Walking within the confines of the national park, we wade into the bushes to pick a few choice blackberries. Not quite ripe, and my friends hungry, we exit out the park for a few minutes to seek sustenance more satiating,
A black and white board shows the available choices. The kitchen is cold and grey, the silver colored pots on the stove the grandest decoration. If feng-shui exists, everything here is the polar opposite, the energy of this kitchen would drag down a full moon if it's orbit were any closer to earth. The Communistic Chef, a 50 something year old woman, who clearly grew up under Soviet Rule, looks like she hasn't smiled, perhaps ever. She throws around some cutlets of schnitzel like a garbage man would the trash he's tossing into an incinerator.
Our Communist Chef
I order a small cup of soup out of politeness, and watch my friends squirm as they take a bite out of their "beef" goulash.
Marek explains how the dish reminds him of when he was a cook in the Czech Army. "We'd sell the beef we were given on the black market. We poor and broke live everybody, and I'm not proud of my actions, but we'd actually make money that way. To cover for what we'd done, we'd create 'beef stew' with zero meat. We'd throw in as many of the ingredients as we had, maybe we'd grind in some stone for weight and then use ketchup and sugar to add flavor to beef stone stew." (I'm pretty sure he was kidding about the stone, but who knows)
That's pretty much the Communistic Kitchen recipe used for the "tomato sauce"- ketchup, water, sugar, and some flour. The taste? Pretty much what I'd imagine stone soup would be like.
Our food explained
Examining left-overs from weapons to gas masks of the Soviet Empire
Sidenote: This incident is just another example of what I refer to as The Hangover of Communism still a commanding presence in the former Eastern bloc.
Czech Paradise (Cesky Raj), it's sheer cliffs jutting up towards the sky and featured on water-bottles sold around the nation.
A couple hours outside of Prague by car, you pay a small entrance fee to enter the national park, but could likely make it up by spending some time picking black and blueberries which can be freely picked during the summer months.
If you're looking for a nature getaway while in the Czech Republic, below are some photos and videos of what you'll find and see.
me and Dannika Big?
A different angle of the sandstone formations here
I get off the S-Bahn and pass through Checkpoint Charlie into West Berlin.
The Recichstag Building
The streets are a history buff's dream, museums and historical landmarks abounding. Looking for someone to make sense of it all, I run across one of the best guides I've ever seen, an Englishman named Sam Noble (could a name be more British?) appropriately studying for his PhD in history.
Monument to those who tried to stand-up to Nazi rule
Sam is entertaining and knowledgeable, and it's clear he has his routine down. Despite the numerous laughs he provides anyone on his tour of Nazi Germany would describe it as "sobering," and I include present day Neo-Nazis in that statement as you'd have to deal with the reality that you lost motherfuckers!
Most of the monuments were created after the war to commemorate the fallen. The irregular squarish shaped tablets you see here honor the politicians who attempted to stand up to Hitler, all of whom were quickly murdered for raising a dissenting voice.
Soviet monumentto the fallen soldiers
Looming large is the Soviet Monument for the unknown soldier, with 2,500 Russian servicemen buried beneath and around the monument. It was erected in a former green area near the Reichstag, where Hitler had planned to build "Adolf Hitler Platz" after the war, an admirable plan to award himself the prestige he deserved for plummeting the world into chaos and destroying Europe.
If you examine the statue of the soldier, the hand is as large as the head. Stalin, in his infinite compassion, had the sculptor executed.
No, just kidding, from reading Communist history we know Uncle Joe would never stoop to such a level; the hand's size symbolizes the powerful and mighty Soviet empire holding back fascism and the Nazis.
Video of the Soviet Monument to the unknown soldier
WWII Soviet tank
Not open to the public, we arrive at the remains of Hitler's bunker, the spot where he committed suicide. Sam points out the fact that almost all high ranking officers of the Nazi party, war mongers that they were, who sent in armies to be slaughtered for the glory of battle and holding a position, who destroyed and ended so many lives, cowardly took their own rather than face the public's wrath.
At the time of suicide, Sam relates how Hitler lacked the ability to slaughter his own dog. A man who unblinkingly sent millions to their death.
the holocaust memorial
Erected at a large cost to the public the Holocaust Monument sits on uneven ground, with rectangular blocks of different heights and widths. I'm not clear what the designer's purpose was besides maybe a creating a feeling of confusion, a place where it's hard to get your bearings, where nothing seems to make sense, perhaps representative of what the victims of the Holocaust went through.
