Lviv, Ukraine, July 31, 2010

Forgive me for any repetition. I am now at the Hotel Dnister in Lviv, Ukraine. We hired Bill again to pick us up in Luts'k and drive us to Lviv. He is 41, married with two kids, and a really nice guy. This hotel is much more typical of a U.S. hotel but the sleeping arrangements are still way different. We have two twin beds. The beds sit about 12 inches off the floor and the single mattress is only about 6 inches thick. Most places so far have not had carpeting or bathtubs. Some have not had air conditioning.

I will try to catch you up. When we arrived in Ukraine, we were supposed to take the bus to Luts'k but when Bill, the driver took us to the bus station and he saw our faces, he offered to drive us. It was a three hour drive on a rough two lane road. Peggy was behind the driver and I think she was about to have a heart attack several times. She said Bill was only inches from the semis on the other side. The drivers do lots of passing. When no traffic is coming at you, the driver drives wherever the road is the smoothest. The countryside looks similar to Indiana, just less developed. Cows and goats wonder on the sides of the road and even wonder onto the road. Many old fashioned wagons pulled by horses were on the roads. Reminded me a bit of Amish At one point, we had to stop and wait for the cows and wagon to get off the road. In Luts'k we met our guide, Ann, age 24, who took us to our apartment. Bill had taken us to a grocery store to stock up on snacks and water. We have been drinking lots of water but unfortunately, that means we have to go to the bathroom and the WC is not always the greatest place to go. Many charge an admission fee. On the train Peggy said the toilet was just a hole; she could see the train tracks wizzing by below. So all that waste just flies out the bottom of the train!

I was only able to upload one picture but will try more tomorrow. A picture is really worth a thousand words. My words do not do some of this justice. Our apartment was OK but not like we are used to. The elevator barely holds two people. After our outing on Friday, it didn't work so we had to walk up the 6 flights.

On Friday, we went to the main parish town Rozschke, to the village of Dmintowka, Pereespe, and Emilin. Imagine driving on the worst roads you have ever been on-these roads were worse. We had a driver, Ann, our guide and interpretor, and we picked up the pastor of the Baptist church who proved to be invaluable. He showed us the remains of the Lutheran Church where our German relatives were baptised, we walked at least a half mile through fields filled with weeds to an old German cemetery, and we met two old women who lived in Emilin their entire lives. Granny Weber and all of her siblings were born in Emilin, Volynia, Russia, which is now part of Ukraine. I cannot wait to attach the picture. The one house had no running water or plumbing. It did have electricity. The 85 year old woman lived alone, got water from the well, had some chickens and a small garden. This hut was the most primtive place I have ever been in. Old fashioned houses like we see at places like Connor Prairie or other museums that have life size models of prairie homes are like castles in comparison. It was quite a moving experience to meet these two ladies. They both lived there their entire lives. They both wore scarves on their heads like Granny Weber used to wear. I remember Granny tellig me that her life before coming to America was very hard; I cannot imagine her parents and eight siblings living in such conditions. The old women did not remember any Germans in the village but we were told that the different groups did not mix. Emilin was very small in the late 1800's and now only has about 5 houses.

Saturday (today) Bill picked us up at 10 a.m. and drove us to Lviv. We hooked up with Svetlana about 3 p.m. for a walking tour of Lviv. It reminded me a lot of Prague, just not as big and as ornate or well preserved. Svetlana told us that Ukraine will sponsor the Soccer World Cup in 2012 so she hopes the city will be greatly improved. We saw lots of historical sites, beautiful churches in several different styles. But what was really different was the weddings! Saturday in the summer is a huge wedding day. The entire wedding process is completely different than in the U.S. It starts with the groom coming to the house of the bride where he has to "bargain" with the bridesmaids to get the bride. The bride and groom then have a civil ceremony and then a religious ceremony and then the party. Sometime during all of this the bride, groom, and weddding party and families walk all over the historic parts of the city with their videographer and have all kinds of pictures taken. The videographer puts it all together to make it into a fairy tale movie. We went to a big catholic church where a wedding was just finishing. The bride throws candy to all the guests from the steps of the church. After this group cleared, we went into the church to take pcitures. While we were in there, another bridal party arrived along with their guests so we took seats and watched part of the wedding. I videod part of it because it was so different. So, we attended part of a wedding of complete strangers. Svetlana assured us that it was OK-the church is open to the publc even if a weddding is going on. I think we saw at least 20 different bridal couples during our two hour historical tour.

