Well, we finally made it to Prague on our third attempt and it was well worth waiting for. We went for 4 days, setting off early on Tuesday morning and returning home late on Friday. This time, we flew from Heathrow, so getting there was much easier than the haul to Gatwick. The flight was on time and went without incident, so we arrived at Vaclav Havel airport in Prague by about 9.30am.
R had arranged for a car to collect us and the driver, Gino, spoke excellent English and used to be a tour guide. He was a mine of useful information and gave us a few tips and tricks to help with our stay. The Grandior Hotel was centrally located and within easy walking distance of most sites. After Gino dropped us off, we checked in, unpacked and then set off to explore.
Despite having a map, we initially got lost, heading in completely the wrong direction for quite a way before realising our mistake. Finally working out where we were, we pottered round a garden sculpture exhibition in the Convent of St. Agnes before heading for the famous Charles Bridge, a medieval stone arch bridge crossing the Vltava river. Dating back to the 1300s, it links the old town with the area of Prague Castle and is lined with statues and street vendors. It was fun to watch the caricature artists at work, although I would never be tempted to have one done!
Beginning to flag slightly, we paused for beer (R), homemade lemonade (me) and fries at the Goat pub.
Setting off again for the old town square, we walked past numerous shops selling doughnut type pastries called 'chimneys' - a sort of cone shape, either eaten alone or filled with ice-cream. Seeing one with a sign saying 'vegan and gluten free', we stopped to enquire. Sadly, the vegan ones weren't GF and the GF ones weren't vegan! R initially refused one, saying he didn't want to eat it in front of me and we carried on. I eventually persuaded him that I really wouldn't mind but for the rest of out trip we were unable to find the same shop! I'm sure they were very nice - they were certainly popular.
The highlight of the old town square was the Astronomical clock. First installed in 1410, it is the 3rd oldest astronomical clock in the world, and the oldest still operational. When it gets near to the hour, a crowd begins to form to watch the clock in action. A skeleton, representing death, inverts an hourglass and repeatedly rings a bell as the windows open and the 12 apostles rotate past facing the crowd. Finally, the cock crows and the crowd disperses until the next hour. It was great fun and we paused to watch it several times over the next few days.
After spending some time people watching in the square, we started to make our way back towards the hotel planning to stop for dinner en route. Prague is brilliant for vegans, the Happy Cow App revealed more vegan restaurants than you could shake a stick at and there turned out to be an excellent one just opposite our hotel. 'Loving Bistro' was a buffet style restaurant where you work your way along, choosing what you would like and the price depends on the weight of your plate at the till. It was an excellent system, everything (including allergens) was clearly labelled in English, and the food was delicious. If that wasn't enough, after 7pm everything was 30% off, so the princely cost of a meal for 2 worked out at about £10!
Tired, full and happy, we crossed the road back to the Grandior and spent the rest of the evening listening to 'The Day of the Triffids' on Audible, knitting (me) and doing Sudoku (R), before having an early night.
Breakfast at the Grandior was an impressive affair - even for weirdos like us with multiple annoying requests! Whilst doing my usual people watching, however, I became quite shocked by all the waste. Just because they have a huge selection of pastries, it doesn't make it right to take one of every kind, only to take a trial bite from each and leave the rest! This didn't seem to be unusual either - we may have strange requirements but at least we take just enough, are polite to the waiting staff (one would hope this was the norm but apparently not!) and clear our plates. Ditto the sheer gluttony, I watched one man pile high his entire plate with bacon, practically emptying the tray with no thought for anyone else. I tried to give him the benefit of the doubt, assuming that he was taking a plate for his large family to share but no, it was just for him. It was all a bit of an eye-opener.
After breakfast we set off to cross the Charles Bridge once more, passing through Powder Gate and heading for the Castle.
Serving as the official residence and workplace of the President, this is more of a Castle complex. It includes the Gothic St. Vitus Cathedral, the Basilica of St. George and Golden Lane - brightly coloured small houses, built in the 16th century to house the Castle guards and taking its name from the goldsmiths that lived there in the 17th century. These are all included in the price of the ticket and, despite the crowds and queues to enter each site, it was well worth a visit.
By mid afternoon, we had seen all that Prague Castle had to offer and set off in search of lunch. Dosa Dosa fitted the bill perfectly and my masala dosa and mango lassi (all vegan), enjoyed in their shady, plant filled courtyard garden, were the best that I have had outside India.
Suitably refreshed, we decided to take one of the numerous boat trips on the Vltava. Informative and fun, we really enjoyed our little voyage. The commentary was provided on a headset and, included in the price of the ticket, was a choice of beer/lemonade and ice-cream/gingerbread; we had to forgo the latter. Smetana's 'Ma Vlast' complemented the trip nicely.
Our final stop of the day was the Church of St. Francis of Assisi. Built in 1679, its Baroque organ has been played by Mozart and Dvorak. Concerts still take place on a regular basis - this is true for the numerous churches in Prague. We didn't attend one because an hour long concert tended to be very expensive and just included the highlights of several pieces; a sort of Classic FM concert which I would probably have enjoyed (being a big Classic FM fan) but R would have hated - he prefers the full Radio 3 experience!
