Germany II - A Stark Comparison

So sober and elegant!

This church stands in stark contrast to the rococo of other churches we visited. Shall we call it neo-gothic? All statues, plants, flowers & icons are against purest, unadorned white walls. I love the clear round ball-chandeliers suspended from the ceiling. 

Beautiful madonna & child

The Apse: no stain glass; only potted parlor palms

Side Chapel: Note the exposed crypt in the 2 clear diamond shaped floor windows.

Blessed Gisela - first Abbess of Holy Trinity

After the death of her husband in the early 1000's Queen Gisela of Hungary returned to Passau to live the rest of her life. Passau belonged to her father, Duke of Bavaria. She lived an exemplary life and in the late 1800's she was beatified, but surprisingly, not sainted. If the Papacy did not believe she was a saint, the Hungarians certainly do; her tomb is the object of a pilgrimage for Hungarians all over Europe. If not a miracle, it was certainly a great event when the first Magyar king was converted from a pagan tradition to Christianity. He was sainted and became the patron saint of Hungary, Saint Stephen.* And who but his sweet wife might have been the instrument of his sainthood? 

Gisela's Tomb: Notice the fresh flowers.

*See earlier posts on Hungary: # 47 Hungarian History 

Presidential Election - Post Mortem IV

#6 replies to #4. Recall that #6 is our lone "liberal." It's only fair to give him the last word. 

I think #4 hit the mark. But he fails to acknowledge that he and his kind are part of the problem. White flight to the suburbs similar to red / blue state migration in which people move to areas so they can be near people that think and act like them has insulated people from really having to engage in debate with other people with differing views. Instead of being an example for minorities,  low-income people, and others, the middle and upper middle class have instead established their own exclusive hubs where outsiders with different social mores feel alienated. Instead of sulking about how dumb and gullible the overall population is becoming, maybe the right should take real action and send their kids to urban public schools, gentrify neighborhoods in transition, and participate in urban renewal efforts. But all we see from the the middle and upper middle classes liberal or conservative is an emphasis on the individual with less and less regard for the community. The result is already visible at DISD*. Largely abandoned by middle class families, DISD is left mostly with kids that come from uninterested parents and broken homes which makes it impossible to get good results. Couple that with a disinterest in local schools from an increasing number of singles in the community and the result is inevitable failure. If the right wants to lead nationally, they better start trying to lead locally in the big population centers.  Otherwise, the right is doomed to be a minority. And while they may be comfortable in their little "gardens," they won't be able to escape state and national policies that will affect them too.

#6  

    

*Dallas Independent School District 

#4 opines.

Election Post Mortem

Friday, November 09, 2012

12:33 PM

Very well said, #7. You basically described everything I would have said, and then some.   I'm always impressed that anyone can arrive at their own conservative opinion on matters in spite of the massive and accelerating onslaught of liberal culture and education that engulfs our younger generations.  It is difficult for our parents to understand just how extensive the rot in our institutions have become, that to think differently in any way from what one has been taught or exposed to in the media  should be considered almost miraculous.  Add to the fact that many of us work in professions or public institutions where the liberal mindset is dominant and intolerant of debate, and it's amazing that we've maintained our own sanity. 

As #7 and myself can attest, what's been going on in our schools growing up and what our cohorts have been consuming in media has now finally come home to roost in this election. Young people have been taught to think emotionally, praise narcissism as a noble act of being 'genuine' or 'real', and to be celebrated for just simply being instead of accomplishing something.  It's about you're identity, and who you can identify with, which means race and ethnicity matters more than actually solving problems and making everyone better off.  Voting thus becomes about who the candidate appears to you, rather than if he can actually deliver the goods with any competency.  The results of that kind of thinking can be clearly seen among the most destitute voting precincts  in this country:  crime-ridden, uneducated, vulnerable to outside shocks, and pretty much uncivilized. Look at Detroit, South-side Chicago, D.C., the Philadelphia wards, and South Dallas. They vote for people who look and act "like them" time and again, only for them to continue to be worse off and to be at the wrong end of the widening gulf of inequality.  The patronage system easily takes root among such infantile populations, where self-proclaimed "champions of the poor" turn their constituencies out to the polls (with a lot fraud involved) and then get their cut of the spoils from the party leadership, and their constituencies get some sort of meaningless freebie that often shackles them to a life of penury.  Then, when the occasional storm or hurricanes plows through, it is those very same people who wait around helplessly for someone else to rescue them, since they have never know how to do it themselves (if they did, they wouldn't be poor in the first place.)  These people are persuaded by symbols, and simple narratives that blame the other.  Their ranks continue to grow, and now they are making their impact felt on national elections.

