Prague day 2

Another day in Prague! And so much to do I don't know how we managed to fit it all in. First up was the Prague palace, St. George's basilica, the golden lane (which had a house, now appropriately a tiny bookstore, which Kafka used to live in), the toy museum and St. Vitus' cathedral. And that was all before noon. After that we wandered over to the Jewish section to check out synagogues and the old cemetary (an amazingly photogenic place, filled with crooked tombstones that date back to the 1600s), then on to a little craft market near the national theatre. We checked on tonight's performances, but unfortunately there wasn't anything that sparked our interest. Then it was off to the Mucha museum (I've long been a fan of his), and king wenscelus' square (the whole time I was there I had the Christmas carol looping thru my head). Lastly we stopped at the louvre cafe for dinner (it may be touristy, but if it was good enough for Kafka and Einstein then it is surely good enough for me.). Tomorrow we head back to Nuremberg, I'm looking forward to a short break from hardcore travel, been going non stop for almost 2 weeks.

Ps. The candles were lit to honor those who fought against the communist regime in Prague.

Prague day 1

My first impression of Prague (keep in mind that I was In the design-oriented world of Stockholm yesterday), was that it was a borderline chaotic 3rd world country.... After my mother and I checked into our botel.... As in boat/hotel ( yes it's a repurposed yacht) and we were able to get our bearings things started to look up. We walked from the Prague castle past st. Vitus cathedral, over the Charles bridge into the old town where we grabbed a bite of goulash In a locals' tavern(it had pretzels on the table... Which we didn't touch because we were warned we'd be charged) and were soon joined by a group of singers who were performing that night in one of the churches. It ended up being a lovely dinner and although we were invited to watch the show, we declined in order to check out more of the city. Later that night we found ourselves in the old town, moments before the astronomical clock chimed, and everyone in the square paused to watch the show. After which I grabbed a gingerbread star (about the size of a muffin) then found a nice hot cup of mulled wine to warm up to. If it hadn't been pouring rain on and off the night would have been perfect.

Stockholm to Nuremberg

I had an evening flight out of stockholm, which gave me the morning to wander a tiny bit more. I went to the acne outlet, where they not only sell stuff from the stores at cheaper prices but also redesign old pieces to make unique bits that you can only get at this one tiny shop in Stockholm, of course there were many gorgeous things there, many of which were leather and fur and completely impractical for an LA girl, but I had a blast trying things on. Next I went to the Stockholm state museum, which has a tour focusing on " the girl with the dragon tattoo". I didn't do the tour but bought the map, since I've been reading it during my time in Stockholm, I thought it would be fun to see where all the action takes place. Sitting at a bar at Arlanda airport now, I have an hour til my flight and I'm just killing time, I guess I should pop by duty free and kill the last of my "crowns", perhaps I will load up on schnapps for our Christmas celebration.

Stockholm day 3 - the walking adventure

I must have walked 20 miles today, all over the city. The day began with a visit to skansen, the world's largest living museum, basically the museum owners bought old buildings from all over Sweden then recreated the world of the time the building was built. It was very cool and informative, I learned about the julbord (Xmas feast) that would have been eaten at a farm house in the 1700 and what workmen from the 1920's would have for their holiday meal. Then I spoke with craftsmen about their various trades, I found it all very fascinating. Afterwards I went to the royal palace and toured the state and guest apartments, then went to the armory to see costumes and carriages from previous and current royalty. I'm completely fascinated with queen Christina from the 1600s, it seems she lived a very vibrant life. Afterwards i grabbed a late lunch next to a Christmas market, I shared a window table with my new friend, Gustav, he told me all about his hometown (Stockholm) and even gave me a walking tour of the area. I ended the night with a tour of the Nobel prize museum, which wasn't that good... But that was okay, because I was ready to head back to the hotel and curl up to a bottle of Christmas beer...and after I publish this entry I will go to the lobby and grab a cup of glogg and gingerbread (unlike the German gluwien, the swedes put almonds and raisins in their glogg).

Ps. The Santa windows at the NK dept store are so incredible that I had to photograph them, while I was standing in front of them, 4 different groups of students came by with their teachers to admire the windows as well.