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Saturday, October 9, 2010
Monday, September 27, 2010
Last Days in Prague
On Friday we had a big day of Prague sightseeing. The weather was warm and sunny, and Caitlin and I met Estefi after her morning class and went to the Globe Cafe, an English cafe near the film school that offers comfort food like omelets, bagels, mac and cheese, and filtered coffee. Then we went to the Vlatava River (the main river that runs through Prague) and rented a paddleboat for an hour. It was so much fun! We got a great view of the city from the river and had fun trying to navigate the little boat around other boats, ducks, and around a little island.
After that we went to up the Prague Castle, which sits on a hill at the north end of the city. The castle surrounds St. Vitus Cathedral, which is what you can see from the other side of the river. Prague really looks like a fairytale town; we felt like we were in a storybook. We had lunch at a little cafe in the square behind the cathedral, and it really looked like a scene out of Shrek! We shared a chicken wrap and beef goulash in a bread bowl, and some Kozel, a dark Czech beer. After lunch we walked down the hill from the castle to the Charles Bridge, and stopped along the way at a little cafe to split a "Prague ball," a chocolate dessert with chocolate cake, chocolate filling, cookie crumbs, and a little coconut sprinkled on top. The bridge itself is beautiful, and the views from there of the castle were also amazing.
The next morning we started our day with a decadent breakfast at Kava Kava Kava, a coffee place near the center of town. It was rainy but not very cold, so it wasn't bad weather to walk around in. We stopped at a market in Wenceslas Square, and then at the permanent market nearby called Havelske Trziste. We walked to Old Town Square and saw the famous Astronomical Clock, and shared a bratwurst sausage on a roll from a stand in the square. That evening we went to see Swan Lake at the National Theater by the river. Before the show we went to Cafe Slavia across the street, a very fancy restaurant that felt like a hotel restaurant, complete with a pianist. For dinner we shared a poppy seed crêpe with salmon, apples, and a cheese sauce; roast duck with potato dumplings and purple sauer kraut (made from purple cabbage, I assume); ratatouille, and a pear dessert. I drank Moravian grog, a hot drink made of red wine, rum, sugar, and lemon. It kind of tasted like a hot toddy. We also drank coffee before the show to wake us up. And for all that it cost less than $20 a person! Gotta love the Czech Crown. The ballet itself was stunning. I had to keep reminding myself that I was sitting in a theater in Prague watching a ballet; it felt like a dream.
That night we went back home and packed, and Caitlin and I left early Sunday morning, her on a train headed for Munich, and me to New York via a connection in Paris. I was able to buy macarons from Ladurée at the shop in the Charles de Gaulle airport before my flight, and I was very happy I was able to bring them home for the parents. (Well, they didn't all make it home, but most of them did.) And now I'm back in NYC sorting through my pictures and trying to remind myself that it wasn't all a dream. Back to reality...pictures coming soon!
After that we went to up the Prague Castle, which sits on a hill at the north end of the city. The castle surrounds St. Vitus Cathedral, which is what you can see from the other side of the river. Prague really looks like a fairytale town; we felt like we were in a storybook. We had lunch at a little cafe in the square behind the cathedral, and it really looked like a scene out of Shrek! We shared a chicken wrap and beef goulash in a bread bowl, and some Kozel, a dark Czech beer. After lunch we walked down the hill from the castle to the Charles Bridge, and stopped along the way at a little cafe to split a "Prague ball," a chocolate dessert with chocolate cake, chocolate filling, cookie crumbs, and a little coconut sprinkled on top. The bridge itself is beautiful, and the views from there of the castle were also amazing.
The next morning we started our day with a decadent breakfast at Kava Kava Kava, a coffee place near the center of town. It was rainy but not very cold, so it wasn't bad weather to walk around in. We stopped at a market in Wenceslas Square, and then at the permanent market nearby called Havelske Trziste. We walked to Old Town Square and saw the famous Astronomical Clock, and shared a bratwurst sausage on a roll from a stand in the square. That evening we went to see Swan Lake at the National Theater by the river. Before the show we went to Cafe Slavia across the street, a very fancy restaurant that felt like a hotel restaurant, complete with a pianist. For dinner we shared a poppy seed crêpe with salmon, apples, and a cheese sauce; roast duck with potato dumplings and purple sauer kraut (made from purple cabbage, I assume); ratatouille, and a pear dessert. I drank Moravian grog, a hot drink made of red wine, rum, sugar, and lemon. It kind of tasted like a hot toddy. We also drank coffee before the show to wake us up. And for all that it cost less than $20 a person! Gotta love the Czech Crown. The ballet itself was stunning. I had to keep reminding myself that I was sitting in a theater in Prague watching a ballet; it felt like a dream.
That night we went back home and packed, and Caitlin and I left early Sunday morning, her on a train headed for Munich, and me to New York via a connection in Paris. I was able to buy macarons from Ladurée at the shop in the Charles de Gaulle airport before my flight, and I was very happy I was able to bring them home for the parents. (Well, they didn't all make it home, but most of them did.) And now I'm back in NYC sorting through my pictures and trying to remind myself that it wasn't all a dream. Back to reality...pictures coming soon!
Friday, September 24, 2010
Praha
Prague is absolutely beautiful! It really is challenging not speaking any Czech though. Many people speak a little English...but many people don't. The weather has stayed beautiful, it's a lot warmer than I thought it would be.
