Photographs From Eastern Europe

Hello Friends,
Since I have not written in the last week, I thought I'd post some random, non chronological photos instead. I plan to write an entry in the next few days regardless. Enjoy!
-m

Prague - Bar & Books

Prague - Jewish Cemetary

Prague - John Lennon Wall

Budapest

Budapest

Budapest

St. Stephen's Cathedral, Wien

Hofburg

Vienna

Vienna

Belvedere

Belvedere

Vienna - Coffee and an Egg outside Freud's House...Hmmmm

Prague - Outside Kafka Museum

Prague - Down By The River

Prague - Man Crying

Prague - Shortly before being involved in a police ambush

Prague

Prague

Prague - During my solo walk around the outskirts

Vienna - Kol Nidre

Week 1

Hello Friends,

I apologize for not having written yet. The past week has of course been a whirlwind, and the craziness will likely not subside until I am back in my apartment in New York. I write to you now on a Czech computer in Prague. Let me highlight the past week, as briefly as I can, and mostly so I have these thoughts written down somewhere in a cohesive manner. I will of course add in the details when I have more time and a better computer. So please stay tuned.

Munich

My entire experience in this city was overshadowed by our attendance at Oktoberfest, without a doubt, one of the most fun experiences Ive ever had. We stayed with our German friends Christiane and Flo the first night, who became our personal tour guides for the four days of our stay. We stayed in a hostel the second and third night, and then left for Salzburg late the fourth night. Christiane remarked how all Americans love to use superlatives. But when every experience builds upon the last, upon all the experiences that have preceded it, I feel confident in my usage of such superlatives. So yes indeed, Oktoberfest was AMAZING. Over a million visitors per day. Disneyland for drunkards. Such pride and camaraderie. Over Eight Thousand people in a tent. One liter beers at a time. Singing and dancing on tables. Americans do not know how to have a good time.

I pretty much did not sleep the first forty eight hours of the trip. On my first night, I attended Oktoberfest with my travel companions Elissa and Kristen, our hosts Christiane and Flo, as well as their friend Blade. On the second day, after a brief stint in Rosh Hashana services, we explored the city, including a hike to the top of St. Peters Cathedral, a walk through the market, and a bike ride slash stroll through the English Garden, their equivalent of Central Park.

Day Three was spent two hours away in Fusse, where we explored Hohenschwangau Castle and Neuschwanstein Castle, the inspiration for Cinderellas Castle. The German countryside is breathtaking, a vivid materialization of all my life long dreams and fantasies. The story of Ludwig the Second, who lived in Neschwanstein Castle all alone, was very interesting, and I'm surprised it hasn't been made into a movie yet. See, Ludie lived in a fantasy world. He wanted time away from his overbearing mother, and did not want to participate in all the wars. He wanted all these magnificent castles built instead, and he wanted people to participate in the arts and enjoy their lives to the fullest. This did not go over well with the government, and he was exiled to Munich, where he mysteriously drowned three days later in knee deep water, despite being an excellent swimmer. He had four incredibly lavish castles built. He pranced around like a dandy. Had mommy issues. A special relationship with Wagner, whose operas inspired all the bloodless art throughout the castles. Oh, and in the chapel, there is a painting of Jesus, flying high on a rainbow. Ludie, was obviously a frutie. And we found it rather funny that the Germans kept using the term "mysteriously" to describe his actions. Therefore, Elissa, Kristen, and I have taken it upon ourselves to write the musical, "Ludie the Frutie". Every day, we have written very dirty and pun filled song and dance numbers, with music inspired by the likes of Cher, Madonna, and Celine Dion. Its pretty hysterical. We should be done by trips end. Oh, and Ludie is played by a Black Trannie. I digress.

Dachau

Day Four was spent a half hour outside Munich at the concentration camp in Dachau. My friend Kelly from California joined us for the day, as well as the night before. The site is very large and expansive. The museum is burdened with too much information. It became redundant and overwhelming. We watched a documentary, but one kinda tires of seeing dead body after dead body on a screen. Elissa had a tough time, and decided to head back to the train station to wait. I crossed the large open space to the religious monuments in the back, where I stumbled upon a little monastery. I was alone. I prayed. Or at least I tried. I cant remember the last time I heard silence like that. Silence that felt deafening, if that makes any sense. Again, overwhelming. A large bell rang, and about ten nuns walked in and opened the screen door in front of me. They chanted. I was the only other one in the room. I just sat there, in this barren candlelit monastery on the Dachau site, the very first concentration camp, just kinda stunned. I got pretty teary. The main nun looked up at me. I felt intrusive and decided to leave. So I headed to the showers and crematorium of course. Dread. You just feel kinda sick the whole time. Standing on the ground of endless screams and cries. Through the whole experience though, you still feel a great sense of gratitude. I am here because of so many people who have influenced the courses of action for my ancestors. They fought so hard to create a life for their children, and their children's children, so that I may stand here today, pursue my dreams, and explore my heritage. I thank them all from deep within my heart, and that is why I am here in Europe for these three and a half weeks. Really. As a token of gratitude. How awesome to make it an incredibly joyous and adventurous experience as well.