I agree with Papa that the U.S. is sliding inevitably in decline, as all great civilizations at some point must, simply because human nature succumbs to its primordial flaws at some point.  The American constitutional republic was founded on a reserve of the best enlightenment human virtues, which can only last so long before the sin of envy takes over. Class warfare, making fun of a candidate's professional success , accusing him of not caring because he'd rather not talk about it out of personal modesty (even if he donates 40% of his income to tax and charities)--it's all influenced by envy, and even the most intelligent people in our own forum are prone to thinking enviously.  Only they rationalize their envy by claiming that it's driven by their own personal compassion. Sure, whatever.  You're only giving the disadvantaged even fewer advantages by giving them some small tangible benefit while robbing them of their ability to take care of themselves.  And then you go back to your own cushy life with your cushy friends talking what a great person you are because of your compassion.  I've seen this time and again with many of the people of gotten to know in my life, and it makes it so difficult to want to care about them all that much.

As my wife can attest, I don’t like Facebook much anymore, since I'm constantly appalled by my so called 'friends' spouting things that are so contemptuous of all the things that I value in my life.  I've shut the TV off most nights, since most shows have ceased to entertain  so that they can instead spend more time instructing us on this topic or that.  Nothing's funny, everything seems contrived when I turn the TV on.  The prevalence of politics in our media has gotten so nauseating that I can only watch the most boring and neutral stuff, even if it's completely unimportant (sports, home improvement shows).

Papa is totally justified in his concern for the fate of his kids and grandkids as the U.S. embarks on its road to some form of statism. Life in general won't be easier than for previous generations, but the pain will not be inflicted equally among all people.   Those that are smart enough to take advantage of the system will thrive, never mind the obstacles put in the way.  For these people, obstacles for others are their safeguards.  Those that have exceptionally marketable skills in the knowledge economy will do fine, since their value in the global marketplace is so high that they can easily afford to pay whatever taxes coming their way.  They have earned the luxury of thinking abstractly, and think little about imposing their idealism on others who are not as smart.  They are what Joel Kotkin calls the new clerisy, with a whole class who in their relative material comfort consider their primary role as championing a certain kind of social morality consisting of a cocktail of environmentalism, social justice, sexual rights, abortion, and chiding those who choose not to follow because it damages their livelihood.  They are less and less entrepreneurial, since they tend to live by the rule that as long as they follow everything they are told, go to the right school and follow the right career path, they will be awarded with bountiful riches and prestige (sounds kind of like France).

Your kids are smart, and work in the knowledge businesses that will keep them in demand. Your grandkids will do fine, though they will be paying a lot more taxes, and hopefully they will also join the upper ranks of the knowledge economy and they will  have been nurtured by stable and educated families, something that is no longer a given these days for much of the working classes. Although we would like to expose our kids to people of all walks of life, how we live now and how we will live in the future makes it more difficult.  Simply put, the smart and not so smart have been sorting themselves away from each other over the years at an accelerating rate, and nowadays it is easy to live one's entire life among people very much  like themselves, with nary a contact with anyone outside of this bubble.  Charles Murray's Coming Apart: the State of White America makes this very clear.  Social cohesion has continued to fracture along cognitive lines (read Murray's Bell Curve, and right now, a new kind of aristocracy is ascendant, while our dependent serf population continues to expand.  Enguerrand is right, this growing class of mindless serfs constitute the new "silent majority", even as their lot in life continues to decline (African Americans) or  plateau (Hispanics), especially under the economically clueless leadership of Obama.

Following the political developments of the day has become too depressing, even stressful, and it convinces me that I should tend to my own garden instead.  I am more engaged on what goes on in my community, be it at city hall, the church, and my kids' schools. I continue to do things with my local professional group, where my contributions are valued and I have more control over the outcome I  favor.   I try to find situations where political partisanship is off limits, and instead talk or do things that anybody could agree on (that's why I don't like to talk politics at the dinner table much). I find more fulfillment in my creative endeavors than who wins this or that political race (though it's always a good day when a Republican wins a seat somewhere, and I'm grateful to live in a place that is well governed by people who agree with me, even if most of them will never see eye to eye on matters relating to art). And that's the lesson for me in all of this: though the majority of the nation may vote according to their self-serving interests, as long as I live according to "conservative virtues", I'll be more content and better off than those people anyway.

