Here are some of our favorite photos from the trip (each photo is a thumbnail linked to a higher quality picture. There are four pages of photos in total):
1) Riding faster through the countryside. The best road of the trip was a voluntary detour we took in the Czech Republic. At Duba we turned southeast on 259 going to Mseno and then turn north on 273 up to Obora. Beautiful forest, great twisty roads, no traffic and scenic little villages all along the way.
2) One of the scenic side trips of the trip was to the Bastei, a series of sandstone rock formations which overlook the Elba river. We hiked out to a point where we were able to see both the beautiful rocks and the river down below.
3) This panorama photo gives some idea of what the rock formations in the Bastei are like.
4) Dresden was one of our favorite stops on this trip. It is a fascinating place, nearly completely rebuilt after the devastation of World War II. In the past 70 years, many of the buildings in the old town center have been rebuilt, like this former parliament building. What I found interesting is the dark color of all the buildings. This is due to two things: first, the local sandstone darkens as it ages. Second, the intense fires during the bombings of WWII smoke stained the stones.
5) An early morning start in Dresden means no people in the gardens of the Zwinger palace. (Actually crowds were never a problem in Dresden, a big reason we liked the city so much compared to packed Prague). This palace was leveled in February, 1945 and then rebuilt to it's original 200 year old design.
6) Arsty photo with a close-up of one of the statues built into the walls of the Zwinger palace.
7) The modern alter at the recently rebuilt Frauenkirche Lutheran church in Dresden - quite the contrast to the dark, gothic churches we'd seen in Prague and Vienna. This, the primary church of Dresden, was destroyed in the firebombing. The reconstruction was started in 1993 and completed in 2005. The original architectural design was used but the interior was designed to be more modern. Because of the city's history, a shrine to peace was included with perpetually burning candles.
8) Panorama photo of Dresden and the Elba river from the top of the Frauenkirche church's dome.
9) Alan experiencing sensory distortion at Dresden's Hygiene Museum. In addition to the regular collection of health related display (like this one) the museum had an extremely interesting special exhibit titled "What Is Beautiful".
10) Our fourth riding day had us crossing multiple borders as we went from Germany through Czech Republic and into Poland. Here we are reloading the bikes after lunch at Cafe Lust in Zittau, Czech Republic.
11) The week before we arrived, a dam had burst in Poland which resulted in heavy flooding along river valleys in Czech Republic and Germany. We in advertently stumbled across some of the flood damaged countryside between Frydlant and Sous. Definitely a place we should not have been riding that day, if only to stay out of the way of the rescue efforts. It took us an hour to go 15km between Raspenava and Bily Potok due to washed out roads and bridges. Both of those little villages had been decimated by the flood. In this photo a Czech soldier directs traffic through Bily Potok.
12) On the fifth riding day, Alan took advantage of his proximity to the Brno race track to head over and watch the MotoGP race. Motorcycle racing in Europe ranks with Soccer and Formula One in popularity, so experiencing a European MotoGP race is a special experience for an American. 150,000 people showed up on race day. Here one of the motorcycle only parking lots just starts to fill-up early in the morning of race day.
13) The crowds aren't the only amazing part of a European race. The Brno track is also a different experience. Four miles long, winding through the heavily forested hills of the Czech Republic. Fans covered every hillside and even sat up in the trees on outside the fence surrounding the track.
14) European fans include smoke bombs and noise makers in their enthusiastic support of racing. Here nearby fans let off red, white and blue smoke canisters to mimic the colors of the Czech flag.
15) This panorama gives some idea as to the crowd at a European MotoGP race. They are numerous, enthusiastic, knowledgable and very loyal to their particular favorite racer. Rider T-shirts, banners and flags abound!
16) Train rails at Birkenau. A death camp that is part of the Auchwitz complex, also known as Auschwitz II.
17) Jonna looking at the chimneys left behind from the prisoner's quarters at Birkenau.
18) A reconstructed prisoner's barracks at Birkenau.
19) The gas chambers at Birkenau were destroyed by the Nazi's at the end of WWII, leaving behind this rubble. The gas chambers were horrifyingly efficient. The actual limitation on the killing of prisoners was by how many bodies could be cremated in a day. In addition to the two gas chambers at Birkenau, there were also multiple cremetoria.
20) The entry gate at the original Auchwitz death camp, also known as Auchwitz I. The slogan tranlates to "Work Will Set You Free"
21) A few of the multitude of photos of Auchwitz prisoners. These photographs were taken by guards as prisoners were brought into the camp and are now on display in some of the barracks. Moving beyond words.
22) Crematorium at Auchwitz. While the gas chambers and crematoria at Birkenau were destroyed at end the of the war, the ones in Aushwitz I were not. These are the orignal ovens. Walking through this building is shocking. It is incomprehensible that it could ever have been designed or built, much less used.
23) The interior courtyard of the Wawel castle at Krakow. Sadly, the years (and wars) have not been kind to the Wawel. Unlike the lavish Habsburg castles in Vienna and Prague, the Wawel has been stripped bare of it's riches. Still, it symbolizes an independent Poland to the Poles and was packed with reverant visitors.
24) The Polish equivalent of boy scouts/girl scouts marching through the streets of Krakow. Apparently there was some sort of scout convention happening, so the streets were packed with uniformed youth.
25) A chapel 135 meters underground, carved out of salt, in the Wieliczka Salt Mine. Even the chandeliers in St. Kinga's Chapel are made of salt.
26) Artsy photo, looking up into one of the chandeliers.
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