What better time to visit three of Europe’s great cities as the UK strives to divorce itself from the continent’s precious union.
Departing in a group of twenty from all parts of Ireland to
join a similar-sized group from Scotland, we anticipated a spring-time escape
to celebrate castles and palaces, cathedrals and spas, cakes and
cocktails in the eastern heart of our beautiful continent.
We organised this holiday in the pre-internet fashion by
booking through a travel company, for a change, instead of doing it ourselves.
We had bought foreign holidays on two previous
occasions with the same company,[i]
both of which were good experiences.
Four
years ago they had taken us to Russia when we were guided around important
sites in Moscow and St Petersburg,[ii]
with five days in each city; and two years ago, we availed of their expertise on
a five day visit to Iceland.
On this occasion, we spent four days (B&B in 4 star
hotels) in Prague,[iii]
two in Vienna,[iv]
and four in Budapest.[v]
1 Prague
·
Our first full day took us on a guided walk
of the city centre.[vi] Hradcany, the hill topped by the UNESCO World Heritage 10-14th century Prague
Castle, was the start. At its centre
sits the monumental 14th century St Vitus Cathedral, the world’s
seventh largest cathedral and the biggest in the Czech Republic. Its twin spires rise from a majestic Gothic
structure that was only completed in 1929, including Art Nouveau stained glass.
Afterwards we descended via Mala Strana (Little Quarter) to cross the 1357 Karluv Most (Charles Bridge) which is guarded by 30 saintly statues. The oldest is St Ioano Nepomuceno (St John of Nepomuk).
The day’s highlight was the fairytale-like 15th Old Townhall
century Astronomical Clock chiming at midday in Staromestske Namesti (Old Town Square)
and featuring a parade of moving apostles peeping out at the crowds below and moving
like magic puppets past two upper windows. For a different perspective, we viewed the city’s
sights from a boat in the romantic darkness of that same evening.
 |
| Prague Castle Guards |
 |
| St Vitus Cathedral Prague |
 |
| St Vitus Cathedral stained glass & artwork |
Afterwards we descended via Mala Strana (Little Quarter) to cross the 1357 Karluv Most (Charles Bridge) which is guarded by 30 saintly statues. The oldest is St Ioano Nepomuceno (St John of Nepomuk).
 |
| Charles Bridge Prague nightime view from Vltava |
·
Next day we travelled an hour out of town to
visit Cesky Sternberk a Castle in rural Bohemia, a National Trust-like property
which has been occupied by the Sternberk family for 780 years.
That night we attended a performance of Czech folk music and dance on the outskirts of Prague. For me, the highlight was witnessing the musicians playing the traditional cimbalom instrument.[vii] Their repertoire even included a rendition from Smetana’s Má Vlast (My Country), his gorgeous paean to Bohemia's great river, Vltava (The Moldau).
 |
| Chapel in Sternberk Castle |
That night we attended a performance of Czech folk music and dance on the outskirts of Prague. For me, the highlight was witnessing the musicians playing the traditional cimbalom instrument.[vii] Their repertoire even included a rendition from Smetana’s Má Vlast (My Country), his gorgeous paean to Bohemia's great river, Vltava (The Moldau).
Our map showed that behind the Church lie the extensive Petrin Gardens which contain what our guide had called Prague’s own Eiffel Tower. We could see it tantalisingly from lower levels. Being a pleasant sunny day a steep uphill climb beckoned. The effort is worth the grunt-work. Petrin Tower was built in 1891
 |
| Petrin Tower |
2. Vienna
·
The coach-trip from Prague to Vienna was
eased with a stop for lunch on the Czech side of the border. Chvalovice attracts Austrian customers
attracted by a variety of merchandise at prices that are low by their
standards. It includes casinos and
nightclubs, even bearing a scruffy resemblance to Disneyland.
·
To help us to get our bearings of Vienna, our
Hungarian guide brought us for a walk to the city centre. We saw the exterior of the fabulous 19th
century State Opera House
(unfortunately with no tour of the sumptuous interior, as
strongly recommended to me by a friend) followed by a visit inside St Stephan’s
Cathedral. Part Romanesque part Gothic,
it dates to the 14th century.[ix]
Composers like Haydn, Mozart and others
have got married in this cathedral, Vivaldi’s funeral was hosted here and also
that of Niki Lauda the racing driver.
 |
| At Vienna State Opera |
 |
| Stephansdom St Stephan's Cathedral |
·
Next day, we visited the grounds of the
ornate Belvedere Palace. Its parklands include
a fountain-speckled Baroque garden which runs between the upper and lower parts
of the palace, and a Botanical Garden.
 |
| Botanical Garden Belvedere Palace |
·
If only to meet a challenge set by our
youngest daughter, we enjoyed the legendary sachertorte chocolate cake in the Sacher
Hotel’s Cafe Mozart. This is famed as the place where Harry Lime met The Third
Man.
 |
| Sachertorte at Hotel Sacher |
·
No visit to Vienna would be complete without
a concert of Viennese music. Along with about half of our group, we attended a
performance of works by Mozart and Johann Strauss in the Kursalon Wien with the
Salonorchester Alt Wien – a small orchestra, with a soprano and tenor singing arias and a performance which
received a well-earned standing ovation.
