Czech Funny Money is actually quite pretty
Yesterday was our little Thanksgiving celebration -Austrian-style, of course - and right now it's snowing steadily. Consequently, Prague and fall break seem like they were incredibly far away. Perhaps it's for the best, since I came away from the second half of our trip a little more frustrated than pleased.
Day two in Prague started out nicely. We got up early enough to score some continental breakfast at the hostel, which included copious amounts of cereal, bread, cold cuts, and really bad coffee. Luckily, they also had some of my favorite tea (the brand Harney & Sons), which made the breakfast worth it. Especially since I pocketed a bunch of the tea bags for myself.
We had purchased 24 hour tram cards the previous day, but hadn't used them, and had discovered just how far away the city-center was from our hostel. Thus, we made the executive decision to take the tram. Except that the tram didn't go in the direction that we thought it did. Where it did take us was to the end of the line, and we (along with a few other bewildered tourists) were expected to get out and figure out what had happened. No big deal, we had a map. Except that we began walking before consulting the map, and continued walking while trying to consult the map, and then argued over which way was actually the correct way to walk. This led to a very uncomfortable hour-long walk BACK the way we'd came, where we were all tired and hungry, and ready to bite each others' heads off at the slightest provocation. Ah, group dynamics.
After all this, we stumbled upon an upscale restaurant and collapsed into our chairs for lunch.
When we had eaten our fill, we headed off to the Charles Bridge. This is one of the iconic landmarks of Prague, and something that we had all decided that we needed to see. It also happens to be thoroughly packed with tourists at almost all times of day, but especially during lunchtime. We made it through nonetheless, and even managed to do so with all of our belongings! At the other side of the bridge, we made the official decision to split up. Each of us had things we wanted to check out, and I think we were all a little weary of each others' company. So Dave headed off to the Kafka museum, Nick and Maija wandered in the direction of the Jewish Quarter, and Fleur and I decided to explore the area around the castle.
We never actually went into the castle. The building itself is ginormous, and the tour would have taken all day. Plus, I think I've had enough of touring grand castles for a while (for a refresher, please see my entry on Versailles). Instead, we harassed the guards, enjoyed the view, and wandered slowly back to the Jewish Quarter.
Prague, at one time, had one of the largest Jewish populations in the world. It also has one of the best Jewish memorials in the world, housed in the Jewish Museum. The walls of the Museum are covered from top to bottom with the names of Czech Jews during WWII, their birth and death dates, and their fates, all in black and red writing. Madeline Albright famously found her ancestors' names on the wall. The memorial has a similar effect to the Vietnam memorial in Washington, DC: names upon names upon names. There is also a fabulous collection of artwork made by children in concentration camps. When you have finished touring the museum, it dumps you out into the Jewish cemetery. The cemetery is relatively small, but is overflowing with gravestones. They look like overcrowded, jagged teeth. The overall effect, between the museum and the cemetery, is a grim one, and did not do much to improve my grumpiness from earlier. I have to say, though, that I am glad I experienced it.
That evening we headed back to the hostel to regroup. Maija ended up passing out from sheer exhaustion, and the rest of us went out to get pizza and then passed out ourselves. After all, we had to rest up for our trip to Budapest!
Day two in Prague started out nicely. We got up early enough to score some continental breakfast at the hostel, which included copious amounts of cereal, bread, cold cuts, and really bad coffee. Luckily, they also had some of my favorite tea (the brand Harney & Sons), which made the breakfast worth it. Especially since I pocketed a bunch of the tea bags for myself.
We had purchased 24 hour tram cards the previous day, but hadn't used them, and had discovered just how far away the city-center was from our hostel. Thus, we made the executive decision to take the tram. Except that the tram didn't go in the direction that we thought it did. Where it did take us was to the end of the line, and we (along with a few other bewildered tourists) were expected to get out and figure out what had happened. No big deal, we had a map. Except that we began walking before consulting the map, and continued walking while trying to consult the map, and then argued over which way was actually the correct way to walk. This led to a very uncomfortable hour-long walk BACK the way we'd came, where we were all tired and hungry, and ready to bite each others' heads off at the slightest provocation. Ah, group dynamics.