 

Germany I - Pretty Passau

Best overview I have

Passau, a beautiful city in southern Germany. A visit is like walking into a picture postcard. Someone long ago saw this site where three rivers merged wedged between ridges of the Bavarian hills & said, “This is for me!”

Not an especially great photo, but it shows very well the different colors where the Danube & the Ill rivers meet. The Ill coming from the Alps is greener than the Danube coming from the Black Forest.

As is so often the case, beautiful places do not become big, wealthy cities. Nevertheless, in the case of modern Passau, the waterways have contributed to its historic stability as a cultural & learning center, boats for pleasure and transport of goods, surrounded by small, contained industries and farms. 

#2: Our fearless guide -- The water is very high. Note the submerged tree where people can usually walk. Notice in the background a luxury liner that plies the rivers.

The old historical town is a pedestrian’s paradise with its churches, municipal buildings, universities, small shops, & eateries.

Symphony in Rose: The Rathaus (town hall) has a handsome clock

An outdoor cafe/restaurant is behind the fountain.

We park outside the old town along the riverfront & take our place among other old town strollers.

Old: Universität Passau Katholische Theologishe Facultät in the old town

New: Universität outside the old town

Greater Passau is a feast for the eyes everyday, as one must drive along the rivers, cross beautiful bridges, and take in the cultivated countryside. All this & one never has the impression of crowding or pollution, or any of the usual city ills associated with urban areas.  And once again, colorful structures, as you will see. What’s not to love about that? 

Passau for sure has a proud history, but I must admit that I haven’t quite gotten a proper grasp of it, as yet. I have only witnessed bits & pieces of it, & mostly by visiting places.  I know that it’s important to keep in mind that Passau is in Bavaria which is historically Roman Catholic. I’m sure there are Evangelical (Lutheran) churches, but I did not notice many. Most of the churches are what I would call Baroque in style, grandiose, & as the photos will demonstrate, they are richly gilded with art all about.

A good example of decorated arches and a pipe organ

Imagine a wedding procession here!

A bit dark... one of many ceiling murals: angels playing musical instruments 

A baby pipe organ

None would be complete without a beautifully exposed pipe organ...and sometimes more than one.

Baroque size organ - not very big

Modern and big organ

Our special guide was #2 who works as a dentist. He’s become charmed by this Neverland, even learning to love beer which defies his French roots. 

  

Presidential Election Post Mortem III

Note 1: For those readers who are interested in this debate they should begin with post #53.
Note 2: I do not translate J.J.'s exposés in complicated French
Note 3: If you read French begin at the bottom entry which replies to #7 in post #54

#5 usually leans toward the Democrats, but for this election he went Republican. 

Dear All,

After the dust has settled (and my prediction of a Romney victory was wrong) I must admit I was stunned as much as Romney who really thought he was going to win. Poor guy even bought fireworks for the event that weren't even used.

There are a several issues that could be cited for the Republican loss: media bias, expensive primary, tea party sway, 47%, Bain Attacks not defended, and distorted rape comments.

Despite that, Romney still should have won considering the dismal state of the nation.

What really did Romney in was his underestimation of the Mexican vote and his thoughtless policy concerning them. As far as I remember, he supported the idea of snuffing them out through 'self- deportation.' Later the policy morphed into,"they can stay here for now and pursue the American Dream, just don't expect any help or SNAP, TANF, CHIPS or Housing Authority Voucher,

For his complete failure to respond appropriately and include Mexicans as part of the American fabric, he lost 50 electoral college points outright in Colorado, Nevada, and Florida. And he probably lost lots more decisive votes in Ohio, Virginia, and Iowa. 

To Dems credit, they have gotten smarter. If they can't win on rhetoric or policy, then just get the silent majority to show up at the ballot box by registering 10 million new uneducated poor voters, tell students they don't have to pay Sallie Mae, give blacks in Clevelend cell phones (true stuff), put pro-latino local initiatives and referendums on the local ballots.

