Disclaimer: this is an extremely long blog entry. Read it only if you have the time and desire to visit Prague!
Ben and I loved Prague. We loved it so much that we frantically tried to figure out a way to extend our trip by a few more days. Unfortunately, it wasn’t possible, but we were able to leave with hundreds of pictures, Czech goodies, and wonderful memories. And the realization that it is, without a doubt, a city that we will return to very, very soon.
The trip began on a sour note as we arrived at the airport three hours before our flight. I hate flying with a passion (although I am married to a pilot and travel frequently, go figure) so I planned to be there within two hours of our three pm flight. In order to get seats next to one another on WizzAir you must be lucky enough to get on the airplane while there are available seats next to one another (think Southwest but the Neapolitan version which takes it to a whole other level). I arrived at the airport pleased with myself that I was able to actually get my husband to the airport two hours before the flight in order to get seats together (if you know Ben well then you know that he likes to leave everything to the last minute and hates waiting probably as much as I hate flying). Not only did I realize that the flight was at 3:50 but it was also two hours delayed! Oops. From now on Ben will definitely be checking our itinerary before leaving the house.
After killing time for a few hours we had our first Neapolitan flight experience. We sat at the gate, completely unaware that our 3:50 pm flight was delayed. 4 pm passed. Then 4:30 pm. Then 5 pm. After checking the screen about 5 times for an hour, the airline finally decided to inform its passengers that it was delayed. They completed this obviously excruciatingly difficult task by changing the time on the screen inconspicuously. No announcement, just an innocent change in numbers where the “expected flight time” was listed. Annoying!
I must say, though, that it was an entertaining wait. We watched as an African- European little girl, no older than three, wearing a get up of go-go boots and a purple mini skirt, raced around the terminal throwing papers everywhere, running into people, and screeching while her mother sat there shaking her head and doing nothing. We tried to watch as a blonde Italian lady at the gate next to us was yelling,-literally, screaming-at the top of her lungs at someone (I couldn’t get a clear view because there were too many people watching, I’m assuming it was probably a gate agent. But who knows these days). Needless, to say, the time passed a little faster when we had “scenes” to watch. All the more reason for us to learn Italian, so we can understand what they are saying!
At 5:30 pm it was time to board. We lined up like cattle although it was not really a line. It was more like Neapolitans shoving each other, yelling, and trying to get on the bus that would transport us from the terminal to the airplane first. Not that I understand what the rush was, considering that we were all going to the same place and I quickly learned that getting on the plane first was not a matter of how early you got to the airport, or even how fast you got on the bus, but rather where you re located on the bus in order to get out first and snag a seat on the plane. Anyway, to make a long story very short we were able to be seated next to each other. It was such a pleasant flight that we somehow managed to be seated next to an American who chatted with Ben the entire flight while I watched my episodes of Real Housewives of New York in peace for two hours straight.
We finally arrived in Prague at 8 pm. The shuttles were no longer running and God knows we didn’t want to figure out the metro by that point so we decided to catch a cab. We were caught off guard when Dale, Ben’s seatmate and a former Navy officer, put us in a cab and handed the cab driver money to take us to our hotel. I have to say that the sense of camaderie we’ve experienced among Americans living abroad is amazing!
What a relief when we arrived at our hotel and saw that not only is it located in a wonderful, central area, but it was gorgeous and fully lived up to the 4
(and a half) star rating . My fellow hotel snobs and salespeople will completely understand where I’m coming from. J The hotel is called K&K Central on the border of Nove Mesto and Stare Mesto. It is comfortable, Czech style, and walking distance to Prague’s Old Town- note: the place to go for young people- and the metro stations. At only 87 euros per night and complimentary breakfast it is a complete steal. The beds are so comfortable in this hotel that it was difficult not to spend the entire day lounging. Not to mention it was down the street from a mall with 200 stores. Ahhhhhh.