Surprisingly, there is absolutely no graffiti here, Neo-Nazi or otherwise.
This is due to the fact that at great expense the German government had a chemical solution applied to each of the blocks to which paint and other substances could not adhere to.
remnants of the Berlin Wall
A scandal broke out when it was discovered that the company which supplied the solution (sorry) was a subsidiary of the same corporation which supplied the Nazis with the poisons used to gas concentration camp victims. After much public uproar, the company decided as a gesture of goodwill to refund the people of Germany the full cost of the chemical application.
My sincere hope is that the government employee knew of the connection beforehand, took a bribe from the Nazi company when he awarded them the contract, then, after the work was done, leaked the facts to the media, and lead the charge by the government to get the money back. Now that is German efficiency!
The S-Bahn circles the city's center, at last arriving at Treptower Park Station.
On one side of the street a massive open and green public space along the Spree River, extending further than eye can see. On the other the city and structures of Berlin.
I lug my heavy bag over my shoulder with its toasted wheel down the clean streets, making my way past bakeries, restaurants, bars, and apartment buildings.
Settling in for a moment, my hosts give me a quick account of their beloved city, describing it as far more diverse, and much less conservative than the rest of Germany.
The Treptower area is former East Berlin, and today quite trendy, a center for artists, hippies, and musicians.
Soviet war monument in Treptower
I head back to the park, a huge green space interwoven with hiking trails and bike paths criss-crossing through small vestiges of forests. Every tree in the park, and in all of Berlin, is assigned a number, and kept track of by the government.
Treptower is home to a huge and imposing Soviet war monument, constructed from material rightfully ripped out of former Nazi headquarters.
Exploring, I walk several kilometers through the woods and realize that I'm running out of bread crumbs to find my way back out. I come across a gingerbread/candy house. I'm pretty it's a project constructed by one of the Treptower's more avant-garde artists, but I elect to continue past.
I find my way to the street, stop at a restaurant and order a German beer and some schnitzel. I wouldn't call Berlin charming, but it is incredibly interesting. I finish my meal and consider dessert. Fortunately prices here are cheap enough I don't have to go back for the gingerbread.
Location: Treptower Park; Former East Berlin
My AirBnB hosts, Fritz and Anna, are a kind and thoughtful couple, hippy hipsters, who despite being slightly shy over their passable English, cheerfully answer my questions about their beloved city each morning over breakfast, which they've generously included in my stay.
Anna grew up in on the East German side of the Berlin Wall, a proverbial world away from the West. This morning she shares with me some of her memories.
Living in East Germany
As with all Communist countries, unless you came from the political elite, little opportunity existed. The government's primary goal was control, control, control.
Freedom of speech, of movement, and of choice, were almost non-existent. If the Deutsche Democratic Republic (DDR) desired a more working class oriented society, even if you were an outstanding student from an educated family, it was nearly impossible for you to pursue your studies further.
Even children had to be careful of what they said. Always interested in environmental issues, Anna drafted a note to the politicians complaining that all the fish were lying upside down on the river's surface, poisoned by the chemicals dropped into the water by the local factory. When she presented her letter to her parents, she was told in no uncertain terms, "absolutely not!"
Imagine how stern and pointed the German must have been in the more rigid East.
Not only could she never send the report to the local officials, she was warned not to even breathe a word of it to anyone or there would be serious repercussions at home. And they not only meant for Anna; her parents rightfully feared being sent to prison.
That means this environmental disaster never took place. No one reported it, no one spoke of it, a blind eye was turned, and it certainly wouldn't appear in any Communistic history book. How will such a society fare compared to one in which freedom of speech is a protected right? Which is more likely to have an ever growing cancer causing cesspool? Not that we'd ever about it.
Elections
The incumbent government was re-elected with a staggering 100% of the vote each election!
You might think to yourself, "They must have been incredibly efficient, forthright, and managed the economy exceptionally well."
Maybe. Or perhaps it's that they were the only party on the ballot.
Yet despite political experts from both East and West predicting "landslide victories," and nearly "insurmountable odds" for the non-existent opposition party, voter participation was almost 100%. Constituents who thought their time would be better spent staying home on election day and watching the last vestiges of paint on their walls slowly disintegrate were soon visited by concerned government minders who asked ever politely, "What happened? ... It's okay, we brought the voting box to you."
