My Travel Disposition

We left Prague at 10AM and set off for Cesky Krumlov (pronounced Cheskey Crumlow), a medieval town kept up by Unesco World Heritage. On the way we had lunch at another World Heritage site, Holasovice. It’s a tiny little village, population 400. The homes on the square are all built in the 16th and 17th century. It was very quiet. It is a popular stop for bicyclists, so there are a couple of small restaurants and pensions. We had some lunch, took some photos and got back on the bus.

Our next stop was Cesky Krumlov, a lovely little town with a beautiful chateau in the center on the top of the hill. One of the specialties is a kind of donut
– dough wrapped around a metal cylinder and placed on a rack that twirls it around mechanically over an open oven. After it is baked, it is knocked off the
cylinder and rolled in sugar, cinnamon and chopped nuts. It was delicious!!!! A couple in the group found them with the inside coated in Nutella…

Then we walked up to the chateau. It was built in the Renaissance style in the 16th century. The facades of the building are painted to look like stone
bricks and statues in niches, very popular for the rich in the 16th century. It was a private home for a couple of wealthy families and now belongs to the city
as a museum. We didn’t go in, but the views of the city from there are outstanding. There is a garden at the back with a theater. In the summer they
stage operas on a stage circling the audience. The seats are on a revolving platform and turn when there is a scene change!

We had an amazing dinner at a place called “The Two Marys” on the river. It specializes in “medieval cuisine” — I had a vegetable “Feast” tasted some of the local beer, but passed on the “mead”. We wandered back to the hotel, stopping in the park to looking at the amazing illuminated buildings.

The next morning we left for Vienna. On the way we stopped at Telc (pronounced Telch) another medieval town. It was much larger than Hocesovice with an covered
arcade in front of all the stores. Intricate paintings and pastel colors covered the buildings. We had lunch and ice cream(!) and then got back on the
bus. Our last stop before Austria was a little fruit stand on the border. A chance to spend all of our leftover Czech money. In addition to the fruit,
there were Moravian wines and large jars of pickled vegetables and jam.

Finally we reached Vienna! Polly and I took a little walk around the hotel and visited a church with beautiful stained glass. They were getting ready for
a organ concert that night, but we would not be able to go. Erik recommended a restaurant for dinner that was outstanding! A real gourmet meal. I had the
special — salad, glazed liver with onions and bacon and a floating island for dessert. The special drink was a wine spritzer with pink grapefruit juice.
Delightful!

This morning, when I woke up, I was extremely dizzy and nauseous. I take certain medications which were changed before I left and I think they do not mix well with alcohol. I
stayed in the room today, missing the city tour!
It did pour rain with lightening and thunder here about 3PM. That was the exciting moment of my day! And watching the Simpsons in German…

Yesterday morning at breakfast, I met the rest of the group. They are 11 of them and, as a group, we are evenly split – 6 women and 6 men. They are all from the UK. The guide, Erik, is from Slovakia and is soft spoken, friendly and sweet.
We took a walk through the Old Town with a local guide (got there so much quicker than I did on my own!), saw the clock and square and then headed to the Charles bridge. Just as we got there, it started pouring rain. We made it across (it was amazingly empty of people) then stopped at a cafe for some hot coffee and hot chocolate. I will say I was skeptical about bringing a fleece jacket, but I’m certainly glad I did!
We then took the tour of Prague castle. It is, according to Guinness Book of World Records, the largest castle complex in the world. We got there just in time to see the changing of the guard at the front gate. Their uniforms were redesigned a few years ago by the man who designed the costumes for the movie “Amadeus” and they are baby blue. They used to be dark khaki, but now they look less threatening and rather nice.

By the time we did a quick walk around the grounds, it was almost 2 and the group split up. I wanted to take the short tour of the castle grounds (you can purchase a ticket for a short tour -4 sections of the complex- or the long tour- all the sections), so I got my ticket and audio guide and headed into St. Vitus Cathedral. Wow. It is magnificent. The stained glass, the statues, the monuments.

I then took in the smaller church, St. George. It was much less grand, but interesting architecturally. Turning the corner, I went down the Golden Lane, a winding street where they have preserved the little houses built into the castle wall.

