Second round in Prague for me but, I was still excited. I think Prague is super romantic place, the history, the architecture, the view and the music. When I was there last time (around May), there were advertisements for classical concerts everywhere. Not only that, I could hear classical music almost all the time. I even when to a church concert and wasn't disappointed at all. I'm not much of a classical type but, listening to Vivaldi's the Four Seasons in the Church of St. Saviour, even I could appreciate it.
We arrived in Prague around 4PM at Hilton hotel. This was where AmaWaterway arranged for all passengers, all except us. For me, to stay in a modern chain hotel in such historical city is such an insult to the city. No, I looked for my ideal place on the internet and here was my criteria; historical building, in the Old Town area, close to Charles bridge and not overly expensive. After some research, I found my prize; Mamaison Suit Hotel Pachtuv Palace! (http://www.mamaison.com/prague-pachtuv-palace-prague.html) It was totally worth it, I got all that I wanted. From Hilton hotel, we pre-arranged our transportation to our place. Honestly, when I first saw the outside, I was a little disappointed as it didn't look like anything with the word 'palace' in its name. Anyway, we couldn't turn back. The only hope I had left was that I did book suit for everyone. Then came what I was hoping for, the reception told us that the front part was for deluxe room, the suites were further inside. In fact, we basically had a quarter to ourselves.
The bell boy took us to the back building which looked more like a mansion, a white mansion. Inside, we went up a grand staircase with red carpet.
Then, he took us to different rooms and OMG! I was so proud of myself for booking these suits as they were all luxurious, spacious and awesome. Firstly, we were shown a single suite which was amazing enough with big bedroom and a foyer. It was far from the cramped dark room which is typical for European hotels. And it got better and better, our last two suits were wonderful. My brother's suit had good size bedroom and spacious living room equipped with kitchen counter, dining table and full sofa set...oh and chandeliers.
As if this was not enough, bell boy took us to the last room. He said that there was no other double suit so, they were kind enough to upgrade us to two bedrooms suit. Well, maybe I shouldn't say 'kind' since we pre-booked but, they didn't have the room. Anyway, we were excited. If the one bedroom was as big as an apartment, how big the two bedrooms would be? Well, it wasn't only big, it was up in the attic! Basically, when we opened the door, we found a stair.
It was rather steep but, wasn't too hard to climb and it was already cute with animal wallpaper. We got a spacious master bedroom with kitchen, sofa and small dining table. The other room was smaller but very cozy, my room. It was truly an attic room because I had to keep reminding myself to duck when walking in the room. If I got up from the bed too quickly, I could hit my head at the beam.
After some admiring, we knew that we need to decide on where for dinner quickly. Czech cuisine please and close to hotel would be great. So, the hotel concierge recommended and made reservation at a small restaurant super close to the hotel, like 5 mins walk. The hotel was on Karoliny Svetle street and convenient enough the restaurant was on the same street. So, when we left hotel we walked to the left and after a few blocks, the restaurant was on the right side of the street. The place was called Restaurant Rainer Maria Rilke (http://www.rmrilke.cz/), what a long name, too long in my opinion. How could anyone remember the name? From what we talked to the owner, it was name after a Czech writer (R. M. Rilke) and in the restaurant, there were quite a few books around. From the front, it didn't seem much but, it was actually featured in 2009 Michelin Guidebook for Prague.
The interior couldn't be more different. Outside, it looked like a pub but, the inside was cozy and pretty with books and painted walls.
They had reserved a nice corner table for us (not the one in the picture though). The menu consisted of mostly Czech food and some other international food. We each ordered appetizer and main course. I had mushroom scramble egg for appetizer. It was a strange time to have scramble egg but, I like mushroom and the description sounded good. And for main course, I had to have Czech beef goulash with dumpling. It was a bit of difficult choice as there were other dishes that sounded very appealing. My mushroom scramble egg tasted great. Actually, it was more like stir fried mushroom with egg, the mushroom was not overwhelmed with egg. It was just enough to add creaminess. My brother had local ham which was equally tasty and tender.
