October 9. 2025, Salzburg- The world does not stop spinning for any one person’s agenda. That, and other people’s agendas, or lack thereof, can lead to quick changes in plans. I have had at least three hoped-for meetings with my fellow Baha’is come to naught, because of late trains and lack of WiFi.
Both situations are improving, but taking no chances, I headed back to Vienna for a few hours, this afternoon. There, after a false set of instructions from Google Maps, I was guided by a neighbourhood grandmother to the Baha’i Center of Austria. That she gave me instructions in German, and I got the gist of them, is progress.
At the Center, I was met by one of the staff, Sasha, and given a brief tour of the building. He also had positive news of our Faith in this country-which goes along with every other account I’ve heard on this trip, at least on phone conversations, if not in person.
The building itself was originally a haven for the Austrian Army, in the days before World War I. Theodore Roosevelt visited it, in 1910, after his Presidency had ended. He was given a royal welcome, almost as if his was a State Visit. With that level of honour in its energy field, the edifice is well-suited for a national Headquarters of the Baha’i Faith.
Baha’i National Center, ViennaGreat Room of the Baha’i National Center, ViennaGarden and play area for children, Baha’i National Center, ViennaSasha, a staff member at Baha’i National Center, Vienna. The poster celebrates 200 years since Baha’ullah’s birth.That anniversary took place in 2017.
Thus went my whirlwind visit to Vienna. I caught a train back to Salzburg, with little trouble. Before and after my visit, it was delightful to capture some of the essence of my host city. While descending 327 steps, I found these scenes:
A narrow passage on Monsbach, SalzburgGlimpse of Hohen Salzburg (Hapsburg fortress)Entrance gate, to Hohen SalzburgSalzburg CathedralOnce this was a moat, near Salzburg Cathedral
The above photos were taken on my way to the Salzburg Hauptbanhof. By the time I got back, it was dark, so I focused on climbing the 327 steps and found these night views of Salzburg, from Stadtalm Naturfreund’s patio.
View of Salzburg by night, from Stadtalm Naturfreund (above and below)
So, even with my self-imposed dash back and forth, Salzburg presented its essence in a fine way. I will have a bit more time to check out the public squares tomorrow, on my way to the Hauptbanhof, for a train to Munich.
October 8, 2025, Salzburg- “No taxi driver will go there”, the young driver said, referring to Monsbach, the area around Stadtalm Naturfreund, “it’s too dangerous”. Hmm, having not heard anything about crime in Salzburg, I decided to talk to the older gentleman in the next taxi, who had been listening. “It is a dark area, and the road is narrow. THAT is the only danger.” He then asked me how far I had come today. After hearing that my day had started in Zagreb, “Ibrahim” decided to drive me to the flat portion of the route to the hostel. He eliminated 323 steps-for the night. He was paid handsomely for his effort.
The day indeed started in Zagreb. I checked out of Mickey Mouse Apartment at the designated hour, and left the key in the black mailbox, as requested. When I got to the Train Station, my inquiry about getting to Salzburg was met with: “Go through Ljubljana. Maribor and Graz are out of the way. Ljubljana is more direct, then go through Villach!” This I did. The train was late leaving the Slovenian capital and even later going from the Austrian border to Vollach- a distance of 5 kilometers. Enough of a lag had been created that even the cleaning man at Villach Hauptbanhof (Central Train Station) shook his head at “the bureaucrats, always making an unnecessary mess for people.” Slovenia’s capital is a rather lovely place (it’s Lee-oob-lee-ahna), and I had a small lunch there, near the train station. I would grab another supper item in Salzburg, but it was a while later-eight hours later.
Near Catez, SloveniaSava River, outside Catez, SloveniaDinaric Alps, through a dirty windshield, north of Bled, SloveniaDinaric Alps, near Jesenice, Slovenia
As luck would have it, the picture postcard views of Ljubljana were not to be found around the Train Station and I did not dare venture far afield, in the uncertain time frame presented us. So, the dirty windshield of the train was my only vantage point for Slovenia’s beauty.
Once we could view Worthersee, hopes went up for a quick arrival in Villach. There was an unexplained stop, though, just inside Austria-and it was not due to the Border Police. Something else led to about seven of us sitting in Villach Hauptbanhof for an extra ninety minutes. The silver lining, though, was that the young conductor showed me, at long last, how to access the heretofore elusive QR Code on the Rail Planner application. Now, I will not be the sore thumb senior, the only one who doesn’t get it.
