Sunday, April 6, 2025

Prague!

 

Prague !

We loved Berlin and our wonderful cruise with Viking on the Elbe - but it was time to leave the river behind and start the Viking Extension to Prague and Poland.  We had a wonderful guide from Viking with us the entire time - full of information about all the places we would visit.
We left the ship and traveled by bus to Prague, with a stop for lunch in a little non touristy town somewhere in the Czech Republic.  Had some issues as we wandered on our own for a bit and had lunch.  We ordered a pizza - and all of a sudden we were brought two bowls of borscht.  We tried to say we did not order soup...but the waiter did not understand.  Then - as this seemed to be a popular lunch spot with locals - a woman behind tapped me on the shoulder and told us that borscht comes with every meal!  It was delicious!


We had a great tour with a local guide of the castle hill, the castle, and cathedral.
Then a walk around old town Prague...
the amazing astronomical clock in the square...

beautiful churches...and we learned that the towers are not the same size...one is a little larger. Male and female for Adam and Eve.

Stop for lunch and some good Czech beer...I am not much of a beer drinker, but the beer there was great!
We then walked back to our hotel  - easy walking distance from the historical center - and an art deco hotel with lots of history.
All of the hotels we stayed in were great - this was a very large and comfortable room.
Great bathroom - 

with a fabulous tub that was a little tricky to get into - very high!



After a quick break we headed back out to enjoy beautiful Prague...
We felt very safe walking around the city

and enjoyed a great dinner.
The next day we had free - no scheduled tours.  We had two things we wanted to see...the church where the Anthropoid paratroopers hid after assassinating the Nazi "Butcher of Prague" Reinhard Heydrich.  We saw the movie about this operation a few years ago and wanted to see the actual site.  The Viking representative in the hotel - another reason we like Viking, there is always a help desk to answer questions - told us the trams in Prague were free for people over 65 and we could get there easily...so we headed off with his directions and boarded a tram!
With our map in John's had we headed out...and found the Church of Saints Cyril and Methodius. First we visited the church, then entered the crypt where the paratroopers were hidden.  There was an amazing museum there - great information, a 25 minute movie, and it was very moving.

Bullet holes remain....



All of the paratroopers perished...either killed in a gun battle in the choir loft, or killing themselves in the crypt as it was being flooded by the Nazis. 

The priest who helped them was then killed by the Nazis, as well as the underground members and the family that hid them before the attack.


A moving memorial to honor them all.
If you want to learn more about Anthropoid you can watch the movie
or read about all that happened here -
After that very moving morning we took another tram to find 
The Infant of Prague.  
Are you familiar with the Infant of Prague ?
It is a statue of the child Jesus that was brought to Prague from Spain in the middle ages and has a rich history.  After spending twelve years in Catholic School this was on my list of things to see -


The statue is housed in a beautiful church
There is a tradition of donating robes to dress the Infant...

so we toured the museum to see all the robes that were offered over the years.
You can read about the Infant of Prague here - 
After all that history we needed lunch and a treat - 
After a quick sandwich we stopped for a traditional Prague treat -
A kind of cake like cone is put over a gas fire...
It slowly gets to be golden brown...

The cone is then filled with either whipped cream or ice cream like custard...

We chose caramel apple...there were small pieces of apple in the middle of the cone...

Super yummy !
After that it was a nice, slow walk back to our hotel...
across the Charles Bridge...



A wonderful ending to our day out in Prague.  What a beautiful city - so easy to get around and so many beautiful sites.
Sorry to leave Prague so soon...but tomorrow we are off to Poland.
Come back to share our Polish adventure soon.
Next week is National Library Week - as a retired librarian I am a huge supporter of libraries.  Will be hosting a "Retired School Librarian Brunch" here for the friends that I worked with.
So...have you been to Prague ?  What did you love about it?
Do you use your local library ?  What is your favorite thing about your library ?  Stop in during National Library Week and - excuse the pun - check out all that libraries have to offer.
Thanks for stopping by Our New Vista today - please leave a comment below.  I really enjoying hearing from you and connecting with so many of you!
Take care and enjoy the Spring weather and flowers!






