Then, came the main course. The taste of goulash was very intense and it worked with eating with dumpling. I couldn't understand why they called it dumpling since the texture was more like soft steam bread. Actually, it was very similar to Chinese mántóu which was also eaten with saucy dish.
For other dishes, some were good and another, so so. The roast duck for two was yummy with its crispy skin. However, we weren't so impressed at the lamb and fish. Even with a heavy meal, we still wanted dessert and ordered a variety of it.
There were ice ream in berry sauce, ice cream in vodka and strudel. We were not disappointed. After dinner, we decided to move on and had a bit of walk to digest this meaty meal.
We walked back towards our hotel, the entrance of our place wasn't so bad night. It looked rather classy. Once passed the hotel entrance, we continued on Krizovnicka street to go to Charles Bridge or Karluv Most. We only had to walk no more than 5 mins to get to the famous bridge. Even at night, there were still lots of people on the bridge.
Probably everyone thought that the view at night would be very magical and romantic, just as we did. Well, it kind of did...it gave totally different feel from the daytime, very charming. We went like half way then, decided to walked back and headed to the old town square instead. We would get to see Charles Bridge again tomorrow anyway. I still remember my first time making my way to the Old Town Square alone. I had to admit that I got lost big time. The small streets that led to the Town Square were not only organized like a puzzle, they were also lined with small shops which lured me away from the straight path. Well, this was a test for me. Lucky us, I wasn't the only one who have been there.
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| Ref: http://www.planetware.com/map/prague-old-town-map-cz-cz47.htm |
OK, I hoped I get this right. From Charles bridge, we walked straight across the street (watch for traffic signal). The small street ahead of us was called Karlova and it leaded to the Old Town Square but not in a straight line. Most of the part, it was more or less straight forward until it hit Jilska then, a little left and right and we were there. Just like Charles bright, lots of people there, dining, hanging out and taking pictures.
It was fantastic, the historical building plus the lighting, it just worked for me. Well, we exercised enough for today and since we all had plan for tomorrow, we went back to hotel and retired for the night. However for me, the night was still young. No, I didn't have wild night out, I just had a bit problem with sleeping. It was one downside from staying in an old building. It started when the bell boy told us a little bit about the history of our hotel and he mentioned that even Mozart had stayed here. So, we had a little bit of joke that maybe Mozart might come and say hello to us. I didn't have much thought at the time but, when came the bedtime, a tiny part of my brain thought...what if Mr. Mozart decided to show off! Having a low beams on top of the bed didn't help either, I just shut my eyes tightly and tried not to sneak a peek too much. At least the bed was very comfortable and we had a furry blanket on top which made it even better. So, I didn't stay up waiting for Mr. Mozart all night. The next morning, we met up in the breakfast room or rather a hotel restaurant. The breakfast was not so different from what we had in the ship, cold cuts, cheese, fruits, cereal and warm dish by order. Today, we split up as I didn't want to take a tour, I just wanted to walk around, probably up to the castle and took pictures. Currently, we were in Stare Mesto area or Old Town. Our destination this morning was Hradcany in Mala Strana (Lesser Town) area. For those who do not have much time in Prague, I think you would be satisfied if you can cover these two areas. From hotel, we walked to Charles bridge. The walk to the bridge didn't take much time but, the crossing did. Charles bridge was the longest medieval bridge in Europe but, it wasn't just the length that fascinated people.
This bridge was commenced by King Charles IV, hence its name. That was in 13th century but, it wasn't finished until the beginning of 15th century. That was a longgg time to wait for the mean to cross Vltava river. The bridge was unadorned for over 100 years until they put up the bronze crucifix in 16th century. Then, maybe they thought that only statue looked too lonely or maybe they just wanted to remind the new generation for what they have done or endured, anyway, they put up in total of 30 statues, 15 on either side.
