So the highlight of my day today was breakfast! And no, I don’t mean the food but the conversation. I was in line at the buffet when this woman came up and started talking Hungarian, then German and I had to say no only English. So she laughs and says she’s from Philadelphia! (What’s with these Philly people following me around the globe!). So I tell her I used to live there and she actually lives 5 minutes from where I used to live. Crazy!
So she introduces me to her parents and her brother and sister. Her father was born in Sopron and they were all there to see where he was born and retrace his steps in life. So I get my food and sit down to have breakfast and the mother comes over and sits down next to me. We talked for 30 minutes! (Yes, my eggs got cold! Lol). But her story was fascinating. She told me how she was born in Romania but had to flee because the Russians were coming (she was Jewish). She said she and her family hid out with a family near Vienna but they found her and she was put in a concentration camp. She started to cry as she said how horrible the conditions were. But then she praised the US Forces and how they liberated her and her family. That was the reason she wanted to come to America. It was an amazing story. That’s the neat stuff about travel that just happens when you least expect it.
So after breakfast I just walked around other parts of the town, especially down some of the side alleys, to see even more of Sopron. I included a few pics. Very quaint little town.
Then I took the bus (what a hoot) to go out in the hills to do some hiking. So I go to get on the bus that the Tourist Info guy told me to get and when I show the driver the name of the stop I wanted he said No and just pointed down the road and of course went on and on in Hungarian about something. So I got off and waited for the next bus. Did the same thing and this time the driver just nods and when I try to give him money to pay for the bus he just looks away and starts driving. So I got a free ride out. On the way back I noticed everyone just got on and waved to him so I did the same and he didn’t ask for any money or bus pass so I guess it’s free?? Lol
The bus drops you off right at the trail head and the Tourist Office guy said it was a nice hike up to a lookout tower. As you can see by the pics, it started off as this nice wide path in the trees and I thought this will be nice. Then it narrowed down to this tiny path going straight up hill very steeply! I finally got to the lookout tower and was exhausted but then of course I had to climb another 100 steps or so to get to the top. But it was all worth it. The views were spectacular. I could see back towards Sopron, out towards Lake Ferto and even saw some windmill farms.
All in all a great day in Sopron. But now the big city fun begins. So other than Munich (pop 1.4 million) I’ve pretty much been hanging out in small towns and villages. Tomorrow I go to Budapest (pop 1.8 million), then later in the month Vienna at 1.7 million, Prague at 1.3 million and ending it all with the largest city on my tour with Berlin at a whopping 3.5 million. My little Hallstatt at pop 800 will be a distant memory!
Happy Hump Day to all!
Jeff
The Wandering Italian 