In the summer of 2012, we decided to visit Prague, Czech Republic, because we were looking for inexpensive airline tickets to European cities we had not yet seen. For some odd reason, tickets to Prague were cheaper than tickets to London, Paris, or Rome. Since we had never been there, we decided to visit Prague first and then travel by train to Vienna.
We flew to Prague using a KLM/Air France KL1066 flight from San Francisco to Amsterdam, followed by a short flight from Amsterdam to Prague on KLM1355.
The stopover at Amsterdam's Schiphol airport, Netherlands, was relatively short. We had a chance to drink some coffee and sample a few pastries. We also visited a few airport shops. We didn't have much time in Amsterdam, partly because we had to go through a lengthy security check, which was moving slowly.
On Monday, June 25, we landed in Prague at around 1:20pm local time. We took a taxi to the Ventana Hotel in downtown Prague. The taxi ride took only about 30 minutes. It took us a few minutes to find the hotel (as the street we were dropped off at was not passable by cars). Our room in the hotel was very well furnished, with a great overlook of Prague's Tyn Church. We rested, dropped off our luggage, and decided to see downtown Prague.
We flew to Prague using a KLM/Air France KL1066 flight from San Francisco to Amsterdam, followed by a short flight from Amsterdam to Prague on KLM1355.
The stopover at Amsterdam's Schiphol airport, Netherlands, was relatively short. We had a chance to drink some coffee and sample a few pastries. We also visited a few airport shops. We didn't have much time in Amsterdam, partly because we had to go through a lengthy security check, which was moving slowly.
On Monday, June 25, we landed in Prague at around 1:20pm local time. We took a taxi to the Ventana Hotel in downtown Prague. The taxi ride took only about 30 minutes. It took us a few minutes to find the hotel (as the street we were dropped off at was not passable by cars). Our room in the hotel was very well furnished, with a great overlook of Prague's Tyn Church. We rested, dropped off our luggage, and decided to see downtown Prague.
Old Town Prague has a large market and many outdoor restaurants.
We walked around and ran into the Prague Astronomical Clock, located near the clock tower. The clock was first installed in 1410, making it the third-oldest astronomical clock in the world and the oldest one still working.
There were lovely moving figurines every hour, and we waited to see the movement.
We were a bit hungry by this time, so we stopped by a local coffee shop - Grand Cafe - to refresh ourselves with some cappuccinos and desserts.
Interestingly, everyone spoke or understood both English and Russian. We found many Czech words so similar to Russian that getting by was very easy. Most Czechs had to learn Russian or English in school, so getting around (reading signs or talking to people) was relatively easy. Everyone we met was amiable and helpful.
Some Czech words were difficult for me to pronounce. The word for thank you in Czech is "Děkuji," pronounced as "Dye-koo-yi." I just couldn't say it correctly for the longest time.
The word for ice cream in Czech is "zmrzlina", pronounced as "zmerzlina." It's a bit of a tongue twister.
We enjoyed a bit of coffee in a nearby cafe.
We walked around the old town of Prague a bit hungry.
Since the Czech Republic is famous for its beer, I had to try it. It comes in huge glasses and tastes terrific.
We generally found Czech dinner portions substantial (much more significant than in England, France, or Italy). I thought momentarily that I was back in Texas, where everything is Texas-sized.
Inna's soup came with a pretzel. It's a nice touch.
The Buffalo Mozzarella tomato salad was delicious. Inna ordered a chicken dish and got a relatively large portion. There was enough food for two people!
We woke on Tuesday, June 26, and had our first breakfast at the Ventana Hotel.
The breakfast was fantastic and featured pastries, cheeses, and desserts. Each morning, we always looked forward to our delicious breakfast.
The breakfast was fantastic and featured pastries, cheeses, and desserts. Each morning, we always looked forward to our delicious breakfast.
After breakfast, we walked around the old town, following the narrow cobblestone streets to the Charles Bridge. The Charles Bridge is a famous historic bridge that crosses the Vltava River. The construction of the bridge started in 1357 under King Charles IV.
The Charles Bridge has many dedications along its path, with many statues.
At the end of the Charles Bridge, there are many canals.
Nearby is the famous John Lennon wall, where many young Czechs wrote about their thirst for freedom and democracy (when Czechoslovakia was governed by communists).
We walked around Prague and ran into giant statues of babies near the Kampa Museum. Kampa is a modern art museum on the Vltava River.
Nearby, river cruises depart for tours on the Vltava River. There is a nice view of St. Vitus Cathedral from the bridge.
Nearby, river cruises depart for tours on the Vltava River. There is a nice view of St. Vitus Cathedral from the bridge.
Inna made reservations to see Prague on a Segway at 2:00pm, so we hurried to Vlašská 2 for our Prague on Segway Tour. We had a fantastic time riding Segways through Prague. We could cover a lot of territory quickly and did not get tired at all.
After finishing the Prague by Segway tour, we met up with Irina and decided to have dinner at Kavárna Obecní Dům in old Prague.
After enjoying a lovely meal, we returned to our hotel, enjoying the beautiful streets of old Prague.
The fireworks were very nice and entirely unexpected! We were glad to be in the right place and time to witness them.
All of Prague was lit up at night and looked very beautiful. We walked around a bit and decided to stop by Cafe Savoy. We got lucky as Cafe Savoy was closing at 10:30pm, and we just got there around 10:00pm.
The desserts were delicious, and we enjoyed the food and atmosphere.
The next day, June 27, we hired a guide to take us all over Prague and show us the sights.
The guide explained that Prague houses were not numbered in the old days, so each house would have a unique symbol to identify it. The house below displays a "Fleur de Lys" symbol usually associated with France. In French, "Fleur de Lys" means Lily Flower.