These statues sure added more charm to the bridge. At each end of the bridge were two towers (sounds like Lord of The Ring). The purpose of these towers was purely for fortification. However, just as the rest of the city, the two towers became tourist attractions. The one on Old Town side was opened for anyone who wanted a view of above the city and the one on Mala Strana housed an exhibition about the bridge's history.
As we passed under the tower, we saw probably the coolest Tourist Information office ever...maybe the medieval guards could give us more information about the bridge. We headed straight on to the Prague Castle since we didn't have much time. We were to re-group for lunch and it was already almost 10AM. From Charles Bridge, we followed Mostecka street to a small square with a tram stop then, turned right and left to Nerudova. This was the street that would take us to the steps of Prague Castle. It was a bit of an upward slope but, it did bring back some memory, not a romantic kind though. The last time I was here, I stayed in one of the hotel on this slope and it was just lovely. The hotel was called Green Lobster (http://www.ghotels.cz/en.asp?ID=hotels%2Dresort), not too appealing name, I know. It got its name from a picture sign on its facade, most of the building on this street had one. It was supposed to represent the occupation of the owner, not sure what the once owner of this hotel did though, caught or sold lobster maybe. It was a charming hotel at least and it was almost at the foot of the castle. Other than hotels, Nerudova also housed many gift shops, restaurants and embassies.
It was a tiring walk, maybe because I wasn't fit enough but, at least it was better than carrying a backpack up this hill as I did last time. Once we got to the end of Nerudova, we turned sharp right for the last climb to the castle.
The slope took us to the side of the castle. From here, we already had a beautiful view of Prague.
When we got the front gate of the castle, it was pretty crowded. It would have been normal since the summer season is coming but then, there were too many securities too. I have seen the changing of the guard and this wasn't it. A police car was parked blocking the entrance and there were too many policemen around.
We unintentionally met up with another half of our gang and their tour guide mentioned that the Philippine president was scheduled to come here. Well, he just arrived as I could see a person wearing barong (Philippines' traditional shirt) way inside. We weren't sure whether tourists would be allowed inside since there was a diplomat visitor in so, we did a bit of walked around Hradcany Square.
On the left side, we had Schwarzenberg Palace, a Renaissance Palace with black and white paint on its exterior. It was said that this was the most well-preserved of its kind in Prague, lovely. We saw some tourists going in and coming out from the castle side entrance so, there we went.
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| Ref: http://www.planetware.com/map/hradcany-prague-castle-map-cz-cz42.htm |
The entrance took us to the Second Courtyard (the first one was occupied by police). The courtyard didn't look to be much, incomparable to what waited us inside.
We then entered the Third Courtyard where we met with St. Vitus Cathedral. It was like a giant stood over us...Oh Wow! Actually, it full name was St. Vitus, St. Wenceslas and St. Adalbert Cathedral, talk about sharing, 3 saints in one. This was where Bohemian Kings and Roman Emperors rested and the the biggest and the most important cathedral in Czech Republic.
It was beautiful outside and inside. It would be even better if the atmosphere inside was calmer. I mean the feeling of holiness and serene as other cathedral of this greatness were almost there, there were just too many people.
This cathedral was built in the Gothic style and the window was decorated with beautiful stain glasses. Don't be full by the picture of in front of altar, they were wise enough to restrict tourists access to some area so that we could get a peaceful picture of the cathedral.
After the cathedral, we had to decide whether we wanted to see the interior of he castle as we needed tickets for it (the entrance to the cathedral was free by the way). The entrance fee to the castle was 250 CZK and 350 CZK depended on how much we wanted to see and if we wanted to go to other area such as the Picture Gallery or exhibition, we had to pay extra. Also, as I recalled, we had to pay for our camera otherwise, photo not allowed. What my friend and I did (which was a bit naughty) was we would switch between her camera and mine. We were careful not to take pictures at the same time as we only got one tag. Since we didn't have much time and I've already seen the inside, we went for the exterior view only.
