Katarzyna Kraszewska sat ramrod straight in front of the black lacquered Steinway & Sons grand piano. She contemplated the keyboard for a moment before striking the first commanding chord of a piece written by Frédéric Chopin. For the next hour I was mesmerized, fascinated that so much of the music was familiar to me, despite … Read more
During World War Two, the mass murder of millions of Jews, gypsies, Poles, homosexuals, mentally disabled, physically handicapped, and communists was the result of simple, vile ideas that were espoused by one hate-filled man. Hitler did not grow up hating Jews. As a young man he was a German Nationalist, however at that time he … Read more
Salzburg had been recommended to me as the second most interesting city in Austria, after Vienna. I’d planned to stop there for a few days, but several hours of searching for accommodations turned up nothing that was affordable. I gave up and bypassed the city entirely. A few days later, after thoroughly exploring all the … Read more
My first visit to Vienna was indecently short. During my Grand European Tour with Viking River Cruises last year, I spent a day getting to know the city. Following a walking tour of the most important sites, I met up with the ship’s chef for a gastronomic discovery of the Naschmarkt, the city’s 16th-century fresh … Read more
Feldkirch, Austria. I’d never heard of it and had no plans to visit. I ended up in this sub-Alpine village for one reason only; it was the easiest and least expensive way to visit Liechtenstein. Not knowing how long that would take I booked two nights, but by the end of the first day, I’d … Read more
