czech republic: prague

I got really lucky this year when it came to holidays during the school year. We had our 'spring break' at the end of February and beginning of March, (when it was not yet spring,) AND I got to have a short work week the next week. International Women's Day takes place every year on 8 March, this year it was a Thursday. I asked my director ahead of time if we got the Friday off school as well, and as soon as she said yes I booked tickets for another trip. In other words, I got a week off for spring break, then a 4.5 day weekend right afterward. YAY!

My schedule at school this year had Wednesday afternoons off, so I was able to head to the airport at lunchtime in time for a mid afternoon flight. Several hours later I landed in Prague, one of my all time favourite cities. Even though I've never lived in Prague, every time I arrive there it feels like I'm coming home.

My host sent an Uber taxi to pick me up, it didn't take long to get to the home of my host. I met Katarina when I lived in Kyiv, we became good friends during those years. I was thrilled when she moved to Prague with her daughter, I knew I'd come visit. Katarina and I stayed up late talking, catching up about our lives.

The next morning I woke up pretty early, as my body was totally confused about what time it was. (Keep in mind that less than a week earlier I was in Uzbekistan, which is a couple hours ahead of Moscow, and Prague is an hour behind Moscow in winter.)

Before flying Katarina had asked if there were any foods in particular that I wanted, so I told her about my all time favourite yogurt. She hadn't been positive with what she'd bought, and when I first saw it, I wasn't sure either. 

Howeva, when I opened the jar I realized the company had changed its packaging but the yogurt was the same goodness I remembered from before. Best yogurt ever.

That morning I went with Katarina as she dropped her daughter off at school. There was some sort of reception before class started, so I got to meet her teacher and see her classroom. It was nice to see that she fit in well with her classmates, and was doing well academically.

Then Katarina dropped me off in the city center, we arranged a time for me to be home later in the evening. She dropped me off near an area of the city called Mala Strana, which is basically at the bottom of Castle Hill. I walked through the neighborhood, making my way slowly up the hill. I looked in a lot of souvenir shops, looking for a specific keychain, and finally found it.

After the successful keychain shopping miracle, I walked back down the hill, and made my way over to the so called Lennon Wall. It isn't any great shakes, it's just a wall covered in grafitti. The wall became a thing when young Czechs decided to use it as a way to express themselves when the government was still very repressive. The current grafitti is painted over quite regularly, as far as I know there are no rules about it. Visitors love to take heaps of photos, Czechs in general don't think anything of it. (According to Mom, who had never even heard of the wall until I took her to see it during one of my visits.)

I walked across the Charles bridge and through part of the old town area, making my way toward one of David Czerny's works, a man hanging from a pole over a street. It's not immediately obvious, but you can always tell when people spot it for the first time, as they are quite concerned that a real person is hanging on for dear life.

Obviously, I looked into every church I passed along the way, as I always do. Churches in Prague are fancy, glorious, and numerous.

I walked through the old town square, it was crowded as always. I noticed there was scaffolding over the astronomical clock, which must've been a huge disappointment to many visitors. The clock was first installed in 1410, and is the oldest still operating clock in the world. During a previous visit to the city I climbed up the clock tower, the views around the area are lovely.

From there I walked to a mall to see another work by David Czerny, a guy sitting on an upside down horse. It hangs from the ceiling, eye catching to say the least.

I was hungry by that point, and instead of eating real food, I went for one of my favourites: a filled chimney. It's basically dough wrapped around a form and cooked to form a cone of sorts. I have no idea where the name came from. My favourite flavour is called berries, it is whipped cream and berries. So good.

I decided to walk along the river, to another iconic sight of the city: the so called Dancing House. It is actually a couple buildings designed to look as if they are a couple dancing. Very cute.

There is a bridge close to the dancing house, so I crossed the river and started walking home. On the way I stopped by yet another of David Czerny's works: the babies. They are huge, crawling babies with funny looking heads.