On Wednesday Estefi and I had a lazy afternoon and evening, since I was tired from waking up so early and traveling. We had dinner with her apartment mates (two juniors from Vassar) and two other juniors from Vassar also on the film program who don't live far away. We tried some Becherovka, a Czech liquor that tastes very cinnamony.
The next day I planned to walk around the Jewish quarter in the morning before meeting up with Estefi, but alas, it was a Jewish holiday, so I saw some of the synagogues from the outside. I walked around Old Town Square, where there's a famous Astronomical clock. I walked to the Prague City Museum, where there is this amazing architecturally correct mini model of Prague that this guy made in the 1800s. A lot of the buildings in the model are not standing anymore. They had the model on display, and they also had a 6-minute 3D movie of a flight over Prague filmed using this little model, so you could see architectural details up close. And of course it had very dramatic music accompanying it.
After that I met up with Estefi and we walked to Vysehrad, a park up on a hill. From there we could see the Prague Castle and the river and the Charles Bridge. It was an amazing view. After climbing lots of staircases up to this park we decided we deserved a treat, so after our walk home we got some ice cream at a cafe near her apartment. Then we took a nap and waited for Caitlin to arrive.
Once Caitlin got here, we went for dinner near the center of town at a restaurant that had an outdoor seating area with an accordian player. We got traditional Czech food (a meat platter sampler, potato pancakes, and dumplings, with Pilsner Urquell beer to drink and strudel for dessert) and then walked across the river to a jazz club that's on a docked boat. (It's actually called Jazz Dock.) We stayed there for a bit and then came home and slept very soundly.
Today we're going to more of the big sights, including Prague Castle, and maybe even paddleboating along the river!
On Wednesday Estefi and I had a lazy afternoon and evening, since I was tired from waking up so early and traveling. We had dinner with her apartment mates (two juniors from Vassar) and two other juniors from Vassar also on the film program who don't live far away. We tried some Becherovka, a Czech liquor that tastes very cinnamony.
The next day I planned to walk around the Jewish quarter in the morning before meeting up with Estefi, but alas, it was a Jewish holiday, so I saw some of the synagogues from the outside. I walked around Old Town Square, where there's a famous Astronomical clock. I walked to the Prague City Museum, where there is this amazing architecturally correct mini model of Prague that this guy made in the 1800s. A lot of the buildings in the model are not standing anymore. They had the model on display, and they also had a 6-minute 3D movie of a flight over Prague filmed using this little model, so you could see architectural details up close. And of course it had very dramatic music accompanying it.
After that I met up with Estefi and we walked to Vysehrad, a park up on a hill. From there we could see the Prague Castle and the river and the Charles Bridge. It was an amazing view. After climbing lots of staircases up to this park we decided we deserved a treat, so after our walk home we got some ice cream at a cafe near her apartment. Then we took a nap and waited for Caitlin to arrive.
Once Caitlin got here, we went for dinner near the center of town at a restaurant that had an outdoor seating area with an accordian player. We got traditional Czech food (a meat platter sampler, potato pancakes, and dumplings, with Pilsner Urquell beer to drink and strudel for dessert) and then walked across the river to a jazz club that's on a docked boat. (It's actually called Jazz Dock.) We stayed there for a bit and then came home and slept very soundly.
Today we're going to more of the big sights, including Prague Castle, and maybe even paddleboating along the river!
Wednesday, September 22, 2010
Dobrý den from Prague!
I'm sitting in the courtyard of the Prague Film School waiting for Estefi to get out of class, and taking advantage of the free Internet to write an update.
After I went to Giverny on Monday, I came back to Paris and walked around a lot, passed the Comedie Francaise, the Palais Royal, and the Louvre, and then walked along the Seine to Notre Dame. Then I went to Gare du Nord to meet Caitlin who was coming in on a train from London. After meeting up with her and Maria Laura, we went home and then out again for a late dinner. We ate at this place in the Marais (I think) that had really good French food. We shared appetizers of two types of pâté (duck and bean), entrees of beef tartar and raisin roasted chicken with vanilla couscous, and creme brûlée for dessert. And kir cassis to drink.
The next morning, Caitlin and I took the metro to Trocadero and went to a cafe for pain au chocolat and cafe au lait before going to see the Eiffel Tower. We didn't climb up it but walked underneath and around and took lots of pictures. Then we went to the Quartier Latin and walked around a lot. For lunch we split an egg and mushroom crepe, but were still hungry so we walked to a cafe by St Sulpice and got croque monsieurs. We also got macarons at Pierre Hermé, another famous sweet shop (rose and hazelnut flavors, and cassis for Maria Laura). We walked through the Jardins du Luxembourg and over to the Pantheon and the Sorbonne, and then ended up in front of the Theatre du Chatelet (close to the Latin Quarter) before heading home. We made a nice simple dinner and had an early night, and I left early this morning for the airport. M flight was delayed about 45 minutes so that was annoying, but I got an espresso and pain au chocolat in the terminal (calories don't count on vacation, right?) so that made the wait a little nicer.
When I got to Prague, I took out money in korunas, and then took a bus, a metro, and a tram to get here. I was kind of proud of myself for navigating it - some signs are written both jn English and in Czech but the ones that are not are nearly impossible to decipher! It was fun to listen to some Czech conversations though. To my ear it sounds a lot like Russian but it's probably very different.
I'll update again in a day or two when I've explored Prague a bit more!
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