Day 32 - Prague
We made it to Prague around 6am the plane stunk and the seats sucked but I think I'm just sick of travel days. When we got into Prague we hit up a cab and drove into the city. It was beautiful!!! As it dropped us off at our apartment, we decided that we should take the opportunity to explore the old town in peace and quiet. Only the joggers were out at this time!! We crossed Charles Bridge into the lesser town and explored. Charles Bridge is fantastic when there is no one around!! You actually have room to explore, take photos and soak it all in. After wandering, we had breakfast and checked in to the apartment. After this one, there is no need to ever purchase a hotel room ever again! The price and the room we have to move around in was incomparable. Big bathroom, kitchen, living room and a huge queen size bedroom with 500 year old frescoes above us. We napped and after we went to see the old town square, passing by some great buildings as we did so. The clock tower was one of them. So fantastic, every hour on the hour, little religious figures march through the peepholes at the front while a bugler sounds off some tunes.
We hit up a shopping mall after, bought some jeans (not used to 19 degrees after all the plus 30 days) at hit up U Vejvodu, a huge beerhall serving cheap beer and meat dishes. We started with some half litre pints of pilsner (Czech pilsner), sausages, and finished with a fully baked pork knuckle. We drank and ate til our bellies were expanded and headed back to the apartment. At this time, we had been up for 36 straight hours thanks to our 4am flight.
Day 33
Still in Prague we started our morning with homemade coffee, tea, and a full English breakfast. We then walked back to Old Town Square, past the clock tower and visited the Salvador Dali exhibit. It contained several pieces of originals including a series of prints that left your mouth agape. He was a sick genius. Strange sexual, violent, and religious art expanding through all the mediums like sketches, oil painting, sculptures and silkscreens decorated the hall. One of the highlights was a woven tapestry depicting a civil war battle. After we avoided a downpour by visiting a sex museum which housed the first 2 movies ever commissioned as well as old toys and bondage gear. Then we hit up U Vejvodu for more pints.
We made it to St. Georges basilica by Prague castle and watched a 6 piece orchestra perform 60 minutes of pacheabel, Mozart and Vivaldi. It was my first time exposed to classical music and I couldn't help but to love the fact that here I was, in Prague, at a church built in 950 listening to Mozart!! It was great! After it was time for more beer and meat, we walked in search of the fabled u Fleku, but found it closed for renovations :( . Rolling with the punches, we found yet another famous beer hall called U Medvidku, where we ate traditional beef/pork dishes and washed it down with budvu budweiser. The original budweiser. We stumbled home, full of meat, beer and scenery.
Day 34 - Prague Castle
We walked up the stairs to the Castle grounds. As you walk up these stairs, you can look over the city, it's amazing. Baroque churches dot the cityline, punctuated by gothic towers. We reached the top and were spat out into the square. The rich families that weren't royalty, built their own palaces here, the Schwarzenburg Palace is a beautiful example of renaissance architecture. But as you see the towering minarets if St. Vitus Cathedral, you are quickly hypnotized to go into it's direction being swallowed by it's doors. Built over a period of 600 years it has many different styles of design but the gothic overpowers the baroque and renaissance styles. With gargoyles and saints peering down at you as you enter, you can't help but to feel the history as you enter. Words cannot describe the interior of the cathedral. Frescoes, stained glass windows, sculptures and paintings fill the room, and everywhere you look there is something new to take in.
After the church we spent time in the picture gallery which houses over 300 original canvas paintings spanning the dark ages and the renaissance. In the basement of the actual palace you can learn the history of the castle, it's inhabitants and even feast your eyes on crown jewels, crystal and old manuscripts. Walk the golden lane and pop your head into the various shops and even see where Kafka spent his time penning the "metamorphosis". We went into the basement of St. Georges Basilica and looked at the crypts and tombs. The powder tower is a watch tower that was added onto later and now holds the various years if weaponry and attire worn by the Czech Army. We spent a total of 5 hours exploring the grounds and then it was time for a beer. We bought a beer and drank it on our way to the Jewish quarter. We passed synagogues and the Jewish cemetery, all the while looking at the crystals offered in the shops aligned on the street.
All this sightseeing built up a huge appetite for more beer and meats!! Back to U Vejvodu we go to drink a few pints and I ate a huge rack of ribs. My favorite place by far in Prague is U Vejvodu. We bought some more absinthe and went back to the apartment to end the night. To drink real absinthe, you place a spoon over a glass with a sugar cube upon it, pour the absinthe over it slowly until it's soaked. When the cube has finished dripping the excess off, you light it and burn it until the cube is caramelized and has started to drip into the glass. When done, pour fresh water in drops over the cube until it mostly has dissolved into the glass below, drop the cube, stir and enjoy! Within a minute, you will feel a heightened sense of euphoria which develops into a mild drunk. The green fairy!!
35 - Prague
The only thing we really wanted to do today, was to go see the dancing house. That's exactly what we did. Then it rained, a lot! So we had to take refuge and what better place to take refuge than in another beer hall. We had a few pilsners, soups and of course, sausages!! After, we decided to go shopping, but the weird thing about Prague is the money. 300 Czech Koruna or crowns is about $17, but the 300 amount I just can't get over, I don't feel like I'm getting a deal. We picked up a few things, trinkets mostly but I don't think Prague has much to offer for men's shopping, not stuff I like anyways, although I did pick up a pair of jeans. After we were bored of shopping, we got soaked in the rain went home and dried off for our last dinner in Prague. We decided on a Cafe right across the street from us called Cafe Atmosphere. It was great! Hoegaarden on tap for 38 Kc ($2.20) and pork ribs for 120 Kc ($6.50). We enjoyed our food and headed home to pack up for our trip to Amsterdam at 7am.
.JPG)