My walk took me out the back side of Castle Hill, I don't think I've ever walked that way previously. Then the most embarassing thing ever happened to me. I slipped and fell, ON A BANANA PEEL!!! I thought that only happened in movies, but I was wrong. It's a good thing I can laugh at myself.

I met Katarina and her daughter at a grocery store, where we picked up dinner ingrediants. We walked home through the campus of a technical university, another part of Prague I hadn't seen previously.

The next day was Friday, the daughter had to go to school again. She was up as early as I was, and was happy to spend some time reading while eating breakfast. My breakfast was another double serving of the best yogurt ever.

After dropping the daughter off at school, Katarina dropped me in another part of central Prague, near Cafe Savoy. I first walked up the rest of the short street (it is a dead end,) to a memorial I've seen before. This memorial honours the victimes of Communism and Fascism, using guant human like sculptures. I don't know how to say it other than it is intense.

I walked up the street, toward the more touristy section, to see if my favourite place in the city was open. Unfortunately, it wasn't. Vrtba gardens has amazing views of the whole city, from the middle of the city.

Even though I wasn't terribly hungry, I went back to Cafe Savoy and very much enjoyed another breakfast and tea.

After stuffing myself, I walked back to a bridge and went back to the old town side of the river. I got to the tall tower on one side of Charles Bridge and paid to climb up the stairs. 

The views from the top are great, its fun to watch all the tourists scurry back and forth across the bridge. There is also a small museum up there, with history of the city.

I went back down the stairs and walked through the old town area. I've gotten quite good at moving quickly through crowds, a talent sorely needed in highly touristed cities. I walked all the way to a public transport stop, where I was able to catch a tram that took me to the neighborhood where my mom used to live. I love the neighborhood, I really wish she'd bought her apartment instead of renting. That way I would've been able to stay in the 'family apartment' each time I come to visit the city. Oh well.

I got off the tram and went into a mall, where I used wifi to download podcasts. I also spent time wandering through the grocery store in the basement of the mall. (I can never resist a grocery store, even if I've been there many times previously.)

I took the metro back to the home of my host, where I stayed up way too late (again,) chatting with Katarina. We don't see each other often, but clearly have plenty to say when we do.

The next morning I continued my streak of waking up early, and ate breakfast. Then, just because I could, I went back to sleep. Eventually I got up for real, and got dressed to go for a walk with Katarina and her daughter.

Our walk actually started with a drive, to a parking garage closer to the city center. We made our way out of the parking garage and walked down the street that has the memorial I'd seen the day before, to the victims of communism and fascism.

Since we were in the area, I asked Katarina and her daughter if they'd seen Czerny's babies. It turned out they hadn't, so that's where we went. It was a fun chance for the two of them to have a photo together :)

We also took a look at the yellow penguins (modern art,) lined up along the edge of the river, because I think they're cute.

Then the three of us crossed Charles Bridge. The city/country is slowly cleaning all the statues on the side of the bridge, removing each one as they do so. There is a HUGE difference in how the clean statues look versus the 'dirty' statues look. I wonder how long it will take for the whole project to be finished.

Considering the number of people on that bridge on a Saturday afternoon, I'm pretty proud that all three of us made it off the other side of the bridge, together.

Katarina needed to exchange money, so we went looking for an exchange bureau that used a reasonable exchange rate, and didn't charge a huge commission. I had no idea how hard it would be to find a decent place! Some places charged a commission as high as 25%, others used a rate that was about 60% of the value a US dollar. Crazy.

We found a good exchange desk next to a mall. After getting the money she wanted, we went in the mall, to visit a toy store. Katarina's daughter had fun picking out a toy she had been promised.

We went to eat at a place in the old town that had good food and decent prices. It's been a while since I've had handmade Italian noodles. Yum. Even though I didn't need it, I got a chimney for dessert as we walked back to the car. Before getting in the car we went grocery shopping, who am I to say no to my favourite activity?

The next morning I finally woke up at a reasonable time, just in time for my last day of the trip. I got dressed and packed up, then took advantage of the good weather to go for a walk.

I started by going back through the campus of the technical university, appreciating the architecture. I practically grew up on a university campus, I love seeing how they differ around the world. 