Sunday, we fly to Munich and arrive at about 2 p.m. We will be staying at our first and only hostel for one night. It is called Wombats. The second night in Munich, we will be at a hotel. On Aug. 2, Linda will be joining us for the remainder of the trip.

My impressions so far: Peggy assures me that what we have seen does not compare to third world countries. However, nothing has been up to the standards we are used to in the U.S. Toilet paper is rough, brown recycled paper. There is no circular cardboard in the middle. It is on a thin metal rod through the center. Napkins are thin small sheets of tissue paper. Nothing has been extremely inexpensive. The food is OK-it gets really old fast walking on cobble stoned streets. The people have been very nice. It has been great having guides and interpretors. We could not do this without them. I am looking forward to going to Germany because I think it will be a bit more like the U.S. Yes, I am feeling spoiled. I can't wait to se my baby sister Linda and to meet our new relatives. Hopefully, I will be able to add some pictures in Munich. Pat has asked if I am having fun. I have trouble answering that because I have decided that a "fun" vacation is on a beautiful sandy beach at a nice resort somewhere in the south, laying around doing whatever you want. This trip is more like an educational tour. Lots and lots of walking, we have had rain, cold, and heat. There has been little time to do nothing. But...we are learning lots and I know that this will be an unforgettable experience, something I will never forget. There have been so many: "never seen that before, never eaten that before, never knew that before" moments. Until tomorrow-sleep tight!

Sandy

Leaving Poland, On To Ukraine

Crazy trip on a tram to the mall. We are not the best with directions. A female trait! I got an internet deal for this hotel-$20.00. The least I have ever spent! We will try to communicate from Ukraine but have no idea what to expect! Back soon, I hope.

More Pictures July 2010 Poland

Random Pictures of Poland, July 2010

Palace stairway, Archives with Michal, country "bar" restaurant, cemetery, typical bathroom which is either called a water closet (WC) or Toilet.

Reconnect with Peggy In Radom, Poland

Pictures top to bottom, l to r: On the way to Radom, we visited where Chopin was born. This is the front of the museum which is on the grounds of the estate where his family lived with the estate owners. 2. Me in the drawing room of the palace with a bust of Napoleon. A typical old building with a thatched roof. My room in Turec. The huge building is of one of the top ten largest sanctuaries in the world that was modeled after the vatican. It is on several acres of land with gardens, paths, ponds, bible verses, etc. where people can come to pray and meditate. I am standing in front of the palace where I spent the night in a room that was at least 20 feet wide and 50 feet long. The night before, my room in Turek was about 8 by 8 and the mattress was only about 3 inches thick. I felt a bit like Nelson Mandela (certainly not close to as bad) when he was in prison. I just wanted to fall asleep as fast as I could so I could wake up the next morning and get out of that room.

Michal wanted to surprise me the next night with the stay at the palace. It is owned by the government now but was once a lavish estate. Napoleon visited this estate in Walewice and fell in love with the countess Walewska and had a son together. Their son became a minister of affairs in the middle of the 19th century in France. We had a tour of the palace and saw the quarters where Napoleon stayed when he visited.

On our way to Radom to meet Peggy at the train station, we stopped in the village where Chopin was born. Michal said that lots of people from Japan visit this village because they love Chopin.

We picked up Peggy in Radom and then drove to the small tourist town of
Kazimierz Dolny whicgh is on the Vistula river. This river reminds me of the Mississippi. The town is so nice. It reminds me of the small tourist towns along Lake Michigan except that there are old historic buildings built in the 16th century. We ate dinner in a lovely restaurant with lots of charm and ambiance. We stayed there for several hours, drank several beers, had some shots of cherry vodka, but were back to the Inn and in bed by midnight. It was fun to just relax, laugh, and have fun.

