Bests, Worsts and Other Observations

As I stand in the "Drink Bar" of the Hotel Gellert in Budapest, the process of itemising the various bests and worsts comes into play: not just for a second shot at the most pertinent items, but also to keep currently memorable moments from fading into memory, and to provide a vehicle for internet searchers to find the venues most worth patronising.

Most congenial pub: Rugby Pub, Ljubljana

Best pizza: Hole in One, Zagreb

Best grilled meat: Cevapi at Hodzic 2, Sarajevo

Best overall meal: Duck in Orange Rosemary Sauce, Kisablo Pub. Budapest

Best regional meal: Smoked Trout Filets in Chopped Peanuts and. Honey Mustard Cream Sauce, Hotel Moskva, Belgrade

Best breakfast: All dishes involving Bosnian smoked beef, Halvat Guest House, Sarajevo

Most memorable TV Moment: Panel discussion on religious tolerance on Republika Srpska (Bosnian Serb) TV featuring a Catholic priest, an unusually portly rabbi, a blue-eyed imam and an intense-looking Serbian Orthodox priest.

Best coffee: Srpska Kava at Mani Prag, across from Hotel Prag, Belgrade.

Best hostelry, by far: Halvat Guest House (both in the guest house and in their excellent private accommodation), Sarajevo

Best public event: Televised Xmas sing, main square, Zagreb

Most disconcerting arrival incident: Being fleeced by Belgrade Taxi Driver 2697

Second most disconcerting arrival incident: seeing table of lurid anti-abortion literature immediately upon arrival in Zagreb

Biggest surprise: Ljubljana-this place has hit the big time with its pristine Old Town and attractive setting

Biggest shock: Belgrade-the Second World isn't completely down for the count

Best train: Sleeper on Croatian Railways from Munich-Zagreb. Even included an amenity kit and an edible chocolate.

Worst train: Austrian Rail's disastrous Belgrade-Vienna run with the squabbling Greeks, crazy Serbs, and Austrian train manager screaming "Schnell" to evacuate our smoky car.

Best lager: LAV, from Carlsberg Serbia.

Worst lager: Lasko Club from Slovenia. Undrinkable (but regular Lasko on tap in Slovenia is OK).

Best driver: the fellow in Belgrade who drove me to the train station for free, and ran two red lights in the process, even though I was an hour early for the train.

Best hotel lobby moment: Playing balloon volleyball with the front desk clerk at Belgrade's Hotel Rex.

Best place to visit on December 25: Jewish Museum, Sarajevo

Strangest culinary discoveries: 1) That the breast of goose Jewish style at the resolutely unkosher Carmel Restaurant in Budapest tasted almost identical to my mom's pot roast. (Had she known she could have charged me more for it.)
2) That the Croatians spike their mustard with tarragon. Weird, but not bad.
3) Everything that isn't pork in Sarajevo pretty much is pork in Belgrade.

Best music: 1) Balkan brass band that surrounded me after giving a 200 dinar (EUR 3) note to tubaist. 2) Croatian music for "Catholic Christmas"-most of it was original

Worst music: Crappy American oldies used a background music. You can check out of the Hotel California. But you can't leave even if you're in Republika Srpska.

Best e-mail exchange: When I emailed a friend in Islamabad that the Serbs have a sense of perspective because the article on the assassination of "Benazir Buto" was on page 6, he said "it's on page six here too. And 1,2,3,4,5.7..."

Silliest bit of fun: the hunt for stretch Yugos in Belgrade.

Best souvenirs: Old 5000 Dinar note with picture of Marshal Tito; freshly imprinted t-shirt with logo of 1984 Sarajevo Winter Olympics.

Best architecture-style: Sarajevo's fusion of Turkish, Hapsburg, fin de siecle and socialist styles

Best architecture-grandeur: Budapest-scale, setting and style make for a breathtaking city

Best travelling habit: Tipping 20%. My Karma has improved precipitously since I started tipping decently.

Worst travelling habit: taking taxis rather than learning transit systems. Even though the legal cabs were cheap everywhere I went (and cheaper than basic London underground fares), I feel I missed our for not riding subways and trams more

Best train scenery: Sava River valley between Zagreb and Ljubljana

Best bus scenery: Republika Srpska ski region east of Sarajevo

Best use of dormant skill: deciphering Cyrillic street signs in Belgrade (and signage at Serb Sarajevo bus station)

Best bridge, Chain Bridge, Budapest

Coolest transit system: Sarajevo's mix of donated tram cars and trolley buses--some with their original markings. Kind of a working tram museum.

Best expression: Bosnian expression of feeling uncomfortable: "feeling like a pig in Teheran".
Worst airline: Swiss