We drove from Freising, Germany to Komarno, Slovakia today. The drive to Wien (or Vienna) was straightforward. When we crossed the border into Austria there was no checkpoint -- it was like crossing from Illinois to Indiana. There was a big sign that said "Welcome to Osterreich!" in several languages, but no need to show a passport what-so-ever. Near Vienna, the route was a bit confused, partly due to construction, but we made it to the border with Hungary with no problem. At the Hungarian border, the guard looked at our passports only enough to ensure that they really looked like passports -- he never even looked at us to see if we looked like the pictures and they certainly didn't check our passports against any watch lists. There were no questions about what we were carrying or anything. Just a quick glance and we were off again. We stopped at a restaurant just past the border where we could spend Euros and we had a pleasant lunch in a little outdoor dining area that was shady and comfortable. We had pork cutlets prepared Hungarian style. I got it with "potatoes", which turned out to be french fries. That was better than getting it with bread, which looked like Wonder Bread to me.
The terrain varies between Germany and Slovakia. There are rolling hills in Bavaria which give way to low mountains in Austria. After Vienna, the terrain was extremely flat with only a little relief as we approached Komarom and Komarno. (Komarom and Komarno are towns in Hungary and Slovakia that face each other on either side of a bridge across the Danube.)
The countryside we passed through was mostly rural (with the exception of the outskirts of Vienna). We saw a variety of planted crops. Many of the wheat fields had already been harvested. Corn was still growing in many fields. In Austria, we passed a section with grapes and in Hungary, I saw more sunflowers than anything else. I think I saw canola once. The region of Hungary we passed through seemed to be undergoing a housing boom. There were a lot of new houses. The dominant form of construction seemed to be a kind of rough, hollow brick which was often covered with a kind of stucco.
It takes some getting used to not speaking the language. In Germany, where at least my hosts spoke the language, I didn't find it too stressful, but in Hungary where none of us really spoke the language, it was more stressful. Driving to Komarno, we took a wrong turn and ended up not sure where to go next. By saying "Komarom", which is the town on the Hungarian side of the river, we were able to directions which got us turned around and on the right path again. In Komarno, one of my hosts speaks enough Slovak to get by, but in Hungary it was a bit worrisome. The checkpoint between Hungary and Slovakia was similarly rigorous. They did look at our passports enough to see if they looked like real passports, but no more. I had expected to have all kinds of stamps in my passport after traveling through four countries, but it looks like I'll just have entries and exits from Muenchen and probably an entrance at Dulles. How Dull(es).
We found the student housing after a bit of a struggle -- it was not marked in any way, and so we had to ask after it. When we arrived, we found that our names were on the list, so it wasn't a problem to get into our rooms. When I saw that there was an ethernet connection, I was hopeful to have access to the net, but unfortunately the connection seems to be dead. Ah, well. I'll post this when I get the chance, but possibly not until I get back. The rooms are comfortable and have power (the international adaptor I borrowed from Elsbeth works fine) and a shower! Luxury! A network connection would have been over the top.
After we got our things moved in Dieter and I walked over to the Hypernova, a big-box store that is adjacent to the student housing which has everything: groceries, clothing, office and school supplies, appliances, electronics, computers, etc. We were able to exchange a bit of money there and bought a bunch of stuff (mostly alcoholic drinks) and came back to celebrate our arrival. An old friend of my hosts from Bulgaria had also arrived and he drank champagne with us and chatted for a while. Soon, I'll turn in and hopefully sleep better. I'm finally getting close to being adjusted to the right time, but I still am in my deepest sleep when it's time to get up in the morning. The rooms don't have much in the way of curtains, so hopefully the morning sun will get me up.