Even though it was a university campus, I also spotted a religious statue on the grounds. Faith is never very far away.

I wound my way through the streets to a newish looking park with a pond in a corner. There was a playground which had some nifty looking jungle gym equipment for kids.

I kept going, walking to the very tippy top of castle hill. I made my way down the hill by using small alleys in between buildings. Some of the stairs were pretty steep, I'm happy I didn't trip over my clumsy feet.

I walked across the Charles bridge for one reason: my last chance to have a chimney. It was worth every step :)

I kept going, through the Jewish Quarter, across another bridge and up to Letna Park, where I took a few minutes to enjoy the view of the city. There is a giant metronome up there, replacing what used to be a statue of Stalin. 

I'd love to have a photo with the metronome, but it is always full of people, so the only way I'll get that is to get up super early during a future visit.

I followed the map on my phone, arriving back home in time to eat dinner, then catch a cab to the airport. It was a fantastic visit to a city I love, with people who mean the world to me. I'll definitely be back.

czech republic: prague

My bus from Berlin arrived in Prague at 0410, on time. It was one of the few times I kinda wished my bus would be late. Arriving anywhere at that hour isn't fun, even though I love Prague.
I knew the sun would be coming up soon, so I started walking and made my way to Charles Bridge. It's probably the most famous sight in the entire city, lots of people want a photo of themselves on an empty bridge. I admit I wanted that too. (I really need to learn how to use editing programs, so I can take photos then edit out anything I don't want in the photo.)
I arrived at the bridge at 0440, only to find plenty of other folks with the same idea. I knew I wasn't going to get the photo I wanted, so I went hunting for another angle. Not too much later I got really lucky with an amazing sunrise, I was able to get the bridge in profile. Absolutely gorgeous.

I walked to my hotel, where it was still waaaay too early to check in. (It was only 0600 or so.) I was able to relax in a lobby for a while, and get myself sorted. Like many hostels, there were plenty of plugs, and free wifi, so I took advantage and charged all of my gadgets. 
They let me shower and clean up, and I was able to leave my bag behind the desk while I went out for the day.
Since I've been to Prague a few times, and seen most of the sights, I was looking for something I hadn't seen before and was a little out of the way. In a previous visit I'd walked out to a palace only to find it closed. This time, I made sure it would be open.
Troja Chateau was built as a summer place to relax when this area of the world was part of another empire. The garden is very landscaped, and has a small labyrinth.
The entrance visitors use is actually the backside of the palace I think. Before finding that entrance I took photos of the proper entrance side of the chateau, which is quite grand.

The palace itself isn't all that great, there isn't much in any of the rooms. What is noteworthy are the ceilings. Almost every room has a lovely painting on the ceiling.  Always look up is one of my travel mottos, I had a crick in my neck from doing it so much in this palace.
There is one room that's really stunning in the palace, the Great Hall. The entire ceiling is painted, as are the walls, most of it honoring the leaders of the time. Not only is the ceiling painted, it was done as an optical illusion. As you walk through the room and look up, it feels like the eyes of the painted people are following you. Beautiful.
The docent tried to explain all of this to me, mostly in Russian. I think I understood most of what she said, though I was only able to respond with a few words here and there. 

After leaving the palace I walked back along the same general path, which took me through Letna Park. This park has one of the best views of the city, in my opinion. I sat and enjoyed the view for a while, then started walking again. At that point I was hot and starting to feel the lack of sleep.
I walked to the old town area, still feeling the calf cramp that developed during my first day in Berlin. Apparently you can't walk such things away. I really noticed it when going down stairs, and Prague is a city with plenty of ups and downs. I didn't like having to think about ever step I took, but that's what was happening. 

