PRAGUE - DAY TWO

Prague, Thursday January 6, 2011

We had a pretty good night in our eyrie, although I'm still coughing a bit from time to time. We made it down to breakfast in time and found a reasonable spread. The plan was to join the guide for a four hour walk this morning. I must say I was somewhat surprised at this decision of Rab's because that's a long walk in the freezing cold - it was about minus 8C today. As things turned out, Milan, the guide was not available and the local guide, a very nice young lass, took about 20 minutes to tell us what Milan had told us the night before about Wenceslas and his murderous family, as we stood in the chilly square that bears his name.

Rab suggested we move on without them and I was only too happy to do so. Group movements are not really what I want in foreign parts. We drifted down the hill into the borders of the Old Town to where we had turned back last night when Marj decided to march back up town and, as I expected, we were son in the Old Town. Magnificent old buildings and lovely shops to dawdle in everywhere. The main square is terrific and is dominated by the building with an extraordinary astronomical clock. I had no idea how to read it, but it has phases of the moon, zodiac sectors and the lord knows what else. Apparently one set of hands divides the day into 12 hours between sunrise and sunset, with longer hours in summer than winter. Extraordinary.

We moved on from there towards the Charles Bridge, passing some very nice shops on the way. They weren't open as it was only just gone nine (we had heard the trumpeter at the clock sounding off the time as we got to the square) and there was hardly anyone about. The Bridge is a wonderful example of beauty and form and we got some good shots down there. It was freezing cold standing above the water and my gloveless hand was quite painful in the end and took some time to warm up even when back in my thick gloves. We had a laugh because I wanted to get a shot of a local tram crossing in front of the church at the foot of the bridge, thinking it would make a god subject. Rab went down to the road to signal when a tram was in site and in due course she waved to me, I set up the shot - and instead of the distinctive red tram, the one that came along was pink and covered in advertising! Not what I had in mind at all. The second was not much better, so I gave up the idea and we went and had a cup of coffee and a slice of honey cake.

Opposite the coffee shop was an intriguing shop carrying very large stocks of local work. Not the normal touristic stuff, but some beautiful pieces. Amongst these were some pendants in the style of Faberge eggs and other designs. Beautiful, I thought, but never expected Rab to like them. I expected her to say they were too glitzy. Anyway, she didn't and as the shop was opening at 10 (some of the shops are open from 10am to 11 pm!) we shot in there. The one piece that she really liked was in the shape of a stylized crown (Rab thought it was a heart, which is more romantic, I suppose although I told her the crown was because she was the Queen of my Heart!) Turned out to be the only one of it's kind in the shop, or so it was claimed, and we duly bought it. We think it is lovely, but the one problem was that if did not fit on the chain that Rab had. As we walked back towards the hotel I got the bright idea of asking a local jeweller if he could alter the loop of the pendant without damaging the settings of the crystals in the loop. He did a great job and declined any payment. What nice people!

We grabbed a Prague Dog on the way back up the hill. A HUGE sausage, well done and very tasty which with an Ice Fruit drink (mangosteen flavour, of all fruit!) made a good lunch.

Rab drifted in and out of the shops on the way back up the hill, buying the odd item, while I stood out in the street watching the world go by. I noticed how many people had rather large noses - not so much fat as long. One mother and daughter looked for all the world like a pair of dachshunds, their long and pointy noses preceding them up the street.

Back in the hotel we are relaxing before the dinner tonight. I'm somewhat dreading that as it promises to be a local feast - that part is OK because we like what we have had of Czech cuisine, but accompanying that will be some local entertainment and I know that will mean loud mazurkas and Hi-Hi-ng from the dancing girls.