So tiny! It’s remarkable anyone lived in them. Franz Kafka’s sister lived in one of these and he stayed with her at one time to write. Most of the other houses have been turned into shops, but they have made others into replicas of what they used to be: a seamstress shop, a tavern, a goldsmith shop. My last stop was the Palace, where the main attraction is the large hall, where they used to have jousting(!) and where the king would hold court. Needless to say, it was HUGE.

I took the walk from there down Nerodova St. famous for the front facades of the houses. When the rich would need to send their servants out to other homes, the servants didn’t know how to read, not even numbers. So each house was marked by an icon — an eagle, a ram, two suns, etc. The houses on Nerodova St. are
one of those places where the original facades remain. Narudova, a famous Czech writer, lived in the house with two suns and there is a large plaque honoring him there.

I stopped next at St. Nicholas Church. The people of Prague adored Mozart during his lifetime (he was quite fond of Prague, too) and when he died at age 36 they held a huge memorial for him at this church. They say over 5000 people attended. It is very fancy inside, rococo with a lot of cherubs and paintings
on the ceiling. Very elaborate.

I had some pizza for lunch and went on the hunt to find the church that housed the Infant of Prague. I was raised Roman Catholic and the church I attended (and where I went to school) was called Our Lady of Victory. There was a statue
of the Infant of Prague displayed inside. I made the connection here (duh!) and tracked him down. The Infant is a small wooden statue said to have been given to the Carmelite nuns by St. Theresa of Avila. It depicts Jesus as a small child, one hand raised in blessing and the other holding a small globe. It was
lost during a fire and when it was found, it had lost its hands. The priest who found it had it repaired and it became famous for helping and curing people who prayed to it. It is known for its elaborate costumes, many of which are in a museum in the church.

The church it is housed in is called — Our Lady of Victory!! It was a sweet little church with, again, very fancy decorations. It was different than the bigger churches I had seen that day because it felt more like a real church. There were fewer people walking around and it was very quiet.
As I walked back to the hotel, I passed the famous Frank Gehry building nicknamed “Fred and Ginger” because it resembles two dancers.

We all met for dinner at a local restaurant where we were the only tourists. The specialty of the house was wild boar, but they didn’t have enough for everyone to try it, so I got a pork cutlet instead and, of course, a beer. It was delicious, but I’m not used to eating so much food. I don’t know why the Czechs here are so skinny if they eat like this all the time!
Next morning, off to česky Krumlov!

I started off by taking the Metro (Line c and a) to Old Town. Very easy. I thought it would be a good start to the day by visiting the Josefov area — the Jewish Quarter. One of the challenges (and beauties!) of travel is not knowing what day it is. Yep, it was the Sabbath and, yes, the Jewish Museum, the cemetery, the synagogues — all closed. I strolled around the neighborhood, window shopping at Prada, Gucci, Tag Heuer etc.

I was next to the Manes Bridge (traffic, but no crowds), so decided to visit the Kafka museum on the opposite shore. In the courtyard of the museum is a famous sculpture called “Piss” by contemporary artist, David Cerny. You guessed it: it’s two guys
urinating in a pool the shape of the Czech Republic. Very funny.

I decided to grab some lunch at one of the cafes listed in the Lonely Planet guide called “Cukrkavalimonada”, meaning “sugar, coffee, lemonade”, the Czech version of eeny-miney-moe. I entered, looking for a table, when a woman approached me and offered to share her table. Her name is Ami, she’s from Toronto, Canada, currently teaching in Dusseldorf. We had a great chat, found out we had a lot in common, and ended up agreeing to meet for dinner later! (I love traveling.) I did have the specialty drink at the cafe — a mixture of elderberry juice, sparkling water, lemon and mint. Fabulous.

I wandered around after lunch, never made it back to the Kafka museum, but did find a jewelry shop where I found a lovely pair of garnet earrings. (Jewelry is my favorite souvenir — easy to pack, doesn’t weigh much.)

I took the tram home to get ready for meeting Ami. Her hotel was very close to mine(small world, indeed) and we met at our closest tram stop, I P Pavlova. I told her I hadn’t been to the Prague Castle yet, and she insisted we go up to see the sunset
there. It was fantastic! The Castle is up on a hill, so you get a panoramic view of the whole city.