We went around the cathedral and to its behind. Usually, most churches and cathedral would have splendid front but, a dull sides and behind, not this one. We walked to the right and it was gorgeous with its golden gate. Even its back looked like it came out from fairy tale. Behind the cathedral was St. George's Square. Apart from the cathedral, it was surrounded by Royal Palace, St, George's Basilica and New Provost's Lodging.
It was like a double combo with basilica after cathedral. I kind of like the color of this basilica, unlike other churches, basilicas and cathedrals that we have seen in this trips (which was a lot!), this one wasn't grey and dull like others. Maybe it needed the color otherwise it would get swallowed in the shadow of St. Vitus Cathedral. When it was time for us to go back, we didn't want to take the same route and see the same scene. So, from a map, we saw another way down from the side of St. George's Basilica and there we went.
This quiet alley was call St' George's Lane and it led to the Old Castle Steps. We passed a convent, wine bar, cafe and Lobkowitz Palace until we went through Black Tower. We found ourselves on the bastion where we stopped a bit to check out the view and then, we moved on and down the Old Castle Steps.
These steps were quite pretty, they didn't just lay down the brick mindlessly. With steps and some rest area, it was much easier than tackle the slope of Nerudova. We landed on Klarov St. which wasn't so far from Charles Bridge. We didn't need to look at the map, just kept walking toward the bridge. We crossed Charles bridge and on the way to our hotel where we decided to stop and wait for the rest of the group. Next to Charles Bridge and to its right, there were a few restaurants that were right at the river edge.
It gave us a great photo opportunity of Charles Bridge and Prague Castle together. It also got a view of our hotel...the yellow building on the right.
This was where we had lunch. I can't remember the name of restaurant but, I think it would be hard to miss. Our highlight for the meal was my pan-fried trout and my brother roasted pork knuckle. I would say the trout was great, the skin was crispy and the meat was moist. When the pork knuckle (or pork leg) arrived, we couldn't believe how big it was. It was even bigger than my pork knuckle back in Cesky Krumlov.
It was even served on a cutting board, a plate wouldn't be big enough. It was truly a meat-lover platter. It heard that the meat was quite juicy and of course, too much. After lunch, we freshened up a bit at the hotel and then, we were off again. For the afternoon agenda, walking and shopping in the Old Town to digest lunch and clear space for dinner. We took the same route to the Old Town Square. Last night, when we were here, the sight was already great. However, now that we could see more detail, it was even better. Started from the first building on our left when we entering the square. It was the Minute House and the decoration on its facade was magnificent. I loved it when I was here last time and I still loved it now.
Then, there was the Astronomical Clock. At the top most were the normal clocks. The lower clock that indicated the position of Sun, Moon and Stars. And Last, The lowest one was later added in 19th century and showed the zodiac sign. However, the real crowd gatherer was the show that it put on. When the hour strikes, the little characters (at least it looked little from the ground) came out and danced.
Passed the Astronomical Tower and we were facing another giant, The Church of Our Lady before Tyn. With its two tall towers, it just dominated the scene.
On that day, there was some kind of fair and there were booths selling food, snacks and souvenir all over the square. I think the fair made the square looked real and not just a tourist attraction. Honestly, there were a few local food that looked very appetizing. Too bad that we already had lunch and already had dinner planned. So, I could only look.
We walked around the square and checked out different booths before headed of in the direction of the Church of St. Nicholas because that was the direction of our dinner.
