Maitai's Central (Don't Call It Eastern) European Excursion
Jul 22nd, 2008, 07:09 AM
#46
Original Poster
<b> DAY THREE – A JEWISH HISTORY LESSON, THAI-ING ONE ON, SEEING RED, CELLAR DWELLERS, BEWARE OF FLYING MICE AND MAYBE ONE DOES COME TO PRAGUE FOR THE FOOD </b>
Since I didn’t know yet that St. John of Nepomuk really didn’t grant ones’ wishes, I decided to meet our friends Doug and Jackie at his statue on The Charles Bridge to start the day. They looked none-the-worse for jet lag, and our day was underway.
After hooking up with the rest of the gang, we walked over to Josefov (Jewish Quarter), which we had been told had some of the more interesting Jewish sights in Europe. The places to visit are located within a three to four-square block area, and you buy an admission pass that lets you visit six of them. You must purchase a separate entrance ticket to the Staronová Synagóga (Old-New Synagogue).
We bought the pass outside the Pinkasova Synagóga, where the hand written names of more than 75,000 Czech Jews who were sent to Auschwitz cover the walls.
If that wasn’t enough to make one somber, upstairs is a collection of artwork done by children from the concentration camp. Below the art are the names and dates of the children’s birth dates and date of death. A few of the children survived, but most of those who had art displayed here unfortunately did not survive. It was quite moving.
Exiting, we walked over to the Stary zidovsky hrbitov (The Old Jewish Cemetery). I’m sure many of you have seen pictures of this place with its askew tombstones. It was quite fascinating to see this burial ground.
After the cemetery, we visited Obradni Sin (Ceremonial Hall), Klauzová Synagogue, Maiselova Synagóga and the Spanelská Synagóga.
Remembering my miscalculation of the lunch hour the previous day, it was decided we would eat lunch at a normal time, so since it was the noon hour, and we were all famished, it was time to find a restaurant.
I believe one of the hardest aspects of traveling with four or six people is deciding upon a restaurant, and once again, we started meandering aimlessly through the streets of Prague. “Oh God, not a repeat of yesterday,” I thought. It was bad enough having three people mad at me, but five would be too much.
Perusing menus, comments such as “does that look good?” and “well, that’s kind of expensive” could be heard uttered. The restaurant search might have gone on for a long time, but mercifully it was resolved shortly.
Fortunately, Doug and Jackie pulled out a Lonely Planet guide that had an interesting restaurant very near to where we were standing. Traditional Czech cuisine was not in the offing on this afternoon.
The Orange Moon is a Thai restaurant located between Old Town and Josefov, and its menu of Thai, Burmese and Indian cuisine was spectacular (at very reasonable prices, too). We dined on such dishes as beef kabobs, stir fried beef with basil and chili sauce and a chicken salad with fresh mint, Galanga, lemon and fresh chili.
Of course, this was all accompanied by copious amounts of pivo. Love that pivo!
We deemed Kim’s dish of fried rice noodles with chicken, bean sprouts, leeks and ground peanuts as the overall best dish. He must have liked it since he was nearly licking the plate afterward, and we could hear him exclaim on numerous occasions later in the day (and later in the trip), “Damn, that lunch was good.”
We walked through Old Town, gave Doug and Jackie the lowdown on when to see the Astronomical Clock Dance (if at all), and we started walking to Nové Mésto and Wenceslas Square. To paraphrase The Who, “We met the New Town, but it wasn’t the same as the Old Town.” Knowing us, we would not get fooled again.
Of course, there was a reason to walk to the New Town. We were looking for a specific museum that we were told was near a McDonald’s.
We found one McDonald’s, but there was no museum upstairs, just a bunch of people raising their cholesterol counts to near deadly proportions. I had to run out before the addicting smell of their pommes frites drew me into a “Vortex of Unwanted Calories.”
We walked three quarters of the way around the block and happened upon another McDonald’s and a sign pointing us to our next destination, The Museum of Communism. There are a lot of witty propaganda posters with clever captions like one of Stalin that said, “They coined the term politically correct fifty years before the West caught on.”
