Tuesday, January 14, 2014

Killer Views and Dancing Buildings - Day Lucky Thirteen


Since we had a refrigerator in our hotel room, it was time to stock it. First thing, we walked over to the Tesco a couple blocks away and got some travel staples: milk, cereal, bread, and Nutella knockoff. This would take care of all of our future breakfasts during our stay in Prague.

I didn't sleep well and ended up taking a little nap after breakfast, which meant we got a later start on the day. But sometimes it's worth it, because when you're on vacation, you can stay up late and make up for it. When we finally got out for the day, it was chilly and overcast, but it never rained. Just up the road, as we crossed the river, we started to see things like this.


Time for lunch. Today we went to Pricny Rez. We sat in the basement which had these strange dreamcatcher-type decorations surrounding us.


The lunch menu was small and entirely in Czech, so I pointed and guessed. Turns out, much like Indiana Jones in THE LAST CRUSADE, I chose wisely. I ended up with a fried cauliflower salad with potatoes. Completely unexpected and much-needed veg, albeit fried.


Hub's guess turned out to be steak with gnocchi, which was also tasty.


To wash it all down, we tried Staropramen 10, which is lighter and not as good as the Unfiltered 12. Get the 12! Always the 12! 2 beers + 2 entrees + tip = about 350 Kr.

After lunch we wandered around the old town. Every time you look up, there's a new steeple. All the buildings are different colors, but somehow they all match. All of the town squares are glorious. We found the Estates Theatre, where Mozart premiered DON GIOVANNI.


Wencelas Square was filled with delicious looking food vendors. Vats of sauerkraut. A pig roasting on a spit. The air filled with warm smoke and culinary delight.


Since we'd just had lunch we only indulged in a Trdelnik. Put it together phonetically, it's fun. Bread meets sugar meets donut, kind of like a churro without cinnamon. Quite good, but perhaps a little expensive at 50 Kr.


We walked around for a long time, just wandering, trying to stick to small side streets to avoid the crowds. Lots of tourists in April. We tried to find as much quiet as possible.

Despite the chill, we had some gelato on the way to the Old Town Square. Never too cold for gelato.


The Old Town Square was fairly massive with a large green statue in the center, surrounded by beautiful buildings. The cobblestones were intense and the horses pulling carriages has special shoes to help them walk. They were sort of like clogs for horses.


We paid 100 Kr per person to climb up the Town Hall Tower for some spectacular views. The climb is all ramp, so very accessible. I don't do well in small spaces and if you're familiar with any high viewpoints in Europe, it's usually steep, narrow staircases that seem to never end.

Here is some eye candy of just a few of the many spectacular angles from the top.





If you aren't convinced yet, Prague is just gorgeous.



After that, it was back to wandering.

We ate dinner at Cafe Therapy. The place was lively and full. All the customers seemed so happy, having loud conversations in the casual atmosphere. This is a place I would probably eat at a lot if it was in LA. We shared an appetizer of cheese with peppers in olive oil.


There was also a plate of fish and chips involved.


I had Pilsner Urquell's and appreciated its bitterness. Hubs tried a Gambrinus, which I preferred.


A solid meal in a fun, buzzing atmosphere. 1 appetizer + 1 entree + 2 beers + tip = 350 Kr.

After a long day and logging many miles on our tired feet, we trudged back to the hotel. Even outside of the Old Town there were sights to be seen. We passed the Frank Gehry designed Fred and Ginger building on the way back.

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