Peggy's three days in Krakow sounded spectactular. She went to the salt mines that I knew nothing about. Had to descend 800 steps but it is a huge area-masses, weddings, etc. take place in the salt mines. It would be worth a google image search. She also went to Auschtwitz which she said was a sobering experience. There were glassed-off rooms filled with the hair from the prisoners, a room filled with their suitcases, and a room filled with the empty cans of the poisons used to kill the prisoners Michal informed us that many Poish people were also murdered along with the Jews. Peggy walked through the actual gas chamber. There have been times when I get discouraged with pour American government but this experience has really opened my eyes to how really lucky we are for all of our blessings.

July 28-Peggy and Michal are on a walking tour while I am updating the blog. This afternoon we will drive about an hour to Warsaw, spend the night, and the morning of the 29th we fly to Lviv, Ukraine. I expect that this segment of our journey will be the most eye-opening since Ukraine is a much poorer county. We will have a five hour bus trip to Luts'k-I am praying for air conditioning but am not expecting it. This trip should be good for the soul. I am going to post more random pictures on another post.

On Aug. 1 we fly to Munich. I don't know if we will have internet and computer access in the Ukraine so I am not sure when I will be able to blog again. I like your comments. Thanks for reading!

Sandy

Poland-I'm Back!

Hello! I have been without computer access since arriving in Poland on the 24th and am not sure when I will have access again so I will try to catch you up with our adventure.

July 24: We flew from Prague to Warsaw on LOT-Polish airline. It was a 50 seater and was an excellent flight. A bit over an hour and we had two drinks, sandwich and dessert and sat in leather seats. Very nice. Michal (pronounced Me-how) met us at the airport. He was holding up a sign with my name. Michal is 31, married with a 10 month old son Tony, wife, Kasha-met them all but more about that later. Michal has a master's degree-law degree and runs his own business doing all kinds of research. He is about 6'2, 200 lbs and quite a talker and very knowlegeable of the history of Poland.

We took Peggy to the train station, got her a ticket to Krakow. Michal had a written agenda all done for her complete with contacts, directions, etc. He had reserved her a room in an active theater near the town square. When I get with Peggy, we will write about her trip to Krakow, Austwitch, and the salt mines. She did get her $70 tour ticket stolen from her hands but the tour agency gave her another. It was some young kids who thought she had money in her hand.

After we dropped off Peggy, Michal and I started our tour of the villages of our ancestors-Hartwigs-in Poland. Saying I was off the beaten path is putting it mildly. I did not see any towns that were larger than 30,000 people and that was Michal's hometown of Turek. Most of the places we visited amounted to just a few houses. Not even as big as Romney, IN. If interested, you can check google maps for Plock, Poland and go in a diameter of about 100 miles and that is where I have been. We have driven over 500 miles so far. So, on the 24th, I think we visited about 8 villages and some cemeteries. None of the actual houses that my ancestors lived still exist. What I did learn was that our great great grandfather was very poor and traveled from village to village looking for work. Sometimes he was a farmer or a laborer, or a tobacco farmer. I learned the names of all of his children and where they were born. They were born in several different villages. We cannot find the village where our great grandfather was born but we did go where he was married and where his wife Carloine Riske was born. It is indescribable. We spent the night of the 24th in what could be considered a bed and breakfast for $30 per night. The room had two single beds that sit very low to the floor. The accomodations are very simple and sparce but clean. Shower stalls in the corners of bathrooms, towels that feel like sandpaper, no amenities or hairdryers and irons. And, you lock yourself into your room from the inside. TV's are very dated and very small with just the minimal channels, and guys, no remotes! I was completely exhausted after the first day. It was go, go, go. Some of the villages we visited were Grudsk. Kargoszyn, Lipiny, and Dabrowa

July 25: We repeated the same routine but this time Sompolno was the center of our travels. This day we focused on the ancestors of our grandfather Edward Weber, who was my dad's dad. I learned that all of these ancestors were Luterans or Evangelicals and that Poland is 90 percent Catholic. We went to Turek for the night. This is Michal's hometown. I met his wife Kasha and their son, Tony. Kasha is also very intelligent, speaks several languages and works as a translator. The places we visited Sompolno, Mostki, Zakrzewek Galczyczki, Przewoz,and Gawrony. We also went to Lichen' which has a famous sanctuary where Catholics from all over the world visit. It is where a man saw Mary. It is one of the biggest Catholic churches in the entire world. I will post pictures when I can.