At the end of the day, I was at Stadtalm Naturfreund, had climbed only six steps-to my dorm room and savoured the chance to get another decent night’s sleep. Salzburg’s wonders and some business in Vienna awaited.
October 7, 2025, Zagreb- The bus conductor pretended to be livid, shouting in Serbian: “Five minutes means five minutes!”, as I came back from seven minutes in a supermarket queue. Some things are more essential than others, and as he well knew, no one cuts in front of a mother and two children, with a modest basket of groceries. No one does that, anywhere in the world.
The driver shrugged his shoulders and made up the two lost minutes, once we were back on the highway. We didn’t stop again until the Croatian border. There, with two buses ahead of us, we sat for ten minutes. Then, we go out, and were exited by the Bosnian border police, got back on the bus, waited until our time to re-enter Croatia, and got back off the bus. We retrieved our luggage from the storage bins and fell in line again.
A pleasant, business-like young woman stamped everyone’s passport, checked to see that the bins were empty then joined her two colleagues in the baggage inspection room. We were especially selected for the spot check, because there were a few people on board from countries which were being watched by Europol. The U. S. is not among those countries, but I have nothing to hide, regardless. The passport stamper checked my bags, educating herself about American dietary supplements in the process. I was glad to oblige. I would proudly claim that woman as a daughter, the way she dove into her tasks and joined her teammates without being told.
The rest of the way was quiet, the conductor, who was now the driver, maneuvered his way through Zagreb’s rush hour traffic-hardly Los Angeles or Berlin, but a slowdown nonetheless. The first driver got off the bus at a truck stop and the rest of us went to the now familiar West Zagreb Terminal. From there, I caught a tram to near the Mickey Mouse Apartment-a variation on Alora-Heart of Zagreb, except the apartment was on the fourth floor, instead of in the basement. It was of similar size to Alora, and was across the hall from Mini-Suite, which had Madame Mouse on the front door. This start-up apartment business seems to be unique to Zagreb, but it’s a nice idea, even if it wouldn’t work for all travelers.
The day had started a bit less organized. Sarajevo is a larger city than one might think, and there is a world of difference between the Old Town and the modern downtown, which looks pretty standard. No one near the Miljacka River bank knew where the bus station was, but a bartender (open at 8:30 a.m.) said it was too far to walk. I caught a tram, advised by a university student, and a woman who had just taken her kids to school, that it was eight stops ahead. A young woman from Germany joined me in the luggage pile section, and we power-walked together to the bus terminal, doing a 10-minute walk in 7. She sat and waited for her bus, and I caught mine outside, leaving my Bosnian Mark coins with a destitute young man who stood, forlorn, on the platform.
Here are some scenes of the day.
Sacred Heart Cathedral, downtown Sarajevo Miljacka River, SarajevoOutside Visoko, BosniaBosna Bucha River, north of Visoko Bosna Bucha River, near Zenica (Zeneesa). That town had the supermarket at the bus station.
Safely in Mickey Mouse Apartment, I bid all a good night. Tomorrow, it’s off to Salzburg, probably via Slovenia.
October 5, 2025, Sarajevo- The bus driver had a long face, as we all boarded his vehicle, in Split. I don’t think the man’s demeanour changed much, even after he had a sit-down meal at a nice roadside restaurant. The weather was equally gloomy, but I felt a comfort that transcended both the driver and the skies.
We went down the coastal highway, very close to tourist haven Dubrovnik, and then turned inland towards Mostar and Sarajevo. Here is a view of the Adriatic from Jesenice, the first major town south of Split.
View from cliffs near Omis, Dalmatia
At Brela, the wonders shifted to the mountains above the southern Dalmatian coast.
Limestone mountains above Brela, CroatiaHeading inland, near Ljubuski (Lee-oo-boo-skee)These lakes are near the well-known Kravica (Kra-VEET-sa) waterfall .
Passing through Mostar, a worthy stop in its own right (for me, maybe on a future Mediterranean visit), the weather was really getting nasty, but the mountains are always stunning.
