<3 Budapest <3

I agree. I loved Budapest, though I doubt it's dirt cheap like it was back in the mid 90s.

Still, even if more expensive, the food, archtecture, museums, and general feel we're all pretty awesome. I'd happily pay more for that experience again. I hope its still amazing.

Budapest was awesome. I think I linked to that cool pub I went to already.

Definitely take a day at one of the outdoor baths.

Krakow was also nice, and I’ll just say that tour of Auschwitz takes a bit of a toll on you.

Check out The Salt Mines outside of Krakow if you have the time.

Enjoy Budapest. Had a blast there.

Salt mines were very cool.

Look forward to hearing what you thought of Auschwitz. It's quite an experience.

Cosign.

I know we all learned this stuff in school, but seeing Auschwitz gave me a whole other level of appreciation for how insanely evil these people were. Everyone should go once.

What's your route from Krakow to Budapest? PM me if you're coming through Kosice.

Auschwitz for me was a powerful day. Coming from North America, I learnt a lot more about the Soviet efforts from the war that you don’t hear about as much coming from here.

I work at the railway in Canada, my brother does too. I think just standing there, and having a deep understanding of what it takes to get a train across a country made it significantly more impactful to me. We had a conversation about exactly that while we were standing there, and it just amplified how many evil people were involved and the scale of the entire thing.


Most disappointing part was them having to tell a bus load of adults to be respectful and not take happy selfies because of everything from #yolocaust.

They actually encouraged everyone to take pictures and share the experience. I didn’t take any, just didn’t feel right.

I was pretty disgusted when I visited Dachau Concentration Camp outside of Munich and saw people taking selfies and photographs of themselves in the gas chambers.

I didn't take any pictures there at all. Same with Auschwitz.

As a longtime Gordon Lightfoot fan, I have to ask - How do you feel about the Canadian Railroad Trilogy?

I didn’t and wouldn’t be likely to take pictures at Dachau. It struck me as a place for tears and quiet contemplation of the nature and scope of evil, and of the thinness of the barrier between those who wreak great evil and our society.

Dachau didn't have any gas chambers. It was a work camp.

I went there as well. It was a decent memorial, not as affecting as Auschwitz though.

https://www.scrapbookpages.com/Dacha...history01.html

Anyway, it wasn't quite as intense. It's argued by some that the chambers weren't even used as that and that it was just a shower room. Others speculate that the shower heads were a ruse to put the prisoners at ease and prevent them from trying to escape before the gas was released.

Haha, it’s good. His daughter makes some pretty good music too, and puts on a great live show.

Dachau must have been a death camp or a famous Beefheart song would be nonsensical, which is clearly impossible.

Going to Lisbon for the first time ever Friday. Probably (though not certainly) skipping the clubs, but does anyone have standout restaurants or bars to recommend?

Don't skip the clubs. Go to the Bairro Alto area.

The food is generally average to bad in Lisbon, so gl with that. If you're going to be there on a Sunday, prepare for virtually everything to be closed.

not sure where you're staying, but there's lots of great restaurants in Chiado and Bairro Alto.

Alma is probably near the top of the price list, but that's the cost of having two Michelin stars. i haven't been, but it's got to be good...right?

no matter where you go i suggest trying Bacalhau à bras at least once. it's the kind of traditional dish that your Portuguese grandma would make. there's also a lot of chatter about pastels de nata, and they're pretty tasty, but i don't think you need to go out of your way to have the 'famous' ones.

a couple of restaurants i can speak of from personal experience from a month or so ago.

A Primavera do Jeronimo http://primaveradojeronimo.pt/en_GB/
This is a very small place so you should probably try to get reservations. we were lucky and were able to seat a party of four without them.
i'm pretty sure grandma is the one cooking in the kitchen and the dining area seemed to be filled with nothing but locals. Don't expect fast service, but do expect authentic food. Bacalhau à bras, octopus, hake, and rice dishes were all fantastic. if you ask the server what you should order i bet you $10 he says the Bacalhau.

Cafe No Chiado https://www.cafenochiado.com/en/
Padron's Peppers, the cheese and/or charcuterie platter, mussels, Bacalhau à bras, and the braised pork cheek were all very good.

i also suggest not eating at a place that also has Fado performances. there may be good ones out there, but from our experience the food is little more than an afterthought.

Heh, maybe spoke too soon, sounds like my travel companion wants to go out Friday after all. Going to dinner at Time Out Market then seeing where the night takes us.

Thanks, got a reservation for Saturday night! It seemed fairly open -- I assume November is getting toward the offseason in Lisbon. Bacalhau a bras looks great, will definitely try.

May try to hit Sintra on Saturday and a beach on Sunday, depending on how late we stay out.

Portuguese food is good if you're into seafood, most notably cod. Lots of cod (normally dried or salted) if you're into that.

To be honest, I enjoyed the food in Porto more, most notably Francesinha.



Of course if you're into wine, then Porto would be the home of port wine.

i can't imaging eating in portugal if you don't like seafood.

in simplistic terms, Bacalhau à bras is a salt cod (bacalhau) dish that combines shredded cod, fried matchstick potatoes and sauteed onion with scrambled egg somewhat similar to a frittata or spanish tortilla....so damn good.

i almost mentioned Francesinha in my first response but decided not to because it's such a Porto thing. definitely try one if you have the chance.

please report back...i'm curious what you think. when in doubt, ask the waiter/waitress what they like.

in regards to Sintra: Pena Palace is the big draw and it's worth seeing the outside because it's so damn wacky and the overlooking views are great, but IMO it's not worth the cost and time to take the inside tour. If you don't mind hiking we enjoyed the gardens/forest that surround the Palace much more than the inside tour. the High Cross is the highest point and offers the most distant views, but just down the hill St. Catherine's Heights has the best view of the Palace if you push to the very end of the trail and scramble over a few boulders. the park map is on the second page of this link:
https://www.parquesdesintra.pt/wp-co...na_2018_EN.pdf

the Moorish Castle is just down the hill and dates from the 8th century. for some reason i enjoyed walking along the Moorish Castle walls more than the Pena Palace. probably has something to with 1300 years of history.

really wanted to make it to Quinta da Regaleira specifically for the Initiation Well, but just couldn't make it work.

I can't imagine Lisbon not having a restaurant that serves Francesinha.

Is OP still alive?