Traveling in Germany
Hey guys! Thanks for reading about my travels. I will be posting more when I get back to the Czech Republic!
- posted by Matt @ 4:04 PM 0 comments

 
DAY 2: Prague
I woke up at 9:20. Oops. So I went to a little café to have breakfast, as I mentioned previously.

I explored more by foot.

LUNCH

I was undecided what to eat for lunch. I eventually settled on a crowded authentic Czech place. As there is little space in Europe, it is very common for people to share tables. The two men I was sharing the table with tried to make conversation in Czech. Sorry buddies. I did manager to ask them what was good in broken Polish/Czech. (“Co jest dobrze?”) and they pointed to something on the menu.

When the waitress arrived, I pointed to the gibberish and they brought me another delicious, cold, frothy beer.

The men left and were immediately replaced by a 77 year old man. The old man seemed a jovial type but seemed bothered that he didn’t have enough money to buy a beer. I don’t think he was homeless. Just a poor pensioner.

A young guy served him a beer, much to the dismay of an older employee who proceeded to bitch the young guy out. (You don’t need to know Czech to understand that one!)

I somehow managed to indicate to the beer personnel that I was paying for the small beer that the old man slowly nursed.

We had a nice conversation in Czech/German mix, using a notebook to write down dates, etc. It was like a kind of “Slavic, inter-generational pictionary.”

The guy was very friendly and I could tell that he had lived a long life and seen a lot of changes. Apparently, he had somehow been involved in the war. He was somehow in Russia at the end. He told me he remembers when a beer cost 2 or 3 Kc. The beer I slurped down cost around 30 Kc. Or about $1.50.

The meal was awesome. My appetizer was a vegetarian borsch which was incredibly good. The main mean consisted of pork that was drenched in a kind of sweet gravy with bread dumplings. It was garnished with cranberries and a dollop of sour cream.

SHOPPING

Shopping is kind of fun. I went into C&A, one of favorite clothes places that I believe is owned by the Swedes. Two shirts immediately jumped out at me. One is red/grey and says “Praha” (i.e. Prague.) The other is a long sleeved green shirt with an interesting zip down neck that is real fashionable here at the moment.


A set of sculptures that intrigued me.

CULTURE

Prague has a very rich musical heritage and there are several concerts, shows, etc. each day. I knew I wanted to see some classical music.

So, when a student type giving out a flier had a concert that interested me. I immediately bought a ticket.

At 5:00 pm, I arrived at the 12th century church for the string quartet. When the men started playing, I was immediately moved and I actually got a bit teary eyed. I’m not kidding. This quartet was amazing!

My favorites were, of course, eine kleine Nachtmusik by Mozart. They also performed an arrangement of Ave Maria by Schubert, where two of they players lightly “plucked” their violins while the bass and lead violinist played against one another. It was incredibly beautiful.


The Praga Quartet

SUPPER

Café Louvre is an historic restaurant/café where Kafka and others frequented in the early 1900s. The atmosphere was a bit stuffy and I felt a but out of place sitting alone. Stull, the duck with apples and currants were very light and delicious.

GOING OUT

I went to another “friendly” establishment after supper. People are very sociable. I talked briefly with a guy from Australia and some Spaniards. (In Spanish, of course!) I was back in the Pension/hotel by 11:00 or so.
- posted by Matt @ 6:00 AM 0 comments

 
DAY 1: Prague
DAY 1: Prague

Sitting in “Café Broadway” in Prague. It’s 10:10 am and I’m hanging big time. The bar is equipped with comfy red leather couches and other modern furniture. Toward the end of the place is a “dome” that has been there a while. The café is located in one of Prague’s many shopping arcades.

The café is pumping out recent radio hits. Really good material. Seriously. European radio stations rock.

I have a new theory: despite history—and my memories of the contrary, Prague was never sucked up and placed behind the Iron Curtain. The place is just too perfect. From the cobblestone streets to the perfect façades, trendy cafés, etc.

I’m eating a layered cake, called a honey cake and drinking a strong, large coffee.

