Danube River Cruise - Day 3 - Friday, October 26, 2018 - Prague, Czech Republic

After a good night's sleep we were ready to take on Prague. We are staying at the Imperial Hotel which is lovely. It was built in 1914 and it has preserved much of the old charm. The rooms have huge wooden doors and the bathrooms are finished with marble and onyx. We went down to breakfast at about 6:45 and it was a really nice spread. The dining room itself is also very pretty. I'll include some pictures as the time goes on. Our group met at 8:00 - there are 75 of us so we split into two groups with Renata as our local guide. She was very informative and helpful on our tour. We went to the Prague Castle and walked around the perimeter and got a lot of Czech history. This is a big weekend for them. They are celebrating the 100th anniversary of becoming a republic even though they are now split into the Czech Republic and Slovakia. We went into St. Vitas Cathedral which was beautiful also. We then got back on the bus which dropped us off near the Old Town. We walked across one of the three bridges and saw the Old Town and the Jewish Quarter. The architecture is really beautiful in Prague. Then we went to see the Astronomical Clock in the square at 10:00 - quite an ingenious piece of work. From there we were on our own to explore. We walked through more of the Old Town and over the Charles Bridge. After some hunting we found the funicular and took it to Petrin Hill. There were beautiful rose gardens and we walked up the "Little Eiffel Tower" - 1/5 the size of the one in Paris. Don't let that fool you though it was quite a hike to get to the top but the views were amazing. We walked back across the Charles Bridge and found an authentic Czech restaurant where we lunched on pork knuckles - delicious - and, of course, some good Czech beer.  We all decided we won't need dinner but some gelato or ice cream are in order. We walked back to the hotel and some napped and rested while others of us blogged. 

Breakfast in the hotel

Breakfast in the hotel

Breakfast in the hotel

Views in front of Prague Castle

St. Vitas Cathedral

St. Vitas Cathedral

St. Vitas Cathedral

The Royal Guard

St. Vitas Cathedral

St. George Basilica

St. Vitas Cathedral

St. Vitas Cathedral

St. Vitas Cathedral

Palace Gate

Emblem of Moravia, Bohemia and Selesia

Views of Prague

Views of Prague

Jewish Quarter

Jewish Quarter

The Old New Synogog

Jewish Quarter

The Astronomical Clock

Col and Bob in Old Town Prague

Views of Prague

The Little Eiffel Tower

Views of Prague from the Little Eiffel Tower

Views of Prague from the Little Eiffel Tower

Views of Prague from the funicular

Charles the Fourth

Here's to Prague

Pork knuckle

Cheese and Sausage Plate

Refreshed again we ventured out for our said ice cream.  We went to Cocoa Café and enjoyed a gelato. It was so nice to be able to sit outside and watch Prague on a Friday night. The evening was mild but as the gelato cooled us off we decided to go back to the hotel for a night cap. We tested the skills of the bartender but he passed with flying colors as he made us a Seabreeze, Pina Colada, Harvey Wallbanger and an Old Fashion. Time for bed!