June 26: We went to the archives in Plock. That was amazing. We found a birth certificate of our great great grandfather. I held the books of the vital records in my hands. They were almost 200 years old and all hand penned
We spent the night in a palace in Walewice. It was visited by Napoleon. He had a son with the countess that lived in the palace. As soon as I get someplace that I can upload pictures, I will.

June 27: We will meet with Peggy in Radom today and I will write more when I can.

Sandy

Last Day In Prague

Pictures: Peggy and Sandy and new drinking buddy in tiny Czech village. If it wasn't for Shelley and our hunt for beads, we would have never met!
Picture: Close up of treasure that has over 6000 diamonds.
Picture: Morovian Wedding Plate-I couldn't eat a fourth of it. (nor did I want to!)

Last night Peggy went to the ballet while I recovered from the long day. It stormed all night and was a bit rainy this morning but those Tilley hats kept us dry! We both mailed some of our junk home. I got my hand caught between an opening of an automatic curved glass door and honestly thought my fingers were going to be ripped off because the door kept opening and pulling my hand deeper into the crack. I was able to get loose but you should see the middle finger on my right hand.

We missed the trip out of town so took a lunch cruise on the river. Not really impressed! We had a guide who was a bit full of herself and let us know she speaks eight languages very well and two more a lttle bit. I am back early to our room to get ready to leave at 6:30 a.m. tomorrow for Poland. Peggy is by herself visiting every single historical site she can possibly fit in. Glad she is very independent. It is now 5:29 p.m. on Friday, July 23 so I won't wish you a good night yet. Until tomorrow!

Sandy

Prague All Day Long!

I figured out how to upload pictures but they are placed at the top. The picture of the old house is the original home of my great, great, great grandfather, Franz Appelt. Inside the church where my ancestors were baptized.
About the Dahlia Inn, you have to see it to believe it. We are just the fourth floor of a very old building. The rooms are all very clean and nice but much smaller than a typical hotel room. We have a key to get in the front door from the street (no lobby), we then climb 4 flights, use another key to get onto the Dahlia Inn floor and then the third key to our room. I'm guessing there are about 12 rooms. We met a girl from New York, saw a couple other American girls, and found out from Jakub that this hotel is not advertised to Czech people. I think it is kind of like a hostel but on a very small scale. Mark is only here from 8-5 and after that the guests are on their own. The picture is the view from the window outside our room that opens to an interior courtyard. See what I mean?

I was up until 2 a.m. so slept until 10 a.m. We are six hours ahead of you on Indiana time. I have managed jet lag very well. About 11 a.m. we took the tram across the river to the highest point above the Prague Castle and then slowly made our way back. I was on my feet walking for over six hours! Advice: get in shape before making this trip!. Plus it was the hottest day so far this summer. I felt like I was in Indiana!

Being in Prague is kind of like visiting Disney World during spring break except all the surroundings are very old and historical. It is a huge tourist trap. I find this a bit disappointing. To have McDonalds, KFC, Burger King, Starbucks, and even a Hooters intermingled with incredible architecture seems wrong to me. If I were to come again, I would come during an off season and only after a year of intense exercise, especially practicing walking on cobble stones.

I'm guessing our walk was at least 5-10 miles, mostly downhill, thank goodness. First stop: "The Prague Loreto", an artistic and historical monument and a Baroque pilgrimage site. Never been to Rome, but this was awesome! There were all kinds of priceless objects inside a huge walk in vault.

Next, on to the Prague Castle. Imagine all the streets very narrow and cobble stoned. Then imagine all the trappings of current life intermingled up and down the narrow streets. Really spoils the ambiance. Like, looking down at the cobbled street and seeing cracks filled with cigarette butts!

After walking around the castle grounds, we made our long journey down hill, across the Charles Bridge and Peggy and I decided to split up. I had had it! She had tickets to a ballet and wanted to see the Jewish Museum and Jewish Cemetery. I shuffled home, thirsty, dripping with sweat, and hungry. I just couldn't take my chances on another "original Czech meal so I stopped at Subway and had a turkey sandwich on wheat, real chips, and a light Pepsi with real ice. It almost seemed sinful (while in Rome, do as the Romans do) but I needed a normal meal. Once back in the room, I took a nap and wrote my daily blog. Tomorrow we are going to take a 6 hour trip to Kutna' Hora and the Bone Chapel, about an hour from Prague. Details tomorrow. The reason I end with "sleep tight" is because the time I do these blogs is always after 10 p.m. here, regardless of what it says. So....
Sleep tight!

