Czech Republic
The next morning we happened upon huge crowds watching a parade, which turned out to be hundreds of Sokol (sports teams) groups. We enjoyed cheering and watching the participants, both young and old, in their colorful costumes.
We explored Josefov, the Jewish Quarter, where Jews came to Prague from all over Europe to escape persecution, only to find themselves forced into ghetto life. Six synagogues remain, including the Old-New Synagogue, the oldest preserved synagogue in Central Europe. On the walls of Pinkas Synagogue, the names of the 77,297 Czech Jews who died at Auschwitz and other camps in World War II are handwritten. Upstairs is an exhibit of art created by Jewish children imprisoned at Terezín Concentration Camp. Of the 15,000 children who passed through Terezin, only 100 survived. Their artwork, hidden away and discovered after the war, lives on as a testimony to their lives and spirits. The Old Jewish Cemetery, which was in use from the early 15th century, contains 12,000 tombstones, with several burial layers on top of each other.
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In the evening we met
our tour group and guides in the lobby of Hotel Central. Katarzyna Derlicka (Kasia),
our guide, and Etelka Parine Berecz, our assistant guide, led us on a walk through Old Town
Prague, ending with
dinner at Černý Orel.
The following morning we took a walking tour of the Old Town area. Gathering at the Old Town Hall, we all watched the Astronomical Clock. At the top of the hour Death tips his hourglass and pulls the cord. The windows at the top of the clock open, the twelve apostles parade by, the rooster crows, and the bell rings. After the tour we visited the Mucha Museum and had lunch
at Celnice Restaurant.
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We hiked up to Castle Hill after breakfast on our fourth day. After
exploring the castle and St. Vitas Cathedral, we had lunch at Černý Orel, the same restaurant where we’d eaten
our first group dinner. That evening we attended
a Black Light Theater performance, a variety show unique to Prague that combines mime, dance, acrobatics and multi-media.
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Leaving Prague the next day, we drove to Trojanovice and had a picnic lunch at our hotel, Hotel U Kociana, at the foot of the Beskydy Mountains. Most of the group hiked to a chairlift and rode to the top of the mountain. We all had dinner at the Koliba U Záryša Restaurant where our guide, Kasia, assumed the persona of “Marushka” and entertained us, Czech-style. Back at the hotel we were treated to a performance of traditional Wallachian dancing and singing by a local Czech group.
We left the following morning for Poland, but returned to Prague at the end of our trip, taking the train from Vienna, and staying at the Hotel
U Klenotníka. We had dinner that night at Restaurace
U Pinkasů, where we enjoyed another wonderful Czech meal. We were reluctant (but tired) travelers the next day, heading for home with amazing memories of our Eastern European adventures.
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