Prenj Range (Pren-yeh), outside MostarNeretva River, near Donja Jablanica (Donya Yablanitsa), Hercegovina. It was near here that we stopped and the driver had his lunch. I opted to wait until Sarajevo. Below, are the rotating barbecue wheels at Lamb House.Old-style roasting spits, Lamb house, Donja Jablonica
About an hour later, we were in Sarajevo. I caught a taxi in short order, and that driver, from Libya, was determined to find Guesthouse Yildiz. He was very close, but it took asking around the immediate Old Town neighbourhood to get the exact spot. Now, he has another hard-to-find address on his phone.
I found a gem of a place, with a dear young couple from Turkiye, the owners. (Since we’re on a pronunciation binge- it’s Tur-kee-yuh). Here is how to spot Guesthouse Yildiz, on a short alley way off Old Town Sarajevo’s main road.
Guest House Yildiz, Old Town Sarajevo
Here is the junction of Yildiz’s street, with the main road through Old Town.
Intersection near Guesthouse Yildiz
I was in a comfortable place for the evening, and after a well-prepared dinner of Chicken Stir Fry and rice, settled in to get ready for tomorrow’s visit to Srebrenica.
October 1, 2025, Zagreb- The two young men standing on the dark street corner were not at all menacing. Just two guys having come off work at a nearby nightclub. Seeing me trying to access a door code, they offered to call the building’s owner and find both the door code and the code for the key box that would get me into my room. (Start-ups like this in central Europe frequently have a building entry code and a key box. I found that out, too late, at the original venue in Vienna. Tonight was happily different.)
In the end, I had no luck finding a small memorial that was recommended to me by friends in Vienna. I have a Plan B to remedy that, next week. Vacating Radisson Red and getting to Vienna Hauptbanhof was not hard, though I had to book another train, as my quest for the memorial took longer than I thought it might. It was not hard to get on the second train, which was going through Budapest, instead of Graz. I had a nice seat, initially with one other person, a Hungarian man in his 40s. We exchanged views on a few matters of common import, before he was berated by a conductor for not having a proper ticket. At Gyor Station, a family of three and a woman in her 30s entered, and he exited, for Standage.
Fun part #2 took place at the station at which I planned to disembark. The conductor glanced quickly at my ticket and said that I should stay onboard, until the next station. Once we were underway again, something told him to look at my ticket again. To both of our chagrins, he had told me the wrong information! We got off at the second station, and he brought me to the Information Center. The lady in the info Center offered to put me on the same train, tomorrowevening. As that would have had a serious domino effect on my plans for visiting my friend in Split, Croatia and for the time I have scheduled to spend in Sarajevo and Srebrenica, Bosnia-Hercegovina, I asked her for information on getting to the International Bus Terminal. Budapest has an excellent tram system, so with the note in hand, I went to that terminal and got on a bus bound for Zagreb.
A few notes are in order: I have a Eurail Pass, good for a few more weeks, so the train snafus were minimal in cost. As for the Budapest train stations, there is Kelenfold, on the west side of town and Keleti, in the center. It was at Kelenfold, that my ticket said to switch to the Zagreb train. The conductor had me wait until Keleti. So, if you are ever taking a train and are going through Budapest, en route to somewhere south, mind the spelling of the station. Had I not already have made plans that were eight years in the making, it would have been a pleasure to spend a few days in Budapest. The lovely city will wait, until God knows when, but I am sure I will be back, at some point.
Here are a few scenes of my wanderings about Vienna.
Karlskirche, Karlsplatz, Vienna (above and below)Statue of Johannes Brahms, Karlsplatz, ViennaWien River, central Vienna
In the evening, once truly underway from Budapest, the sight of the mighty Danube came into view.
Danube River, at Budapest
There would not be a train trip, without an attempt at a sunset photo. Here is a mysterious glow to the west of south Budapest.
Sunset near Budapest
As the evening winds down, I am in a comfortable little apartment, having not been put off by the “work in progress” as I entered, downstairs. This sort of thing is meant for those who can excuse a bit of dust and debris, before getting to a fine bit of silver upstairs: Alora Heart of Zagreb.