After all this, we stumbled upon an upscale restaurant and collapsed into our chairs for lunch.
When we had eaten our fill, we headed off to the Charles Bridge. This is one of the iconic landmarks of Prague, and something that we had all decided that we needed to see. It also happens to be thoroughly packed with tourists at almost all times of day, but especially during lunchtime. We made it through nonetheless, and even managed to do so with all of our belongings! At the other side of the bridge, we made the official decision to split up. Each of us had things we wanted to check out, and I think we were all a little weary of each others' company. So Dave headed off to the Kafka museum, Nick and Maija wandered in the direction of the Jewish Quarter, and Fleur and I decided to explore the area around the castle.
We never actually went into the castle. The building itself is ginormous, and the tour would have taken all day. Plus, I think I've had enough of touring grand castles for a while (for a refresher, please see my entry on Versailles). Instead, we harassed the guards, enjoyed the view, and wandered slowly back to the Jewish Quarter.
Prague, at one time, had one of the largest Jewish populations in the world. It also has one of the best Jewish memorials in the world, housed in the Jewish Museum. The walls of the Museum are covered from top to bottom with the names of Czech Jews during WWII, their birth and death dates, and their fates, all in black and red writing. Madeline Albright famously found her ancestors' names on the wall. The memorial has a similar effect to the Vietnam memorial in Washington, DC: names upon names upon names. There is also a fabulous collection of artwork made by children in concentration camps. When you have finished touring the museum, it dumps you out into the Jewish cemetery. The cemetery is relatively small, but is overflowing with gravestones. They look like overcrowded, jagged teeth. The overall effect, between the museum and the cemetery, is a grim one, and did not do much to improve my grumpiness from earlier. I have to say, though, that I am glad I experienced it.
That evening we headed back to the hostel to regroup. Maija ended up passing out from sheer exhaustion, and the rest of us went out to get pizza and then passed out ourselves. After all, we had to rest up for our trip to Budapest!
The view of the river, post lost-wandering. Note that there are no pictures of us getting lost
Swans!
Giant Jesus sculpture, made entirely out of shoes
The Charles Bridge
Lunchtime
Walking across the Charles Bridge
On the Charles Bridge, with the Prague Castle in the background
Maija and Fleur, having a heart-to-heart on the Charles Bridge
Looking towards the Prague Castle. From this angle, the Jewish Quarter and the Astronomical Clock (both of which we had visited the day before) are at our backs.
Looking down the Charles Bridge in the other direction.
One of the many statues that line the bridge
The parts that look gold are that way from being touched so often. Apparently if you rub one of the two spots, you get luck and fertility. I could use the luck, but I passed because of the fertility bit. Maybe if I go back to Prague in a few years...
The city underneath the Castle
View from the castle. On the left is the old part of the city, the one we were trying to reach. Somewhere out in the distance to the right is where we actually ended up that morning.
See the two towers sticking up on the left? That's the Adam and Eve building. And a little closer on the right is the Astronomical Clock tower.
Prague's version of the Eiffel Tower, and some rooftops
With the Castle guard
Fleur and I stumbled upon this random art installation
The Prague Gardens, which cost way more than we were willing to part with
One of the many walls in the Jewish museum. It's covered with tiny names - the names of the Jews of the Czech Republic, along with what happened to them. The entire building's walls were like this.
Jewish cemetery. The Jews of Prague were only allowed a tiny plot of land to bury their dead, so they imported more and more dirt. In some places people are buried 14 people deep, and each has his or her own gravestone.
Maija, Dave and Fleur
The most hilarious shop ever. They sold nothing but alcohol and meat.
Someone needs to give all of Prague a lesson on parking. We saw so many people double parked, parked on the sidewalk, parked in the middle of the road.... See exhibit A above.
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