WooHoo FREE INTERNET!!
So, now that we are in Vienna and it's late here and the rain just won't stop, I have time to send an update... and PHOTOS!!
Entirely on accident, we stumbled across the Museum of Communism (http://www.museumofcommunism.com) where we paid a small entrance fee of about $8 per person. We spent time wondering the small museum and learning a lot about the rise of communism in the Czech Republic. At the end of the tour was a small room with a video that showed the struggles and the resistance movement, concluding with the velvet revolution in 1989. I found this to be quite emotional, as I know that I had family living here during this time. It makes me wonder if they were a part of the resistance movement or if they stood passively by. Those that were part of the resistance were quite brave, seeing them beaten in the street for protesting the government, again makes me realize what a privileged life we live in Seattle.
Trying to kill a few minutes before our city tour, we went for a quick walk down into the train station, where we took a very long escalator deep into the underground of Prague. There we were kicked out for not having a train ticket. Oh well.
Our tour guide Yuri was quite nice, very knowledgeable and quite passionate about history. We drove around town, through different areas and up to Prague Castle. Because of the unexpected rain, we changed the itinerary a bit, and took a thorough tour of the cathedral at Prague Castle. Getting an in-depth tour of the inside of this very old Cathedral was a nice surprise. There was beautiful stain glass windows, high arching ceilings, and magnificent silver items decorated the cathedral. Pretty quickly among entering the cathedral, lawdogman was asked to remove his hat by one of the officials. This later became a discussion point, when Yuri told us that the church no longer ran the cathedral. Because of the confusion regarding who was in charge and what the rules were, there was no longer a person monitoring the chapel of Wenceslas where many old and beautiful frescos were. Any art buff will tell you the importance of No Flash Photography on old important artwork. Regardless of the lack of ruling Yuri informed not only our tour group, but every group that came by while we were there. I thought it odd that the staff there was so aware and “on top of it” that they immediately pounced on lawdogman, amongst hundreds of rain soaked visitors, to remove his hat but no one seemed to care about the obvious damage and degradation that was being allowed on precious artwork.
After some debate this morning, we decided to trek toward the Charles Bridge for a closer look. We traveled through many back cobblestone one lane roads, past many small souvenir shops and cafés. We passed through a small market that reminded me a lot of the one in Knotting Hill. Making our way to the bridge turned out to be a good decision. We got to see some lovely views of the river, Prague Castle, and more... including this jolly organ grinder!!
There is more to tell. I've been writting journals offline and on paper; really with a pen and paper, can you believe it?? There are tons more photos. But these will all have to wait until I have more time and I'm back home and can devote my attention to the computer... for now, I have Vienna to explore.
Entirely on accident, we stumbled across the Museum of Communism (http://www.museumofcommunism.com) where we paid a small entrance fee of about $8 per person. We spent time wondering the small museum and learning a lot about the rise of communism in the Czech Republic. At the end of the tour was a small room with a video that showed the struggles and the resistance movement, concluding with the velvet revolution in 1989. I found this to be quite emotional, as I know that I had family living here during this time. It makes me wonder if they were a part of the resistance movement or if they stood passively by. Those that were part of the resistance were quite brave, seeing them beaten in the street for protesting the government, again makes me realize what a privileged life we live in Seattle.
Trying to kill a few minutes before our city tour, we went for a quick walk down into the train station, where we took a very long escalator deep into the underground of Prague. There we were kicked out for not having a train ticket. Oh well.
Our tour guide Yuri was quite nice, very knowledgeable and quite passionate about history. We drove around town, through different areas and up to Prague Castle. Because of the unexpected rain, we changed the itinerary a bit, and took a thorough tour of the cathedral at Prague Castle. Getting an in-depth tour of the inside of this very old Cathedral was a nice surprise. There was beautiful stain glass windows, high arching ceilings, and magnificent silver items decorated the cathedral. Pretty quickly among entering the cathedral, lawdogman was asked to remove his hat by one of the officials. This later became a discussion point, when Yuri told us that the church no longer ran the cathedral. Because of the confusion regarding who was in charge and what the rules were, there was no longer a person monitoring the chapel of Wenceslas where many old and beautiful frescos were. Any art buff will tell you the importance of No Flash Photography on old important artwork. Regardless of the lack of ruling Yuri informed not only our tour group, but every group that came by while we were there. I thought it odd that the staff there was so aware and “on top of it” that they immediately pounced on lawdogman, amongst hundreds of rain soaked visitors, to remove his hat but no one seemed to care about the obvious damage and degradation that was being allowed on precious artwork.
After some debate this morning, we decided to trek toward the Charles Bridge for a closer look. We traveled through many back cobblestone one lane roads, past many small souvenir shops and cafés. We passed through a small market that reminded me a lot of the one in Knotting Hill. Making our way to the bridge turned out to be a good decision. We got to see some lovely views of the river, Prague Castle, and more... including this jolly organ grinder!!
There is more to tell. I've been writting journals offline and on paper; really with a pen and paper, can you believe it?? There are tons more photos. But these will all have to wait until I have more time and I'm back home and can devote my attention to the computer... for now, I have Vienna to explore.