We survive on food, right? Good food to be exact. So, it's just normal that our activity would be dictated by it, at least for us and especially when traveling. We walked along Parizska street which full of brand name and luxury shops, more like an untouchable shops to be exact. Well, just strolled along and did some window shopping was nice enough. When we got tired, we stop at Nespresso cafe. I didn't think that there would be lots of people but, there were. I think the main intention of the store was to sell Nespresso machine and its coffee but, this seemed to be a hang out place as well. I'm not much of a coffee drinker, I only had iced coffee once in awhile, not for the caffeine but for the taste. However, I heard that this place had a tasty coffee with ice cream, I just got to try. Sorry can't remember the name but, basically, they poured an espresso coffee over a vanilla ice cream.
It was yummy. I first ate it with spoon (which looked more like a dentist's tool but, it did served it purpose) like eating ice cream with coffee sauce. Then, when the ice cream all melted, I drank it as iced coffee. Oh, I miss it. Maybe I'll make it for myself someday. When it was getting closed to our dinner time, we moved on along this street and into the Jewish quarter.
The buildings around here did have a different feel to it, somehow it kind of reflexed the harsh and tough lives the Jews had in the past. There was a Jewish cemetery too but, I dared not to enter because I didn't anything about Jewish custom. We did wonder around the area a bit since we still had time and there were some designer shops around. Our destination was Les Moules, a Belgian Beer Bar (http://www.lesmoules.cz/en/). But, no, we were not going there for beer, it was mussels we were after. It was a bit off of Parizska street (the entrance was at the end of Maiselova street).
The atmosphere and decor were very bar-like, kind of place that friends would come to hang out, drink and have a good time. The way they set up the table also contributed to the casual good time mood especially the bread that came in a paper bag.
Let's talk about the menu, I think the main attraction here was the mussels. I heard that it served like French style; in a big pot (or cocotte) cook the way we wanted like white wine and with french fries. I had it in Paris once and I got a craving for it. I had fish soup and then mussel meriniere which was very similar to white wine sauce. For the soup, we were quite lucky that we asked the waiter how big the soup would be. From his description of the bowl, it sounded pretty big and so, we decidded to split, fish soup for one became fish soup for two. When it came, it was clear that we made the right decision. Even half the portion, I couldn't finish it. It could as well be the main dish. not only the bowl was big, the flavor was too. It had a very concentrated flavor, probably from being cooked for a long period of time.
As for the mussels, I couldn't say that I was totally satisfied with it. Maybe because I kept thinking of the one I had in Paris that I got a bit bias. It was quite alright but, still couldn't compare with what I had before.
As for other dishes, they were so so. The sadest thing was, one of us order grilled lobster which should be wonderful but, they killed it like dead dead. The meat was tough and dried, what a waste. After dinner, we went back to hotel, I shamelessly admitted that I along with other girls, took taxi back. While guys (my father and brother) took a walk along the river which wasn't very far. They got to the hotel about no more than 10 mins after us. That was our last night in prague and last night on this trip...Oh noooo!!! I had to pack, something I didn't want to do at all. The only consolation was that I still got one more place to visit tomorrow.
Since we would be leaving in the evening, we needed to find things to do which called for another team splitted. My group decided to take a tour out to yet another UNESCO World Heritage Site; Kutna Hora. Honestly, the first time I heard the name, I thought something something Horror! I have never heard about this town before and that kind of excited me (not that I know so many). Kutna Hora was a silver mining town in the medieval time and there was a record dated back to 11th century. We left around 9Am the next morning. It was a very small tour, only about 6 people in our group, probably because it wasn't well khown. The ride took around an hour from Prague. First stop, the tour took us straight to one of the main attraction; Sedlec Ossuary (Bone Church). Sound horrible, doesn't it. Well, it didn't to me. It was actually what got me interested in this place. Why could anyone think of creating art out of human bones! Well, it turned out that this was a very popular place to buried dead relatives. Eventually, they ran out of the available ground. So, when they need some land to build the chapel, they had to exhume the bodies or skeletons. It was said that a woodcarver did all the work... what an artistic imagination.