After visiting the few rooms full of interesting and authentic artifacts, you can view a 15-minute film showing Prague’s history under Communist rule and the Velvet Revolution. It could have been quite an interesting film, but someone needs to edit it because the same footage is shown time and time again. I believe if someone spent some money and worked on this project, this film could make a much more powerful statement.
While in the New Town, we caught a glimpse of The Powder Tower and Obecní Dum, but it was getting late in the afternoon, and we were going to all get together later for dinner. In an event to avoid complete exhaustion (like yesterday), we decided to walk back to our respective apartments (by the way, Doug and Jackie stayed in Vinohrady, an area they said they enjoyed).
Our apartment was located very near Chram sv. Mikulase (Church of St. Nicholas). I asked Tracy if she minded stopping in to the church (yes, I had learned a valuable lesson), and we went in. The church is quite lovely, and we climbed the stairs to view some Baroque paintings. Then, it was back to the apartment to relax.
I guess relaxing is different for Tom and Tracy.
Refreshed after a 30-minute nap and nice shower, we were going to hook up with everyone at the downstairs wine cellar, The Noble Club, which the four of us had stopped by for a moment the previous evening.
Walking down the stairs to the cellar and, in a startlingly similar fashion as I had 20 hours earlier, I knocked over the candle at the end of the stairs (you can actually see the exact candle on its website). Fortunately, it was not lit, or I would be posting this from Prague Prison.
Kim was already flirting with the wine girl (the lovely Denise) upon our entrance to the cellar, so I knew the evening was getting off to a good start. This vinotheque (located at Tržiště 371) offers several wines by the glass and has a nice selection of wines from around the world. The music was perfect (I can hear Julie London singing “Fly Me To The Moon” as I am writing this).
We sat in a little room (no smoking) that had about six or seven tables lit by candles. The entire place was charming, the wines Denise selected for us (a Zweigeltrebe 2003 Moravian wine and the Chateau des Ducs Bordeaux Superieur) were good. They also served (on a wooden platter) some bread, cheese (Swedish), tomatoes and green olives. Everything was perfect, but now it was time for us all to walk up to the Bellavista for what we hoped would be a fantastic dinner.
The evening was gorgeous, and the Bellavista was pretty empty when we arrived a little before 9 p.m. We secured a spot on the patio that had fabulous Prague views.
We had been in Prague for 50 hours, and Mary had not uttered one crazy line yet. This was about to change. Shortly after we arrived, our waiter came over, and Mary started the evening out with this conversation starter, “Do you ever get bats?”
“Bats?” our waiter asked.
Mary quickly retorted, “Yes, you know, mice that fly.”
Fortunately, Jorge (our Bolivian waiter) stayed and filled our drink order, while Kim quickly checked Mary’s purse to see if she was dipping into the Ambien again (please see Italy Trip Report 2005).
To begin, Kim, Doug and I sucked down another dark, draft, delicious Urquell (ok, now I am having serious Urquell withdrawal…where do I find dark Urquell in L.A.?). Then it was on to (arguably) the best dinner of the trip.
(Menu topic haters, please move on a couple of paragraphs. Oh hell, you’re all long, gone by now anyway)
First of all, Kim’s grilled salmon with pesto was so incredible that I wanted to sing, “Salmon chanted Evening” but thought the better of it. My mushroom risotto with Mascarpone was phenomenal, while Tracy’s rocket salad with pecorino, tomatoes and lemon dressing also was scrumptious.
Our dishes were rounded out by spaghetti with olio and garlic peppers, a grilled Kielbasa with Tuscan mustard and grilled chicken breasts with spinach salad and pine nuts. Every dish was fantastic; the wine was good and the pivo memorable (obviously).
The Bellavista receives rave reviews from all of us. It’s not often you get great food coupled with a great view, but this is the exception to the well-established rule.
We said goodbye to Doug and Jackie (who would be leaving for Salzburg in a couple of days). Our nightcap once again took us to the Irish pub down the street from our apartments, and we were in bed before midnight.
I couldn’t figure out why, as my head hit the pillow, that I was flashing back to putting the wrong gas in our car in 2005. Then it hit me: Tomorrow, we would be picking up our first rental-mobile of the trip. God help us all!
