The end of our trip

So here is my final log entry.

In addition to the sites Karl mentioned today on our city tour, we stopped by the Schindler factory.  This is a tourist attraction that is famous because of the 1993 Spielberg movie "Schindler's List" about a Pole who saved many Jews by having them work in his factory in Krakow.  The museum, however, was basically another WWII museum chronicling the terrible things that happened during the war, with relatively little info about Schindler.  I must say that I was ready for a break from holocaust tourism, and wanted to just get through the place. We had a few extra minutes afterward, so Lenny and I stopped next door into a small museum of contemporary art that had an interesting exhibit showing new artists' versions of old masters. 

I've enjoyed this eastern (central?) European trip, which has been educational.  I really had limited knowledge about the history, so I learned a lot.  I expected this area to be more run down and Soviet feeling, but it all felt quite booming.  Since the Soviets left in the early 1990s they have done a lot of renovation and improvement in infrastructure -- much of it with the help of the European community.  Everything feels quite prosperous, and tourism is thriving.  The cities have nearly full employment, although I understand that the rural areas still are not as well off.  From a tourist perspective, there is quite a bit of somber stuff, so it's not a very lighthearted journey.

Len and I flew to Vienna this evening where I have a business meeting tomorrow, and then will head home on Saturday.  I must say, Vienna feels so much more grand than the other cities we visited.  We took an evening stroll, and I particularly was impressed with very well-designated bicycle lanes on the major ring road, and a giant outdoor screen outside the opera house showing the live opera for free to the assembled crowd. We should do that in San Francisco.

Thanks for following along!

Donna