As lunch had been late and rather large, we didn't feel the need for dinner. so returned to the hotel for another early night - walking in the heat for 9-10 hours a day certainly takes it out of you!
On Thursday, after breakfast, we headed to the Jewish Quarter. Here, for the price of 1 ticket, you can visit 5 Synagogues, the Old Jewish Cemetery, a Ceremonial Hall and the Robert Guttman Gallery. The Klausen Synagogue and the Hall were having work undertaken at the time of our visit, so were closed to the public. The rest, however, proved both fascinating and poignant; especially in light of current events.
Maisel Synagogue:
The Pinkas Synagogue was turned into a memorial in the 1950s. Its walls bear the names of almost 80,000 murder victims under the Nazi regime.
It also displays a collection of drawings done by Jewish children transported to the Terezin Ghetto; a waystation to the concentration and death camps; they were heart-breaking in their memories of home and hopes for the future. We had to pause in the entrance for 10 minutes to allow a sudden, spectacular thunderstorm to clear.
The Old-New Synagogue, built in the 1280s, is the oldest continuously active Synagogue in Europe. It is home to many legends, notably that of the
Golem brought to life by Rabbi Loew. Photos of the hostages taken on October 7th last year line the walls, along with information about whether they are known to have died, have been returned home or are still held captive. Both memorials brought me to tears.
The cemetery is one of Europe's oldest preserved Jewish burial sites. It is also the resting place of Rabbi Loew, also known as the Maharal of Prague.
The Moorish style Spanish Synogogue:
The Gallery is used as a venue for temporary exhibitions and special events. I wasn't very much taken with the current artworks on display, but each to their own.
Not feeling especially hungry, lunch was corn nachos and guacamole at a local pub, washed down with beer (R) and ginger tea (me). They were very nice!
As was the coffee and apple tart at the museum cafe:
Before going to Prague, I had done my usual Googling to look for local yarn shops, a skein of sock yarn being a nice souvenir of a holiday. Only one appeared - Yarn Queen, which looked only a short walk away from Wenceslas Square, our next destination.
Making our way to the square, we discovered the statue of St. Wenceslas on a horse, situated in front of the National Museum. At the bottom of the museum steps a bronze cross is embedded in the pavement. This memorial is dedicated to Jan Palach, a history and political economics student who, aged 20, set himself alight in protest against the 1969 invasion of Czechoslovakia by the Warsaw Pact troops. He fell at the site of the cross and died of his burns 3 days later. On the 20th anniversary of his death, gatherings in his memory turned into mass anti-Communist protests, giving momentum to the Velvet Revolution which overturned the Communist regime later that year.
All I had for Yarn Queen was a written address. It turned out to be quite elusive and we walked for rather a long time before finding it. I bought a skein of yarn (sorry, no photo as yet) and we began the long walk back to the hotel. After 3 days of constant walking, I was beginning to flag. We decided to buy a 24 hour tram pass to cover our journey back and for our last day.
Whilst exploring the city, we had noticed a few areas where workmen were digging up the tram lines. It turned out that our journey, which should have been a simple ride across the middle of the city, was made impossible by these works. We had to take a series of trams for a few stops each, working our way round the closed off section. It was easier said than done, trying to work out which tram going in which direction to take next! At one point, now exhausted, we boarded yet another crowded tram and a young slip of a girl took one look at me and offered me her seat. Now that hasn't happened since I was pregnant and, thoughtful though the gesture was, it made me feel like Methuselah! I told her that she was very sweet, whilst actually thinking 'Bloomin' cheek'. I was so tired, however, that I accepted it! To add insult to injury, R then spent the rest of the journey leaning down and whispering 'We're old now!' in my ear!
Too exhausted to go anywhere else, we dined again at 'Loving Bistro' and then gratefully fell into bed.
On our final day, we had breakfast and then checked out, leaving our luggage at the hotel, and headed off to brave the trams once more to reach the funicular up to Strahov Monastery. Built in 1143, the Theological Hall and the picture gallery were impressive. On top of the hill, there was also the Petrin Tower (like the Eiffel Tower) which you could climb if desired (we didn't), an observatory, a maze and a rose garden.
After a snack of fries, beer (R) and more ginger tea (me again!), we explored the Loreta - a pilgrimage site with the Baroque church of the Nativity and a replica of the Holy House surrounded by cloisters and chapels. Highlights included The Prague Sun - a monstrance consisting of 6222 diamonds from the wedding dress of the Countess of Cracow - and, more unusually, one of the chapels contained a replica of the crucified bearded lady,
St. Wilgefortis.
Our final dinner, before heading to the airport, was at our favourite 'Loving Bistro' - it was handy for the hotel and our first choice was closed and we were too tired to go anywhere else! Our flight to Heathrow was uneventful and we were home by just gone midnight. It had been a full, interesting, and tiring 4 days, but it was well worth the 3 attempts that we took to get there. If you like history, stunning architecture and friendly people I would heartily recommend it. Just take a good stout pair of walking shoes!
Toodle pip for now. x
