PRAGUE

We disembarked from our ship, the Viking Var, yesterday, May 26, and took the train through Hungary and Slovakia into the Czech Republic and the beautiful city of Prague. Our hotel is located in Wenceslas Square, named after the king in the Christmas Carol. By the time we were settled in our room, it was dinner time, so we headed out for a stroll. We walked to the Astronomical Clock, about 10 minutes from our hotel. The clock was installed in 1410, and is beautiful to look at, but a bit difficult to tell time by. The four figures flanking the clock are set in motion at the hour, these represent four things that were despised at the time of the clock's making. the first is Vanity, represented by a figure admiring himself in a mirror. Next, the miser holding a bag of gold represents greed. Across the clock stands Death, a skeleton that strikes the time upon the hour. Finally, the Turk tells of pleasure and entertainment.

This morning we joined the gang for an amazing 3 hour Tour of the city, on segways. These are so much fun, and a great way to get around. There were 14 of us which made the experience even better. We visited the Prague Castle, the largest castle in the world, and also has some of the most amazing views of the city. We also visited David Cerny's sculpture...Pissing Men.....very interesting. We stopped at the "John Lennon" wall. This memorial was started the day after he was shot. The people painted pictures and messages of sympathy, and the next day the Communist government painted over it. The following day, the people again painted their messages to John Lennon, and again the government painted over it. Finally, someone realized that the wall was part of the Malta embassy, and so they applied to the government of Malta for permission to paint their tribute wall, and permission was granted. It has been here ever since.....someone else said the wall is owned by the Knights of Malta?? Regardless, the wall remains.
We walked the Charles bridge across the Vltava river. It is a beautiful pedestrian bridge that was constructed from 1357 until the early 15th century. There are 30 statues decorating it. Jane and the gang are staying in a gorgeous historic building just down the street from the bridge.
This afternoon, Tom and I wandered in and out of narrow cobblestone streets, admiring the old buildings, and window shopping. There is a lot of Bohemian crystal for sale here.
We have found an amazing food market, just down the street that has all sorts of barbecues and hot food. We sampled the grilled cheese sandwich, which is huge hunks of cheese cooked right on the grill over hot coals, then plopped onto a small piece of delicious bread....very tasty. They also make a traditional Czech sweet, a Trdlo...I can't pronounce it either, but it is dough that is strung onto a long wooden dowel, and grilled over hot coals, then coated in sugar, and what looks like almonds, might be trying that later.
We have one more day here, before heading home. We will be joining our travel buddies for a farewell dinner tomorrow night.....stay tuned