Romney thought ideas would win the day for him, but Obama won in shear numbers (of minorities) who showed not knowing what they were voting for.  Axelrod and Co. took the low road to winning and left nothing to chance. They had every reliable vote pinned down to the exact precinct and demographic.

Throw the poor people a bone, a green card, or a cell phone, and they will vote for you. It's not that hard!! 

And to think Romney wasted $1 billion on hot-air rhetoric, signs, 3 debates, campaigns, commercials, when all he had to do was reassure minorities he had their back.

Republicans won't learn anything from this loss. They think the problem is more about the color of the candidate more than it is with their own policies towards Mexican and hispanic communities. I already see Senator Marco Rubio to be the 2016 poster child for the White Old Party. 

& so it goes....

#5

J.J. comments on #7's opinion.

Chers tous,

Auguste a raison! Les petits details avancés par les journalistes pour expliquer la victoire d'Obama sont les arbres qui cachent la foret. Certes, avec la lamination de la classe moyenne depuis 20 ans, il eut été préferable de choisir un homme du peuple plutôt qu'un patricien pour conduire l'étendard des Républicains. Certes, les "tea partiers" ont contraint Romney à adopter pendant les primaires des positions extrèmes en matière d'immigration et de contrôle des naissances, qu'il a chèrement payées le 6 Novembre. Mais, quand un bon candidat, comme Romney,  offre un programme valable pour redresser l'économie et rendre sa vigueur au pays, alors que le president en place affiche une médocrité déconcertante comme ce fut le cas lors du premier débat à Denver, en principe l'électorat n'hesite pas. Ainsi, Reagan a fort justement battu Jimmy Carter. 
Comme Auguste, je trouve inquietant que l'électorat n'ait pas suivi la loi du bon sens. Ceci prouve , à mon avis, que l'Amérique est en déclin. L'abandon des valeurs chretiennes traditionnelles est résponsable de cette évolution. Les Americains, tout comme les Français, se moquent pas mal de ce qu'il adviendra à leur pays. Ils ne voient que leurs petits intérets immédiats. La presse les encourage dans cette voie (les journalistes ont perdu leur intégrité depuis longtemps!) et nos concitoyens suivent comme des moutons avec la bonne conscience que leur donnent les média.
Je me souviens que lors de l'élection d'Hollande en Juin, les Français ne pouvaient pas critiquer la performance de Sarkozy. Alors, ils ont justifié leur rejet du president sortant par de mauvaises raisons ("Sarko est trop arrogant," "Sa femme est trop jeune et jolie"..). Meme chose ici, Romney était visiblement le meilleur candidat capable de redresser la situation, mais l'électorat Americain a préféré réelire Obama, malgré qu'il ait fait preuve se son incapacité à gouverner. Obama etait plus près du peuple, plus sensible à la misère des gens etc...
Tout ce que nous pouvons faire est de ralentir le déclin en vivant vertueusement et en n'hesitant pas à défendre nos opinions lorsqu'elles sont attaquèes.

Papa

Presidential Election Post Mortem II

As usual readers should begin from the bottom entry and read UP. 

READ THIS LAST: #7 Weighs in. 

Personality.

Yep, personality held sway in this elections and we're all the worse for it. This was a victory for the incredibly shallow media and the electorate that goes with it. This election was certainly not decided by any kind of principal; it was decided on personality, image, and likability. Obama skated by with little to no scrutiny from anyone while Romney was sliced and diced for every little sound bite, and finally dismissed as a flat-out liar along with his running-mate Ryan. In that kind of atmosphere, it's a wonder that Romney expressed any kind position. Every tiny step was a politically fatal. 

More hope and change? What hope? What change? You mean more stimulus? More stalling? More campaigning for gays and liberated women wanting cheaper easier access to birth control and abortions? More taxes for the rich that they'll still elude through loopholes? More bailouts? More gridlock in congress? More genocide in the Middle East? More can-kicking (my new favorite verb from this arduous two-year campaign)? Seems all the same to me.

I know, to the Democrats this is more alarmist talk from a stupid conservative who can't figure out his own interests. However, besides his rhetoric, what has Obama done for the little guy? And, more importantly, how much of the little that he has done will actually last? Perhaps some folks (as Obama calls them) have insurance now, thanks to no preconditions, but where will that burden be shifted, if not the young? Working guys like myself. I still await the price reduction in healthcare. And how will we pay for this system that isn't even sustainable? Oh, shift a little here, shift a little there, and tax a few billionaires, and voila! Problem solved. I'm not convinced and remain rather dubious on that whole thing.

