Euro2008 - Prague

5 nights in the beautiful city of Prague in the Czech Republic

We dropped off our rental car at the Munich train station and boarded a train to Prague. The first leg of the trip was comfortable and uneventful but when we switched to a Czech train in Schwandorf, all hell broke loose. They apparently forgot to add two first class cars and all the second class cars were overbooked. We boarded the train OK but wound up standing part of the time. The conductor made room for the ladies by rousting some of the second class travelers from their seats but Steve and I stood in the aisle for the first two stops. I wish I had taken a picture of the chaos around us but my camera was in my bag and stowed with the ladies bags. We did make it to Prague and arrived at our rental apartment. It was located near the heart of the city and turned out to be a very nice place.
The next day we started exploring the city, walking around Old Town, The Jewish Quarter, Wenceslas Square, The Mucha Museum and various interesting eating establishments. We also explored the local supermarket and brought some supplies back to our apartment.
On Tuesday we had a great time exploring the Castle and the St. Vitus area. From there, we toured via Streetcar and took the Funicular up the hill to the Petrin Hill Tower. We then spent our last day in Prague (Wednesday) crisscrossing the city on trams. It's a rainy day (The Czech Weather Service was wrong every day we were there) and it seemed like a good way to see parts of the city that tourists normally don't see. Prague has a million residents, but entertain as many as three million tourists. Having this many foreign visitors has made the locals somewhat surly and indifferent, some were downright unfriendly. Prague is truly a beautiful city, but it's residents need to chill out. We had our last Prague meal at a small establishment on the outskirts of town where tourists seldom go and the people there were friendly and nice. Our final outing was to the Black Light Theatre on the Wenceslas Square. It turned out to be a fun performance.
We were off to Berlin early the next morning.

Click thumbnail to enlarge. You may click and drag, or move through images using the keyboard arrow keys. Click again to cancel.

A look at our Prague apartment.	A look out of our upstairs bedroom window. We are located in a two level apartment on the 4th floor of Karoliny Svetle #9.	Another look from the bedroom window in the other direction.	The good King Wenceslas, symbol of Czech Nationalism and Statehood.	The famous hotel in Wenceslas Square, the scene of the Velvet Revolution of 1992.
The King Charles bridge.	Oh the Horror! This is what happens when two people full of rich Czech food and beer squeeze into a one person elevator. A fast journey down to the ground level.	The Church of St. Mary the Victorious. The world famous "Infant of Prague", Pragues most precious jewel.	The Battling Giants at the entrance to the Presidential Palace.	Barbara and Cherie posing with the first President of Czechoslovakia, Tomas Masaryk.
The Cathedral St. Vitus. Construction started in 1344.	The Czech Republics most famous artist, Alfons Mucha, did this window in the cathedral.	Four hungry and thirsty tourists getting some needed food and libations.	A look down on the palace and cathedral from the lofty heights of Petrin Hill Tower.	A look back across the river Vlatava towards the location of our residence.
More good looking tourists. All tourists wear sunglasses.	Cherie and Barbara posing in the Rose Garden on Petrin Hill.	The photographer taking a well deserved break. Not really a significant scene but I look good in this picture ( You may well disagree) and I'm the one posting these last few pictures of our Prague stay :-)	Our last dinner stop in Prague. This was well outside the city center, in a working class area of town. Nice people and a hearty meal.	It takes a group effort to post our travel pictures and text.