I walked the the old town area, watching some of the tourists. As I walked by the clock for which the city is famous I saw scaffolding all around. You could still see the faces of the clock, but the rest of the tower was covered. I'm glad I've seen it looking 'normal.'
I walked to a tram stop where I caught a tram that took me to Mom's old neighborhood. The mall there has a food court, and I wanted Indian food from there. I also wanted to go to the grocery store there, as I knew they had the yogurt I love dearly, which I'd planned to have to breakfast the next morning.
The food was good, then I walked back to my hostel. I had no trouble checking in, and got to have the loft level of my room all to myself. I fell asleep fast, and slept through the night.

The next morning I took my time getting up. Sleeping in a real bed is a luxury for me, I wanted to relax.
I had breakfast in the kitchen, after asking a couple to stop making out at the kitchen table. I do not need to see that, especially not while I'm eating. As they say 'get a room.'
Eventually I left the hostel for the day, and started by walking downhill. I stepped into a church I've seen before but still enjoy. It's covered in frescoes, the artwork is great.
From there I walked to another bit of art I'd seen before but still love: Kafka's spinning head. It's definitely a bit odd, but it's fun to watch.
I kept walking, going through Wenceslas Square. No matter how many times I go through there, it doesn't seem like a square to me. It's a looong rectangle, with some landscaping going down the middle. 

It's definitely not an open platz, which is what I expect when I hear the word square.
As I walked through the old city square I had to stop and get a chimney. I'm pretty sure I've mentioned it before, it's a trdelnik with a sealed bottom, filled (in my case) with fruit and whipped cream. Totally unhealthy, and worth every calorie.
I crossed the river and kept going, ending up at the memorial to the victims of fascism. As I came close I could see a group of Americans wanting to take a funny photo with the memorial, they wanted me to take the photo. I politely declined and told them the memorial was rather serious and I would prefer to respect it. It turned out they had no idea what it was, so I explained a little, and pointed them to the sign, which was just a couple meters away. They said their guide hadn't told them what it was, which sounds reasonable, but I was also thinking to myself that they should've looked for a sign/description nearby. Anywho.

From there I started following paths that took me to the top of a Petrin Hill. It was full on sunny and hot, I did not love my heavy breathing and sweating, but I did enjoy the views of the city.
When I got to the top I took a look at the TV tower, which can be ascended. I chose not to, just because I wasn't in the mood. I'm pretty sure that the idea of being crowded with other people did not appeal to me at all at that moment.
There was a church nearby, but it was not open, darnit. I ended up walking around the church, and finding a pretty garden on the other side.
I kept going, and found a huge rose garden, which was amazing. I have no idea how big it was, but I loved it. So many roses, they all smelled good. I took plenty of photos, even though the photos probably don't convey the atmosphere, or the smell.

I went down the hill by another path, and crossed back over the river. As I crossed the bridge I realized there were a lot of paddle boats in the river, everyone was having fun. I need to come back to Prague in the summer so I can rent a boat.
It was already evening by this point (I'd gotten a really late start,) so I walked back to the mall I'd visited the night before. I picked up a couple more yogurts, and had more Indian food. From there it was back to the hostel again.
I didn't have the loft area to myself anymore, but the other girls were quiet, so I didn't care.
The next morning I took my time again, just because I could. I cleaned up and packed up, and left my bag at the front desk.

I walked along streets I hadn't walked before, eventually crossing the river and making my way to the bottom of Castle Hill. I found a couple churches I hadn't visited before, and stepped inside both of them. Despite being close to the tourist meccas of the city, neither one was at all touristy. That is, there weren't any others in there while I was there.
I stayed on that side of the river and started walking toward the Smichov area of the city. If I remember correctly, Mom grew up somewhere in this area. (I've seen her old building, but don't remember exactly where it is located.)
I walked past the Staropramen brewery, I don't think I've seen that before. Across the street from the brewery they'd put together a big streetside advert that showed a glass of beer with the 'head' that would be typical in various countries. The American 'head' was a cowboy hat. I wish I'd taken photos of more of them, they were funny. Also stereotypical, which I didn't love. 