3.Budapest
·
En route to the Hungarian capital, we stopped
in the resplendent town of Gyor. Its Cathedral
Basilica of the Assumption of Our Lady houses a 40-year-old connection with
Ireland dating back to Oliver Cromwell.
When the English conqueror expelled Catholic clergy, Bishop Walter Lynch
of Clonfert in County Galway escaped in 1649 with a special artwork, a painting known as the Irish
Tearing Madonna. Having originally
settled in Vienna, Lynch eventually became the second bishop of Gyor and the miraculous
painting is displayed prominently in the Cathedral. In addition a plaque written in Hungarian on Connemara marble sits across the aisle.
 |
| The Irish Tearing Madonna, Gyor Cathedral |
 |
| Sisi Palace Godollo |
 |
| Rudas Thermal Bath |
· Budapest’s other monuments[xii]
included elevated Buda Castle, Szent Istvan (St Stephen) Bazilika, named after the
nation’s founder King Stephen and containing the relic of his right
hand, the Shoes on the Danube memorial to murdered Jews,
the biggest synagogue
in Europe, Erzsébet Hid (Elizabeth Bridge), Széchenyi Lánchíd
(Chain Bridge)[xiii]
and the adjacent Cave Church excavated from solid rock on the side of Gellert Hill and run by Pauline Order monks.
 |
| Sziklatemplom, Church by the Rock |
Ten nights away including two days transferring by coach
means that a lot of sight-seeing has to be condensed into a limited amount of words
and time. The careful allocation of precious time, I have to say, is half the
charm of a holiday like this.
Recommendations
The best restaurant meal was provided by the ornate Múzeum
restaurant (established 1885)[xiv]
adjacent to the National Museum in Prague. For the record, my main
course was roasted pike-perch with spinach and pine-nuts served with a shrimp
sauce and fine herbed potatoes; while my wife had goose leg with warm cabbage
and apple and served with onion smashed potatoes.
I had anticipated relaxing in one of Vienna’s
long-established coffee houses. Perhaps because of our short time in the
Austrian capital, my award for best coffee shop instead goes to one in
Hungary. On our final day before heading
to Budapest’s airport, we happened to find Auguszt Belvaros.[xv] This is a magnificent family-owned 149 year
old institution which serves the best selection of naturally-flavoured cakes
with beautiful coffee and hot chocolate.
To mark the previous evening, our final night, with a
sense of occasion, we sought out a cocktail bar and found the ideal place. The St Andrea Wine and Skybar[xvi]
sits above Vorosmarty Square and has won architectural awards. It serves up a cool modern vibe, an
impressive array of locally-based affordable cocktails, with the enticing bonus
of a panoramic view over Budapest.
Conclusion
When the UK Government announced that the elections to
the EU Parliament would take place on 23 May, it was apparent that getting back
to Belfast before 10 pm in time to vote was going to be difficult. This became more so when the departure from
Franz Liszt airport was delayed by 20 minutes, not helped by the inclusion of
two stops (Banbridge and Sprucefield) by our bus from Dublin airport to
Belfast.
As we approached our destination, I phoned a taxi company
with a forlorn hope of getting us, literally, to the church on time. Emerging from the bus weighed down by two
heavy suitcases and with less than 20 minutes until the deadline, I found a
helpful driver waiting and waving. I
explained our mission and he entered into the spirit of the occasion accepting
an impossible challenge in good humour.
Obligingly he whisked us through the city traffic as fast as he could
legally travel.
With 5 or 6 minutes left on the clock we made it and cast
our votes. Basking in the warm glow of
an awe-inspiring continental holiday, the only response was to return the compliment and endorse our enduring citizenship with Europe.
©Michael McSorley 2019
References
[i] Travel
Department www.traveldepartment.ie
[ii] https://michaelmcsorleytravel.blogspot.com/2015/05/moscow-and-saint-petersburg.html
[iii] www.clarioncongresshotelprague.com
[v]
www.museumhotel.hu
[vi]
48 hours in Prague Belfast Telegraph Weekend 6 Feb 2016
[vii] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-NhCJMoDd5E
(clip includes The Third Man theme)
[viii]
48 hours in Prague Belfast Telegraph Weekend 21 June 2014
[ix]
48 hours in Vienna Belfast Telegraph Weekend 19 September 2015
[x]
Budapest The City of Spas www.spabudapest.com
[xi]
www.rudasfurdo.hu
[xii]
48 hours in Budapest Belfast Telegraph Weekend 30 January 2016
[xiii]
48 hours in Budapest Belfast Telegraph Weekend 27 September 2014
[xiv] https://muzeumkavehaz.hu/en/
[xv] https://auguszt.hu/auguszt-belvaros/
[xvi] https://standreaskybar.hu/
