Eastern Europe

Travel & Vacation Images
Eastern Europe

In July 2002 we traveled to Budapest, Hungary, to visit our grown daughter, Bethany, who worked there that summer with the legal rights organization, European Roma Rights Council. While with her we also visited Zagreb, Prague and Vienna, plus some smaller towns in Hungary and the Czech Republic. A few notable images resulted.

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So here's the story: Patricia (my wife), Bethany and I were on the train from Budapest to Zagreb. Seated across from us was this deliciously beautiful Russian girl, on the way I presume to the clothing optional beaches of the Dalmatian Coast. She was wearing this lovely, slinky, diaphanous black dress. Had I been alone, I would have asked without hesitation to photograph her during the entire journey. As it was, she had pity on me and closed her eyes long enough as we approached Zagreb that I surreptitiously snapped this portrait of her.

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While in Budapest I encountered the 7th European Youth Theatre ensemble in a number of performances in the city's central square. I took a number of photos of several of the individual performance groups, and the best show youthful intensity and beauty at their best.

I sent a CD containing all the photos (there were over 500 of them) to the organizer of the event. Some time later I received the following gracious note from Josef Hollos in Vienna:

Dear Mister Haynes!

I had the opportunity in Cork/Ireland some days ago to show your CD to some of my theatre colleagues. [M]ost of them participated in the Encounter in Hungary. The biggest success was as the Hungarian organisers saw the pictures on the laptop because their official photographer did not appear during the final act, so they have now only your photo-report about the final performance. Some of the young Irish participants had seen also the CD. You can´t imagine the tears they had and how they enjoyed to see themselves and the "new" friends from the summer. You had with your work a very big success. And we were altogether very happy and appreciated the photos very much. Thank you very much!!!!

The Hungarian colleagues took the CD with themself to Budapest to use it for the final report and they are reporting your pictures under your name and under your copyright. You will get some copies of the report as it is published. Everybody asked me to make in Vienna at least one copy for each participating country (17) plus three for the officials, and they could provide it [for] their youngsters in their own countries. .... I can only promise to you, wherever we are publishing your photos, we are doing it under your name and we´ll also report your name in our official reports about Hungary. .... Thank you for your great work and humanity you expressed in your pictures.

Best regards,

Josef Hollos, Chief Youth Officer of the City of Vienna, President of the Austrian National Centre of AITA/IATA (International Amateur-Theatre Association)

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While in the Fine Arts Museum in Budapest, I saw this girl who appeared to be as exhausted by the multiple galleries and hard marble floors as was I.

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A walk through one of the largest of Budapest's parks brought us to the famous statue of "Anonymous," the medieval scribe who recorded much about Hungary in the Middle Ages but neglected to give us his own name.

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A young Croatian girl in native costume, a dancer in one of the troupes performing at the International Folk Festival in Zagreb while we were there.

Panorama of Pest, including Parliament buildings along the Danube, from the hills of Buda.

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While in Prague we took in a delightful marionette performance of Mozart's Don Giovanni. I've overused the description, but what the heck: we found the performances a bit wooden, but the voices were lovely. The performers all lip-synched, however.

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Seen hanging around over Prague, Czech Republic, near sundown. This was taken with an effective focal length of 480mm (because of the D30's 1.6x multiplier for lens focal lengths), so the fact that it is in fact a work of art is more apparent here than it was to us when we first glanced the "man" dangling over one of Prague's Old City streets.

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The entry gate to the Charles Bridge over the Vltava (Moldau) River in Prague. Taken at night, obviously, before we walked to the next bridge south to take the panorama of the Bridge shown next.

Nightime panorama of Prague's Castle and the Charles Bridge.

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