After a while I decided I wanted to cross the river. It took me a while to find a bridge, as they aren't so close together when you get out of the old city area. The bridge I used was also used by trains, and took me to the bottom of the Vysehrad area of the city.
I've seen the Vysehrad area before, and wouldn't mind seeing it again, but I was just plain exhausted at that point. Instead I wound my way through various streets, picking up dinner and snacks along the way.
I ate back at my hostel, then killed a few more hours until it was time to walk to the bus station. It's amazing how short a 30 minute walk can seem compared to 90 minutes.
My bus departed on time, and I know I'll be back to Prague.

Czech Republic: Prague again

I love Prague. I am always happy to return to Prague, no matter how many times I've been there, nor how recently I've been there. This visit was less than three months after my last visit, but it was for a reason. My mom was planning to move back to the states before the end of March, so I wanted to take advantage of a long weekend to spend a few days with her while she was still close and living in a city I love.
I got out of school as fast as I could, and caught a 1400 flight. While waiting for my flight in Kyiv I saw one of my students, it was fun to have a personal sendoff. This first flight took me to Frankfurt, where I had a 5 hour layover.

Fortunately, I know someone who lives close to Frankfurt. I arranged to have dinner with my friend Tripp, it was great to have a catch up with a friend from years ago, and kill the layover. we took the train from the airport to the central train station, then found an Indian restaurant nearby. A nice couple of hours.
Since I flew Lufthansa, the service and food were good. I wish they were cheaper, I'd be happy to fly them all the time.
Mom met me at the airport in Prague, and due to the late hour we took a taxi to her flat. We stayed up late chatting as we always do the first night of any visit by me, and I ate one of the yogurts I love so much.

Saturday morning we got up slowly, and went to see Kafka's grave. What we didn't think about ahead of time was the day of the week. Saturday is Shabbat, and Kafka was Jewish, and buried in a Jewish cemetery. Not surprisingly, the cemetery was closed, so we turned around and went back to where we started. Mom bought me a 24 hr transport card, so it didn't matter how many rides we took.
We took the metro and trams up to the back side of castle hill, to see Loreta Monastery.

I'd seen it a couple months previously, but didn't mind seeing it again. Mom hadn't seen it since she lived in Prague a long time ago, and since she would be leaving Prague soon, she was happy to walk through with me. I've realized it is fantastic to visit tourist spots in Prague with Mom, as she usually has a story to tell of a previous experience, or has some history that isn't on the information boards. I paid the photography fee, and retook some of the photos I'd taken two months earlier but hadn't backed up and lost when my phone was stolen in Bucharest.
I loved the treasury the second time around just as much as the first visit.

The chuch was just as Gothic, and felt even more busy. Gothic churches always feel way too busy for me, at least in terms of how I would prefer to worship.
We walked a few hundred meters to a place I'd heard about from fellow travelers, a restaurant called U Zlate Hrusky. In English the name is The Golden Pear. It's a place with traditional Czech food, and has some special pear dishes on the menu. Mom didn't know the place from the name, but as soon as we were seated, she remembered being there before. A looooong time ago. I loved my pear soup.
After leaving the restaurant we passed a church I hadn't seen before, called the Soldiers Church. We didn't go inside, then exterior was rather boring.
We walked all the way down the hill, across the river, to the old city center. I wanted to get a chimney, but as we got to the place that sells them, the queue seemed to go on and on and on. I love chimneys, but I wasn't willing to wait in that line. Neither was Mom.

Instead we walked to a nearby metro station and went back to her flat.
The next day we took a day trip with Mom's friend from childhood and her son. That's in another post, and was a great day. I love the whole country!
Monday morning Mom and I were up early to beat the crowds. I wanted photos of a couple places without other people in the way. We took the metro and tram to malostranska, and the bottom of castle hill. Then we walked to Lennon Wall. I was surprised to notice that the graffiti had already changed, from just a couple months ago.

I took my photos, and we moved on. I don't think Mom had seen this wall before, as it started in the 80s, I think.
We also took photos at another art installation by David Czerny, the Babies.
From the Babies, we walked to Cafe Savoy for breakfast. This was my second recommendation/request for a specific meal with Mom during this trip. I'd enjoyed breakfast so much back during January that I wanted to come again. Good service, good food. Even though I was the one who had been there previously, it was Mom who took a couple photos I hadn't seen before. I copied them.
We walked across the river on a bridge Mom crossed almost daily when she was growing up. I'm sure there is an official name, but in my head I'll probably always think of it as Mom's bridge from now on.