Focus groups and polls dictate the national discussion more and more. It's quite odd: normally, the national discussion (in the media or in the debates) will dictate the focus groups and polls, not vice versa. There was no logic, just percentages of people who don't know anything to begin with. There goes any talk about foreign affairs. There goes any particulars about policy. There go any real analysis of history, recent or long ago. Economy become a mighty god to assuage, not a science of property, capital, and wages. There was no logic, just impulse--I won't even grace the opinions with the word feeling. And I won't necessarily blame fat stupid American citizens for the lack of logic. Pundits and leaders have made a concerted effort to make this election stupid and one-sided. Individualism? Free-market economies? Morality? Isolationism? All these things have too many syllables.. Voting adults read young-adult trash, if they read at all. They act decades younger than they are. And they're hooked on all seven deadly sins. But, it's all OKAY....Consider this reality, and never has the choice for president been so much easier to predict.

That being said, was Romney the best candidate? He was bland, but I grew to like him in the end. I'm not sure anyone could have been better. This was a hostile environment for any candidate not named Obama. I don't know what Romney could have said to change that. Newt, though a much better speaker, had no chance with his past marriages, stupid yet enough to knock him out. Santorum and the rest of primary guys picked one GOP constituency and had no chance to appeal to anyone outside of that. Poor Perry was just too darn stupid, even for a dumbed-down election like this one. I don't think wearing jeans, drinking beer, and pretending like dealing out entitlements and perks to key voters would have done anything for the out-of-touch sofa with great hair. He'd just be accused of lying, and suffering from "Romneysia". 

I will say that I think it's time to reevaluate the electoral system. It's hard to argue for it. I know it's supposed to be a representative democracy and all constituents are thus represented, but they really aren't. Ohio and Florida are represented while other states are neglected almost completely. Geeze, even Texan primary meant diddly, even though we're the biggest conservative state. Why bother? If you're not a Cuban in Florida, an autoworker in Ohio, or some farmer in Iowa, nothing the candidates say 90% of the time applies to you. 

It's all a game of numbers, not real ideas. It makes the crusty 30 year old lawyers in Texas guffaw at the lack of sleek sexiness in the GOP image. So much for the future.

There's a lesson in all of this. I think we become more ancient as we become more modern. We had the choice between a demagogue and a patrician. I guess that makes us helots or plebeians. Those well-wishing liberals will have their wish. I hope it works out, but, judging from the looming "fiscal crisis" and the dour picture in Europe, the picture may darken a bit in the time ahead.

#7

Second Entry: Jean-Jaques answers #6

Cher Numéro 6, 
Quand les voix se partagent pratiquement également entre Democrates et Républicains, on peut difficilement dire qu'Obama ait remporté aisement la victoire! Le "Électoral College System" devrait être abandonné car il masque la realité d'un pays divisé par le milieu. En outre, en obligeant les candidats à concentrer leurs efforts sur les fameux "swing states", l'élection presidentielle devient une guerre de tranchées aussi stupide qu'en 14-18!

Papa

BEGIN HERE. #6 is the lone Democrat in this election. He gets to gloat.

Hello Everyone!

Obama wins easily. No surprise there. Seriously, did the Republicans actually think they could win with a candidate so out of touch like Romney who has the personality of a sofa, hides his money in offshore accounts to pay less in taxes, and made his millions as a vulture capitalist? So much for Romney's electability. Strangely enough, I think Herman Cain would have made a much stronger republican candidate as he had at least some humor and a catchy 9-9-9 tax plan easy to remember among the population. Instead, all Romney could offer was the same rehashed Republican talking points. Here's for more hope and change! 

#6

Presidential Election Post Mortem I

Our family has always enjoyed a lively political debate. The following was #1's reaction from Russia. 