<b>COMING UP: DAY FOUR – LICENSE TO KILL, CUTTING OUT TO KUTNA HORA, DEM BONES, NOW THAT’S WHAT I CALL STACKED, WHO’S STEVEN AND INTRODUCING LADY GARMIN </b>
Since I didn’t know yet that St. John of Nepomuk really didn’t grant ones’ wishes, I decided to meet our friends Doug and Jackie at his statue on The Charles Bridge to start the day. They looked none-the-worse for jet lag, and our day was underway.
After hooking up with the rest of the gang, we walked over to Josefov (Jewish Quarter), which we had been told had some of the more interesting Jewish sights in Europe. The places to visit are located within a three to four-square block area, and you buy an admission pass that lets you visit six of them. You must purchase a separate entrance ticket to the Staronová Synagóga (Old-New Synagogue).
We bought the pass outside the Pinkasova Synagóga, where the hand written names of more than 75,000 Czech Jews who were sent to Auschwitz cover the walls.
If that wasn’t enough to make one somber, upstairs is a collection of artwork done by children from the concentration camp. Below the art are the names and dates of the children’s birth dates and date of death. A few of the children survived, but most of those who had art displayed here unfortunately did not survive. It was quite moving.
Exiting, we walked over to the Stary zidovsky hrbitov (The Old Jewish Cemetery). I’m sure many of you have seen pictures of this place with its askew tombstones. It was quite fascinating to see this burial ground.
After the cemetery, we visited Obradni Sin (Ceremonial Hall), Klauzová Synagogue, Maiselova Synagóga and the Spanelská Synagóga.
Remembering my miscalculation of the lunch hour the previous day, it was decided we would eat lunch at a normal time, so since it was the noon hour, and we were all famished, it was time to find a restaurant.
I believe one of the hardest aspects of traveling with four or six people is deciding upon a restaurant, and once again, we started meandering aimlessly through the streets of Prague. “Oh God, not a repeat of yesterday,” I thought. It was bad enough having three people mad at me, but five would be too much.
Perusing menus, comments such as “does that look good?” and “well, that’s kind of expensive” could be heard uttered. The restaurant search might have gone on for a long time, but mercifully it was resolved shortly.
Fortunately, Doug and Jackie pulled out a Lonely Planet guide that had an interesting restaurant very near to where we were standing. Traditional Czech cuisine was not in the offing on this afternoon.
The Orange Moon is a Thai restaurant located between Old Town and Josefov, and its menu of Thai, Burmese and Indian cuisine was spectacular (at very reasonable prices, too). We dined on such dishes as beef kabobs, stir fried beef with basil and chili sauce and a chicken salad with fresh mint, Galanga, lemon and fresh chili.
Of course, this was all accompanied by copious amounts of pivo. Love that pivo!
We deemed Kim’s dish of fried rice noodles with chicken, bean sprouts, leeks and ground peanuts as the overall best dish. He must have liked it since he was nearly licking the plate afterward, and we could hear him exclaim on numerous occasions later in the day (and later in the trip), “Damn, that lunch was good.”
We walked through Old Town, gave Doug and Jackie the lowdown on when to see the Astronomical Clock Dance (if at all), and we started walking to Nové Mésto and Wenceslas Square. To paraphrase The Who, “We met the New Town, but it wasn’t the same as the Old Town.” Knowing us, we would not get fooled again.
Of course, there was a reason to walk to the New Town. We were looking for a specific museum that we were told was near a McDonald’s.
We found one McDonald’s, but there was no museum upstairs, just a bunch of people raising their cholesterol counts to near deadly proportions. I had to run out before the addicting smell of their pommes frites drew me into a “Vortex of Unwanted Calories.”
We walked three quarters of the way around the block and happened upon another McDonald’s and a sign pointing us to our next destination, The Museum of Communism. There are a lot of witty propaganda posters with clever captions like one of Stalin that said, “They coined the term politically correct fifty years before the West caught on.”
After visiting the few rooms full of interesting and authentic artifacts, you can view a 15-minute film showing Prague’s history under Communist rule and the Velvet Revolution. It could have been quite an interesting film, but someone needs to edit it because the same footage is shown time and time again. I believe if someone spent some money and worked on this project, this film could make a much more powerful statement.