Remembering that back in January Mom and I had tried to do a tour of the Klementinum and it hadn't worked out, we tried again. This time it worked perfectly. We arrived just 15 minutes before a tour was scheduled to start. Yay! Our tour group was small, just 8 people. I think. It might've been less. Anywho. Our guide spoke well, and gave us all the relevant information. The Klementinum was/is a monastery, and was once one of the learning centers of the continent. Mom remembers studying there from time to time, how amazing that must've been.

The astronomy tower still has some of the original tools used in the 1500s (i think?) which was really nifty to see. Hard to believe that scientists were able to do such amazing things, centuries ago, with tools so much simpler than what we have now. The views from the top of the tower were awesome, I realized how many towers and churches there are in Prague, and how big or small they appear totally depends on distance from the eye of the beholder.
I was most impressed with the library, which was incredible. We weren't able to go past the doorway, but WOW. Just as amazing as the library in the Strahov Monastery. I could've stood there for ages.

After the tour we finally got our chimneys. Just as good as I remembered :)
We walked through the old city center area, and made our way to the area near Charles University. I loved seeing the buildings where my mom was a student. We didn't go in the buildings, but it made family history just a little bit more real for me.
Even though we'd just had chimneys, we settled into a cafe (named for Kafka, on Kafka square,) to warm up and relax with coffee and tea. Good service, nice decor. They also served Kosher food, which I thought was nice even though I'm not Jewish.
After the cafe we walked past a couple souvenir stores when Mom decided to enter one of them. Since she knew she was leaving soon, she wanted to find a coffee mug with Prague/Praha written on it somewhere. Even though this sounds like an easy thing to find, it's not as easy to make a decision. There are HEAPS of coffee mugs with pictures of the city, the flag of the country, words in Czech, etc... Any visitor can browse for ages and ages when looking for just the right mug.
Even though I'd seen it before, and Mom had no thoughts about it one way or the other, I convinced her to go see the spinning Kafka head. Definitely a unique piece of art, as are all of Czerny's works.

We went back to Mom's flat, and on the way decided to go to Kafka's grave. This time, we didn't get to see it because of our arrival time. The cemetery had been open all day, but we arrived 15 minutes after it closed.
Actually, that isn't true. The cemetery closes at 1600, but the last admittance is at 1530. We arrived at 1545. Argh. Defeated again!
That night we had dinner in the food court in the mall close to Mom's flat. Simple, easy.
The next morning we got up early and finally saw Kafka's grave. Its the truth, the third time really is the charm!
Sadly, that was the end of my trip. When I got back to Mom's flat, I had enough time to pack up, and Mom took me to the airport. It was harder than ever to leave, knowing that I wouldn't be seeing Mom again for who knows how long.

czech republic: prague in the fall

I don't think you can ever spend enough time in Prague, it's an amazing city. I had a long weekend near the end of October, so I took the chance to spend time with my mom, and see more of the city. 

My flight landed at the airport, and mom was waiting for me there, as she always is. Public transport got us back to her flat, we stayed up talking for a few hours, as we always do. 

The next day we went on a day long road trip with mom's friend and the friend's son. After we came back, we had dinner at the food court in a nearby mall. The food court had a good variety of food at reasonable prices :)

Sunday morning I woke up at what I thought was 0530. When I used the computer to check email and the like, I was reminded that Europe had 'fallen back' the night before. The clocks were back on standard time for the winter season. In other words, I'd woken up at 0430, not 0530. 

I used the computer for a couple hours, (and ate a breakfast of my all time favorite yogurt - found only in Czech Republic) and left the flat just after daylight, near 0730. 

Not surprisingly, there weren't a lot of people or cars out at that hour on a Sunday morning. It was quiet, I loved it. If only I could get myself out of bed that early every time I travel, I could see so much more without other tourists in the way. 