"Still don't want to vote? ... I think your shack a bit more comfortable than an East German jail cell."
Consumer Goods
Limited, scarce, and of poor quality, perhaps with the exception of the pride of East German manufacturing, the famed "Trabant,"the DDR's answer to the VW Beetle.
the Trabant
So exceptional was the original engineering, the motivated engineers found "no need to change a thing." The first auto off the assembly line looked and performed nearly identically to cars when production was finally halted in 1989.
The Trabant had a two-stroke pollution spewing engine which maxed out at an earth-rumbling 18 horsepower. Although they cut corners on safety features such break-lights, turn signals, and sometimes part of the auto-floor, no one seemed to mind, considering the car was rarely operational.
But in a collective society, the Trabant was available to anybody. Yes, that's the benefit of Communism, the equality of it all. Just sign here ... and wait 15 years.
The Falling Wall
Anna, who was in her teens when the wall fell, describes the aftermath.
"No one could believe how rapidly change took place. Our mood quickly crescendoed, excitement mixed with fear of the unknown. The biggest and most immediate change were all the consumer goods that flooded into the stores. Never before had people in the Eastern Bloc countries seen so many choices.
Inefficient factories which had operated in East Germany were closed, for the first time ever in this Communist society, some people were out of work.
Many East Germans were ill equipped to work and hold jobs in the West. The German government found itself paying for the schooling of the people of East Germany."
Re-Unified Berlin- Today
The DDR is still in the process of being absorbed by the West, and Berlin still is not on equal footing as other German cities, a fact which manifests (a positive for visiting Berlin) in prices for food, rent, and wages being lower.
However, due to a concerted government effort, existing infrastructure, and economic support offered by West Germany, the Hangover of Communism suffered by the DDR has been far more mild than the other former Eastern Bloc countries.
Tumultuous change is the 20th century through-line of Berlin's history. From being built up by Hitler, then bombed into rubble during WWII, annexed by the Russians, to the fall of the Berlin Wall, the city's heart simply beats to a different rhythm than anywhere else. With all the culture, monuments, and history, Berlin is an absolute must see city, and if a taxi driver driving a Trabant offers you ride, by all means take it. You'll have a great story to tell your friends, especially as you propel the car forward with your feet through the non-existent floor, much like Fred Flinstone did back in the day. Except his car was technologically superior to the Trabant.
Imagine being a referee in a tiny boxing ring, you're feet bound to the mat, in the middle of two heavy weights slugging it out, who are so blinded by ego and desire to dominate, they keep punching after the other retreats, uncaring of the collateral damage to your face.
this Soviet style building looks far better in
this photo (due to flash) than in reality
That's pretty much what the Poles have felt like the majority of the 20th century, stuck between Germany and Russia. First WWI, then decimated by the Germans during from the opening salvo of WWII, followed by the Russian counterattack, then annexed and enslaved by the Soviets, The scars of battle are still etched on the unhappy faces of Poles today.
Fallow Land
Aside of the very center of the city, a tremendous amount of space lies fallow in and around Gdansk. You'd imagine land to be relatively cheap, and thus single family houses would quickly spring up.
Instead, the area is dotted mostly by large Soviet built apartment buildings, each uglier than the next, the only make-up, rouge in the form of brightly colored red flowers applied to the window sills and balconies.
In an impoverished population, it's apparently more economical to put everyone atop one another.
An example of the fallow land which exists around Gdansk
How Poor?
Minimum wage here is a dollar in half an hour. Aleksandra's friend Alice works full time in a small stand selling pastries and breads for $300 a month, sitting 10 hours a day, a tedious, and what would be thankless job except for being able to gift muffins and donuts to her friends. A smile spreads across her face, during an otherwise glum afternoon.
Some laborers are on the job 20 hours, multiple days in a row. Don't like it, that's fine, there's a line of people waiting to take your place. Overtime? What's that?
There is little of sense of loyalty between employer and employee here, and vice-versa. Its the wild wild west of labor, a nearly lawless divide, circa Great Britain at the start of the industrial revolution.
Government + Lack
During Communistic times everything from clothing, to heating fuel, to food was in short supply. Often there wasn't enough to eat, and people had to fight for the few available resources.