While in the New Town, we caught a glimpse of The Powder Tower and Obecní Dum, but it was getting late in the afternoon, and we were going to all get together later for dinner. In an event to avoid complete exhaustion (like yesterday), we decided to walk back to our respective apartments (by the way, Doug and Jackie stayed in Vinohrady, an area they said they enjoyed).
Our apartment was located very near Chram sv. Mikulase (Church of St. Nicholas). I asked Tracy if she minded stopping in to the church (yes, I had learned a valuable lesson), and we went in. The church is quite lovely, and we climbed the stairs to view some Baroque paintings. Then, it was back to the apartment to relax.
I guess relaxing is different for Tom and Tracy.
Refreshed after a 30-minute nap and nice shower, we were going to hook up with everyone at the downstairs wine cellar, The Noble Club, which the four of us had stopped by for a moment the previous evening.
Walking down the stairs to the cellar and, in a startlingly similar fashion as I had 20 hours earlier, I knocked over the candle at the end of the stairs (you can actually see the exact candle on its website). Fortunately, it was not lit, or I would be posting this from Prague Prison.
Kim was already flirting with the wine girl (the lovely Denise) upon our entrance to the cellar, so I knew the evening was getting off to a good start. This vinotheque (located at Tržiště 371) offers several wines by the glass and has a nice selection of wines from around the world. The music was perfect (I can hear Julie London singing “Fly Me To The Moon” as I am writing this).
We sat in a little room (no smoking) that had about six or seven tables lit by candles. The entire place was charming, the wines Denise selected for us (a Zweigeltrebe 2003 Moravian wine and the Chateau des Ducs Bordeaux Superieur) were good. They also served (on a wooden platter) some bread, cheese (Swedish), tomatoes and green olives. Everything was perfect, but now it was time for us all to walk up to the Bellavista for what we hoped would be a fantastic dinner.
The evening was gorgeous, and the Bellavista was pretty empty when we arrived a little before 9 p.m. We secured a spot on the patio that had fabulous Prague views.
We had been in Prague for 50 hours, and Mary had not uttered one crazy line yet. This was about to change. Shortly after we arrived, our waiter came over, and Mary started the evening out with this conversation starter, “Do you ever get bats?”
“Bats?” our waiter asked.
Mary quickly retorted, “Yes, you know, mice that fly.”
Fortunately, Jorge (our Bolivian waiter) stayed and filled our drink order, while Kim quickly checked Mary’s purse to see if she was dipping into the Ambien again (please see Italy Trip Report 2005).
To begin, Kim, Doug and I sucked down another dark, draft, delicious Urquell (ok, now I am having serious Urquell withdrawal…where do I find dark Urquell in L.A.?). Then it was on to (arguably) the best dinner of the trip.
(Menu topic haters, please move on a couple of paragraphs. Oh hell, you’re all long, gone by now anyway)
First of all, Kim’s grilled salmon with pesto was so incredible that I wanted to sing, “Salmon chanted Evening” but thought the better of it. My mushroom risotto with Mascarpone was phenomenal, while Tracy’s rocket salad with pecorino, tomatoes and lemon dressing also was scrumptious.
Our dishes were rounded out by spaghetti with olio and garlic peppers, a grilled Kielbasa with Tuscan mustard and grilled chicken breasts with spinach salad and pine nuts. Every dish was fantastic; the wine was good and the pivo memorable (obviously).
The Bellavista receives rave reviews from all of us. It’s not often you get great food coupled with a great view, but this is the exception to the well-established rule.
We said goodbye to Doug and Jackie (who would be leaving for Salzburg in a couple of days). Our nightcap once again took us to the Irish pub down the street from our apartments, and we were in bed before midnight.
I couldn’t figure out why, as my head hit the pillow, that I was flashing back to putting the wrong gas in our car in 2005. Then it hit me: Tomorrow, we would be picking up our first rental-mobile of the trip. God help us all!
<b>COMING UP: DAY FOUR – LICENSE TO KILL, CUTTING OUT TO KUTNA HORA, DEM BONES, NOW THAT’S WHAT I CALL STACKED, WHO’S STEVEN AND INTRODUCING LADY GARMIN </b>
Jul 22nd, 2008, 03:19 PM
#52
Original Poster
“Salmon chanted Evening”
I believe it's lines like that which have precluded me from being included in the 'Have you ever been quoted by Fodor's?' Thanks for all the nice comments by you all.