Czech Beads and Prague

Breakfast at 8 a.m at the hotel-all I can say is that I am not a fan of Czech food. I had some warm yogurt. They just don't use ice so the drinks are either at room temp. or out of the frig. but don't stay cold long. On the buffet were these skinny foot long hotdogs, hard breadsticks, strange granola, and the yogurt. Nobody has offered tap water-it is all bottled. One night cost $50 and to be honest, I didn't see any other hotels worth staying at.

Jakub has been a blessing, you have no idea. I think he is very conservative. He has a master's degree in history and law but not sure if he is a practicing attorney. We had an interesting conversation about education in Czech R (CR).

Our first destination was a small village that I cannot even spell and really have no idea where we were. But the ride was beautiful. I told Jakub it was neat to be off the beaten path. He is getting kicks out of our strange expressions. All the young people love the word "awesome." I took the picture of the two young servers and told them I was going to show them to the American ladies.

We went to the village in search of handmade glass beads. We found an absolutely incredible shop. I have never seen so many beads. There was a woman making beads. We could either buy jewelry that was finished, all the parts to make our own jewelry, or they would make it on the spot to our specifications. Peggy and I were very good customers.

We then had soup at a typical Czech pub. We sat at a table with a retired local who got a kick out of meeting American women. We took our picture with him and he wants a copy so he can show his wife. His shirt said, "I lead a healthy life. I only go to the pub on foot." We asked his name and a tradition is that if you become on a first name basis you have to drink a shot of whiskey together. He bought three shots that we all drank. Thank goodness I had a beer chaser. I really hate whiskey.

Jakub pointed out a house that was exactly like the house of our ancestors. The one we saw in Liberec had been plastered over on the outside. The original was kind of like a log cabin made with boards and plaster inbetween the boards.

On to Prague. The drive seemed very American. American companies, semi's all over the place. Prague has over a million people. We arrived around rush hour, no different than in the states. We were so sad to leave Jakub. It was so nice having him explain everything to us. Our hotel, Dahlia Inn is actually one floor of a very old building. The elevator was broken so we had to walk up four flights. It is kind of a cute place. The room is clean, nice bathroom, comfortable bed but no air conditioning. It is supposed to be hot tomorrow. We were greeted by Mark who spoke fluent English. What a nice surprise. He spent the first eight years of his life in America and one year of college at Georgetown University. He is either the manager or owner or something. He gave us some hints about how to get around and what to see. He also told us to lock everything up in the safe in our room and to be careful on the streets. Boy did I miss Jakub. We walked about a mile and half to the Old Town Square, one of the tourist traps. Once we got on the main street, it was packed with people, a very diverse crowd. Pictures will be much better than me trying to explain the things we saw-quite incredible. We ate dinner at a place recommended to me by Todd Golding and I ordered the Morovian Wedding Plate. Sorry, Todd, not really my kind of food. Again, I took a picture. I got my first cola with ice! There were all kinds of shops selling all kinds of souvenirs. Kind of like the strip in any tourist town except it is surrounded by fabulous historical architecture. Rather strange. One funny site was a couple in front of us walking down the street and the guy was holding the right side of the girl's butt pretty firmly in his hand. She had on a sheer white outfit and I think she may have been going commando. But what made it more funny was that there were four young guys right behind them just really enjoying the view. I may have gotten a picture.

We then went to a bakery to try the apple strudel recommended also by Todd and this was a winner. We walked home in the dark; Peggy is much more adventurous than me.

Tomorrow we are taking a 5 hour tour and the next day will go to Prague Castle and other famous sites like the Jewish Cemetery. We get up early the next morning to fly to Warsaw to meet our next guide, Michal. I have to admit that I miss America a bit. Maybe everyone needs to leave the country for a while to appreciate what we have. If I can figure out how to post a picture, I will try to do that tomorrow. Sleep tight!