October 1, 2025, Vienna- Up early enough, I got to Oscwiecim’s small train station and caught the train back to Krakow, only to boomerang right back past the station, as we made our way down to Vienna. I had a seat, clear to the Austrian capital, going through southern Poland and the Czech Republic. It was a long ride, though, as you can imagine, and I was ready for the mattress by the time we crossed the Danube and got into town. Somehow, I read, and re-read, the message from my lodging, and saw one too many codes for that hour of night. It also indicated that it was past time for check-in (“Office closes at 8 p.m.”, and it was 10:15.)
These things happen a lot, and yes, the train was delayed for about forty minutes. Still, I was frustrated at not getting to the Baha’i National Centre in Vienna, this evening, and at what seemed to be one too many Internet-centric snags, in connecting with the lodging. Besides, they didn’t answer their phone, which is supposedly on 24/7. End of rant.
I got a briefing on Vienna’s excellent public transportation system and found my way to Radisson Red Vienna. I am usually not partial to high-end hotels, but I was exhausted and besides, this was Vienna. So, the welcoming desk clerks got a guest with no reservation, and I got a very refreshing place at which to not have to enter codes.
A gowned angel watched over me, at Radisson Red, Vienna
September 30, 2025, Oswiecim, Poland– Today would have been Penny’s 71st birthday. Each year since I first met her, including the fourteen years since her passing, the day always brings a special event, either Baha’i teaching or a visit of significance.
Entrance to Auschwitz-Birkenau Museum
Today, I had the opportunity to visit the sites of one of the darkest chapters in human history. Auschwitz and Birkenau were concentration camps, separated by 3 kilometers, but under the same commander: The infamous Rudolf Hoss (not to be confused with Deputy Fuhrer Rudolf Hess), implemented the use of Zyklon B, a pesticide that became the nerve agent which alone killed a million people. Hoss was tried, convicted and executed in Poland, in 1947. (Rudolf Hess, as is well-known, flew to Scotland, believing he could convince Scottish “opponents” of the War to hasten British withdrawal from World War II. The Scots were not amused, Hess was imprisoned and then transferred to Germany’s Spandau Prison, in 1947. He was the sole remaining prisoner there, when he committed suicide, in 1987, at age 93.)
My late father-in-law was a Jewish-American, served as a soldier in the final months of World War II, during which he was captured during the tail-end of the Battle of the Bulge, and was held in the POW camp at Berga, in eastern Germany. I have been to Berga and seen the V-2 Rocket Factory’s remains. Pop was sent to work the salt mines. When he was rescued by a unit of American soldiers, in June, 1945, he was nearly skeletal.
That was the fate of many, if not most, of the survivors of Auschwitz and Birkenau, as well. They numbered about 6200, out of over 1,100,000 who had been held in at the Auschwitz Complex. Jews, who Hitler and his henchmen wanted above all to exterminate, were the preponderance of victims. Men between the ages of 17-60 were made to work, usually until they were broken, physically and mentally. They were then executed. Women, children, the elderly and the infirm, including the mentally ill, were summarily gassed to death.
Besides the Jews, Romany, Russians, Poles, Czechs, Freemasons and the occasional Afro-Germans, were also sent to concentration camps, and executed by poison gas. Auschwitz and Birkenau were the two largest facilities for such hideous practices. in time, even Christian critics of Hitler found themselves in the gas chambers. Birkenau, being the larger camp, had 30 gas chambers. Auschwitz, with four sectors, had ten. As the Soviet forces closed in on Auschwitz, the fleeing German Army forced most of the remaining prisoners west, on a Death March to Germany and Austria. Thus did many die on their feet, though not as many as were gassed.
Here are five scenes that are here to remind us that the Holocaust was no Hologram.
“Barracks” # 1, AuschwitzTorture House,, AuschwitzWomen and children victims, on their way to the gas chambers. (They had been told they were on their way to a glorious new life.)Discarded children’s shoes and a father’s suitcase, with his son’s name written on it.Hana Reiner would not let herself be forgotten. https://www.writeoutloud.net/public/blogentry.php?blogentryid=139212The Nazis themselves destroyed this barracks, rather than allow it to be preserved by the Soviets and Poles,for what it had been,
I thought back to the early morning, when I boarded a train in Krakow, bound for the city of Oswiecim, (the Polish name which was translated into German as Auschwitz). A mentally disabled man chose to sit across from me. He was an Italian, who had little vocabulary, in any language. He knew “English” and “Deutsch”, as well as a few words in Italian and Spanish. While he was annoying to the young man sitting by the window and the well-dressed Italian man who sat across the aisle, I let him show me the soccer games on his phone. At the end of the one-hour trip, he cheerfully said “Grazie!” and went on his way.