Actually, it was mentioned that this is one of the most visit sites in Czech Republic, seriously? It just tells that there are still lots and lots of interesting places that I have no idea about...lots more to explore in this life time. Anyway, back to the Bone Church. From the outside, it gave little clue to what awaited us on the inside. Once the door opened, we faced with an entrance to the lower chapel and it was adorned with, what else, bones.
It was arranged in the shape of a cross. It was amazing enough but, there were much more on the inside. Downstair, we could see a huge human chandelier completed with human garland. It took bones from every part of human to create this chandelier.
It was extraordinary, if we could get over the fact that these creation used to be living people. Well, that was fascinating for me but, I wouldn't want to be here in the evening though. Around the chapel, there were piles of bones and even coats-of-arm.
We all looked around. It was a little strange that everyone were staring at skull, into the hollow eyes. Well, we could only stare for so long. So, we went up to check out the cemetery.
The cemetery did have a little bit of charm to it. It wasn't a scary place as it should be maybe it was the way they arranged and took care of the grave. After the holy or horror visit, we moved on to the town center.
It was no wonder why this town was pronounced UNESCO World Heritage Site, the town was calm, charming and full of history. There weren't big elaborate building but, what they had there was just right. It was also very peaceful, totally different experience from tourists crowded Prague. After a some informative sightseeing, we were heading for lunch. The guide took us to one local restaurant, there were locals I think but, most of customers there came with tours.
It was a set lunch, 3 courses. During our ride here, the guide presented us with 4 or 5 choices of main course with pictures. He just told us what they were and let us make decision. The rest of the group chose grilled chicken and fries...they were Americans, very typical. I chose pork loin with gravy and, guess what, with whip cream and jam!! Our American friends might find it so strange and it was but, I got to try it.
Our first course was a simple chicken soup with rice, actually not much different from chicken soup I had in dormitory. Then, my mystery main course came. It didn't look like much but, the dumpling was very filling. The gravy was much better than how it appeared. The things that seemed to be out of place, as if the cook was drunk and accidentally drop on this plate instead of dessert were the jam and whip cream . Surprisingly the jam and whip cream added creaminess and well rounded taste to the dish. I was basically mobbing the gravy and whip cream with the dumpling. Then, we had dessert to complete our lunch, a cake I think. After lunch, we headed towards our last major attraction, the Church of St. Barbara. Along the way, the guide pointed out a few important buildings to us; Church of St. James with the Italian Garden right next to it and the Silver mine at Hradek Museum. If I didn't come with the tour, I would definitely go there. The guide told us that we could go down to the silver mine and see how it was like in the past, interesting.
As we passed, we took a left and then, right to find Barborska street. This short street had Jesuit College on one side and a series of statues on the other.
It was a picturesque walk and at the end, there it was Church of St. Barbara. This beautiful gothic bohemien church was built for St Barbara who was the patron saint for miners. Therefore, it was only appropriate for a town which earned its wealth from silver mining.
From behind, we could see numerous spires. It kind of looked like a crown or a harsher imagination would be a barbwire. From what we heard, it had a super long construction period, the building started in 13th century but, only completed in early 19th century! The construction was interrupted many times by wars.
On the inside, the first glance didn't seem to have much. However, most of the artistic beauty could be seem at the side; the colorful stainglass, the alter and pulpits. Also, there were amny fresco on the side wall which depicted the story of the town.
Other than that, there were quite a few statues around but, our guide point out one statue that could clearly represent this town. It was a statue of a man in white robe which turned out to be a silver miner. The guide told us that the name 'Kutna Hora' came from an old Czech word for mining.
We had a bit of time to look around on our own. After that we were herded to the bus as it was time to travel back to Prague. And this basically concluded our trip. We got back to Prague and only had a short time to freshen up before we were picked up for our flight back home. Honestly, my inner self was still screaming for more but, as a full time employee, I had to return to the real world. Just had to keep reminding...another vacation in two weeks!!
