Prague

We have a snow day today, so no school for us. So I thought it would be a good time to catch up on our blog.

Prague was a beautiful city to stay in and visit. We arrived from Budapest on the overnight train at 4:00a.m. and stayed in the station until 7:00. Luckily there was a cafe that we could sit in, drink hot drinks, and read our books. Having a Kindle and e-reader is the best way to travel. We were going to meet our co-workers who spent Christmas in Prague and had one day left, so at 7:00 we called them and made our way to the apartment they were renting. We ate breakfast with them and then walked around Prague for the day. The girls went to the Toy Museum and the Guys went to get beer and walk around the town, or maybe they just focused on the beer and brats.



The Barbies were our favorite toys at the Toy Museum.

 We enjoyed walking around the town with our co-workers and  their girls. By the time we got to our hotel in the evning Zack and I were pretty tired. The next day Zack and I decided  to go to the Castle grounds. We bought our tickets that allowed us to get into eight different places on the castle grounds (the largest castle in Europe, maybe even the world). At each place you need to have your ticket punched as you enter. After the second place I had lost my ticket. I don't know what happened to it. So we had to make a decision to either buy a new ticket for me or have Zack go on by himself. I decided to go and buy another ticket. This time I didn't lose it and we had a great day.

There was no snow in Prague while we were there, but the wind was very cold. I think I will just put in some pictures and add captions for some of them.

The changing of the guards took place right behind me.

St. Vitus Cathedral

 We climbed up 287 steps up the spire for a great view of the city.

Charles Bridge

Zack loves the flying buttresses.



That is the Charles Bridge with statues lining the sides

The next day, we walked into town and saw the Astronomical clock. The clock shows several versions of time. The clock was damaged during the war, so what you see today is mostly reconstructed.

Kafka lived nearby and his father had
a store next to this clock.

Our favorite lunch to have in Prague was to grab a sausage and a drink at the Christmas market. It was fast, easy, and so tasty. 

Walking across Charles bridge to get from our hotel to Prague's Old Town we saw many performers. Here are a couple of our favorites.

We walked past a mirror labyrinth when we were out and about with our co-workers and said that we would have to try and find it another day. Well we found it and went inside. We were probably inside for a good 45 minutes. We got turned around a couple of times. I did walk out the entrance a couple of times and in my confusion asked the lady at the desk if this was the exit. She smiled and said "no." The exit was blue and the entrance was red. I went back in and realized I was the only one in the labyrinth. It is strange being surrounded by mirrors alone and not knowing which way is the exit. I did make it out eventually. It was a fun time.

Freaky to think there might be more than one Zack!



We had to wear gloves, so that we would not leave our prints all over the mirrors. Could you imagine having to clean all of these mirrors? We spent most of our days walking around for half of the day, getting lunch, and then finding a Starbucks to get something warm to drink and read for an hour or two. One morning we went to the Ghost Museum, which was fun and interesting to read all about the ghosts of Prague.



I feel like I am going to Diagon Alley.



Another day we went to the Franz Kafka Museum and learned more about the author. What an interesting life he lived. You weren't allowed to take any pictures inside so all of these came from outside the Museum.

As we walk around the cities we visit we find ourselves joining a walking tour. In Prague we went on the Underground Walking Tour. I never knew there were so many tunnels under the city. It was a fun way to spend the afternoon.

I found my Knight in the underground of Prague.

It is interesting how many cities had to raise the streets
at one point. Seattle is an American example.

Lots of wishes have been thrown down the well.

While on our trip to Budapest and Prague we were able to find great Japanese resturants and enjoy some delicious food. We ate at "Kyoto" in Budapest near the river and then I can't remember the name of the resturant in Prague, but we took a picture of some of the food we ate. The Miso soup was fantastic!

We spent the last couple of days outside of the city in a different hotel. We slept in, read, cross-stitched (Honey) and even went bowling in our hotel. Zack and I hadn't been bowling together for a long time and he was impressed at my skills (I won both games!). He did say that I had improved since the last time. Check out the scores.

We stayed inside our hotel room on New Year's Eve. It was cold outside and sleeting and we thought the Old Town would be crowded with people. It was a great idea to stay in. We were able to see the fireworks from all over the town. I am not sure what my camera decided to do while I was taking these pictures, but I thought they were kind of neat to include.

Happy 2012!