On the Castle grounds is the huge St. Vitus cathedral, a French Gothic structure with the most amazing gargoyles! It was closed, so I didn’t see inside, but I read it has a stained glass window designed by Alphonse Mucha, an artist famous for his Art Nouveau designs and the crypts of several members of Bohemian royalty, including Wenceslas. The sun went down as We got back to the Old Town area and found a place to have dinner — the Zebra. It was Asian fusion and quite delicious. I had a stir fry with salmon, yams, shrimp and clams. And a beer. We started chatting with the couple at the next table — she was Russian, he was Portuguese –and they lived in Switzerland. They were two of the most beautiful people I’ve ever met, model runway beautiful. And could not have been nicer! We talked until the restaurant closed (around midnight). Ami and I had planned to listen to jazz at a club, but I did not regret the way the evening turned out.
I think today will be a trip down to the fortress at Vysehrad to the church of Sts. Peter and Paul, where Dvorcak and Smetena are buried at the Slavin cemetery. I will meet my group this evening.
The church bells have been ringing all morning — it looks like another glorious day.

I rolled out of bed and went down to a lovely breakfast of cheese, ham, salami and really good bread. And coffee, of course. Picked up a map at the front desk, asked how to get to the Vitava river and set out. Naturally, I got lost. The streets wind around and change names after a few blocks. My map was sort of helpful, but not much. I had figured if I found the river, it would be simple to find everything else, but I missed it somehow. I did find a pretty little park, a wide shopping street and eventually made my way to the old part of the city.
The first impressive building I dscovered was the Opera House, where Mozart debuted Don Giovanni in 1787. Every summer they perform Don Giovanni through the months of July and August. It was a very beautiful structure and I wondered if the inside was amazing, too. There is a very strange statue commemorating Mozart off to the side. Ideas, anyone?
I wandered on and found Henry’s Bell Tower. It once was part of a church, but after all the revolutions and wars, the tower is all that remains.
I meandered on and discovered a huge space, full of tour groups (and Segways!). They were all gathered in front of an amazing Art Nouveau building known as the Municipal House. It is used as a concert hall, a convention center and any other large gathering place (including fashion shows!) built in 1912. Weirdly, it sits between two large, modern indoor shopping malls, putting them both to shame, I think.
I checked the map again and set off for the Old Town Square (Stare Mesto). I found it by accident, following the mass of humanity that makes up the tourist summer in Prague. By chance, I approached the Astronomical Clock just as it was about to strike noon. The clock, which is on the side of the tower of the Church of St. Nicholas, is famous for the animated display that occurs every hour. A skeleton rings a bell, a couple of small doors open and a line of saints passes by. Afterwards, up at the top of the tower, a trumpeter in yellow and red plays a fanfare out of each side — 4 times!
The other focus in the square is a monument to Jan Hus, who was killed during a period of religious persecution in 1415.
The space is enormous, with of horse drawn carriages tours, outdoor restaurants and a Dixieland band, playing “Summertime” and “Hello, Dolly” while selling their CDs.
I decided to eat lunch at one of the outdoor cafes –The Tyn, named for the church around the corner. It was well worth it if only to watch all the people (and dogs) strolling by. I had goulash and a local beer. The Czech Republic is FAMOUS for their beer. It was very tasty.
The buildings here are really gorgeous. They let the Nazis walk through on their way to Russia on the promise they would not destroy the city. It worked. There are amazing facades, painted pastel shades with flowers in the window boxes and statues in every niche.
I tried to find the river and the Charles Bridge, a known landmark of Prague. I got lost again (where was that damn river?), but eventually I made it. The bridge is famous for the beautiful statues of saints on either side. (The originals are in a museum, but the replicas are really good.) No cars, bikes or Segways are allowed to use the bridge, although it was still pretty packed with tourists, caricaturists and sellers of jewelry and art work. I walked to the end and then turned around and went back. The views of the river are outstanding.
By then it was about 6PM and I had been walking non stop since 9 AM with only a small break for lunch, but I wanted to see the Wenceslas Square and statue. It was a small detour from the walk back to the hotel, so I figured I could make it without too much effort. Guess what? I got lost. I missed the square but found the statue. There were folks sitting all around the base, under King Wenceslas of Christmas carol fame on his horse. Behind the statue is the National Museum, but I didn’t have the stamina to check it out. Maybe tomorrow.
This is truly a beautiful city and, despite my failure to find the river, it’s pretty easy to get around. There is a system of trams, buses and a metro, which I think I should try. Back on the hunt tomorrow — I think I will tackle finding the castle and the Jewish quarter.