JAM-PACKED PRAGUE (pt. 1)

we underestimated how much we would love prague. it turns out, we (okay, I) LOVED it. i'll tell you why as we go, but we only really spent 2.5 days in prague, and one of those was in terezin. so I have put it on the list of "places we must see again". you should go. it's wonderful!

for one thing, bryan adams had a concert there june 19th. so... yup. 

2. there are little street markets all over the city for easter, but this one is always on the main street of prague. and you can buy mulled wine, and TRDELNIK (you'll see...), and sausages, and simply gorgeous little cookies and molded breads, and gingerbread, and all kinds of crafts. feels very medieval. 

ryan on the charles bridge. (i can't believe how uncrowded it looks in the background. i think this was just a lucky 45 seconds.)

me on the bridge. and now you start to fathom the amount of people who also enjoyed prague on this beautiful, sunny, april day. 

ryan's close-ups of the bridge. i admit it. ryan took these. he has a good eye. 

then we walked up the steps to the prague castle. there's a lot of steps. 

view of prague as you approach the castle...

yes, that is a mechanical bull. i assume this place is for tourists/people who have never seen a real cowboys. love it. 

someone's rooftop garden. with several 10+ foot tall trees. no big deal. 

prague policemen guarding the changing of the guard at the castle. hahahaha...

the gates of prague castle.

ryan likes the statues of animals/people killing animals/people. he's a little savage that way. 

i took the one of the little children riding the gentle lion. ryan did not care for this one. 

got it. you can't do anything. okay. 

the remains of the church of our lady, built in this location around 870 A.D. 

we are outside st. vitus cathedral. when you go to prague castle, you buy an admissions ticket for 5, 7, or i think 13 different parts of the castle. we chose 7, because we only have one day to see everything in prague, and there's much more than the castle. you should spend a whole day here. when i go back, i will. 

the interior main alley of st. vitus. this is the 3rd version of this cathedral. the first was built in 920, founded by king wenceslaus, who later went on to inspire a christmas carol, and have a square in prague named after him! 

these pictures IN NO WAY do justice to the beauty of the stained glass. i would like to take an amateur photography class before our return, so that i will know how to get the glass better. nonetheless, use your imagination... they are much more vividly colored and jewel-ish in real life. 

this was my favorite, designed by alfons mucha. reno people will recognize his work from the prints in the ladies' room at the old Silver Peak. the colors move from cool blues to warmer tones lighting up the scene at the center. 

a little better. but here's a really great shot: pretty!

that's where the best sunday school student gets to sit. no, not really...

and oh, yeah-- there's a dead guy in the center. 

these are the confessional booths, and in my opinion, leave a little to be desired, in terms of... what's the word i'm looking for... privacy??

more shots from the interior of the cathedral: 

this is the statue outside, as you enter the residential part of the castle. 

view of prague from the ramparts. 

yup, i was there. 

we never found out for sure, but i think it's maybe a monument to the american soldiers who died in the czech area? it's just a little arch set on a hillside with the american flag flying. i'll send you a prize if you tell me, with verifiable fact, what it is. (first person only....)

these are not the bohemian crown jewels. these are IMITATIONS of the crown jewels. it was a very, very long line to the front of the case. so of course we waited in line, for a good 20 minutes, only to read, in badly translated english, that these were not the crown jewels, they were imitations (and not terribly good ones, from the pictures). this is due to a decree set down in the 14th century which declared that the crown jewels would only be displayed on certain holidays. the last time they were displayed was in 2008. 

ryan on another stone, spiral staircase, hitting his gorgeous head... he's just not built for ancient times. they would think he was a giant and tell him to guard the moat. 

ceilings in the... for lack of a better term.. office of the castle. 

some of these ledgers are from 1300's! and 1400's, 1500's, etc...

these crazy animals are on all the corners in the rooms. 

last view before we continued on our way... 

prague at twilight- and japanese tour groups.

after our standing up bus ride back, we wanted to walk around a bit before dinner. so here's the charles bridge before we were on it. 

and then we saw the biggest nightclub in europe. FIVE STORIES. i do not go to nightclubs though. 

sometimes, when you sit at a table in prague, as the locals appear to be doing, and try to make eye contact with a waiter, they will ignore you. for 45 minutes. and finally you realize that you should just go away, because they want you to. this will happen in switzerland too. it's okay. better meals come out of it. 

we wandered a little further and went into an underground cellar restaurant. the large center table was reserved for 2 separate Japanese tourist groups. first we had some czech beer:

ryan's is huge, like him. 

in prague, they bring you the bread basket, and then charge you for it if you touch it. i mean, it's not much, like 1-2 euro, but if you don't want bread, don't touch it. we did, obviously. 

czech meals start with soup. there's allegedly a saying about filling the belly with soup, and then having small portions of meat or whatever else. they're mostly clear, broth based soups. ryan loved this chicken broth with noodles and flank steak. i loved the mushroom soups with barley and herbs. 

the decor was positively medieval! there were a lot of dead things hanging on the walls. 

once we got to the restaurant and ordered drinks, we realized that we'd meant to convert more euros into czech currency, but we forgot. so we ordered a kabob dish that was for 2, and shared some sides. it was cheaper. it was NOT SMALLER. the tourist groups behind us had a set meal, and it was roasted pork of some kind. they were also taking pictures of everything on the walls, so we didn't feel bad. but when the kabob came, and i took a picture of it, EVERY SINGLE ONE OF THEM asked to take a photo, and did. so.... i guess that will be fun for their friends in japan??

prague is heavy on the meats, especially roasted. this is ham, steak, chicken wrapped in bacon, sausage, potatoes and mild chiles. so good. 

baltic salad. 

potato casserole. 

on the way home, we took this photo. then slept, glad to be free and full.