain continued unabated. Our next stop was to La Granja, a possessió, or private estate from the 18th century, just outside the small hill village of Esporles. Once a convent, it is now the home of the Segui family who have opened it as a public venue. Think of a crazy and eccentric aunt you might have and where she might live if suddenly wealthy. The gardens are haphazard affairs, caged birds, goats and other more exotic creatures are combined with follies and strange water features. If the seven dwarfs wandered past us I wouldn’t have been startled. The house is equally bizarre – music alternating betweenThe Marriage of Figaro and a Muslim call to prayer. The dreary weather only added to the eeriness.

La Granja

Not looking to head back to the hotel quite yet, we revisited the charming town of Valldemossa and took in the Saint Bartomeu Church. It was then back to Cap Rocat; arriving about five.

St. Bartomeu

We met Annie and Joël for drinks and dinner; tonight at Rocat’s gourmet Fortress Restaurant for a five course tasting menu. We were not disappointed.

Wednesday, August 19, 2015

The weather is forecast to improve; we have one more day of so-so cloudiness – at least no rain. Our friends opted for a short excursion to Portals Nous, just past Palma; but we decided to camp at the pool with our books. We went to lunch at Sea Cliff about one; Annie and Joël returned and joined us a little after we had sat down. All were back to the pool until six; the weather was as advertised, mostly cloudy with an occasional wink from the sun.

Dinner was outside at the Sea Cliff; I had very nice beef tenderloin in lieu of fish tonight. We also partook in a wonderful white, Belondrade y Lurton, from the Rueda region and verdejo grape. Judith and I had met the Lurton family at a wine tasting at the RAC.

There was a star filled sky as we walked back to our suites.

Thursday, August 20, 2015

Finally we woke to blazing sun and perfectly blue sky with temperatures forecast at 86⁰F! Our breakfast arrived; Joël had finally “trained” the kitchen to provide us uncut crusty baguettes that were wonderful, the yogurt with honey divine.

Palma Cathedral's Exterior

 

We got to the pool by ten and had a fantastic three hours of relaxation, reading and swimming. At a bit after one we traveled back to Palma to see things not from under an umbrella – what a difference on a pleasant day. Parking on Avinguda d’Antoni Maura we had a quick bite and then walked around the cathedral’s exquisite exterior. After, it was to the Basilica de Sant Francesc and its expansive cloister. The refined Gothic style and the Baroque altarpiece were inspiring. From here it was a short walk to the Banys Árabs, a well preserved 10th century Moorish bath. We finished with the Palau Reial de l’Almudaina, the royal family’s palace in the Balearic’s. The admission price was high and the visit not very interesting. The drive back to the hotel was without traffic.

Banys Árabs

Palma Cathedral's Exterior

That evening, we drove back into Palma with Annie and Joël. Drinks were at the Can Alomar’s terrace and dinner followed at their Asian themed De Tokio a Lima Restaurante, also alfresco. The food and wine were excellent, the service didn’t quite match.

Friday, August 21, 2015

The weather remains perfect. We were down to the pool by ten and had a relaxing morning of reading and swimming. The view from the pool over the Bay of Palma is breathtakingly beautiful. At 12:30 we returned to the room, changed and were off to visit Portals Nous, northwest of Palma. Its attraction is a glitzy new port, very big, with plenty of shops and restaurants. We had a nice lunch at Spoon Restaurante looking out to a field of pleasure boats.

Back to the hotel, it was to the pool until about six. Dinner with our friends was at the Sea Cliff.

Saturday, August 22, 2015

The beautiful day was the perfect excuse for laziness and hedonistic sun worship; and we found religion came easily.

Before lunch, we looked at the new Sentinel suites (three in all), wonderful spaces carved into the rocks with very private terraces and plunge pools overlooking the indigo stained Bay of Palma – very dramatic and one of a kind. We left the pool reluctantly after six.

The four of us had drinks on the upper terrace of the Fortress Restaurante, overlooking a wedding party in the courtyard. It was then down to Sea Cliff for our final dinner here.

Judith, Annie, Joël and me

Sunday, August 23, 2015

We woke to a slightly overcast morning and it was time to check out of Cap Rocat and move to our next location.

At noon we were heading north about 60 kilometers toward Pollença and to Son Brull Hotel. This Relais & Chateaux establishment is contained within a 40 acre farm; a magnificent natural environment of olive grove, vineyard; as well as almond, lemon and orange trees. Located at the foot of the Sierra de Traumuntana mountain range, overlooking the sea in the distance, this 12th century former Jesuit monastery has 23 rooms and suites, a pretty pool and highly regarded restaurant. The austerity of the original building has been softened with a cool, modern design, but totally in keeping with the spirit of the place. We checked into suite #37, spacious and very nice, a view to the Bay of Pollença. We settled in and took a leisurely walk around the grounds.

