PRAGUE

We arrived in Prague on June 10 and left on the 18th.  We loved it there and were close to much we wanted to do in the city.  We had a very nice apartment that was modern and we found the neighborhood

 where we were very safe and good with tree lined streets (unusual in these large cities).  Our first experience was to have a beer while we waited for our host to arrive.  The restaurant was only a few doors down the street with wicker furniture outside.  A couple was having a beer at the table next to us.  The man indicated to us that we were parked illegally, and would be fined heavily if we stayed where we were.  Thus, the car was re-parked and a friendship begun.  After we got moved in, we went out into the neighborhood to find some dinner.  Upon approaching a place to eat, we come across The Man again. He was with a man friend at this point.  We laughed about seeing him again.  He said we MUST eat at the place where we had the beer.  He was correct!  There we ate the best pork dinner we have ever tasted!  Pork knuckles and a hearty bread that was do die for!  

Sunday morning:  we were all ready for the day and started out walking.  Little did we know that by the end of the day we would have walked no less than 8 miles, maybe a bit more.  We visited a museum that was beautifully done on the subject of money.  The building was beautiful, as most were in this city.  Money: its beginning and how it has effected the whole world even up to today.  We milled around what is considered 

Old Town, watched the Astronomical Clock strike on the hour with a procession of apostles with a million other people in the square.  We trekked up to the Castle situated on a hill.  HUGE area of impressive buildings and, of course, a cathedral.  Many bridges cross the Vltava River.  We crossed two that day only to return to the same area so we could see and cross the most famous of them.

Thus, we returned to Old Town on Monday, but learned how to take the tram this time.  We crossed the Charles Bridge whose beginning construction began in the time of Charles IV (14th century) and completed in the 15th century.  It is 516m long and 10m wide.  On each end are impressive towers.  Artists and musicians entertain folks crossing the bridge as it was the first to link two parts of the city.  We had a dinner cruise on the river in the evening and enjoyed seeing the city lighted up.  On the cruise we met a couple from Germany.  The husband was a runner and had just finished a race in Prague.  He won the event as he has won many of the same at 100km.  We saw photos of his last two races with his gold medals.  They were lovely people and fun with which to have lively conversation.

Tuesday found us at a large, beautiful park where we saw a big vineyard on the hillside and a restaurant featuring the wine produced from the vineyard.  We were tired out this day, so sat on a park bench near a pond with running water.  It was quiet and restful.  ( crowds can take a lot out of a person).  On the way back to our apartment we had a beer at our usual wicker table and chair spot.  Who do we see about mid-glass empty but The Man!  We grinned again upon seeing him and he greeted us cheerfully.  A nice end to a relaxing day.   After a bit of dinner, while using the internet on the garden terrace, we met some folks from Sweden and chatted for an hour or more.  They were fun and enlightened us a bit about Sweden so we could be prepared when we get there in a couple of weeks.  They immediately knew we were American because of our accent!  They guessed American or Canadian!

We found Praque a lovely city with two interesting sides to it.  The old and the new.  Cobbled streets still abound as do cobbled sidewalks.  The new modern side has great tall buildings with construction seemingly happening in many areas.  It is good to see progress.  Life goes on.