The accompanying scarcity mentality still exists in Poland, the hangover of Communism still strong.
People stream onto the bus, elbowing each other in the side as they battle for the available seats. It's a habit you'll feel in peoples' presence outside as well.
A money changer gives me a fake currency, augmenting his income substantially ($33) for the month.
If you can afford to pay your bills and go to the cinema a couple times a month, people assume you're most likely in the mafia. For those who are prospering at all, tremendous jealousy is society's response.
But dishonest bill changers and the mafia are not the greatest of Polish peoples' worries. As Peter (23) tells me, "There are thieves, and then are thieves ... and then, there is the government."
You want to get rich in America, you start a corporation and succeed. Want to get rich in Eastern Europe? Work your way up the government ladder.
Outlook
Peter rationalizes his unhealthy habits. "Smoking calms me down, without it Polish people would kill each other. As for the heavy drinking, we do so to forget our reality."
Asleep at the bus stop- look carefully
Look carefully at the above photo. This middle aged man is asleep at the bus stop, blood dripping down his face and onto his shirt.
Being drunk and falling asleep in public- a recipe to be assaulted by the unhappy populace. Many men go to bars in search of a fight, something to make them feel strong, to justify their existence.
As Peter tells me, the only thing that is easy about Poland, is the decision to leave. In full agreement, Ibooked my ticket for Germany immediately, leaving in the morning.
Lotos- huge building in the center of town- the Polish oil company
Invited to visit Ola in Gdansk, Poland. Airport pick-up, she takes me to her family's house located twenty minutes from the city center which we quickly set out to explore.
First stop- the beach. It's a warm weekend day in July on the Baltic Sea, and crowds have gathered to enjoy the sun.
Me + Aleksandra (Ola)
The beach in Gdansk
A few volleyball nets, and a couple soccer goals set-up comprise the majority of the public infrastructure, save the pier extending out into the water. I watch a couple teenagers jump into the ocean, and I feel pressure to follow suit. Heck, I want to be cool right?
Jumping off the Gdansk pier
town center- doesn't quite look "real"
Drying in the sun, we head to the city center. Sadly, the entire area was destroyed in World War II. As a measure of pride, and a bid to increase tourism, the city council decided to rebuild, attempting to replicate exactly what existed before. Unfortunately,everything looks too new/ done on the cheap (as you might be able to tell in the below video.) If I were a museum curator, I'd immediately deem it a fake.
The main square of Gdansk Poland
the ubiquitous lion statues throughout Europe
Gdansk cathedral
Ola under the corridor of beautiful trees
photo makes me smile- people having fun
Ola wants to show me the biggest park in Gdansk park on my last day, a staple of her childhood.
It's literally breath of fresh air, always a pleasure to surrounded by green, to watch people enjoying themselves.
Park with hedges for children
Also, if you're by the park, there's a medium sized church nearby. It's not St. Peter's Basilica, but they do have free organ concerts, though you'll have to bypass the collection plate being passed around.
So there you have it: my version of the Gdansk Welcoming Committee, inviting you to visit this city.
------------------
Of course, as I'm not employed by the Polish Tourism Board, I do feel it necessary to share with you the darker side of Gdansk too.
We all travel for different reasons. Oftentimes it's to experience new things, try exotic foods, to expand our perspectives and enable us to see the world through the viewpoint of other cultures.
For me, it's to open and experience the "juice of life."
What do I mean by that? There are moments in our existence when we become completely present to an energy far greater than what our mind generally perceives. A moment where gratitude and love flow completely through you being. Each time I experience this state, it becomes easier and easier to get there again.
One of the frequent keys and conduits to this is the sheer indescribable beauty of nature.
Preikestolen unequivocally meets this criteria. It's one of the most majestic, dynamic places I have seen in my life, and will leave you positively breathless. Thoughts wash away as you take in its spectacular beauty.
The literal translation of "Preikestolen" is "the preachers chair," though it's more commonly referred to as "The Pulpit Rock." Why? It's such a heavenly view of earth, I feel as though I've been instantly transported there.
Below are photos and videos I took while there. Enjoy!
Preikestolen as you approach
Arrival
The Preacher's Chair
A religious experience
A different of view from the Pulpit Rock
exquisite natural beauty
ain't getting no closer to the edge without a parachute
the fjord snakes away. That's over 2,000 feet straight down!
Posts
