This was our day to do whatever we wish at our own pace. Another warm, sunny day (sure wish that I'd brought more short sleeve shirts - the weather forecasts before we left home were for very cool evenings and mornings and mild days. Well, clearly, the definition of mild did not transfer well from one language to the others :) No complaints from us....it's been amazingly clear - the only rains occurred at night with one cool and drizzly morning that cleared in the afternoon.
We headed back to the Jewish Quarter to see the Spanish Synagogue which we missed on our previous tour...got as far as the gift shop where I purchased the Star of David that I had wanted from a very friendly and helpful lady. Very different from the totally uninterested salesgirl at the Maisel Synagogue. We passed the Franz Kafka Museum and Cafe and then headed to the Charles Bridge following our difficult to read map and moving through the zig-zag streets/lanes. We found it without difficulty and took lots of pictures of both sides of the Vitava River. It's a photographer's paradise. There's a picture in every direction, so that's what I did...took them all :)
Note: to all of my faithful readers - once I organize my large picture collection, I will post links in all of the appropriate places, so do check back to view them and vicariously enjoy the places we visited.
The Charles Bridge
is very busy, full of tourists crossing from the Old Town to the First Quarter and lined with musicians, vendors of jewelry, art, etc. and lots of caricaturists. Lots of energy on this hot day. When we got to the other side we tried to find the Lennon Wall (it is a wall that was formerly an ordinary wall in Prague and has been called Lennon´s since the 1980s, when people have filled it with John Lennon-inspired graffiti and pieces of lyrics from Beatles songs. Lennon was a hero to the pacifist youth of Central and Eastern Europe during the totalitarian era. Prior to 1989 when communism ruled, western pop songs were banned by Communist authorities, and especially John Lennon´s songs, because it was praising freedom that didn’t exist here. Some musicians were actually jailed for playing it! (taken from Prague.net)The wall is pretty amazing - the communists painted over it many times and the 'artists' just came back and painted over the white wash.
We found out about the wall from Rick Steve's Prague. He also mentioned a small cafe that could be entered through a door at the left side of the wall. It was like an oasis in the midst of the heat and crowds of the bridge. We stopped for beer, hummus and pita and a Caprese salad...all wonderful. We enjoyed the quiet walled garden with rhododendrons, the largest tree in Prague and flowers on the tables. We walked towards the river after lunch and found ourselves in the beautiful setting of Kampa Island which had some lovely old hotels and restaurants and a quiet park along the river. Then we climbed the steep steps back up to the bridge and crossed again to Old town. A slow walk and 2 Gelotos later, we made our way back to the Marriott (meeting 2 cruise friends along the way). Seemed so funny to be in a large city in the Czech Republic and bumping into people we knew.
Pictures of our Last Day in Praha!
And so....it was time to pack while Art took a nap! Much easier to pack for homecoming that for vacation. We didn't do much shopping this trip so at least our bags didn't have to be stretched much. Our Washer/Dryer will be busy when we get home.
Had a light dinner in the Executive Lounge and visited with another couple from the ship who was part of our group to Terezin yesterday. Then finished packing, paid our bill and arranged for an early wake-up call. This is it from Eastern/Central Europe. More when I get my pictures organized. Signing out from Prague.
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