That gentle man would not have had a chance to ride the rails, in Hitler’s Germany. He’d have ended up in the pile of corpses found by the Russians, or in one of the piles of ashes that were dumped in the Vistula River or behind the Subcommandant’s House at Birkenau. He can ride the rails, as he pleases, in today’s Europe, not being harmed and harming no one,
Auschwitz-Birkenau, and all places like it, are needed reminders of exactly what levels of depravity can come from a deluded pursuit of false perfection.
September 28, 2025, Krakow– “Where do I get the train to Krakow?”, I asked a conductor, after getting off the train that had brought me from Berlin to Poznan, in western Poland. “Go downstairs to Platform 10.”, was all she said. Many European train platforms have two tracks, which go in directions opposite each other. This reduces the need for multiple platforms, each with a track that only goes one way. I knew this, but looking at my watch, seeing it was close to departure for the Krakow train and seeing a train that lots of people were getting off and on, I put two and two together and got…five.
When I got to the cabin which had my seat number, I found it was occupied by a family of four, with the younger son in “my” seat. I went out of the cabin and was met by an older Polish woman, who “knew” that was my seat “by rights”. We got underway, with me in standage, where I was chatted up by a couple, who were happy that someone from Arizona was visiting Poland. The husband asked to look at my ticket, and gasped. “You go north now, instead of south! You must get off at next station, and catch train back to Poznan, then good luck getting to Krakow!” That explained the young boy sitting in his rightful seat.
I got off at the next station, reversed course, got on a Krakow-bound train from Poznan, and took my place among university students and poorer older adults, in Standage, all the way to Krakow, five hours south. Of course, I didn’t stand the whole way. I had my rolling suitcase, and a relatively clean section of floor on which to sit. When people needed to get on or off, at the ensuing stations, we in Standage had to make room for them. This made a few of the students quite surly-but surely they know this is part of the deal. Most, though, seemed concerned for one another, on a couple of occasions consoling those who were openly distraught. Not speaking Polish,I kept my mouth shut, the whole way, and was “welcomed” by the conductors, none of whom were concerned with why I was there.
I got to Krakow around 11 p.m. and caught a taxi to Meininger Hostel, part of a chain of hotels and hostels across central Europe. It is a lovely establishment, and while the city itself is rather tired of mass tourism, I was cheerfully welcomed by those I encountered on the street and at the hostel. I had the room to myself for the night, as the young man who was to be my roommate had his own tale of train woe and would not be arriving until early tomorrow morning. Thus, another decent end was found, to a strange day.
September 26, 2025, Berlin- “Well now, that is certainly a rude awakening”, the burly leader of a group of German tourists huffed, as the news came over the loudspeaker that one of the cars on our train to Hamburg, from Kolding, DK, had broken down and that those of us (including me) who were scheduled to be on that train would now either have to ride in Standage or wait for a replacement car. He gathered the group, and held a brief consultation, while looking at me. A minute later, he told me that, as one of their group had dropped out of the trip, there was a seat in their cabin, and I was welcome to take it.
It turned out to be a most pleasant two hours. I even was offered, and accepted the no-show’s sandwich, which had been purchased, freshly made, from a delicatessen in the Aarhus area, earlier in the morning. Chicken salad with bacon is a favourite in Denmark and Germany. It was divine.
The day had started with my walking the .9 mile from Roberta’s Society Hostel to Aarhus Train Station. The challenge came onboard, when I had to remember how to call up the Rail Planner application on my phone, which contained my actual ticket to Berlin, with the seat reservations only supplementary. The conductor, at one point, wanted to see a QR code on the RP page, but was overruled by her supervisor, who saw that as a waste of time. Good thing, as Rail Planner doesn’t provide QR Codes for its Rail Pass system.
With that behind me, one of my seat mates on the first leg (Aarhus to Kolding) opined that she had never heard of a QR code for a train ticket. She was Gen Z, so that pretty much settled the matter. Kids can pretty much do any transaction on a phone that can be done.