 

I woke up this morning to the news that Obama had secured his second term with most of the swing states capitulating one after another like dominos to the Democrats, except North Carolina. As I told you, I predicted that Obama would win by a landslide. He did not even need to wait for the results from Florida to come in to claim victory. Truly, I agree for once with Donald Trump. The US should get its act together to be a more democratic country than it is. In fact, I reckon that Mitt Romney won more popular votes but lost out to Obama by wafer-thin margins in key swing states such as Ohio and Virginia. What is the point of voting if the electoral college system decides the outcome? If you are really into politics, then you should pack your bags and migrate to a swing state such as Ohio where you vote really does make difference. In Texas, due to an overwhelming presence of Republicans, it does not make much sense to vote for the Democrats, ditto for the Republicans residing in liberal states such as New York or Illinois. As a coup de grace, Obama could even win in Florida against Romney but only by a few thousand votes on a wafer-thin margin.

 

I am not sure how you took the news. Probably, you were somewhat disappointed by the outcome and had expected that the electoral battle would have held the public longer in suspense as was the case with the 2000 elections, where all of the attention and recounts were carried out in Florida to identify a winner. However, with the electoral college voting system; Obama clearly pounced Romney by winning over 300 electoral college votes against only some 203 for Romney.

 

One key mistake that Romney committed during his campaign was to threaten to sell off the automotive industry, instead of using Keynesian economics to salvage the battered down industry employing people in key states such as Michigan, Wisconsin and Ohio. He saw too much the business aspect of the problem but forgot about the people. He was perceived as a successful business man with little scruple for shutting down factories in the US to relocate them somewhere in Asia where labour is readily available for a song.

 

As for me, well, I am not all that thrilled that Obama won, but it means  a status quo in the immediate, an isolationist foreign policy, more public spending, higher taxes on the wealthy, and more social measures to make medical treatment affordable. There will not be any military engagement for another four years, so veterans can continue licking their wounds from their involvement in Iraq and Afghanistan for a while.

 

I am sure that some members in the family are quite upset by the outcome but the results won’t radically change the ability of Obama to institute much reform, given that the house of representatives is still controlled by a Republican majority, so there won’t be much action until may be sometime next year, once the Iranians claim that they finally have the bomb.

Take care and don’t take my remarks too close to heart. It’s poke and cheek.

 

With best regards.....

 

 

Eastern Europe: Tripping on the Train

(Sorry, no photos. I'm way too preoccupied to stop & take pics on the train. There will be plenty for upcoming Passau, Regensburg, & Saltzburg.)

For the life of them none of our kids--and now that includes our daughters-in-law making 14--understands why we like to take trains when we go to Europe. The last swing from Hungary to Slovakia, through Austria to Bavaria, & finally to Munich was aboard the (in)famous  long distance trains. If J.J. & I did not have at least one major leg on our tour by train, we would feel like we had cheated, or something. How can we pretend to have European roots if we do not take the train? It’s the stuff that novels and spy movies are made of, even if, for us, there is no plot. All the same, a train passenger during that moment lives on a stage composed of train stations & big compartmentalized trains. The backdrops are constantly morphing into different countries with cities large and small. The characters, with languages and cultures matching their homelands, enter and exit leaving indelible impressions, never aware that they are being observed by outsiders from another world. 

Over the protestations of #3 who insists that trains are expensive, slow, and a big hassle, we are of a mindset that traveling is not always about getting from point A to point B. If that is all one wants then take Easy Jet. You’ll spend most of the time you save waiting in lines, listening for garbled announcements, & being delayed by endless stupidities--such as blowing up suspicious unattended suitcases. At boarding, one begins to feel sympathy for beasts being herded to the slaughterhouse. I ask you, how is the whole process of “security” check much different?  For commuter planes one must climb an outdoor flight of stairs -- resembling fire escapes!--only to push one’s way into a kind of wholesale, super-sized coffin for about 150+ people. The sight is comical to watch as most passengers have big bulging soft travel bags that they force into inadequate, overhead bins. Of course, passengers have the option of checking their large bags but would never do so for fear of never seeing them again. (Oh yes, on this I can sympathize!) I could go on with a litany of inconveniences and even grievances, but I’d much prefer to extol the virtues of rail.

Hence, we two seniors do our best to travel with bags that are a reasonably light tote because, for sure, we are in for a lot of toting. In fact, we are in for a lot more than that because the bags must be hoisted from the quay about two & a half feet high onto the train. Once on board we must hoist our bags onto luggage racks leaving all walkways absolutely clear. The good thing about trains is that there is generally a lot of room on the racks & generous seating. Since we don’t usually have to hurry to sit down and get buckled in, as in planes, we have all our time. Many times a young person -- male or female -- will offer help us with our bags. See? Young Europeans can be so polite! Actually, J.J. & I often get help when we are negotiating stairs & such in stations. From then on we just relax, take in the beautiful scenery, read a book, snack, or snooze. 