Hotel Son Brull

Dinner was on the terrace and did not disappoint. Our leg of lamb was cooked flawlessly, tender, flavorful; the 2008 Torrent Negre Pla i Lleevant, a local Mallorcan red, the perfect accompaniment.

Monday, August 24, 2015

After a very nice breakfast, we spent the day at the pool swimming, reading and relaxing; only interrupted by a tapas lunch. The weather was perfect, sunny with a light breeze to cool the skin. Dinner was a bit disappointing; we all had herb crusted hake that was bland and overdone. Desserts were a helpful consolation.

Tuesday, August 25, 2015

It was only partly sunny today. After breakfast we were out sightseeing, our first stop the nearby Pollença. It is a picturesque small town, its Plaça Major a bustling hub of cafes. There is a wonderful church, Nostra Senyora dels Angels, from the exterior a gothic temple built in the mid 1700s, but the interior contains some beautiful baroque altars. We also climbed up the 365 steps to El Calvari, a hilltop chapel with an interesting gothic cross, carved in wood.

365 Steps to El Calvari

Back to the car, we headed to the Port of Pollença and then on to the twisting Ma-2210 out to the most northern point of Mallorca, Cap de Formentor and its lighthouse. The jagged cliffs looked like the upright sharpened gray flints of some long ago giants; scrub pine and the occasional mountain goat to stop traffic. We got back to Son Brull about three, had late tapas and relaxed at the pool.

Dinner was alfresco with our friends.

Wednesday, August 26, 2015

After a typical but very nice buffet breakfast we were off again on a hot and sunny morning. Our first destination was the Santuario de Lluc, 20 kilometers southwest on the narrow Ma-10. This remote site is high in the hills of the Sierra Tramuntana.

Basilica's Main Altar

It is a 17th century monastery and shrine to La Morenta, or Black Virgin; 13th century folklore recounts that a young shepherd boy found the statue on a nearby hilltop. The Basilica has an imposing stone façade but wonderful baroque interior. Behind the apse is a small altar by Gaudí displaying the Black Virgin. The adjacent museum is uninteresting except for the collection of Mallorcan paintings; once again I was impressed by this local artistry. The wonderful impressionist painter of the isle, Coll Bardolet, donated 236 of his works depicting Mallorcan scenes. There are also fine samples of other impressionists, Guillem Gill’s watercolors a standout.

Guillem Gill's watercolors

Next we were off on the torturous Ma-2141 to Sa Calobra. Although a short distance away, it is a 45 minute trip contorting through Puig Major; the route plunges over 2,500 feet in 13 kilometers. At one point, the road turns 270⁰, looping under itself (road engineers call this a “knotted tie”). While trying not to careen off a precipice or having my left side mirror snapped off by a passing vehicle; the views of the seemingly hand carved gray cliff sides and towering peaks were spectacular. Intrepid goats sometimes block the tarmac.

The cove of Sa Colabra is a light emerald bay tucked among the rock face. Further along the promenade there are two tunnels leading further into the bay’s round pebble beach and the end of the Torrent de Pareis, a 3.3 kilometer gorge beginning in the peaks of the Sierra Tramuntana range. After a quick bite, we back tracked our route, arrived back to the hotel after three and were quickly into the pool.

Sa Colabra Bay

Torrent de Pareis meets the sea

Dinner was on the hotel’s terrace; after a bit of TV news we were off to sleep.

Thursday, August 27, 2015

The weather remained perfect; mid eighties ⁰F with enough breeze to keep things fresh. We had a full day at the pool; reading, relaxing, nodding off occasionally, and some guilty swimming afterward. The pool area is a bit quirky, but it has a certain genuine charm – one might think you were at a villa in Tuscany. Our lazy behavior was only interrupted by lunch.

Son Brull - Poolside

We had booked dinner at Hotel Castell son Claret in Calvía; west of Palma and about a 50 minute drive from Son Brull. Their restaurant, Zaranda, is one Michelin starred, the young chef Fernando Pérez Arellano working hard to please. The food was inventive and tasty; the local 2011 Cumas red, a blend of mostly Mantonegro grape with a 5% splash of Syrah, a pleasant and inexpensive surprise. It had a nice peppery taste and fruity finish; it reminded me of Drouhin’s Willamette Valley pinot noir.

Joël navigated us back to the Son Brull in light traffic.

Friday, August 28, 2015

Our last full day here remained bright and sunny with a nice breeze. It was more of the same, a repeat of yesterday. Dinner at the hotel was another disappointment.

Saturday, August 29, 2015

We were up early and bid our friends Annie and Joël a safe flight back to Luxembourg; they were leaving before us. We had a last swim and some sun before we packed and checked out. It was an easy ride back to Palma airport; we arrived early so we had to loll in the lounge for a few hours. BA 0450 was delayed about an hour, but we had a good flight nonetheless. Masood had us to the flat by about eight.

Mallorca was a pleasant surprise and we will most likely be back. The island was very clean, its people upbeat and helpful; there was much to see historically and scenically and our lodgings, pleasant and one-of-a-kind types of places.