Mom and Dad have just touched down back to Charlotte. We had a great
week. I went to the airport to pick them...they arrived with only 2
suitcases and two carry-ons...I was so impressed!!! The Parnells are
not light packers.
I haven't done a lot of the touristy things since the first month or
so, so I was great to rediscover Prague. We did some fun things that I
had done, like the Jewish Quarter, the Castle, Old Town Square, and
some new things that I hadn't done, like take an old car on a drive
through the city, go to two different concerts [strings + organ and
classical guitar duets], and took a lunch cruise on the Vltava. One
day, we took a day trip to Cesky Krumlov, a tiny city in southern
Bohemia that I had visited my first weekend in the CZ. It was very
different without the subzero temperatures, long underwear, and 6
inches of snow. It was a gorgeous day and the town wasn't overrun with
tourists. There is something magical about Cesky Krumlov...like living
in a fairy tale or a postcard. [I'm headed back there on Tuesday, and
I'm not complaining].
Harris and Laura arrived on Wednesday and we had a great dinner at
Kampa Park, one of the best restaurants in Prague. It was tres
awesome, right on the Vltava with an amazing view of the Charles
Bridge. The next morning, bright and early to catch the bus to Vienna.
I had already been to Vienna on Spring Break, but it is such a great
city that I didn't mind. We got to the hotel [which was right across
the street from the U...excellent!] and decided to do a quick bus tour
in the afternoon. We got a quick tour of the town. That night, we went
to a concert at the Kursalon, a famous concert hall in Vienna. It is a
classical music concert, plus dancing and fun costumes! Man, it
delivered like Dominos. They knew their niche, and they found it.
Super touristy, but totally awesome.
The next day, it was the National Labor Day in Vienna [read: lots of
protests and the like]. Mom and I headed to the Imperial Palace [I do
love me a good palace] while Laura, Harris, and Dad went to the
National Art Museum. We met them for lunch at a lovely little outdoor
cafe near the art museum. I had my first [and last...] wiener
schnitzel...redonkulous. After lunch all of us headed to the art
museum for some culture. This museum is incredible. It was built by
Franz Josef in the late 19th century near the end of the Hapsburg
Empire. It is amazing what you can build when you have unlimited
funds. The museum has a huge collection, from Roman sculpture to
Rubens to Egyptian hieroglyphs to Velasquez to Vermeer. The Vermeer
was my favorite...just incredible. We went to a locals place for
dinner which was a nice change from the generally tourist oriented
places that we had been going. The downside of going somewhere off the
beaten track is that NO ONE speaks English. Our poor waitress was
reduced to exaggerated hand gestures and speaking German really loud.
We eventually got our dinner [almost what we ordered] and headed back
to the hotel.
The next morning, we headed to the Belvedere, another art museum. I
didn't go in [I was feeling weird, plus I had already seen it], but
the grounds and exterior are beautiful. We got on the bus and headed
back to Prague. Mom and Dad left the next day and Harris, Laura, and I
started on our Eastern European adventure. I'll leave that for another
blog.
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