We’re off on a new adventure. This time we’re doing the Camino Portugues, walking from Porto, Portugal to Santiago de Compostela, Spain. This will be the short version of only 300 miles… compared to the Camino Frances in 2019 when we walked 600 miles. It’s a landlubbers journey, what can I say?! It’s reminiscent of offshore passage making with a minimalist approach to packing and you are subject to the mercy of the weather. Wish us Buen Camino!

It’s a cold, rainy day in Pecs, Hungary today. Pecs is quite a treasure and quite easy to see why it won the 2010 designation as Cultural Capital of Europe. First stop was St Peter’s Basilica, a huge cathedral with statues guarding the courtyard. The ornate walls, guilted altar, Romanesque arches, and massive pipe organ were impressive. Can you imagine the sound when Liszt performed on that organ? We descended into the crypt located beneath the altar, entering a humongous hall, not quite as ornate, but perfect for a post church potluck… did they do that back then? Next we visited the Roman sepulcher, extensively excavated and containing the tomb of St Peter and St Paul, replete with frescoes. For some reason it felt sacrilegious to take pictures in the sepulcher, so I didn’t. We walked into the town square replete with more magnificent structures. Hard to believe that all this has stood through wars, and occupations by ottomans and communists. At the head of the square stood a round domed structure with a crescent moon topped by a cross. When the ottomans occupied the land, they found the ruins of a cathedral. That would not do, so they set about to rebuild. Using the stones from the cathedral, they built a mosque. Obviously lightning did not strike them dead and 100 years later when the ottomans left, it was converted back to a cathedral. Now instead of camouflaging Christian symbols like in Haga Sofia in Istanbul, Muslim symbols were revamped. Of the Iron Curtain countries we’ve visited so far, Hungary seems to be the most prosperous. They are very proud of their heritage and will let you know that they lost 2/3rds of their land in WW I. They allied with Germany in WW II, with promises of restoring their land. Well, we all know how that turned out.

In Belgrade we saw many katana, or little sidewalk cafes integral to Serbian life, as the site of many a business deal, celebrations of weddings, births, and you name it. Moving on to rural Novi Sad, we really got a taste of diversity. Novi Sad is very flat and has 3 rivers, and consequently subject to flooding. When they drained the marsh by building canals to mitigate flooding, the soil was very fertile and it quickly became the breadbasket of the nation. Novi Sad means new garden, established in 1694, new is a relative term. Many people of different origins populated the area. Thus Novi Sad has 6 official languages. We visited a salas or farm house in the country to learn about local cuisine. Our hosts greeted us with small flasks of pear brandy and a honey liquor, considered an appetite stimulant… yep, like I really need that🤣. Grandma proceeded to teach us to make jam filled yeast buns. She had the dough already prepared and risen, so she kneaded it, then rolled it out and cut it into squares. After a quick demonstration we each assembled our own bun by stretching the dough into a larger square, placing a small scoop of jam, then folding and pinching the edges shut. While the pan baked we heard the story of this particular salas and how the family came to live there. A brief walk around the property and food was ready… a homemade pasta with mashed potatoes, onion and paprika accompanied by a salad. The buns, hot from the oven were delicious. I just may try substituting this dough recipe next time I make sticky buns. While I was busy cooking, Mike hiked to the Petrovaradin fortress, the biggest fortress on the Danube with over 10 miles of underground tunnels built with billions of bricks. The fort was only attacked once and never defeated.

