John M. Edwards tours the ambivalent history of terror in the Hungarian capital Outside the museum on infamous Andrassy utca stood a young Hungarian law student wearing an anachronistic frockcoat straight out of some 19th-century novel. He said his name was Andros and asked me for a cigarette. He then lit it and smiled pleasantly. “Did you know that there was a persistent rumor during World War II that our ghoulash bowls were full of human … [Read more...]
5 Top European Adventures You’ve (Probably) Never Heard Of
There are certainly the go to and much loved destinations in Europe. Cities such as London, Paris and Rome quickly come to mind. However, the focus of this list is to highlight some lesser known European locations and adventures. Have you experienced any of these or been to these locations? Suggest some of your favorites: leave comments below. For experiences similar to the ones mentioned below, Contiki Tours (age 18-35) offers a number of … [Read more...]
Honeymoon in Vienna
Sigmund Freud, apfelstrudel and Gustav Klimt’s The Kiss clinched my decision to honeymoon in Vienna. When you think about it, psychology, food and art are not the worst foundation for a good marriage. Oh, and Before Sunrise, the movie where Julie Delpy and Ethan Hawke spend a day in this romantic Austrian city falling in love. Famous for being the center of the Habsburg dynasty in the 15th century, Vienna used its newfound power for good, at … [Read more...]
How to Brave the Budapest Baths
Spa guy John M. Edwards feels frigging fantastic! If you're in Magyarorstag (Hungary), do as the Daubians do: Say goodbye to "bliss" and splash around au Naturale in the "eau de vie" of a real thermal spa, with a Red Bull in Hand... When you first arrive in Budapest for both (clandestine) “business and pleasure”-- feeling like a dumb foreign doppelganger soaking with sweat and stinking of brimstone--say no to the Four Seasons Hotel showers and … [Read more...]
Beirut in the Baltics
John M. Edwards is drawn into the Wild Wild East of “Europe Minor.” After the collapse of communism in the USSR, inflation in the freshly minted Baltic republics of Latvia, Lithuania, and Estonia rolled up the ruble into the cheapest toilet paper around, so I decided to go East and stock up. I needed a cheap place to wipe my ass because I was then unemployed, and an Orwellian year of freelancing in Paris had left me as restless … [Read more...]
Touring Australia’s Barossa Valley
The Barossa Valley, when compared to the age of the European wine regions is rather young. However if you look deeper you realize there is a lot of "history" here. These are some of the oldest soils on the planet - the mountain ranges have been so well weathered they are now just gentle rolling hills. The Barossa is one of Australia's earliest wine regions - having been founded not by the British but by German settlers in the early 1840's. … [Read more...]
A Trace of Thrace: Balkan Adventure
In Plovdiv, Bulgaria, John M. Edwards snitches on the mystery-shrouded Balkans’ best-kept secret: an ancient (and enduring) heresy I was on the way slow train from Budapest through the Balkans, on my way to Bulgaria, chainsmoking and guzzling Egri Bikavier (Bull’s Blood) wine, when the train came to a juddering halt and was boarded by heavily armed Serbian soldiers. A Serb with an impressive handlebar moustache and an assault rifle demanded … [Read more...]
Waltzing through the Kaffehaus Kultura Vienna
“The [Café] Central is a place for people who have to kill time, so as not to be killed by it. . . .” --Alfred Polgar “I AM SIGMUND SPIELBERG!!!” The obviously unemployable flaneur with umlaut eyes landed at my marble-topped table without a proper invite, brusquely pushing aside a Thonet wooden chair. Brandishing a copy of Der Spiegel on a wooden rolling pin in his left hand, and reeking from an unfortunate cologne resembling turning … [Read more...]
The Best Artist in Slovakia
John M. Edwards pulls up his proverbial time machine into communist Slovakia (1989), where appearances are illusory and life is lived on a virtual movie set. . . . “I AM THE BEST ARTIST IN SLOVAKIA!” The Best Artist in Slovakia bruited. With a cavalier wave of his hand, curved like a grinning alligator shadow puppet, he added in slow mo, “I paint you a picture you would not believe!” “Oh, really?” I said with a terse forced smile. “I really … [Read more...]
A visit to Marchesi Antinori Chianti Classico Cellar in Tuscany, Italy
Getting Here The estate is located about 25 minutes outside of Florence Italy in the small town of Bargino. This is almost directly south of Florence, off of Highway SR 2 and only about 30 minutes from the beautiful town of Siena. Many airlines and flights connect to Florence including Alitalia, Air Berlin, Delta, KLM and Lufthansa. The Family The Antinori's own one of the world's oldest continuously operating family businesses. … [Read more...]