I believe it's lines like that which have precluded me from being included in the 'Have you ever been quoted by Fodor's?' Thanks for all the nice comments by you all.
Jul 22nd, 2008, 03:20 PM
#53
It's time to quit your day job, Tom. Hell, make Tracy work 2 jobs if you have to. We want more, NOW!!
Glad to see that the copious amounts of pivo (and vino from prior excursions) hasn't dimmed the bulb, yet..................
Thanks for reporting!
Glad to see that the copious amounts of pivo (and vino from prior excursions) hasn't dimmed the bulb, yet..................
Thanks for reporting!
Jul 22nd, 2008, 04:08 PM
#54
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Tom
You are a rock star,Tom..You have so many people (including me) waiting for your continuing report.
Happy to see that the CzRep has improved on it's gastronomic offerings. Seems like they've come a long way from traditional dumplings that tasted like tennis balls, slabs of unidentifiable meat, grease-spotted soup and the saddest selection of desserts on the planet..this is the way it was in the 80's, and even in the first few years of "light" (1990-1995).
We even tried "David" when it first opened in '92-'93 and it was a pitiful attempt at fine dining from what Fodorites say it is today (one of the city's best). Bellavista sounds superb....we'll just have to return to "Praha fair".
Vive la Progress! (None of the above ever took away the overall charm that still is Prague)
Next installment, please!
Stu T. (I didn't realize you and Tracey were fellow Angelenos)
You are a rock star,Tom..You have so many people (including me) waiting for your continuing report.
Happy to see that the CzRep has improved on it's gastronomic offerings. Seems like they've come a long way from traditional dumplings that tasted like tennis balls, slabs of unidentifiable meat, grease-spotted soup and the saddest selection of desserts on the planet..this is the way it was in the 80's, and even in the first few years of "light" (1990-1995).
We even tried "David" when it first opened in '92-'93 and it was a pitiful attempt at fine dining from what Fodorites say it is today (one of the city's best). Bellavista sounds superb....we'll just have to return to "Praha fair".
Vive la Progress! (None of the above ever took away the overall charm that still is Prague)
Next installment, please!
Stu T. (I didn't realize you and Tracey were fellow Angelenos)
Jul 22nd, 2008, 05:31 PM
#55
Original Poster
Stu, Yes. Pasadena area. if you find some Urquell draft (dark) in L.A. area, all the pivo is on me. I am finishing up next installment tonight (although the martinis might hinder my work..then again, they might help).
Jul 22nd, 2008, 08:26 PM
#57
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tom,
Is this the same stuff? The blog says he got his at Hamburger Hamlet in Hollywood Hills.
http://beerblahblog.blogspot.com/200...r-urquell.html
Is this the same stuff? The blog says he got his at Hamburger Hamlet in Hollywood Hills.
http://beerblahblog.blogspot.com/200...r-urquell.html
Jul 23rd, 2008, 07:25 AM
#60
Original Poster
<b> DAY FOUR – LICENSE TO KILL, CUTTING OUT TO KUTNA HORA, DEM BONES, NOW THAT’S WHAT I CALL STACKED, WHO’S STEVEN AND INTRODUCING LADY GARMIN </b>
Each morning before the taskmaster (aka maitaitom or ”idiot,” depending on who you talk to) had us going all over town, we would stop at Malostranska Kavarna (across from the wine cellar) and have coffee and muffins to get us going. On this morning, Kim ordered a chocolate croissant, and after one bite, he said, “Tom, I recommend you buy one of these.” Good call.
Bolstered by extra sugar, we crossed the Charles Bridge and I rubbed…well let’s just call him St. What’s His Name from now on. We walked to the Intercontinental Hotel to pick up our rental car. The car we had ordered was unavailable (I think maybe it had read my trip report from 2005 and was hiding in the bowels of the garage), so we were upgraded to a Passat Wagon.
Sensing trepidation on my part, the rental car guy gave us a thorough explanation of how the car worked, including the very important petrol/reverse issues that had plagued us a few short years ago.
I was ready to drive us to Kutna Hora and reached into my pocket for my International Drivers License, and, voila, nothing. I was sure my trusted and lovely spouse had put it in our daypack, but no luck. Although upset at myself, unlike Rome a few years back, I didn’t run like a mad man back to the hotel, because Kim also had one, so we were on our way.