We had dinner down the street at a restaurant called “the Needle house.” Our eyes got bigger and bigger as we scanned the menu and saw all of the different food options. You have to realize that when you sign up to live in Naples, Italy, you’re basically signing up to eat Italian food for four years unless you plan on cooking every night. I was in shock when I ordered salmon and it came with fresh dill. Dill! I could’ve cared less about dill in the US. But because I hadn’t seen any fresh herbs besides the basil and the select few that they offer at the Exchange in a long time it was all novelty to me. I have definitely learned not to take the little things for granted that are handed to you so easily in the US. And I ate the garnish! Hehehe.
I realize that I am probably being way too elaborate in explaining our trip but one has to realize that this was our first time out of the country in over four months. We appreciated and soaked up very little bit of it!
Day 1
We woke up the next morning and realized it was chilly so we made our way to the mall to find some kind of sweater or warm cover up. Prague has unpredictable weather so even if the weather reports tell you it will be warm weather, always bring a light jacket! I almost passed out when I walked right smack into Starbucks. I have been dreaming about peppermint mochas for the past three+ months so you can only imagine our delight when we saw the familiar green and white logo.
We hopped on the metro and made our way to “Mala Strana,” aka “Lesser Town” across the Vltava River. Prague is comprised of mini-cities within one main city. All are easily accessible by metro (the metro is extremely easy and pleasant to navigate, fyi) or walkable depending on how far you are willing to walk. Ben and I had already observed the amazing steeples, towers, and historic buildings as we walked to the mall and the metro station but seeing the city’s skyline and the Vltava River from the Mala Strana area was magnificent. Prague truly is a place unlike any other. The buildings are historic but colorful; it almost resembles a gothic fantasy land. But with normal, civilized people and streets that are ridiculously clean!
We made our way to the region of Mala Strana that houses the Old Royal Palace, St. Vitus Cathedral, and the monastery of St. George. There are also a few other points of interests like the Toy Museum, etc, but the first three are the frontrunners and a must-see in Prague. Before moving to Europe, I had never really taken the time to learn about or appreciate architecture and it’s significance throughout history. Prague showcases four major types of architectural design: Romanesque, gothic, renaissance, and baroque. Some fun facts: Romanesque- exteriors often circular and interiors starker and simpler than gothic. Gothic- soaring towers, spires, beautiful but dark. Renaissance- figurative designs on the outside, bohemian style with emphasis on classical and mythical figures. Baroque-big cupolas, marble columns, ornately painted frescoes, everything in marble and gold. Though all can seem similar to one another, they are actually very different and it’s amazing to see these throughout Europe.
It’s interesting that you learn a lot about yourself through travelling. Ben and I had always thought that we were the type to take tours in order to learn as much as possible about the destinations we visit. After a few unsuccessful tours we have learned that we are not the tour group type and prefer to do everything at our own pace. For this reason, we are thrilled about the invention of “Do it yourself tours.” Little machines that you can rent and take with you as you sightsee. (On a side note, if you are as ADD as I am then you will probably also appreciate the Rick Steve’s books which include self guided tours and the Hop on, Hop off buses that they offer in every part of Europe).
We rented the self guided tour machines and explored the region. It was entertaining to watch the changing of the guards, which occurs every hour on the hour. As you can see these guards take their jobs very, very seriously J
I would have to say that my favorite of the three places we visited that day was the St. Vitus Cathedral. We were in awe when we saw the Duomo in Florence, but just as pleasantly surprised when we saw St. Vitus Cathedral. The Cathedral is baroque style with a façade decorated with statues of saints. The building consists of numerous “chapels” which in my opinion are really altars, dedicated to important saints, along with Prague memorials commemorating casualties of World War I, murals of Christ and the life of St. Wencelsas, along with the Royal Crypt which houses three Czech kings and their wives. I was enamored by the golds and ornate artwork within the walls of St. Vitus, not to mention the fact that there is so much history and detail about significant elements of Czech history in just one building alone. We toured the Royal Palace afterwards (the official residence of royalty prior to the second half of the 16th century) and St. George’s Basilica (a former convent dedicated to housing 19th century of Czech art). Neither one was half as interesting to me as St. Vitus. Although the Royal Palace exhibited crowns belonging to past kings and I must say the jewels were gorgeous. Ben made sure to shoo me out before I could spend too much time in the museum shop looking at jewelry J.
