<p>SomeMom, we are going to Europe and unlike poor Binx, aren’t living there. D’s semester abroad ends toward the next month and we’ll be arriving late in the afternoon on the day after her last final. Four nights in Budapest, three in Vienna, and five in Prague. It appears that I get to have the thrill of driving across the Austrian frontier and making our way from Vienna to Prague with two stops along the way as a kind of day trip…I think. Still working out details. May drive into Prague after one stop and take a short day trip out by rail. Meanwhile, I’ve been practicing Hungarian. It feels as if I’m back in French I again.</p>
<p>The origin of this trip goes back to a birthday card or anniversary card that TheMom gave me at least ten years ago, showing a couple standing on one of the Italian bridges…Florence? Venice? Something inside me kicked over as a result of that card and I vowed we were going to go there. Of course, the money that I was saving for that trip wound up being the down payment when we finally bought our townhouse but the goal never wavered and I’m so excited that it’s finally going to happen, assuming nothing untoward happens in the next little bit.</p>
<p>Check your rental car agreement carefully. Many rental car companies specifically exclude Czech and Poland, as cars often don’t come back. </p>
<p>True story: We lived an hour from the Czech border. My H’s US boss came over, and asked if we’d take him to Prague, as that was his ancestral city of origin. We said no, we weren’t willing to drive there with our car, because of the theft problem. We took him to Neuschwanstein instead. That was Saturday. On Monday he didn’t show up at work. Turns out he talked someone else into going there on Sunday, and yep - the car was stolen. Police were unsympathetic - accused them of trying to pull an insurance scam. Apparently many police in Czech are part of the theft ring. They had to take an all-night train back to Germany. Fortunately they had their passports and MY camera with them. They lost cell phones and such. Didn’t get to work until very late Monday afternoon. H did not say “I told you so.” Didn’t need to. </p>
<p>We drove from our home to visit friends in Budapest - spent the weekend in Vienna en route. Easy drive. I imagine you’ll drive straight from Austria into Czech, and bypass Germany? Another fun way to travel - catch a tour boat in Budapest, and travel the Danube to Vienna, or go all the way to Regensburg, Germany!</p>