Today, a new companion joined the four of us, but at first, it seemed she just did not want to talk to us. It wasn’t that she was shy; it was just that she had not warmed up to Mary’s constant touching of her different parts.
Hey, watch what you’re thinking! Mary was only trying to program the Garmin GPS and was having a little trouble. But about one quarter of the way to Kutna Hora we heard the melodic and soothing words that we would hear another 1,493 times in the next few weeks: “Recalculating.”
It was a pretty straight shot to Kutna Hora, so we just let the Garmin rest. It was her first day after all. Kim did an expert job of driving, and I tried to put my Type A personality on the back burner and savor my role as passenger.
Kutna Hora is a cute, little town with a few places we wanted to explore before we headed on to Kostnice u Sedlici (Sedlec Bone Church). But sights always take a back seat to sustenance, so after parking, and since it was hot, we found a restaurant.
The meal was very good under large shade trees in a walled garden patio. Beer of choice at this place was Gambrinus.
We exited the restaurant and walked over to Chrám sv. Barbory (St. Barbara’s Cathedral), which has been a UNESCO sight for more than a decade, I believe.
Kim had read that the stained glass and frescoes would make your jawbones drop. “I guess we’ll have to go to the Bone Church to pick up the jaw,” he said. Really bad jokes can be contagious.
Strolling through Kutna Hora we found the Stone Fountain and the Stone House but somehow missed out on Sly and the Family Stone. It was now time to go from stone to bone, and we got in the car for the short drive to Sedlec.
Obviously, not all roads lead to Sedlec, because for some reason we could not find any signs and the Garmin did not have it on her radar. We just kept ending up back at Kutna Hora.
Finally, after Kim stopped and I got directions from a bus driver from Denmark (ok that really didn’t help), we finally found the Sedlec Ossuary (hint: look for signs to Kostnice), whose interior is created out of human bones.
At one point, this was one of the top-notch burial spots in Europe, but since it got so crowded, a monk was given the job to collect all these bones for an ossuary. Then in the 1800s, an artist was hired to decorate the church with all the bones, which supposedly represent every bone in the human body.
Tracy said that had to be hard work, and I replied, “Yes, but he made no bones about it.” It’s hard to imagine traveling four weeks with us, isn’t it?
The trip back to Prague was enlightening as the Garmin GPS took us on our merry way. Since we were not in any hurry, and even when it seemed she was leading us astray, we followed her every command. I believe this was the first day she was dubbed “Lady Garmin,” a name that she would keep for the duration of the vacation.
Soon we were in downtown Prague traffic, and Lady G navigated us through the crowded streets like a woman twice her age (which would only make her two days old). We drove by the Tančící dům (Dancing House), which made Tracy very happy because now we wouldn’t have to walk here.
It is very apparent that its architect, Frank Geary, had spent a lot of time in Los Angeles, because the Dancing House looks like it just was hit with a magnitude 7 earthquake.
We then drove up our street and, of course, were pulled over to the curb by the police to inspect our car before heading by the embassies.
“Please open your hood,” he said to Kim.
Just then we had an instant head-slapping realization (I could have had a V8) that we had not asked the rental car guy how to perform that seemingly easy operation. Fortunately, the policeman assisted us, and we were on our way to our next dilemma. There was no public parking near our apartment.
Fortunately, our landlord Pasquale had mentioned that the Hotel Constance, located up the street from the Vlasska Apartments, might have parking available. The Hotel Constance is a charming boutique hotel, and the girl behind the desk was charming as was the hotel manager, Filip. Yes, they had parking, we were told.
Filip opened the garage for Kim, who expertly navigated through the narrow space and was then told him to stop. There was another car in our space, but suddenly the door in front of that car closed and then, within seconds, it opened back up to reveal an empty parking spot. Perhaps Filip was David Copperfield in disguise.
“No,” he explained. It seems the Hotel Constance has an automatic stacking parking lift that can hold up to eight cars. We didn’t see anything stacked like that again until we got to Poland (pardon me). It cost a little more than 30 bucks a day to park there.
The Hotel Constance looks like a place to check out on a future trip here.