PRAGUE

My flight was easy and my arrival in Prague was uneventful.

Prague is just how I left it. And pretty damn similar to how people 100 years ago might have. It was sunny, about 30F and the skies were a beautiful cloudless blue.

The taxi was a brand spanking new silver Volkswagen Passat. Luckily, the driver was well versed in only Czech and practiced it on me. He sped toward the city in a fury, just marginally missing pedestrians as he went.

(Sidenote: not advisable to wear your iPod with noise isolating headphones while prancing around Prague’s narrow streets,. I’d do it. But I’m not ready to ‘cash out’ yet. Naw, especially ‘cause Mark would get my place.)


Children looking at the castle and Vlatava river.

Luckily, my hotel, “Pension U Lilie” doesn’t have many takers this time of year. They were able to offer me my room at 9:00 am, which really worked out well. It felt good to be able to get settled in and take a hot shower.

The hotel room is great. A smallish room with a bathroom, mini-bed, couple of shelves and a mini-fridge. Very clean and very central, just near the Charles Bridge. Easy to find, even in a drunken stupor. I tested this theory out last night which I’ll get to in a minute.

I walked a bit then returned to my place and took a two hour nap, which you’re not supposed to do, as it messes up your internal clock. Well, I was tired. I arose and I had a lot more energy and enjoyed things more than if I would have been a tired zombie.

Regenerated, I hoofed the Royal Route, apparently the track that royalty took before they got crowned. It’s a labyrinth of small cobblestone streets.


Prague’s old town square decorated for the holidays.


Drinking a mulled (hot) wine on the town square.


I need to look to see what the name of this building is, and if there is some type of historical significance.

It’s not an easy city to describe, so I’ll offer some photos. The architecture is a hodgepodge of different styles. Maybe I’ll look in my tourist book and write down the different styles and take pictures of each. Or perhaps that would be too boring and too tedious. And perhaps I’m on vacation and shouldn’t think too much.

The historic “old square” was decorated with trees and had some stands set up to pawn off goods, some of which was “hand made,”—from China, for example—for Christmas.

DINNER

For supper, I went to the pizzeria across the street. The place was empty, which was a bad sign. But I wasn’t feeling overly creative. I ordered a delicious half liter of beer, a salad (tomatoes cucumber and green pepper) and a pizza (light cheese, fresh mushrooms, ham, artichokes and a few olives in the middle for good measure.) Delisiouso.

I noticed that people were arriving and going downstairs. Apparently, I was in the bar and not the restaurant. Oh, well. I’m a tourist, I’m allowed to act like a fool. See, there are a lot of nuances and unwritten rules. You have to observe carefully.

Because the beer was so delicious, I felt obliged to drink another half liter.

After woofing down ¾ of the meal, I ordered a Bechorlovka (herbal drink for “chicks”) and since it was so cold out, I ordered another. So, to summarize, I had a 16” individual pizza, a fresh, oversized salad, two beers and two shots. Yep. It was a whopping “260 big ones,” just under $10 USD. Gotta love it.


Wenceles Square

AFTER HOURS

I went to a “friendly” bar called “Friends.” It was located in the basement of an old building. New, modern fixtures, vaulted roof. Inexpensive beer. “Friendly” company. Recipe for success.

Oh, for the record, Budwar Budweiser is the only real remaining Czech beer. I wanted to do a taste test, involving quantity. The only way of being completely sure is to drink a certain quantity of God’s nectar, which he gave to the Czechs.

The owner is from Wales and I talked with him and a couple of other people until around two. It was no problem finding people with whom I talk to in English. Nice people. I enjoyed it.

I don’t know when I left. But suffice it to say I was tired and “felt no pain.”


Prague’s castle and Charles bridge at night.

To get into the Pension after hours, I had to wake up the owner, a pudgy 30s something woman with dyed hair who smiled as I tripped into the threshold. She advised me that breakfast was until 9:00 the following morning. Before going to bed, I incorrectly set the alarm clock for 8:00 am.
- posted by Matt @ 5:12 PM 1 comments