1 Day, 4 Countries

I'm writing this from the more well-rested side of a 24 hour blitz through Europe, leaving Dushanbe in the morning, having lunch in Latvia, dinner in Prague, and making it to Madrid in time for the post-World Cup celebrations. Here is the quick link to all the pictures, and the story can be found below...

Eurotrip 2010 JPGS

I took the trip to meet Stephanie in Madrid, where she is doing some training for work. Stephanie left on Saturday morning so that she could get to Spain early enough on Sunday to prepare for the training. Since we're obviously paying for my travel, I took a lower cost flight on Sunday morning.

I went to the Dushanbe airport at 3 am on Sunday for a 5 am flight. As the plane took off, the sun was already rising at the beginning of a very long, but fulfilling day. I was able to catch a couple of shots of the mountains of Central Asia before napping fitfully for the rest of the five and a halfhour flight to Riga.

Given the very cramped seating, I was more than happy to get off the plane when we landed.

I had a 6 hour layover, so I got through customs easily and found my way to the express bus area and was in the historic center less than an hour after landing. I didn't do too much detailed sightseeing since we're both coming back this way and hope to tour the town more fully when Stephanie is done with work each day.

That said, I saw some nice architecture and got my bearings so that we can be more effective on the way home.

A lady was selling Hitler martrushka dolls next to ones of Barack Obama and Osama bin Laden. Aninteresting mix to be sure.

I also saw some interesting features like a statue of the musicians of Bremen.

After sampling some Latvian food for lunch, I enjoyed a free outdoor concert in a nearby park -

before wandering back to the point where I could catch the bus back to the airport for the next leg of my trip. The flight from Riga to Prague was almost 2 hours, but thanks to the time zone change, I landed in Czech Republic only 45 minutes according to my watch. In Prague, I only hada 4 hour layover and had to be more purposeful with my sightseeing.

Once in the Euro-zone, you don't have to go through customs in each country. It's quite disappointing not to get my passport stamped for each one, but on the bright side, I was able to get out of the airport that much more quickly. I dashed outside and found the taxi stand and negotiated a price to take me sightseeing and back to the airport in time for my connection.

The driver wasn't terribly friendly, but what he lacked in personality, he made up for in efficiency. Our first stop was the Prague Castle - a huge collection of buildings that I didn't have nearly enough time to see.

I dashed around snapping pictures of the various buildings -

- and then went inside the cathedral - which rivaled many of the best ones we saw in Italy.

On my way back to the cab, I stopped for some pictures of the view of the city from the castle and then we were on our way.

The driver pulled over so I could see the famous Charles Bridge as we crossed the river -

- and then headed to the Old Town Square, with quaint buildings and the centuries-old astronomical clock, which still works today.

Our next stop was Wenceslas Square, where I grabbed a quick picture or two before hopping back in the car to drive along the river on our way back to the airport.

My sightseeing went so well that I even made it to the airport in time to enjoy roast crispy duck with dumplings and cabbage and to pick up some chocolates for Stephanie.

Of course, afeter a day of perfect connections, my last flight is the one that ended up being delayed. I couldn't really be annoyed about missing sightseeing time though, because we only got held up after the plane was loaded. We took off about an hour late, which actually worked well since it put me in a position to get some great pictures of the sunset before I fell asleep.

I awoke as we were approaching Madrid to an announcement from the captain that Spain had won the world cup. There was a good deal of cheering from the Spanish passengers as we descended into Spain. Despite the late flight, I still landed before midnight, and so technically, the same day as I started. Despite being quite tired, I had time to notice how nice and moder the airport in Madrid is.

I didn't have to wait too long to get my bag and grabbed a cab to meet Steph at the hotel where we are staying. We got close, but not quite there due to the crowds thronging the streets. Fortunately, while loud and boisterous, the crowds were not at all dangers and some people even posed for pictures.

I also got some video of the celebration.

By the time I got all settled in, it was arround 1am in Madrid, so around 4 am in Dushanbe - just over 24 hours since I left our house. I'd say that's pretty good for one day. Now for the next few days, I'll relax while Stephanie is working and then we'll try to sitesee with whatever time she has left. Tough life, huh? I apologize if there are a lot of spelling errors. Apparently, my computer has decided that since we're in Madrid, it only speaks Spanish and keeps suggesting Spanish words as 'corrections'. And, frankly, I don't have the patience to go and check them all.

Here are more pictures for those interested:

Eurotrip 2010 JPGS