Don't you just LOVE Bulgarians?
Tuesday, April 15, 2008
Sunday, April 6, 2008
Prague...Probably the most beautiful city in Europe
Well, we are FINALLY posting all our pictures from our Europe trip!! We went to Vienna and Prague over New Year's. It was amazing (even if it was a little cold)! We've posted our favorite pictures here, but all of them are posted in our Web album later (look for the link in our forthcoming Vienna post).
This is the entrance to Karlov Most. The legend goes that King Charles himself laid the first stone for the bridge in 1357 on the 9th of July at 5:31 AM, so it's a huge palindrome (135797531). He is definitely the most popular monarch they have - our tour guide talked about him A LOT.
This is a view from the bridge of a cute side street with Christmas lights.
Standing at the entrance to the Karlov Most (Charles Bridge) looking across the Vltava River to Prague Castle. The bridge is in Mission Impossible, so you might recognize it.
Probably?
Trdelnik, also known as Trdlo. Probably the best treat you'll find in Prague! They roll the dough into a long thin rope then wrap it around these big metal cylinders and roll it in sugar then cook it over the coals until the outside is crispy and the inside is warm and then they roll it in the sugar again and then give you a piece of it - it is warm and delicious! It was especially nice on those cold December days!
Mmmmm.....Trdelnik!
Prague by night..a view of Prague Castle across the river, with the Charles Bridge also visible. Prague Castle is the largest castle in Europe. We know you are thinking that Versailles is larger, but as our tour guide was SO adamant in pointing out, Versailles is a palace, not a castle. Seriously, though, Prague Castle once had a moat and they have towers for guards. Click on the picture for a much larger and better view of this beautiful picture.
This is the entrance to Karlov Most. The legend goes that King Charles himself laid the first stone for the bridge in 1357 on the 9th of July at 5:31 AM, so it's a huge palindrome (135797531). He is definitely the most popular monarch they have - our tour guide talked about him A LOT.
On the bridge is a spot where it is rumored one of the kings threw a priest off to his death for not telling the king whether the king's wife had confessed infidelity. Nowadays it is popular among tourists to touch a spot on the bridge (see Tom below!) where the priest was thrown off, supposedly granting one's wish. The only problem is, it's not the actual spot where the priest was thrown off! Our tour guide showed us the actual spot, but it is much less popular.
This is the other side of the bridge which opens on to a beautiful little street. Prague seemed to have a lot of these, but they are common in most European cities.
This is a view from the bridge of a cute side street with Christmas lights.
We found Becca's FAVORITE European grocery store, Billa! We got bread, cheese, and juice for dinner and ate in our hotel. We had a hard time paying because they overcharged for the bread because they didn't understand us (we don't really speak Czech, just in case you hadn't noticed!).
Probably the best fried cheese Becca will ever eat! Fried cheese is a popular meal for college students because it's so cheap! And it's safe for Becca because she's picky! Mmmmmm.....cheese.
Prague has a Jewish quarter and we got a picture of this clock tower that has both a normal clock and a Hebrew clock. Seeing the two right next to each other is pretty cool. We wanted to go back to the Jewish quarter but didn't get a chance. They have a cemetery adjoining a synagogue where all the names of the Czech Holocaust victims are engraved on the wall. The cemetery is very small but it is 12 (?) layers deep because they didn't have space to spread out. I guess we'll have to see that on our next trip to Prague...dare to dream!
This is the cathedral inside the walls of Prague Castle. It was started in the middle ages but wasn't actually finished until Bohemia (the old name for the Czech/Slovak region) gained independence in the early 20th century. We just missed the last tour of the day, so we didn't get to go inside. Again, next time....
This is Wenceslas Square which occupies a central location and has been the scene of many political protests and other major events in Prague's history. Shown here is a statue of "Good King Wenceslas" who was actually a Duke and not a king (ironically, they don't have that song in the Czech Republic). The building in the background is the Czech National Museum. In the 1970s (?) when Czechoslovakia was attempting to free themselves from Communism, the Soviet Army rolled into Wenceslas Square and started firing on this building because they thought it was the Parliament building, but, no, it's just a museum. Incidentally, Prague has also been the scene of several famous defenestrations which typically arose due to political disagreements and we all know the best way to handle such a situation is to throw the other guy out of a window (?!). Anyway, moving on....
This is the Opera House where Mozart's Don Giovanni was premiered. "Amadeus" was also filmed here.
This is the Old Town Square which is one of the most popular tourist destinations. This time of year they had Christmas markets out with crafts and yummy food. We had lots of Klobasa and Trdelnik. So good! The building shown with the two towers represents Adam and Eve - the right hand tower is slightly larger than the other.
This is the astronomical clock. Probably the most famous attraction in Prague. It chimes every hour and it has lots of moving parts and figures. You can read all about the different parts and see lots of close up pictures here. This is Becca's favorite thing about Prague. At first, Tom was not that impressed because he was expecting more. But it is really cool once you learn about what all the pieces mean. So go read about it! It's not a great picture because the thing is so huge!
A view of Prague by night, taken from the wall of Prague Castle. It is such a beautiful city, and we recommend that you visit!
Probably the best fried cheese Becca will ever eat! Fried cheese is a popular meal for college students because it's so cheap! And it's safe for Becca because she's picky! Mmmmmm.....cheese.
Prague has a Jewish quarter and we got a picture of this clock tower that has both a normal clock and a Hebrew clock. Seeing the two right next to each other is pretty cool. We wanted to go back to the Jewish quarter but didn't get a chance. They have a cemetery adjoining a synagogue where all the names of the Czech Holocaust victims are engraved on the wall. The cemetery is very small but it is 12 (?) layers deep because they didn't have space to spread out. I guess we'll have to see that on our next trip to Prague...dare to dream!
This is the cathedral inside the walls of Prague Castle. It was started in the middle ages but wasn't actually finished until Bohemia (the old name for the Czech/Slovak region) gained independence in the early 20th century. We just missed the last tour of the day, so we didn't get to go inside. Again, next time....
This is Wenceslas Square which occupies a central location and has been the scene of many political protests and other major events in Prague's history. Shown here is a statue of "Good King Wenceslas" who was actually a Duke and not a king (ironically, they don't have that song in the Czech Republic). The building in the background is the Czech National Museum. In the 1970s (?) when Czechoslovakia was attempting to free themselves from Communism, the Soviet Army rolled into Wenceslas Square and started firing on this building because they thought it was the Parliament building, but, no, it's just a museum. Incidentally, Prague has also been the scene of several famous defenestrations which typically arose due to political disagreements and we all know the best way to handle such a situation is to throw the other guy out of a window (?!). Anyway, moving on....
This is the Opera House where Mozart's Don Giovanni was premiered. "Amadeus" was also filmed here.
This is the Old Town Square which is one of the most popular tourist destinations. This time of year they had Christmas markets out with crafts and yummy food. We had lots of Klobasa and Trdelnik. So good! The building shown with the two towers represents Adam and Eve - the right hand tower is slightly larger than the other.
This is the astronomical clock. Probably the most famous attraction in Prague. It chimes every hour and it has lots of moving parts and figures. You can read all about the different parts and see lots of close up pictures here. This is Becca's favorite thing about Prague. At first, Tom was not that impressed because he was expecting more. But it is really cool once you learn about what all the pieces mean. So go read about it! It's not a great picture because the thing is so huge!
A view of Prague by night, taken from the wall of Prague Castle. It is such a beautiful city, and we recommend that you visit!
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