Salzburg

Days Five and Six were spent in Salzburg, Austria. We decided to spend an extra night because we got to the train station so late from our second venture to Oktoberfest the night before. On our first day in Salzburg, we took The Sound of Music Tour around the city, and over the hill to Lake Fuschl and Mondsee. Yes, those hills were very much alive. Probably with the sound of muuuuuusiiiiic. Our incredibly mischievous and flamboyant guide Peter was a riot, posing and strutting and reenacting scenes from the movie. It was a very cold and rainy day, so that was a bit of a bummer. But you can easily tell that Salzburg is one of the most beautiful little cities in the world. I could very much see myself moving to a little Austrian village. I'm seriously debating it. The idea feels so right. For a bit. Not years, but at some point, Id love to live a meager little existence in the middle of Nowhere, Austria. In the evening, Kristen, our roommate Rob and I ventured through Mirabell Gardens to Schloss Mirabell, a gold and marble room where we saw the Nuovo Trio Faure play a set of Suk, Mozart, and Dvorak. There were about thirty people in the room, mostly older Austrians. Mozart played in this room as a young boy with his father. The music was incredible. I was especially keen on Dvorak. "Adante. Vivace non truppo" for the cello, violin, piano trio was one of the most beautiful things Ive ever heard. Yes. It. Was.

On our second day in Salzburg, the sky started to clear up a bit. We roamed the city a bit and headed up to the Modern Art Museum on top of the hill opposite the palace. There was a special exhibition on The Art of Sound. Very fun and worthwhile. Now, the sad news to report. I accidentally formatted the memory card on my camera shortly after our visit to the museum, losing all the pictures from my first week of the trip. This is pretty devastating, as I had what I thought were some of the best photographs Ive ever taken in my life. I had been taking lots of videos as well, so I will very much miss my performance of "I am Seventeen Going On Eighteen" with Elissa at the Sound of Music gazebo, where I pretend to break my leg in the middle of the song. Very very funny stuff. I quickly wrote down as many photographs as I could remember. Thankfully, all is not lost. Kelly had my Munich videos on her computer, and Kristin has been taking a lot of pictures as well. Regardless, I mourn many of those shots. My photography is very important to me.

So. Now I write to you after my first day in Prague, which Ill have to catch you up on the next time I write. I feel like a million things have happened every day, so I do plan on detailing more of these adventures in the future. Its honestly very hard for me to imagine going back to life in America. I know I'm not working over here, and I know that this life is not standard. But exploration has always been my middle name. Ever since I can remember, I would embark on lofty adventures, oftentimes even in my backyard, making up elaborate stories to support the journeys. I feel strangely at home over here, as if I live in the wrong part of the world sometimes. Its like, how could I ever return to a life of the banal and ordinary? Not that my life has ever felt as such. Every day here is astounding. And yes its all new. And yes it could grow old. But I would like to live and WORK over here at some point. I feel like I don't agree with the standard values of America. And with the direction its heading, I don't want to give up on it, or lose faith in my country, but I want to live a different life. I'm going to keep contradicting myself, because I can say I want to escape McDonalds and Perez Hilton and consumerism and reality TV, but then I can walk outside here in Prague and find glimmers of that around here as well. Of course, its here because of Americas influence. So if I say that all I want in life is music, food, wine, beer, family, friends, and art - that has nothing to do with location, and I can create whatever life I want for myself back in the states, regardless of location or any social norms. Still, I want to live here for a bit, preferably before I'm thirty years old. When I can articulate my reasoning better, and when I am wide awake, I will let you know why. This life is not a fantasy. It can be very real. I want to inspire and help people find joy in their lives. To question their lives, to maintain ongoing conversation, and to simply enjoy it for all that it is. That is what I want to do with my life. Life. Life. Life. Blah. Blah. Blah. Life is whatever you want it to be.