As we walked back to the apartment Mary had a sudden thought, “We need to get our money to Steven tomorrow.”
“Umm, who is Steven?” Kim asked. “Do you mean Pasquale?” Not knowing how Mary confused the name Pasquale for Steven, Kim did another quick Ambien check, but everything seemed fine.
We were tired from our day, but not too tired to head over to the Noble Club for a bottle of Dornfelder 2006 Moravia late harvest wine and some cheese.
In a Jimmy Stewart “It’s A Wonderful Life” moment, I once again grabbed the candle on the way down the staircase and, like the two days before, it dislodged from its appointed place. Fortunately, the owners must have known I was coming and the candle was not lit (although in a true test of faith, they did light it before we left)
There was a restaurant on Nerudova Street that we had wanted to try for dinner, but it was closed, and since we were tired and did not want to go in search of food for the next hour, we decided upon a place serving pizza outside in the back patio, where we dined with three Indian doctors from England. It was fine, but nothing to write home about or even here for that matter.
Kim and Mary retired shortly thereafter, but, of course, Tracy and I zipped down for our nightly libation at the pub, where the conversation with the bartender quickly turned to groups like U2 and Queen, and, finally, after a few nights, I was starting to get the hang of the Jameson and water thing.
The next day was to be our last in Prague, and we still had a lot to accomplish, but I told Tracy we could sleep in a little…very little.
<b>COMING UP: DAY FIVE – SWEET PEACOCK, TRACY FINALLY GETS HER GARDENS, A FAREWELL TO ARM, IS THAT THE EIFFEL TOWER, AND AU REVOIR TO PRAGUE </b>
Each morning before the taskmaster (aka maitaitom or ”idiot,” depending on who you talk to) had us going all over town, we would stop at Malostranska Kavarna (across from the wine cellar) and have coffee and muffins to get us going. On this morning, Kim ordered a chocolate croissant, and after one bite, he said, “Tom, I recommend you buy one of these.” Good call.
Bolstered by extra sugar, we crossed the Charles Bridge and I rubbed…well let’s just call him St. What’s His Name from now on. We walked to the Intercontinental Hotel to pick up our rental car. The car we had ordered was unavailable (I think maybe it had read my trip report from 2005 and was hiding in the bowels of the garage), so we were upgraded to a Passat Wagon.
Sensing trepidation on my part, the rental car guy gave us a thorough explanation of how the car worked, including the very important petrol/reverse issues that had plagued us a few short years ago.
I was ready to drive us to Kutna Hora and reached into my pocket for my International Drivers License, and, voila, nothing. I was sure my trusted and lovely spouse had put it in our daypack, but no luck. Although upset at myself, unlike Rome a few years back, I didn’t run like a mad man back to the hotel, because Kim also had one, so we were on our way.
Today, a new companion joined the four of us, but at first, it seemed she just did not want to talk to us. It wasn’t that she was shy; it was just that she had not warmed up to Mary’s constant touching of her different parts.
Hey, watch what you’re thinking! Mary was only trying to program the Garmin GPS and was having a little trouble. But about one quarter of the way to Kutna Hora we heard the melodic and soothing words that we would hear another 1,493 times in the next few weeks: “Recalculating.”
It was a pretty straight shot to Kutna Hora, so we just let the Garmin rest. It was her first day after all. Kim did an expert job of driving, and I tried to put my Type A personality on the back burner and savor my role as passenger.
Kutna Hora is a cute, little town with a few places we wanted to explore before we headed on to Kostnice u Sedlici (Sedlec Bone Church). But sights always take a back seat to sustenance, so after parking, and since it was hot, we found a restaurant.
The meal was very good under large shade trees in a walled garden patio. Beer of choice at this place was Gambrinus.
We exited the restaurant and walked over to Chrám sv. Barbory (St. Barbara’s Cathedral), which has been a UNESCO sight for more than a decade, I believe.
Kim had read that the stained glass and frescoes would make your jawbones drop. “I guess we’ll have to go to the Bone Church to pick up the jaw,” he said. Really bad jokes can be contagious.
Strolling through Kutna Hora we found the Stone Fountain and the Stone House but somehow missed out on Sly and the Family Stone. It was now time to go from stone to bone, and we got in the car for the short drive to Sedlec.