Okay, so boarding the train has its challenges, too. Lately (as I’ve mentioned before), there has been a trend in Europe to announce the train and quay only minutes before the train is scheduled to pull out. While Europeans who are used to this phenomenon & are unfazed by this last minute sort of thing, we outsiders  feel disadvantaged. Such was the case when we left in Presov, Slovakia at 9 a.m. Luckily Viktor was there to help us! We surely could not know anything trying to understand Slovak on the intercom. Asking someone is fine & we will always do it, as you will see, but people don’t like to be stopped for information when they are in a hurry to catch their own train, plus they must try to think in English. Who can blame them for being a bit brusk? 

Here I must digress a bit and tell you about trains in Hungary and Slovakia: they are still quite antiquated. As previously mentioned Hungarians have updated and modernized the Budapest station, but most stations are still lagging in this respect. The Bratislava station is so dated & impractical that those progressive Slovaks ought to refurbish it soonest, if for no other reason than making a good impression.  An old train might be roomy, but it is tired from long years of service and generally toilets function very poorly, if at all. It does not have air-conditioning unless you count open windows with whipping wind. June was fine for interior temperature and air circulation; but in the summer months one will really get to experience how it used to be without AC! So, for this last train trip we had rather inferior trains in Hungary, Slovakia, until Vienna where we changed to a cushy, modern, air-conditioned train with working toilets. It follows that older trains are definitely slower than the new ones. The new trains are like a fast flowing cloud.

Still, I must insist that for enjoying the sights, scenery and local folks that the train is the way to go. Most Europeans do not take the train for a long trip. Their limit is about 50 miles or two or three stations. Maybe their work is located a few stops away. Many times it is obvious that passengers are making a family visit. We've seen & spoken to grandparents who have just fetched their grandchildren for a summer visit. By going through the same regular things that most citizens do, we are getting a real taste of each country as we pass through. Go figure: flying is just a few hours in the "coffin," confined & all strapped down, only to arrive at another airport with nothing special to remember. Where are there any remnants of old world elegance or quaintness to compare with trains?

The second time we had to get instructions was in Vienna where, because of extensive renovation on the designated station, there was a complicated change to make. We actually had to leave the long distance passenger train just before Vienna, catch a suburban train to the main station, and then find the quay for our train to Passau. Fearless J.J. asked a burly, red-faced Austrian conductor to give us instructions to which he refused (in loud German), turning to the “audience” of passengers and commenting that he didn’t have time to fool with Americans. Well, we never give up because one conductor acts like a clod. The next conductor, a skinny, distinguished grey-haired sort told J.J. (in German) “Just wait. I have to check everyone’s ticket. I’ll take care of you after that.” If you’re wondering, yes we can understand the “gist” of these simple instructions & the unkind comments made by Conductor Clod. Mr. Nice Conductor gave altogether understandable instructions with names of places where we should get off & then take a subway to the station. From there on it was an adventure, but not one which was impossible. We knew we had very little time to make this connection, but we did! 

We settled into the beautiful, modern train. J.J. and I did not sit together. Many times we don’t, as he likes to do his thing & I like to do mine.  I talked with Lauren, an Austrian French teacher for most of the way. As we watched the two-story rectangular farms pass by on the bright green hills, she explained that these structures actually housed a family and the farm animals! We spoke of many common experiences, teaching French, our host sons, her vacation house where she would be staying for the next month. She would be taking her students on a summer outing for a month in July. She and I spoke French, as was her preference so she could get in some practice. Okay, figure this: me retired French teacher - native language English; she French teacher - native language German. Ah! The beauty of the French connection! 

By the time we got to the Passau station #2 was waiting for us. He was rather amazed that we had actually made our schedule. He knew all about the change in Vienna & feared that we would get laid over. The only really big ordeal yet to surmount would be a train ride to the Munich airport where we would fly back to Paris. I’ll spare you that. Suffices to say, that J.J. & I made all of our trains with complicated connections. We might not be winners of the ubiquitous “Amazing Race,” but considering our age, it’s worth a brag in my blog.