May 6

Tuesday we were up pretty early as well. We met Erin and Betty downstairs for breakfast, which was a huge buffet included in the price of the room. (They had lots of PORK!) I basically ate myself silly, trying to sustain myself to dinner. The food was absolutely awesome. We walked to the Metro station and grabbed another 24 hour pass. After a few stops and some orienting, we were faced with a walk up a side of the hill. It was actually the better way to go. It gave us access to the gardens outside the castle, with really nice city views. Plus, later on we did not have to backtrack.

View of Prague from the Castle


You are able to get into and out of Prague Castle without paying. However, to enjoy many of the things inside you have to pay. So as we were walking in the clouds opened up. As you may or may not know…many castles had walls and huge courtyards…not too much rain protection. So we ended up standing in line in the rain to get inside one of the churches. They had to regulate the amount of people going in so you could move one you got in there. The church was named St. Vitus Cathedral. It was so huge. Holy crap. You Catholics really know how to build some impressive churches. It had amazing stained glass, décor, just everything. Plus, you could walk to the top of the tower to get more views of the city. (Only 299 steps!)

Inside St. Vitus Cathedral

After visiting the church, we hit a café that was up here to have a tasty beverage. We decided that my OCD-ness along with the size of our group to not hit all the museums in the castle. I usually like to read and observe everything in these types of settings, but I would have drove them crazy. Plus, it gives me a reason to go back (which I plan to anyway!)
After the church we took a guide book recommended walk from the front entrance of the castle, down through the kick ass streets of Prague, across the Charles Bridge, and into the Old Town Square. This is a walk that you must do. You really get the feeling like you are walking in Europe. There is no other feel like it. Small shops, streets, people milling about. It is just amazing. The Charles bridge was build in 1357 and legend says that egg yolks were added to the mortar to strengthen the mix. It has lasted this long…so that might be an idea for you construction types. It survived the worst flood in 500 years in 2002, so something must be right. There are countless statues along the bridge, one of St. John of Nepomuk, who was martyred here. The state is a worn from all of the touching. It is said that by touching the statue, it gives you good luck and guarantees you a return trip to Prague. We continued walking along these amazing streets, checking out the local vendors, shopping, enjoying the weather and company. I bought a few awesome pictures of the city taken at night.

The Awesome Prague Streets

The old town square was a plethora of activity. Restaurants, people doing everything, performers, etc. It was quite a sight. The main attraction is an astronomical clock in the side one of the buildings.

The Old Town Square

We continued walking enjoying the many aspects of Prague, and then continued on to the train station. Erin and Betty needed to get tickets for the next day to ensure their trip would continue uninterrupted. After getting things sorted out, we walked back to the National Museum, which was closed today, but I wanted them to see it. We did most of the stuff that I said yesterday, even took them to Uflecku for dinner.

After dinner, Erin and Betty were about wore out, so we took them back to the hotel. Carol and I were not ready to call it a night yet, so we walked close to the hotel and had a few beverages while chatting about the day. The beer was really cheap (about $2 a beer)…and was really good. About 10pm we headed to the hotel to get a good night’s sleep. A great day with the Carol and the Family.

Me from the River looking at Prague Castle. You have to understand how big the castle was. you can see the church sticking out from the top, however the castle starts about where my head is at and goes to far building on the right at the top of the hill. Huge!