Later, Czechs started using a descriptive number or "popisné číslo" in Czech. This did not just identify a specific house but the whole block. Later, Czechs added a second number (usually with the letter E or a different color) to determine the actual house.
All over Prague, we found many statues of John of Nepomuk. According to Wikipedia:
John of Nepomuk is a national saint of the Czech Republic, who was drowned in the Vltava river at the behest of Wenceslaus, King of the Romans and King of Bohemia. Later accounts state that he was the confessor of the queen of Bohemia and refused to divulge the secrets of the confessional. On the basis of this account, John of Nepomuk is considered the first martyr of the Seal of the Confessional, a patron against calumnies and, because of the manner of his death, a protector from floods.
John always has a ring with 5 stars around his head to indicate his saintliness.
We walked across the Charles Bridge into the Lesser Town Square, the location of the St. Nicholas Church. The St. Nicholas Church in the Lesser Town Square is the largest of Prague's Churches, founded by the Jesuits. One notable fact, among many, is that Mozart played the Baroque organ in this Church in 1787.
Prague Castle is the largest castle in the world and the home of Czech crown jewels. All of the Czech Kings and current presidents have their offices here.
St. Vitus Cathedral is located within the Prague Castle and is the seat of the Roman Catholic Archbishop of Prague. Construction of the cathedral started in 1344. Construction continued into the 20th century, and the "famous Czech Art Nouveau painter Alfons Mucha decorated the new windows in the north part of the nave."
Just outside St. Vitus Cathedral is Golden Lane - a street of tiny houses where ordinary peasants and workmen lived and worked. Our guide told us it was called "Golden Lane" because of the urine flow downhill.
After all the walking around, we got hungry and decided to have lunch at the nearby Lobkowicz Palace Cafe. The tea and desserts there were quite good.
Afterward, we returned to our room in the Ventana Hotel and rested. We had purchased tickets for a classical music concert by Pachelbel, Mozart, and Vivaldi at the Municipal House at 8:00pm. After resting a bit, we decided to get dinner at the local restaurant recommended by staff at Hotel Ventana. Maitreya is a vegetarian restaurant, but all the dishes we tried were delicious and well-prepared.
The classical music concert was good. The music hall was incomplete, and I thought there would be more musicians.
After the concert, we shared some coffee and dessert at the Municipal House cafe.
The next day, June 28, we decided to explore Petrin Hill and go to the top of the miniature Eiffel Tower. On the way there, we stopped by the Mirror Labyrinth, which has many interesting mirrors.
A mirror maze and a set of mirrors deform or exaggerate images.
We walked around and enjoyed the gardens while the Petrin Lookout Tower was closed. The tower looks like a miniature replica of the Eiffel Tower in Paris.
We purchased two tickets to use the elevator and rode to the top.
The view from the top is quite extraordinary, with all of Prague visible in all directions.
We took the elevator down to the ground level and explored the gardens of Petrin Hill.
In June, the gardens on Petrin Hill bloomed, and we saw many beautiful roses and other flowers.
From Petrin Hill, we decided to walk to the Strahov Monastery, which has an extensive collection of old books and other antiques. Only monks and specially authorized people are allowed to handle these rare books.
Here are some photos of ancient books:
After spending some time in the Strahov Monastery, we got a bit hungry and decided to have lunch at Peklo, a restaurant inside a cavern. Although it was pretty warm and sometimes hot in Prague, the temperature inside Peklo was quite remarkable. The word Peklo in Czech means Inferno.
The lunch at Peklo was great, and we enjoyed all the dishes. This was one of the more expensive places, as more restaurants in Prague are reasonably inexpensive.
After Peklo, we decided to head to Our Lady of Loreto Church. Loreto is a small but very beautifully decorated Church. It houses lots of interesting artifacts, statues, and other items.
When we walked out of Loreto Church, Inna realized that she had forgotten her bag, which had our passports, phones, and other items. She was distraught and upset. She returned to Loreto and found that she left the bag by one of the paintings. It was still there, and nothing was taken. We were fortunate that we didn't lose it!
From Loretta, we took the light rail to Waldstein Palace Gardens. These gardens have lots of statues all around.
These gardens also have much information about the German occupation of Prague during World War 2 and the highlights of the Czech resistance.
The Czech resistance was responsible for several assassinations of important German officials.
We took the light rail from Waldstein Gardens to the more modern downtown section. There are a lot of people walking around and shopping. Parts of the city are blocked off by cars. Like any modern city, Prague has a lot of shops, restaurants, and malls. We liked that Prague had so many bookstores selling Czech, English, and Russian books. There were so many stores to visit.
We stopped by briefly at the Mucha Museum. Alphonso Mucha was a famous Czech painter and decorative artist. The Mucha Museum is tin and only has a small collection of Mucha paintings and drawings. Unfortunately, I could not photograph the paintings inside the Mucha Museum.
We decided to go to Klub Architektů restaurant in old town Prague for dinner. I had the best beer there - a Slovakian brand named Zlatý Bažant / Golden Pheasant. The beer came in a large glass for USD 3.00 - what a bargain!
We really liked all of the dishes there, but I don't recall the Czech names for all of the dishes.
After dinner, we hurried to see the 9:30pm performance of Aspects of Alice at the Ta Fantastika Theatre in old town Prague. It was too amateurish, and I didn't like it. Inna liked it a bit, but we walked out during the intermission.
It was our last day in Prague, and we enjoyed everything! However, we were looking forward to our train ride to Vienna and wondered what awaited us there. Would we be disappointed?
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