My only regret about this area was that we did not see the Lobkowicz palace which houses the “Princely gallery” including famous paintings, musical instruments, and the family’s jewels. Since we had spent so much time touring already we decided to head out for lunch.
We used a Fodor’s tour book during this trip because we couldn’t locate Rick Steves at the bookstore. We have been spoiled by the blunt, up front manner of Rick Steves books so we decided to go against Fodor’s advice and lunch elsewhere, rather than soak in the “views” offered by the restaurants within the Palace courtyards.
Ben and I had our first authentic Czech meal in town, at a cute restaurant called. We had a Pilsner, Czech beer which is definitely heavier than American beers. Note: if you are on a diet don’t go to the Czech Republic! You won’t be able to resist the food and beer! Beer is the national beverage of the CR and can be found everywhere. People drink it for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, no joke! The restaurant was a cool place and felt like a cave. We got our first taste of Goulash, which is like a Czech beef stew, and were both happy as a clam. The waitress taught us how to say please,”Prosim” and Thank you “Dekuji vam”, and how to lay your fork and knife to show that you are still eating, want more, or are finished with your meal. It was an experience of pure yumminess and Czech education!
After lunch we did some shopping and somehow I was able to convince my dear husband that I needed a pair of beautiful 14k gold garnet earrings and a blue ceramic pitcher to be used as a vase. We have decided to collect something from every place we visit. What could be better than something you can keep to pass down as an heirloom (Czech garnet!) along with display pieces for the home?! :) Fortunately for me, my husband is starting to see where I’m coming from!
On the way back to our hotel we crossed the Charles Bridge, an iconic piece of Prague history. The bridge connects Stare Mesto with Mala Strana over the Vltava River. It offers views galore, beautiful statues, and street vendors peddling their wares and watercolor art. It is a tourist mecca and almost impossible to get a nice picture of Prague without Joe Schmo and a million other people in it. The bridge is ideal at night, particularly at sunset, when it is less populated and perfect for watching the sunset.
Hungry after a long day of sightseeing and a quick nap in our luxurious beds, we set out for more Czech food. Yikes, we tried an interesting Czech dish all right! Because we were starving at 9 pm we decided to find something close to our hotel in Stare Mesto, aka, touristy. We found a pub slash restaurant (although I guess because they all house so much beer, most restaurants would be considered as pubs anyway) and skimmed through the menu. We started off with an order of beer cheese and fried bread. Interestingly enough, this appetizer was not bad. The cheese was coated in some kind of breadcrumb thing and the bread was well, fried bread. Which I would never in a millon years have tried elsewhere. What I find quite interesting in Prague is that waiters will not give you a recommendation for meal selection. If you ask what’s better this or that, they will always say, “It depends on what you like.” Well, duh, I like both that’s why I’m asking you which is better here! We finally got the waiter to suggest the smoked pork ribs over the duck. I have underlined smoked because I did not realize that smoked really means bacon! Yuck!!! So we both received steaming hot humongous slabs of bacon on the bone. Thank God we had already stuffed ourselves with beer cheese and greasy bread so we literally could not bring ourselves to eat it and took it to go. Beware of smoked ribs!