Obviously, not all roads lead to Sedlec, because for some reason we could not find any signs and the Garmin did not have it on her radar. We just kept ending up back at Kutna Hora.
Finally, after Kim stopped and I got directions from a bus driver from Denmark (ok that really didn’t help), we finally found the Sedlec Ossuary (hint: look for signs to Kostnice), whose interior is created out of human bones.
At one point, this was one of the top-notch burial spots in Europe, but since it got so crowded, a monk was given the job to collect all these bones for an ossuary. Then in the 1800s, an artist was hired to decorate the church with all the bones, which supposedly represent every bone in the human body.
Tracy said that had to be hard work, and I replied, “Yes, but he made no bones about it.” It’s hard to imagine traveling four weeks with us, isn’t it?
The trip back to Prague was enlightening as the Garmin GPS took us on our merry way. Since we were not in any hurry, and even when it seemed she was leading us astray, we followed her every command. I believe this was the first day she was dubbed “Lady Garmin,” a name that she would keep for the duration of the vacation.
Soon we were in downtown Prague traffic, and Lady G navigated us through the crowded streets like a woman twice her age (which would only make her two days old). We drove by the Tančící dům (Dancing House), which made Tracy very happy because now we wouldn’t have to walk here.
It is very apparent that its architect, Frank Geary, had spent a lot of time in Los Angeles, because the Dancing House looks like it just was hit with a magnitude 7 earthquake.
We then drove up our street and, of course, were pulled over to the curb by the police to inspect our car before heading by the embassies.
“Please open your hood,” he said to Kim.
Just then we had an instant head-slapping realization (I could have had a V8) that we had not asked the rental car guy how to perform that seemingly easy operation. Fortunately, the policeman assisted us, and we were on our way to our next dilemma. There was no public parking near our apartment.
Fortunately, our landlord Pasquale had mentioned that the Hotel Constance, located up the street from the Vlasska Apartments, might have parking available. The Hotel Constance is a charming boutique hotel, and the girl behind the desk was charming as was the hotel manager, Filip. Yes, they had parking, we were told.
Filip opened the garage for Kim, who expertly navigated through the narrow space and was then told him to stop. There was another car in our space, but suddenly the door in front of that car closed and then, within seconds, it opened back up to reveal an empty parking spot. Perhaps Filip was David Copperfield in disguise.
“No,” he explained. It seems the Hotel Constance has an automatic stacking parking lift that can hold up to eight cars. We didn’t see anything stacked like that again until we got to Poland (pardon me). It cost a little more than 30 bucks a day to park there.
The Hotel Constance looks like a place to check out on a future trip here.
As we walked back to the apartment Mary had a sudden thought, “We need to get our money to Steven tomorrow.”
“Umm, who is Steven?” Kim asked. “Do you mean Pasquale?” Not knowing how Mary confused the name Pasquale for Steven, Kim did another quick Ambien check, but everything seemed fine.
We were tired from our day, but not too tired to head over to the Noble Club for a bottle of Dornfelder 2006 Moravia late harvest wine and some cheese.
In a Jimmy Stewart “It’s A Wonderful Life” moment, I once again grabbed the candle on the way down the staircase and, like the two days before, it dislodged from its appointed place. Fortunately, the owners must have known I was coming and the candle was not lit (although in a true test of faith, they did light it before we left)
There was a restaurant on Nerudova Street that we had wanted to try for dinner, but it was closed, and since we were tired and did not want to go in search of food for the next hour, we decided upon a place serving pizza outside in the back patio, where we dined with three Indian doctors from England. It was fine, but nothing to write home about or even here for that matter.
Kim and Mary retired shortly thereafter, but, of course, Tracy and I zipped down for our nightly libation at the pub, where the conversation with the bartender quickly turned to groups like U2 and Queen, and, finally, after a few nights, I was starting to get the hang of the Jameson and water thing.
The next day was to be our last in Prague, and we still had a lot to accomplish, but I told Tracy we could sleep in a little…very little.
<b>COMING UP: DAY FIVE – SWEET PEACOCK, TRACY FINALLY GETS HER GARDENS, A FAREWELL TO ARM, IS THAT THE EIFFEL TOWER, AND AU REVOIR TO PRAGUE </b>
