Prague Prague Prague Prague!

I’m BAAACK!!! Had a fantastic time in Prague, is a beautiful city, everyone should visit it sometime – MILLIONS of tourists, but still very cool and old and pretty and all that stuff! Was strange travelling with a nearly 2 year old, not in a bad way, just different (oh dear, that doesn’t sound clichéd or anything! Hey look, Word puts in the little French symbols over cliché and cliché and cliché!! TeeHee!) Anyway, back to the future… Well not really… Btw, saw Bill and Ted’s Excellent Adventure in German last week Susan, just as funny! Also saw a Monty Python (or at least by the Monty Python people) yesterday, ummm… Time ______ about dwarves… Missed the beginning, so not entirely sure what it was about really….

Anyway, Prague! Got up unnaturally early to catch the first train into LInz, the train was at 5:30, so lets leave it at that, I don’t think the time I got up actually exists… Got on the train, choo-chooed to Prague, were met there by our host for the stay (have NO idea how to spell her name, may look in up when I get to my emails) and caught the tram to her home. Basically this lady was a contact of Michaela’s flute teacher, who has 3 rooms downstairs in her house for guests, who are referred to her. She kept telling me I had to come back with my friends! Was very friendly and helpful, a little over helpful in many ways (explained to us EVERY step of the journey by tram, bus or underground to get into the heart of Prague, made it all sound very scary, reall isn’t!) but was good to have a local to really help! Her house was very much as I’d expected for ‘Eastern Europe’, as was the neighbourhood – watch an old film set in the Cold War era in Eastern Europe, and it all looks very similar today stil (but better living conditions). She was telling us what some of the tram stop names meant in English (all stops here have names, even the buses, not just numbers like in Tassie) and I was interested to note that a few of them had names like Our Trainstation, Our Hospital etc. I wonder if this is a Communist, everything belongs to everyone legacy (btw just read Animal Farm (George Orwell) last night, very good, worth reading, all animals are equal, but some are more equal than others…)

We spent that afternoon in Prague, with our guide showing us some of the important parts in Old Town, a funny clock where all the apostles come out on the hour (it also has the date and other stuff), a cool church, St Tyn’s I think (although I bit too much gold for my liking!), of course St George’s bridge (the bridge in Mission Impossible, that whatshisface ‘dies’ off (saw that a few nights ago too, got very excited that I could recognise things!) and just the general coolness of it all. Theres’s so much amazingly interesting history here, the Europeans just don’t understand what it’s like for those of us who come from somewhere that was colonised for the bad guys only 200 odd years ago. There are buildings here that were built a thousand years ago, that are still in use – I would LOVE to be able to see all the interesting things these buildings have seen!

The most stressful part of that day was probably buying dinner. Macdonalds (Rose was getting DESPERATE, it was fast, there and we could take it back to eat from home watching tv). Nothing against there all new healthy menu, but it’s so hard to order in a foreign language!! I wanted dressing for my salad, but when they asked I had no idea how to ask for the one I wanted… Plus I think I got the trainee… Eeek! Anyway… got there in the end...!

Next day we wanted to see the Prague castle, but set off a bit too late, and there was a massive queue for tickets, so instead we went on a wander through the Old City again, looking out for nice souvenirs on the way. Bought a few things here and there (I got a very cute TINY glas dragon wearing a top hat…) and dinner and generally just soaked in the atmosphere! I wanted to see the Museum of Medieval Torture Instruments (don’t ask me why, it fascinates me that people could actually have thought up some of those instruments…) but Michaela wasn’t too keen….!! That’s ok, we saw lots of other things instead!

Prague Castle therefore was the next day, and we got there fairly early, and there was no sign of the massive queues of people (we think they were actually there for something different). The castle is great though. We spent I think 5 hours looking around at all the things our tickets would let us see, from the ultra touristy (but understandably tourist filled – is massive, beautiful and gold plated) St Vitus’ Cathedral to a prison (wasn’t very interesting, I reckon there are prolly far more interesting ones under the castle, was very small) to (my favourite part) a display of different suits of armour. There was a very cool one, would have suited someone in Lord of the Rings I reckon, the helmet was like a bird or something, with a big pointy nose/face… Scary really! There were also weapons, from spears to those spiky balls on chain on a stick and a torture cahmber display… All very interesting…! This was in this really cute little lane, shops built into the fortification wall (the armour was in the soldiers guarding part, above the shops, I reckon it must be SOOOOO cold in winter there!), and although Lonely Planet though Golden Lane was missable, I disagree, was very pretty – people were living there until the 1950s!!

Other interesting things in the castle were the MASSIVE ballroom in the palace (and a displays with pictures of the Defenstration of Prague!! Teehee!), St George’s chapel thing (much more churchy, fewer tourists) and the tower with between 200 and 300 steps, but an amazing view over Prague! There were other things, but you’ll just have to visit to see for yourself! The funniest was the 15 minute queue for the loos (I was busting, anyway, why do the women’s loos have massive queues and the men’s no queues – we can hold on longer!) with a lady behind me examining her map as though maybe she thought they were an attraction everyone was lining up to see… There’s also a massive display about the history of Prague, but Rose was getting a little fidgety by that stage, so we just went through quickly! She was very good generally though, hours of sitting in the backpack, not much running time (hehe, so cute when she walks or runs!) and strange eating habits (ie, Aunty Mog eying off all her food…!).

After the castle we went back down the hill (and it was was hill) I bought a wooden frog that hangs on a spring (so cute though!) and a nice poster of Prague and after going through Old Town once more, we went back to our lodgings!! The next day we got up a bit later, had brekkie, ran to Spar (supermarket, they ad Cadbury’s chocolate there! Why can’t Austrian Spar’s have Cadbury’s????) then drove to the station. Eventually got on the train, got settled, only to discover our cabin was actually reserved and there was only standing room remaining! Michaela got a seat after an hour or so, I got one after 2ish. It was fun to stand and look out the window though (between watching Rose run up nd down the corridor charming the socks off all the people in the cabins!) Got to Vienna, said bye bye Rose and Michaela, got to the other train station in Vienna (although by that time I was so confused about where I was) and got on the train to Linz, then to home… Overall it was a 7 hours in 3 trains day…. Long, but worth it!

Prague was great, was good to see Michaela and Jim (for one day in Vienna, spent in the VERY museumy Natural History Museum, I think it was in Inspector Rex once, but really a proper museum – built as one in the 19th century!) and Rose, so overall I had a good week! Anyway, going to see Mr and Mrs Smith this afternoon (I NEED to see a new movie! Wanted to see Batman Begins, but not on today!) so need to connect to the internet, check my email and of course post this!

Watched most of American Beauty last night, the voice they use for Kevin Spacey (and always use apparently) is not right! Everyone else is ok they! Also saw The Glass House on Sunday, that was fairly good and suspenseful.. Read Wuthering Heights last week, not bad, not as good as Jane Eyre (different sister I know), a bit sad, but still good! Ok! Bye now!