Once in Hamburg, I bid farewell to the German tour group and settled in for a smooth, non-eventful final leg to Berlin Hauptbanhof (Central Station). It took my usual fussing at Spectrum’s stingy Internet service (non-existent outside North America) and scrambling to find a shop or cafe whose WiFi I could use to get directions to St. Christopher’s Hostel from Central Station, over a period of thirty-five minutes, before I settled on the S-bahn (Streetcars). I ended up at Alexanderplatz, where a Tourist Office worker gave me directions for walking the rest of the way. I found the hostel, which has a bar and grill attached, in short order (no pun intended, especially as John Belushi would have either groaned or thrown something at me). St,. Christopher’s and Belushi’s are teamed up in various cities around Europe. Chain hostels, including Generator (my Copenhagen digs), are quite the rage.
The Berlin hostel is in an old building, so it has its challenges, but I like the vibe here. The Rugby championships and various soccer matches are on the TV screens, so it wouldn’t be a dull 1 1/2 days, even if I opted to sit in the hostel all day. That is not happening. I will be out and about, exploring Berlin’s oldest neighbourhood and possibly seeking out remnants of the Berlin Wall-a reminder of what happens to attempts to separate people on artificial grounds.
September 23, 2025, Copenhagen- There is something fairy tale-like about Helsingor. Like a Danish version of Visby, it largely is filled with cobblestone streets. Unlike Visby, its Old Town is mostly a no-car zone. Here are some of the Old Town scenes I promised you last night.
Old Town street, HelsingorHamlet Hotel, Helsingor is across the street from Skandia, where I stayed last night.St.Marie’s Church, HelsingorDom Church (Cathedral) of Helsingor
Now, here is the crown jewel of Old Elsinore: Kronborg Castle, which was William Shakespeare’s setting for Hamlet.
Denmark has been a country since the 11th Century. Around 1424, King Eric VII built the prototype of the fortress, overlooking Oresund, which separates Sjaelland (“SHEL-land) from the Swedish Peninsula, at its narrowest point, In 1585, King Frederick II expanded the fortress into a magnificent castle. The fortress burned down, in 1629, after which King Kristian IV had it rebuilt. In 1658, the fortress proved insufficient to withstand an attack by Sweden, during the war in which the latter seized control of Scandia, the southernmost part of the peninsula, from the Danes. In 1785, Kronborg became a military barracks, as the king had moved to Copenhagen. It was given to the Danish people, in the 1920s, as an historical treasure.
What a treasure it is! Here are seven photos of the grounds and the interior, including the extensive Casemates (the dungeons and underground refuge of the royals, during the war with Sweden.).
The Moat of Kronborg CastleCannons, facing north, from Kronborg CastleKronborg’s Cannon Tower, from the courtyardThe Chapel, which was the only area, not affected by the Fire of 1629.Oresund, and other parts of Kronborg, from the Cannon Tower. This viewpoint is reached after climbing 145 steps. I still have it, even if it means taking 2 twenty-second breathers going up.Holger the Dane, legendary protector of the nation, who awakens when Denmark has met its darkest hour. He otherwise sleeps in the Casemates.In the Casemates-Is down up or is up, down?A Word of Caution. Queen Margrethe I, who ruled Denmark and all of Scandinavia.
No display of a castle is complete without a scene of the ballroom. So here is #8.
The Ballroom
With this lovely visit, I headed back to Skandia, retrieved my bags and headed across the street to the train station. I learned last night, from the ferry monitor, how to work a ticket machine, and so got my own ticket to Copenhagen. Sadly, the Baha’i National Centre turned out to be in a suburban location-so I missed seeing the friends there. I did speak with one on the phone and may be able to join a meeting at my next place of visitation.
Copenhagen, though, is exquisite. I will be here tomorrow and early Thursday. Let us close with this scene of Indre By, the “Old Town” of the Danish capital, of which more tomorrow.
Ornate small cafe, with Hotel D’Angleterre in the background. An enterprising young woman runs a small coffee shop here.
Rumour has it that Tivoli is temporarily closed. I will check that one out further, tomorrow. Even so, there is plenty of opportunity to keep occupied here.
A Sagittarian Seeker 