I walked to Wenceslas square, which was mostly empty. I liked the emptiness, I could see the tile on the ground, I've never noticed the patterns before.

While walking the length of the square (more like a long rectangle,) I saw the inside of a gallery, with a beautiful ceiling. By gallery I mean building with shops, not a place where art is displayed. So pretty. 

I walked to the old town center by way of the gunpowder tower. One of these days I want to go up the tower, just because. There are a bunch of towers in Prague, offering various views of the city, it would be fun to see them all, but not in the same visit; that would be way too many tower climbs in a short time. The views are great, but not super different each time.
The streets were still mostly deserted :) I reckon during summer days there are more people around at that hour, but probably still not too many. It's so nice to walk around a beautiful city when it is just waking up. 

The lack of tourists was awesome when I got to the old city square. Much more fun to walk around when you're not avoiding tourists at every turn. Much more fun to take photos without tourists as well :)

I was able to see the astronomical clock without heaps of people, yay! There were a few tourists (most using selfie sticks) but it was still easy to take photos without them. 

I made my way through the streets to get to the Charles bridge, which was still mostly empty. Yay! I did see a couple having engagement photos taken, fun to watch for a while. Are all those photos so posed/fake? A few times they had to wait for others to get out of the shot to get the photo they wanted, their faces told me they were annoyed. I was thinking: hey, you've chosen one of the busiest places in the city, you can't expect everyone to pay attention to you.

Anywho. 

I crossed the bridge, and wandered around the area around the other end of the bridge. Then I came back. I really like walking the Charles bridge when it isn't so crowded. I imagine everyone says that. 

I walked along the river, all the way to the so called Dancing House. That was the intersection where I turned left and walked up the hill. Eventually, I got back to mom's flat. 

A few minutes later Mom's best friend from childhood arrived. (She was on the day trip with us yesterday.) After discussing who was on time and who was late, and what time it was (time change the night before,) we left the flat and started walking. 

This was a week after my birthday, and Mom had decided to take me to a nice birthday lunch. Awesome! Mom had made reservations a week before at a place she'd told me about, but I'd never seen.

The TV tower is semi close to Mom's flat, we were able to walk there easily. On one level of the tower is a restaurant, with fantastic views of the entire city. We had a lovely meal, I'd happily go back. Mom's friend had brought binoculars, we were able to see the city in great detail. 

There is also an observation level in the TV tower, which is where we went after eating. Good fun, good views. Too bad the weather was crappy. Even so, I'd happily go back. During our time in the observation deck, or during lunch, we noticed a small cemetery nearby. If we hadn't had that view (the ability to look down over an area in which there aren't other towers or ways of looking down,) I never would've seen this cemetery. 

After our meal, we decided to check out the cemetery. It turned out to be an old Jewish cemetery, which is no longer in use, but is still watched. I couldn't find it listed anywhere, but there is a sign at the entrance, caps for men to wear when they visit, and an attendant to answer questions. I thought it was beautiful. 

From the cemetery, we took public transport to the city center. Mom wanted to show me another piece of art by David Cerny. This one is Kafka's head. The head is quite large, and made of quite a few 'layers,' each of which is controlled by a computer.  The layers move differently, and allegedly never the same way twice in a row. It's fun to see the 'face' move and change. 

By that point, it was getting dark. We ducked into a nearby bookstore so I could get slightly cheaper postcards, (again pointing out that when you buy postcards in the quantity I do, every price cut makes a difference,) then took public transport back home. Dinner and dessert were at a place near Mom's flat. 

The next morning I was up early again. It's such a habit, and I don't really see a need to change it. I got going around the same time, this time heading straight for the river. I followed the river a ways until going back uphill a little, to find the entrance to an area called Vysehrad.

