Dobry den! (Hello!) This is a guest post to the blague from Allan. Linda and I are just completing our week-long visit with Julia in Prague. Julia has been an incredibly knowledgeable tour guide showing us the sights of the city including the Charles Bridge, Prague Castle, St. Vitus Cathedral, Old Town Square, St. Agnes’s Convent, Wenceslas Square, the John Lennon Wall, the National Theatre (saw Carmen!), and the Jewish Quarter, to name a few. Getting around Prague is very easy as they have a very extensive subway and tram system. We bought 5 day passes for 500 kronen (less than $30). However, despite the extensive subway/tram system, we have been “hoofing it” a minimum of 10Km every day. By the end of the day, “the dogs are barking”.
People here are friendly and most places people speak some English, although you get extra credit for attempting to speak Czech. The most essential (and easiest) Czech saying I have found is “Pilsner Urquell prosim” (Pilsner Urquell please). This (The original lager) is good at home, but comes in a distant second to a half liter draft served anywhere in the Czech Republic.
One adventure we took outside of Prague was to Karlovy Vary. This is an ancient spa town which legend proclaims was discovered by Charles IV (the Holy Roman Emperor and King of Bohemia) while on a hunting trip. Over the centuries, the who’s who of royalty, the arts, and the powerful have spent time here to partake of the curative waters. This includes the likes of Goethe, Beethoven, Peter the Great. Apparently the Russians have particularly liked it here as they never went home. Along the Tepla River are a series springs bubbling forth a salty mineral water that is claimed to have curative powers for just about everything. As the picture of Julia sampling the waters shows, it is definitely an acquired taste. We almost had too much adventure as we were incorrectly told that our return bus left from the same terminal as we were dropped off. Wrong! Fortunately, we got this sorted out and were able to catch the last bus back to Prague (at a different terminal).
Part of our Prague adventure has been the food. We have visited many of Julia’s favorite spots including Bohemia Bagel, The Globe, Coffee Heaven, Café Marcel (a spot that Alex Carr, Julia’s friend and room mate frequented often with her family when she lived here before) and Lehka Hlava (Clear Head) vegetarian restaurant. We also discovered the ultimate iced coffee (Julia and Linda), and the perfectly poured Pilsner Urquell (Allan) at the Franz Kafka Café. We did not find this either absurd or meaningless, so I’m not sure we really got the full existentialist experience at this café.
People here are friendly and most places people speak some English, although you get extra credit for attempting to speak Czech. The most essential (and easiest) Czech saying I have found is “Pilsner Urquell prosim” (Pilsner Urquell please). This (The original lager) is good at home, but comes in a distant second to a half liter draft served anywhere in the Czech Republic.
One adventure we took outside of Prague was to Karlovy Vary. This is an ancient spa town which legend proclaims was discovered by Charles IV (the Holy Roman Emperor and King of Bohemia) while on a hunting trip. Over the centuries, the who’s who of royalty, the arts, and the powerful have spent time here to partake of the curative waters. This includes the likes of Goethe, Beethoven, Peter the Great. Apparently the Russians have particularly liked it here as they never went home. Along the Tepla River are a series springs bubbling forth a salty mineral water that is claimed to have curative powers for just about everything. As the picture of Julia sampling the waters shows, it is definitely an acquired taste. We almost had too much adventure as we were incorrectly told that our return bus left from the same terminal as we were dropped off. Wrong! Fortunately, we got this sorted out and were able to catch the last bus back to Prague (at a different terminal).
Part of our Prague adventure has been the food. We have visited many of Julia’s favorite spots including Bohemia Bagel, The Globe, Coffee Heaven, Café Marcel (a spot that Alex Carr, Julia’s friend and room mate frequented often with her family when she lived here before) and Lehka Hlava (Clear Head) vegetarian restaurant. We also discovered the ultimate iced coffee (Julia and Linda), and the perfectly poured Pilsner Urquell (Allan) at the Franz Kafka Café. We did not find this either absurd or meaningless, so I’m not sure we really got the full existentialist experience at this café.
Today we put in our usual 10Km with a walking tour of the “Gardens of Mala Strana” including the Palace Gardens, Wallenstein Gardens, Vrtba Gardens (a hidden gem), and the Kampa. For our last night in Prague, we took Julia and Alex to the restaurant Kampa Park, located right on the Vitava river and adjacent to the Charles Bridge - great meal with great company. We will savor this for the rest of the evening and try not to think about the alarm going off at 5AM to head back stateside. Na shedanou (Goodbye) for now!
Dearest Father,
ReplyDeleteThere were two pictures I was really hoping you wouldn't post. And you posted both of them! Hahaha. I'll put up some pictures where I am making attractive faces. ;)