Day Six: Our longest walking part of the trip

Dobry Vecer,

That means Good Evening in Czech.  We've spent most of the day walking around one of Europe's most beautiful cities.  I think all of the kids agree that this has been a highlight of their trip so far.  We toured for over 5 hours, but besides being a little sore, there was hardly any complaining.

The night, after last night's blog post, did not go well.  Someone in a room near mine decided to have a rather loud conversation in the hallway near my room.  The conversation was not in English and did not seem friendly.  It started around 1:30 and lasted into 2am.  This current hotel does not have phones in the room and because there were no kids staying in the vicinity of the hallway, I decided to just try and sleep through it.  Needless to say, I started the day as exhausted as when I finished the previous evening.  Good sleep is essential for good touring...so, I thought I was in for a tough day.

My perspective changed when we boarded our bus for the quick ride to Prague Castle.

It was an absolutely beautiful morning.  The sky was a rich blue and the sun shone with a brightness you can literally feel upon your skin.  Reaching high above the tree tops were the spires of St. Vitus Cathedral.  We knew we were in for a great tour.  We walked towards the main gate, but had to pause for a changing of the guard ceremony.

 As we walked through the Castle, we were told that it is one of the largest castles in the entire world.  The Prague Castle is unique because it doesn't look like a traditional castle.  It consists of a large variety of buildings all that make up the modern castle.  It includes the President's offices, multiple churches, and even some cafes.  It is quite a site to visit.

St. Vitus stands in the middle of the castle grounds but it is not the only unique piece of architecture in the castle.  There are buildings from most eras of architecture located on the premises.  I would have thought that too many styles would make the Castle seem to confusing, but it really is beautiful.

Catherine and Daniel standing near St. Vitus Cathedral.  Behind them are examples of three different architectural styles.

As we departed the castle, we were surprised to learn that the Czech Government had hired a new guard to protect the Castle.  They must have heard of my excellent skills in Munich.

At the exit of the castle, there are a ton of spots to stop and take photos of the breathtaking views.

Our chaperons even had a chance to stop and have a picture taken of them.

A view of the city of a 100 towers.

The next stop on our tour of Prague was the Charles Bridge.  You can make out one of the towers of the bridge in the photo above.  It is a really cool bridge with lots of artisans selling their trade.  There are also a lot of statues representing Saints who are important to Prague history.

As we walked over the bridge, our local guide explained who some of the most important Saints were and when their statues were added.  We found out that the statues are replicas and that the originals are located in a Czech museum.

Nearly halfway over the bridge stands a statue in honor of John of Nepomuk.  He is kind of the patron saint of Prague.  We had previously learned that he was entombed in the cathedral and that we could recognize him by a halo with five stars upon it.  The legend has it that if you take some time and rub his statue, then you will have good luck in your life.

I couldn't grab a picture of our kids and the statue because two other tour groups immediately surrounded the area once our kids were trying to reach the statue, but I did snap this photo of a little boy who seemed amazed the artwork in front of him.

On the other side of the bridge, there is an amazing view of the river and the "Old Town" section of Prague.  We were on our way there to catch the ringing of the bells at Prague Astronomical Clock.

The Astronomical Clock

The ringing of the bells at Noon.  [First time trying to upload video...sorry if it doesn't work]

We had lunch and then met our guide again.  Our task now was to tour the Jewish section of Prague.  We went to the old Synagogue and the old Jewish Burial Ground.  I was a proud teacher as Ian came to me and asked if the cemetery was the same one we had read about in class back in October...it was...We both thought it was cool that we were there.

Star of David on the Old Synagogue.

The Synagogue is no longer a place of worship, but it still is a place that demands reverence and respect.  The Jewish population of Prague before World War Two was roughly 120,000 people.  30,000 people fled Prague as the Nazi domination of Europe became apparent.  10,000 Jewish people survived the Holocaust.  That means that 80,000 people were murdered during the time period...just from one city.  The walls of the synagogue are hand painted with the names of each victim.  There are also examples of artwork created by Jewish children imprisoned in a Concentration Camp.

We finished our tour back in the Old Town Square and healed our aching feet with some much needed retail therapy.  Some of us got great deals on jewelry while others bought some beautiful artwork.  In the past few months, I have been working really hard at eating right, but today, I just ate everything.  They have the most amazing desserts here, lol.  I figure it is okay because we walked a ton today.  Not all was fun today, however, as I learned of two pretty scary moments.  Inside the courtyard of the Prague Castle, Ms. Alongi was nearly hit by a car.  She emerged unscathed, but by the time the kids relayed the story to me, she had broken her foot.  Tayla had an encounter of a more equine variety.  As she was walking around the Old Town Square she got a little too close to a horse...who proceeded to headbutt Tayla's shoulder.  She is okay!!!

Ian and Mike high atop Old Town Square - Jeff is visible too.

I found out later that the kids were up there yelling my name.  They had no idea where I was, but as I was eating my ice cream, I noticed them.

The kids were at the top of the Astronomical Clock Tower.

We all gathered once again and made our way to the Vlatava River to catch our riverboat cruise.  All of our kids and most of our Canadian friends opted for this excursion.  It was great fun.  We got onto our boat and ate an all you can eat buffet.  I tried a few more desserts.  We then went to the top deck to take pictures and play some games.  We were stuck in a lock for quite a few minutes as the water levels changed...I thought the crew had lost the combination.  It was a great time watching the kids hang out together and have some fun.  To me, this part of the trip is just as cool as seeing all of the old stuff that we've seen.  There is a social element that one gains from travel and I am seeing it first hand here in Prague.

Some of the kids playing a game.

A lasting memory of the Prague Castle at night.

We have a fairly long day ahead of us tomorrow, but it is one without much going on.  We are departing for Krakow but will be in a bus almost all day.  I don't think I will have much to blog about, but I will still try to find something for you to read...thank you for all of the nice emails and comments I've received.  I appreciate that you all are taking some time to read these posts.

Mr. Lavoie currently preparing for the longest sitting part of the trip.