More driving and driving

We left Krakow Friday morning and headed to Bratislavia, Slovakia. We did have some snow flurries alternating with lots of rain - not a fun drive. We stayed there just one night. We did learn some info about this city since neither one of us knew anything about it. It is the capitol of Slovakia, located on both sides of the Danube River, only around 40 miles from Vienna. It really is right on the border. It is a city that has had many names throughout its existence - depending on what empire it was part of - which is true of many European cities.

Today we had a short drive compared to the last 3 days. We are in Graz, Austria, for no particular reason except that it is on our way to our next destination. It is the 2nd largest city in Austria and the "Old Town" has been designated a World Cultural Heritage Site. It does have some pretty neat buildings!

I am reading a good book, "The Monuments Men: Allied Heroes, Nazi Thieves, and the Greatest Treasure Hunt in History" by Robert M. Edsel. It deals with a group of men that had as their mission during WWII saving and finding art treasures along with minimizing damage to cultural sights, etc. It is good - and back when we were in Bruges I mentioned the Michelangelo Madonna statue on the blog - well I just read last night how the Nazis did confiscate it from that church. I can't wait to read how it was returned. This book really fits in to our travels. I also read how the Chartres Cathedral was just barely saved. The Nazis had explosives set up all around it.

Tomorrow we are off to Kransjska Gora, Slovenia which is in the far northwestern corner of that country - very close to Italy and Austria. It is in the middle of the Julian Alps.