Prague

Prague was a last minute addition to the trip. After getting several US State Department warnings about travel in Turkey, we decided to change our last stop from Istanbul to Prague. I am determined to get to Istanbul one day. It has always been at the very top of my must-see list. That being said, we could not have chosen a better substitute destination. I LOVED Prague! It is a beautiful city full of people who celebrate their freedom everyday. The city was only bombed once during World War II (the US mistakenly dropped a bomb in the middle of the city, thinking it was Dresden, Germany) therefore all the centuries old buildings are there for us to enjoy.

Our first full day in Prague was Easter Sunday. We joined the festivities on the town square Sunday afternoon.

: Outside of The Church of Our Lady before Tyn decorated for Easter.

: Booth with local crafts for sale. Old Town Square was covered with craft and food booths.

: For this tasty treat, dough is rolled out into a long, thick string, then wrapped around a rolling pin. The rolling pin is put over hot coals and rotated. When the bread is cooked, sugar and cinnamon are sprinkled over the roll. Yummy!

: Pits cooking these huge hams were set up around the Square. The meat eaters in our family enjoyed this meal!

: Intricately painted blown eggs are a family tradition in the Czech Republic — beautiful.

: A park on the outskirts of the square. You can see the red topped craft and food booths set up to resemble a medieval marketplace. Another sighting of The Church of Our Lady before Tyn in the background.

A few pictures of the more famous sites in Prague.

: View over the red-roofed buildings in Prague.

: Astronomical Clock in Prague. This is frequently listed as one of the most disappointing tourist attractions in the world. Of course, Prague was awesome, and our last stop, so we loved it anyway.

: Giant Metronome can been seen from many points in the city. It is a reminder of the good and bad time throughout the history of the city.

: John Lennon Wall. Although John Lennon never visited Prague, he (and his lyrics) was an inspiration to rebels protesting the Communist regime of Czechoslovakia.

: Caleb and Anna patiently waiting outside the grocery store. The tram is passing by. We used the the tram system in Prague only once (when we were lost). The city seemed very compact, so we walked everywhere.

: Walking around our neighborhood. Our apartment was in Prague 7. We had about a 20 minute walk down the hill into Old Town — the same walk took at least 30 minutes on the the way home because of the hill. For the days we stayed around the neighborhood, two huge parks sandwiched the area. Andrew played basketball several days, Caleb ran, and Anna kicked the soccer ball around. They were very pleased with the location choice.

: Walking home from the city through one of the parks. Prague castle can be seen the the background.

: Entrance to Prague Castle — that’s our tour guide with Andrew and the kids. It is nice when the free walking tour turns into a private walking tour because the other participants are no shows.

: The church in Prague Castle.

: Vltava River in Prague, with Prague Castle in the background. This bridge was finished at precisely 1357/9/7 5:31. These numbers are all odd and all but 9 are prime. Most ancient rulers were very superstitious. So was the king.