WHERE'S THE HEART?
Other than that, Prague is a grade-A act. The first day there started at 5:00 am.. A.M. after a 6-hour bus ride from Munich. Oddly enough, not very much is open at that hour, but (thank goodness for globalization) McDonald's was! An hour later, with bellies half-full of hashbrowns and watery scrambled eggs, we made our way into the heart of old Prague, also wondering where exactly the "heart" of a city is. Never did find out. Anyway...
EARLIER THAN SEMINARY
Apparently it pays to start your day early. We were out taking pictures in the main plaza, and the only other people there were driving delivery trucks. Later in the day, there were hundreds of people! We got some great shots of St. Nicholas' cathedral and the Charles Bridge devoid of tourists.
THE NOSE KNOWS
First big thing we did was hike up to the Prazsky Hrad, or Prague Castle. It's pretty big. And guess what-more stairs! And we climbed every single one. It was a beautiful castle, lots of stained glass and everything. It's really kind of a complex around there, with an old shopping alley- Golden Lane- and a cathedral, gardens and an art gallery. I'm a quarter Czech, by the way, so it was pretty cool being there. In the very castle from which my ancestors were probably taxed, bullied and terrorized. ;)
A big, nay- incredibly large- nose is common in my family, and it's always been said that it's from the Czech side. Not so, unless all the big-nosed Czechs were sent to America. I only saw cute, dainty noses.
SHA-WHAT?
We have a friend who lives in Prague, and was kind enough to let us stay in his incredibly beautiful apartment. He also took us out for Lebanese food (Shawormi Chicken = Delicious Chicken) and it was good.
THAT'S WHAT THE RUSSIANS WOULD HAVE US BELIEVE. . .
Communists are bad. Communism museums are very, very cool. Ironically situated above McDonald's and behind a shopping center, it is quite the throw-back to, well, communism. Textbooks, pamphlets, posters, statues, gas masks, artwork, interrogation rooms and videos give you an incredible look into what it was like.
EXQUISITE EVENING
One night we went to a chamber music concert in St. Nicholas' cathedral. It was one of the most beautiful things I've ever seen/heard/experienced. The viola solo was exquisite, as was the violin and organ duet. On the way home that night, we crossed the Charles Bridge again, and there was a musician playing the guitar and singing John Lennon's "Imagine." That was one of my favorite moments of the trip, everyone from everywhere stopped to listen and sing along. When it was over, fireworks started going off from down the river because of a national holiday, so we stayed and listened and watched the show. It was a grand night. . . for singing, the moon was flying high.
No comments:
Post a Comment