With Love,

-m

The Search For My Great-Grandfathers Art

....Or so that's what I'm saying. As I soon fall asleep to "Everything Is Illuminated", the film, because God knows I have NO time to read these days. (You know what, I'm not going to even get to the movie now because I think it is more important to write this instead. Regardless, I'll soon create my own quotient of illumination, thanks.)

I am starting this blog to document what I can, when I can, as I embark on a 3 1/2 week odyssey through Eastern Central Europe. I may not write anymore, but I shall try. I leave today for Munich (right during the heart of Oktoberfest). My journey then takes me, in order, to Salzburg, Vienna, Prague (by way of Linz), Vienna, Budapest, Berlin, and Amsterdam.

I love to travel. I love to dream, and think, and fantasize about alternate existences in different worlds. Growing up, I felt like the "lone artiste" in my household. I remember as a kid discovering that my father's father was a photographer in WWII. His wife, my dear Grandma Janet, was a painter. Ah-Ha! So this Artist Blood runs through my veins! I knew it! Turns out this very special, and naturally very colorful Artist Blood dates back many generations. Unfortunately, there's not too much record of it all. However, it is known that my father's father's father, Leo Schwartz, was a painter. And not just any painter, a Magnificent painter. When he wasn't making plates and silverware to sell to feed his family, he was painting murals on the palaces throughout Central Europe! A Real Artist! His legacy was to inform my destiny! It became my mission, nay, my Duty, to seek out his art. Connect, Michael, Connect.

Well now that the grandeur has subsided, I find it very unlikely that I will indeed find his art. A lot of the old buildings have burned down. Family has dwindled since the Holocaust. Nevertheless, I found it necessary to see and experience this part of the world before I died. To understand where my ancestors wer from, to appreciate their work and sacrifice so that I may live here today, in New York City, where my parents and their parents were born, and make a life for myself, as an artist. Thankfully, I have found travel companions to accompany me along the way, as they seek out their own truths and adventures.

I have spent more time preparing for this adventure than any other non-theatre related experience in my life. You should see my color coded binders and flagged and annotated books. Then again, maybe you shouldn't. And yes indeed it is an adventure. Not a trip. Not a vacation. The funny thing is, the moment I hope on that plane, I have to let go of all this preparation. I have to drop this uber organized, overly responsible, stability searching, Type-A facade and just EXPERIENCE. When I return from my voyage, you can ask me what I found. Cue the indie rock song and you'll expect me to answer with "myself". As I smile and a single tear effortlessly falls down my cheek. Please. We find things every day. We learn. Every day. I look forward to all my years of questioning ahead, only with the exquisite memories of my backpacking through Europe to keep the hints of smiling from ever fading away.

There are a lot of post it notes around my desk right now. Endless lists and scribbled musings: "It's impossible to please everyone and still maintain a sense of self respect." "Why are our greatest strengths also our darkest burdens?" "Why do I constantly find myself afraid of what I want the most? I fear my greatest dreams. There's seemingly little point in ever achieving one's dreams, because the moment you do, they immediately lose their status as such."
After a week of luxury back home in Marin, the last week in New York has been rather difficult. I found myself nervous, scared even. The country felt off, in dire need of economic and social dramamine. How could I possibly leave at a time like this? Hm. This is probably the point where I stop questioning, stop hesitating, for a moment. For an instant. The bags are packed. The flight is booked. My European Escapades await, whatever they may hold in store. And no matter what happens, I will enjoy every moment of it. For the first time in my life, I shall make that my only responsibility.


"I'm the sum total of my ancestors. I carry their DNA. We are representatives of a long line of people. And we carry them around everywhere. This long line of people that goes back to the beginning of time. And when we meet - they meet other lines of people. And we say bring together the lines of me...When I look back over the years at the things that brought tears to my eyes. Papa said we have to be wise to live long lives. Now I recognize what my father said before he dies. Vocalize things I've left unsaid. Left my spirit unfed for too long. I'm coming home to my family where I can be strong. Be who I planned to be, within me my ancestry giving me continuity. Would it be remiss to continue in this way? Would you rather I quit? Come with the other shit, making people's hips sway? Lip service I pay, but I'm nervous I pray for all the mothers who get no sleep. Like a lifeline, I write lines cuz my compassion is deep for the people who fashion me my soul to keep. And this is who I happen to be. And if I don't see that I'm strong, then I won't be. This is what my Daddy told me. I wished he would hold me a little more
than he did. But he taught me my culture and how to live positive. I never wanna shame the blood in my veins and bring pain to my sweet grandfathers face in his resting place. I make haste to learn and not waste everything my forefathers earned in tears, for my culture."
-Maxi Jazz