 





Tuesday, April 1, 2025

Germany and Elbe Cruise

 

Germany and Elbe River Cruise

What a journey !  We are home from our fabulous trip to Germany, the Elbe River, Czech Republic, and Poland.  A little jet lagged and sadly, sick with colds.  Despite our best efforts - drinking Airborne each day, wearing masks on the plane, using hand sanitizer and wiping down trays, remotes, etc. - we both came home with colds and a cough.  Luckily it did not ruin our trip.
Berlin was amazing...both John and I are huge history buff - and I love to read WWII historical fiction - so we were overwhelmed with all the historical sites.

The Holocaust Memorial in Berlin

A great clock with food for thought in a little cafe where we enjoyed lunch.

A fabulous guide on the Jewish Berlin tour...took us to places and showed us things we had never heard of before.

Memorial stones mark the places where Jewish people lived and were deported...tells where they perished.  These stones are meant to "stick up" a little bit, so you feel them with your foot, look down, and remember.
The factory of Otto Weidt...he hired blind Jews to work in his brush factory and is responsible for saving 27 people...

Hiding some, and even traveling to Auschwitz to get some workers released.

Bombed out church that reminds everyone of WWII...the new church is next door with the blue glass.  We were lucky enough to hear a concert there.
So glad we took the extra two days in Berlin...so much to see.We found the Museum of German Resistance.  This is where Claus Von Stauffenberg was executed after his attempt on Hitler's life.  So sad...


We stood in the spot where he was executed.  The entire museum is dedicated to the resistance to the Nazis - and the second floor was all "Silent Heroes" - everyday people who did the best they could to resist and to save Jewish people.  Very moving experience.

Berlin felt very safe...we enjoyed walking around at night, trying German restaurants...

Enjoying schnitzel and potato salad...and beer!

Apple Strudel!
The next day we took a Cold War Berlin Tour...

Such a sad memorial to all the souls who lost their lives trying to escape over the Berlin Wall to freedom....

Checkpoint Charlie...the gate between the sectors of Berlin during the Cold War.

Berlin is a beautiful city and even though it was cold, people were outside enjoying life.

Stained glass ceiling in the breakfast room of our hotel...

Donuts!
We said goodbye to Berlin, boarded a bus and headed to Potsdam - this is the famous Bridge Of Spies where exchanges were made.

Then off to the castle of Frederick the Great - this is the Andy Warhol painting of the king.

Palace was called Sans Souci..."without care".

Then over to the site of the Potsdam Conference at the end of WWII with Churchill, Stalin, and Truman.


Found a great place for soup on a chilly day...
then headed to our ship, Astrild, to enjoy our time on the Elbe River.

The ships on this river are smaller than other Viking River ships - due in part to the shallow river.  We were upgraded to a French Balcony room and we loved it.




Everything is beautifully laid out and the service is amazing.

We enjoyed a welcome toast from the captain...

Delicious dinner of perch...

and fabulous desserts and lots of wine!
We woke the next day in Wittenberg - and saw where Martin Luther posted his 95 Theses.



Loved sailing along the river and enjoying the view...

Our server Lukas telling us the wine choices...

That evening we enjoyed a music trivia game in the lounge.  We named our team THE BIG THREE after the participants in Potsdam - and WE WON!
Next day off to Meissen where we saw how the famous porcelain is made. 


The table settings all over the museum were so beautiful!



A walk around the town and up the hill to the cathedral,

then lunch in town with lots of beer!
Then it was off to Dresden, which was devastated by bombing in WWII.  Mostly everything is reconstructed.





Meals were outstanding...

John and the fabulous chef!

Aquavit glasses for Viking Explorers.
We had to switch to another Viking ship - the Beyla - due to a bridge out in Dresden and the ship could not pass...


A beautiful day of scenic sailing with a new friend.


We headed up the mountains up to what is called Swiss Saxony...beautiful views of the Elbe River.


Last day on the river...we are heading to the Czech Republic.
Can't say enough about how wonderful the trip on the river was...will tell you all about the second part of the trip in another post.
Hope you had a wonderful March and are ready for a great month of April.  Have you take a river cruise?  Do you like to travel?
Please leave a comment below - I love hearing from you!

Prague!

  Prague ! We loved Berlin and our wonderful cruise with Viking on the Elbe - but it was time to leave the river behind and start the Viking...