Day 2
Prague has a famous Jewish Quarter that we decided to visit. Because Ben is Jewish, this was something near and dear to his heart and an area I was extremely interested in seeing. On our way to the Jewish Quarter, we stumbled into the heart of Stare Mesto, Old Town Square, and saw restaurants, another clock tower (I swear, Prague has clock towers everywhere) and the church of St. Nicholas. We walked into St. Nicholas and, as always, were mesmerized by the sculptures and golds that were incorporated into the church. It was beautiful, these Czechs mean business when it comes to building their Churches! The church is famous for concerts that it holds several nights a week. The organ playing heard in the church was truly “gothic” and even though Ben and I are not really organ music fans you cannot even imagine how it sounds in a building like that. It’s crazy. Anyway, we walked into Josefov, the Jewish Quarter, and found the trail of synagogues and museums we were interested in. The sightseeing throughout the Jewish quarter was an unforgettable experience. The Jewish population played a huge role in Czech history as so many lived in Prague. We started with the Spanish synagogue and made our way to the Old Jewish Cemetery, Pinkas Synagogue, and the Ceremonial Hall. Each offers a different exhibition on various aspects of Jewish customs and history and were a must see. It was so depressing to learn that of more than 118,000 Jews living in the CR only 30,000 survived to see the end of the war; one would not have ever realized that the CR had housed so many at one point in time! Out of all that we saw, by far the most significant was the Pinkas Synagogue. The synagogue is a Holocaust memorial that commemorates the Jewish community of Prague. It gave me the chills as I walked in and saw the thousands of names inscribed into the walls of citizens that had lost their lives during the Holocaust. Literally, you are surrounded by walls of family names and as the reality of what happened during the Holocaust sets in, you come face to face with the names of these innocent people that were killed and it makes it that much more real. Upstairs was by far the most heart wrenching as there is an exhibition of drawings created by Jewish children during the Holocaust. Children of all ages had drawn pictures of scenes like what it meant to them to be with family, travelling by rail to these “camps,” what it would feel like to return to Prague one day, and much more. It was emotional to watch as these pictures turned from happy scenes with family and friends to darkness and depression and then again to hope as they imagined what it would be like to return to Prague and the end of the war. Pictures of some of these children are displayed, as well. It was sickening to think of the cruelty inflicted upon innocent children and so many others. The best part was seeing drawings made by those children who ended up surviving later on. I have read plenty of books on the Holocaust, and seen plenty of movies and documentaries on the subject but by far, nothing has ever struck a chord as much as the Pinkas Synagogue did.
I had no idea that there were specific Jewish cemeteries and was surprised to see the Old Jewish Cemetery which is, no exaggeration, the burial ground of 10,000 Jews! All within a tiny cemetery!
We left the Jewish quarter feeling like we were in much need of a drink. We had lunch and later on ended up overhearing about a pub where you can pour your own beer! Each table had a tab that is computerized so that you can pour as much as you want, request a waiter/waitress, request songs, and even compete against other tables. We decided that if we are ever “sightsee’ed out” in Prague one day, we won’t hesitate to spend the day at this bar. I’m kicking myself because I’m trying to remember what the name of it is but can’t! I guess we’ll have to google it so we can pay a visit next time!
Day 3
On our final day we decided to look for the Church of Our Lady Victorious, the Church that houses the Infant Child of Prague. I have seen so many of my mom’s pictures and figurines of the Infant Child of Prague that it was wonderful to actually see the figure in person. It looks like a doll, Baby Jesus, dressed in an elaborate, ornate gown. He was given to Prague as a gift from the Queen of Spain hundreds of years ago and is known as miraculous among Catholics. Ben and I paid homage for some time and went on to sightsee and navigate the rest of Prague at our leisure.
Along with collecting items when we travel, we have decided to start a wine collection. That’s right, so if in ten years we invite you for dinner at our home and happen to open a bottle of European wine, consider yourself lucky! J We found a wine shop and after speaking with an interesting Czech woman for quite some time (she didn’t like that I was asking a lot of questions so she called me “difficult.” A few minutes later she told Ben that I was “exquisite” ??? because apparently she realized she had better change her tune but I had enough and walked outside) we decided to go on a search for wine (sold by someone that actually deserved the sale) that was worth it. So…we ended up in the Czech grocery store! We bought several bottles of wine and I ended up buying (what else) dill and thyme so that I could take them home and freeze them for recipes.
We spent our last dinner in Prague at a beautiful restaurant overlooking the Charles Bridge, Kampa Park. We couldn’t find the actual walkway to enter it (it’s quite hidden) but we cheered to a wonderful trip to Prague and an expensive, yet worth the view, last meal in the Czech Republic!
After three days of unforgettable experiences, three bottles of wine, garnet earrings, a crystal vase, a ceramic pitcher, Czech candy, and our bellies full of Starbucks and dill, we reflect, yet again, about how lucky we are to have the opportunity to travel like this. Every time we start to fall into the monotony of daily life and frustrations with the culture- you know, a toilet breaking and no plumber to fix it for a week, Internet that takes two weeks to reconfigure- Ben and I stop to remember our travels within the past three months alone and know that it is worth every minute.
Next stop, Ben’s birthday trip: Barcelona, Spain August 25-29!
