Miles and Smiles Away: August 20: Explorin' Prague

After a delicious breakfast in the hotel, we headed over to Old Town. We walked across the famous Charles Bridge and then got lost. We thought we were taking a short cut to Old Town Square, but since we don't know how to read a map, we ended up going in the wrong direction. After getting on track, we found ourselves right in the middle of the square. I immediately went looking for the astronomical clock that I've seen online so many times. It is absolutely the coolest thing ever. It's the oldest working astronomical clock in the world. I had to fight my way to the front of the crowd to snap a few good photos, but I'm so glad I did!

While looking up at the clock, we saw that you were able to go up on the tower, so we bought some tickets and headed upstairs. Holy amazing, yall! The view is so incredibly beautiful. I honestly think that view is better than the view from Prague Castle. You're right in the middle of Old Town and you can see everything. It was very cool.

When we checked in yesterday, we were recommended a cafe beside the National Theater. We were told it's a must-have when visiting Prague. So after finishing up on the square, we headed towards the theater...or so we thought. Once again, we got lost. But it really isn't too bad getting lost when you're surrounded by the most beautiful buildings and scenery. After a few u-turns, we found Cafe Slavia and enjoyed our lunch. Actually, mom loved her's so much, that she is claiming it's the best meal she had this entire trip.

While leaving the cafe, we were walking alongside Vltava River and saw multiple people paddle boating down the river. Instead of going to the hotel, we decided to give that a try. We were out on the river for a little less than an hour, but it was so relaxing. I actually think mom might have fallen asleep at one point -- just kidding -- though I wouldn't blame her. Right on the shore, there was a guy singing and playing the guitar, and he was wonderful! It was very peaceful listening to him sing, while floating on the river.

Once we returned back to the dock, we headed back to the hotel to get ready for dinner. Let me just say, this is the wildest dinner I've ever had. For starters, we walked in expecting to eat on the first floor, but instead we headed downstairs. Not just one flight of stairs, but two more. Also... there were ZERO lights in the entire place. There were candles lining the stairs and on top of the tables -- other than that, nothing. We finally got down to the very bottom floor and sat down. It was hot and creepy. But once we got some cold beer, we cooled off a little bit. Anyway, so we knew we signed up for a show, but I was not expecting what we got! Mom and I were chit chatting when all the sudden she calmly goes, "there's a snake". My palms got sweaty, my knees started shaking, and my mouth got so dry. Two seconds later the snake (and the dude holding it) were right behind me and mom was laughing. I closed my eyes and waited for the gross thing to move away, but the guy thought it was too funny to mess with me. NOT COOL, GUY, NOT COOL!

The snake left, we received our food, and all was good again. I was actually very excited about my meal. I ordered grilled chicken, which I really haven't seen many places have. It was so, so good! After dinner the show started. First was a gypsy-like woman who sang us some Czech folklore songs. Then there was the belly dancer, who was joined by two men. One playing the drums and the other playing bagpipes. Next up, was the creepy guy who held the snake and a pirate-ish guy. They were sword fighting. All was fun and games until the pirate-ish guy grabbed me and used me for the skit. The only good thing about that was that I could swing the sword at the snake guy. Then the gypsy-like woman came back. Apparently she not only can sing, but she can also see your future! She claims I'll be married within a year. *HAHA* Finally, creepy snake guy and drummer boy came back down to wrap up the show. Drummer boy sat down and drummed away, while snake guy played with fire. He lit his hands on fire, he swallowed fire, and then spit fire. It got hot down there. As weird as that dinner was, it was very unforgettable!

We are headed to Berlin tomorrow! :-)