Liberec, Czech Republic

I had just finished writing today's blog when I hit something and the whole thing got earased so this is the shortened version. Liberec is poor. Jakub our 34 year old guide is funny and great help. Food is weird. Beer is big and cold. Don't use ice in this country. People don't tip and not expected. Liberec is hilly like San Francisco. Found the exact house great great great grandfather lived in in 1794. Went to the church in center of town where relatives were married and baptized. Hunted for beads for Shelley, will resume quest tomorrow. Going to Prague a day early, done in Liberec. People are very very friendly but few can speak English. We are so lucky to have Jakub's help. I am disappointed about how many of our American businesses have invaded Europe. A McDonald's is on the town square near the 500 YEAR old catholic church. Just doesn't seem right! Off to bead hunt and to Prague tomorrow! Sleep tight!

Chicago-Frankfurt-Dresden

I am going to try to keep these blogs short and sweet. Peggy didn't bring her computer so I have to pay for time at the hotel.Call this speed blogging. Flight-Air India- Food was way too spicey and geared to the Indian's tates buds. Crowded, lots of screaming little kids and thank goodness for my Tylenol PM and my noise canceling headphones. Flight was uneventful, arrived in Frankfurt abbout 7:30 a.m, caught the train right at the airport for Dresden-5 hours, got here about 3 p.m., Hilton Hotel in the heart of the historic district. Took a bus tour, ate at some sidewalk cafe. Learning how to handle foreign money. Peggy paid 8 euros for a bottle of water which equals $8 plus 14 percent at our exchange rate. Surprises-not many Germans speak English. Gosh, I had lots of ideas for this blog today but now that time is money, I can't think of a thing. Weather is great, warm, no humidity. Old buildings are beautiful, hotel is great. No travel glitches so far. I still don't feel far away. I think I will keep a written journal first before I write this log so I am more to the point. Tuesday we catch the train at 7:09 a.m. for Liberec, Czech Republic. Our guide, Jakub will meet us and we will pursue Ella Appelt's history with a side trip to the glass bead capital of the world. I have taken interesting pictures just because of the differences-toilets, food, etc. I have less than 5 minutes left. I will try to add a pciture or two next time. Bye for now. One of the Burke kids, call your dad and read this to him. Love to all of you.

Blast Off!

I am packed and ready to go. We are picking up Peggy in Merrillville and Pat is dropping us at O'Hare. The plane carries over 300 people with nine seats across. I have an isle seat 21 rows back. I have my inflatable headrest, my sound hiding headphones and a bottle of Tylenol PM. I am going to try to pass out as soon as I can. Even thought the trip is nine hours, we will arrive about 1:30 a.m. our time but 7:30 a.m. their time. Next blog should be from Dresden, Germany!

Preparations

Five days until takeoff! I am down to finetuning and last minute details. Here is a general itinerary. July 19 and 20, Dresden, Germany; July 20-24, Czech Republic; July 24-29, Poland; July 29-August 1, Ukraine; August 1-August 10, Germany. Some of the cities we will see are Liberec and Prague in Czech Republic, Warsaw and Crakow in Poland, Lviv and Luts'k in Ukraine, and Dresden, Frankfurt, Munich, Cologne, Bremen, Bremenhaven, Bramsche, Damme, and Osnabruek in Germany. We will be flying, riding the train, taking buses, and traveling by car during this journey. I got a short haircut today to help with the heat and easy maintenance. I also got a Tilley hat that I plan to wear as much as necessary. It protects from the sun, is vented for heat, and is waterproof. At this point, if I need something I have forgotten, I will have to buy it there.

Preparations for the trip of a lifetime

I have been working since September, 2009 to plan a trip to the Ukraine, Czech Republic, Poland, and Germany to research the ancestry of my two grandmothers. Julia Hartwig was born in 1889 in Russia and came to the U.S. to live in 1910. She left her parents and siblings to find a better life. My maternal grandmother's parents were immigrants from Austria, which is now the Czech Republic. I feel like I have been taking an independent study graduate class. I am down to my last week of prepartion for my 22 day journey. My sister Peggy will be my travel partner. We depart from Chicago on July 18, 2010 at 4:05 p.m. and will arrive in Frankfurt at 7:30 a.m. on July 19. Let the journey begin!