Way back when, Vysehrad used to be a fortress protecting this entire part of the country. Parts of it still remain, and are pretty easy to visit. I'd never heard of this area before, it was listed in Mom's guidebook to the city, and I was thrilled to find something new to see.
I entered through a big gate that had been made through the walls of the fortress. There was a ticket office, but I couldn't figure out what tickets they were selling, so I skipped the office. As soon as I was completely in the area, I saw all the trees in their autumn glory. Absolutely beautiful, bright yellow. I saw a small church just a little up the road, but it wasn't open.

I followed the road a bit, and eventually came to the entrance to the cemetery. This cemetery is crowded, and according to the signs/guidebooks/info places, full of famous people in Czech/Prague history. It was definitely crowded, with a lot of variety in the grave markers. Most of them were fairly large and ornate, but not all of them. Along the edge of the graveyard was a hall of sorts, with monuments set into the wall. I haven't seen that in a graveyard before, it was unique for me.
Also in the Vysehrad area is a big cathedral. St Peter and Paul. You have to pay to enter, which isn't common in Prague. The lady taking money wasn't thrilled with people trying to peek in through the windows, so they could see the church without paying, she kept telling them to stop. I paid the fee, though I'm still not sure it was worth it. The interior of the church was painted, but the lighting was terrible, so I couldn't see it well, let alone take decent photos.

I really liked the front doors to the church, especially the mosaics above the doors. Really pretty. The treasury area inside was also pretty fantastic. It still amazes me how much money and power used to be concentrated in the Church.
Next to the church was a park area. There were a few statues, and a few trees, but nothing else. A great area for wandering and relaxing. This park was bordered by the walls of the fortress on two sides, and both of those walls offered great views. These views were views of the city I hadn't seen before, and not usually seen on postcards or photos of the city.
Eventually I wandered back down the hill, and made my way back to the old town square, walking along the river. When I got there, I watched the 'parade' that happens when the top of the hour rolls around at the astronomical clock. After watching, I paid to go up the tower. As many times as I've been lucky enough to get to visit Prague, I've never gone up the tower.

There are a couple ways to get to the top, taking stairs and ramps, or an elevator that looks (to me) a bit like a space rocket. I chose the stairs and ramps, and I'm glad I did. As you wind your way up the ramps there are posters on the wall with information on the history of the city and clock. I didn't read all the posters, but I did read a few, especially those related to the more modern history of the clock.
When I got to the top I had to wait a minute to get out, as the entry/exit is a door that lets just one person through at a time. The viewing area at the top is not wide, I would say it's wide enough to fit 1.5 people, so there are constant backups of people. Heaps of the people up there are taking selfies, and everyone up there is taking photos. I skipped the selfies, but took heaps of photos. It was fun to see the old town roofs, and all the towers from churches and everything else around the city. Up close they look big, but not so much when far away.

Then I walked home.
The next morning was my last morning in the city. I hung out with mom for a while, then went for one last walk. Not too far from Mom's place is a national monument, complete with a statue of a guy on a horse.
To get there, I walked down a hill, then took stairs up another hill. It was a long staircase, and straight up, so I was huffing and puffing when I got to the top. This particular hill is very wooded, so I got to see another display of beautiful fall trees.
Zyzka was an important figure in Czech history, before it was Czech history. He was a general in the 14th and 15th centuries. The statue of him on top of the national monument is the 3rd largest in the world, according to wikipedia. It's big, I know that much. There is a museum up there as well, which includes the tomb of the unknown soldier, but I didn't think I had enough time to see the museum.

Plus, it was a Monday, so I'm not sure it was open. The monument used to hold the embalmed body of the first Czech president, during the communist years, He isn't there any longer, as no one thinks too much of him. (Apparently communists all over the world like to embalm the bodies of their leaders,)
As I stood up there, I looked over the other side of the hill and saw a big church nearby. I didn't know anything about the church, but I figured I would take a quick look. I wound my way down that side of the hill and got to the church. It was big, and empty of people, yahoo. The interior was beautiful, I'm glad I got to see it.

At that point I was worried about time, (though it turned out I had plenty,) so I made my way back home. Not too long after, Mom took me to the airport and I went back to Kyiv. 
Another great visit to a great city!