Wednesday June 10th 2009

Yesterday we walked away from our usual direction, which led us to the New Town Tower. But that is all relative, as New Town is also fairly old, as is its tower.



Next to it was a pleasant park, that we casually walked through. Away from the throng of toursits, we watched locals going about their day.



The main reason we headed this way was to see a building that we had only seen from afar, called the dancing building by Frank Gehry. One side of the building seems to have a waist and skirt, while the next to it, it is straight and capped with a metal hat. Some call it the Fred and Ginger building.


We crossed over the Jiraskuv bridge, and walked on the west side of the Vltave river in the Little Quarter. I watched some boats enter the locks while Hera took some photographs.

As we walked along the base of Petrin Hill, we came across the "Monument to Victims of Communism Who Survived." It is a series of life size people climbing the stairs, each one loosing another piece of themselves. A powerful statement.

We wondered if we should take the funicular up Petrin Hill to get to Prague's very own Eiffel tower called the Petrin Tower, but with our tummies getting hungry, we decided to keep our eyes open for a place to eat.

We decided upon a Mexican restaurant called Cantina. I joked that we will eat New World (American) food, in the Old World. They had two lunch specials, so we ordered one of each. One dish was a lightly grilled mix of vegetables, beans and chicken, while the other was a beef burrito. Both were well seasoned, light, and delicious. The restaurant delivered one of the best Mexican meals I ever had.




After our meal, we continued our way and passed again in front of the Church of St. Mary the Victorious, that holds the statue of the Infant of Jesus. A statue that is revered by the people of Prague as well as Spanish speaking nations. Perhaps that explains the excellent Mexican restaurant we ate at.




We made our way down towards the Charles bridge, and as we crossed, we looked at the wares of the vendors, and listened to two bands that played their music.




No matter the time of day, or how often one walks the touristy path of Charles bridge followed by the winding Karlova Street to the Old Town Square, the walk is always a pleasure. Watching others, and listening to their squeels of delight, reminded us of our first days here.




In the Old Town Square, the same quartet of boys we playing, but I felt sorry for them, as the nearby construction was distracting, despite their best efforts.

We went back home to take a break, and relax a bit before heading back out. We had a beer, Hera charged her batteries and we made a few calls back home with Skype.




Walking back towards the Old Town Square, with the throng of toursits getting ever more dense, we took a very small side street so close to the square itself. A tiny winding alley that we had passed, but never yet ventured in. To our surprise, this narrow side street was lined with quaint restaurants. After almost three weeks, and so close to the Old Town Square, we discovered yet another place we had not seen.

We walked into a restaurant called Mlejnice. Its dark wood tables and old wooded floor boards looked like many of the places we had entered, but looking up, hung from the ceiling, was a large variety of farm implements.




Ordering our beer, we perused the menu. Pork knee was something that we had seen so often during the past three weeks here, and with only a few days left, I decided to order it. The whole 1 kg plate. A quick side note. Here in Prague, all dishes by law must state the weight of the meat. Knowing it was a large plate, I only ordered some fries to go with it.




Hera ordered a cabbage salad as a starter, which was superb. Mildly pickled, and sweet, to go with her brochettes and croquettes. She had thought it would be a single brochette, but there were six fair sized portions.




My plate was huge. I am not sure what I expected, but it was so much better than I ever imagined. The best way to describe it, is that it tasted like one of the best roast pork dishes ever. I have heard before, that bones add flavour. Be it fish bones or bones in a roast, and the bones in my pork knee definitely imparted their flavour.




We were stuffed to say the least. But we wanted to spend the evening walking about on another very pleasant night.




As we crossed Charles bridge, a little girl was enraptured by the music of a violinist. As we walked past, I turned around to look at her again, and she was still hypnotized by his music.




The sun sets late, and as we waited for the sky to darken and the building lights to turn on, we simply rested on the side of the bridge, enjoying the wonderful views, and the people walking by.






As Hera took her pictures, we slowly made our way towards the Little Quarter, before turning around, and slowly making our way home.

Cheers,

Hera & Anthony