Welcome to Serbia! If I thought the Bulgarians were a nation of survivors, they certainly didn't have a corner on the market. Over the years and numerous invasions, Belgrade, capital of Serbia, has been rebuilt 44 times. Hiking up the hill overlooking the Danube to the Kalemegdan Fort, multiple regimes have occupied and reinforced the fortress. The ottomans occupied Belgrade until the 1860's until driven out by Prince Michael. While Serbia is in the process of joining the European Union, it is not a part of NATO will not be joining the current rush of applicants in light of the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Feelings run deep over the 1999 NATO bombing of Yugoslavia in response to the humanitarian crisis caused by the Kosovo War in which many children were killed. According to our guide it was a "forgive but never forget" scenario. Kosovo was also a touchy subject, as Serbia sees it as a part of the country and does not recognize it as an independent nation. Alliances are interesting, and Serbia was on the opposite side from Germany during both world wars. Tito, the communist leader of Yugoslavia, which included Serbia, got his start in Russia with the Bolshevik revolution. Initially allied with Russia for 3 years, he broke away and established his own brand of communism and was never a member of the Soviet bloc nations. Tito ruled the nation for almost 40 years with an iron fist. A fan of western movies and John Wayne, he was known to invite the leaders of the 6 Yugoslavian republics to the Royal Palace movie theater. As they sat in 6 stuffed chairs in front, he sat in a strategically placed chair in the back where he could observe their interactions, alert to potential threats. During our tour of the Royal Palace, we scored the trifecta with a royal flush (visit to the toilet), royal sip (served refreshments) and a royal visit. Crown Prince Alexander and Crown Princess Katherine returned to Serbia after many years abroad in England and the US, and have lived in the palace since 2001. Their warmth, graciousness and humility was surprising. Determined to help those in need regardless of religion or ethnic origin, they seem genuinely interested in making the world a better place. They're very dedicated to their humanitarian foundations for education and healthcare. In addition to serving the people of Serbia, they are providing medical support for war torn Ukraine.

We had an early wake up this morning, to experience our passage through the “iron gate”, the gorges and amazing lock and dam system constructed 50 years ago during the communist period, a joint effort by Tito of Yugoslavia and Romania. The locks and dam generate considerable power as well as controlling water levels and taming treacherous rapids making river passage viable. We transited the first lock around midnight. We put our faith in the captain and thankfully slept through that. We did set the alarm for 0445 and were dutifully on deck by 5 to witness the passage through Iron Gate 2, a series of 2 locks alongside the dam and hydroelectric plant. We hugged the wall of the lock as gates closed and water levels rapidly rose. 1 ½ hours later, we were through the locks and on our way. Over lunchtime we were able to arrange a personal tour of the bridge with the captain, marveling at all the instruments, chart plotter, and engine controls. After the large wheel at the helm of our sailboat, the joysticks and tiny arc of the engine and bow thrusters were quite a contrast particularly considering the powerful impact they wield. We continued up the river an stopped off to tour the Golubac Fortress. The medieval fortress was never conquered, though ownership did change hands to the ottomans who added on a few structures. 20th century living posed the biggest threats, as a tunnel through the base was created to accommodate a highway and the increased water levels created by the Iron Gates locks and dam project flooded the lower levels.

Bulgaria is a nation of survivors, from the Roman Empire, 500 years of domination by the ottomans, 40 years of communism, to present day democracy. We’ve visited ancient stone fortress ruins and heard stories about hardships. The ottomans would take the 7 year old Bulgarian boys, and ship them to Turkey to be in the army. Years later they would return as genissaires, forced to kill their own people, sometimes even families they no longer recognized. During the 40 years they endured communism, all their land was confiscated as belonging to the state. The communist government tried to concentrate the population in cities, building factories for work. Frequently the administration exceeded worker bees. Returning to democracy was an adjustment. The freedom of choice was welcome, but suddenly having to fend for yourself for housing, food and employment was a bit of a rude awakening. The town of Vidin has interesting vestiges of Bulgarian history, from ancient gates inscribed with Cyrillic on one side and Arabic on the other, to a monument dedicated to the victims of communism, Christian church, mosque and synagogue peacefully coexist. Today Ramona and Aunt Rosa welcomed us into their home and taught us to make banitsa, a traditional Bulgarian pastry. Layers of phyllo dough were scrunched up and topped off with a mixture of feta cheese, eggs, yogurt, and fizzy water, then baked in the oven. It was absolutely scrumptious, tasting very much like the “sailor’s roll “ we enjoyed at the restaurant in Istanbul that specialized in ottoman cuisine. We finished our time in port with a performance of traditional Bulgarian folk music and dancing by young people dressed in traditional costumes.