Czech-ing things out

We spent yesterday and today on our whirlwind of Prague, in the Czech Republic.

Prague highlights

Mucha Museum - museum of one of my favorite artists, Alfons Mucha, who is from Prague.

Communist Museum - a museum about the Communist regime that held power from 1968-1989 in the Czech Republic...

Kafka Museum - a museum of one of Grayson's and mine favorite authors, who was born in Prague.

Old Town Square and Astronomical Clock

Walking across the Charles Bridge

Prague Castle - we went to get a peek at Obama giving a speech today, and instead saw his head on a screen about a foot from where his head actually was. The Czechs apparently love Obama. But also, many hate the nuclear defense system the US wants to build in their backyard.

Changing of the guard

After Obama cleared out we got to wander through the Castle grounds, to St. Vitus' Cathedral, which had an interior stained glass window made by Alfons Mucha.

We also went through the Picture gallery, and a tower that used to be a dungeon, complete with grotesque torture instruments.

After that we walked to the Strahov Monastery, which has one of the world's most massive book collections in their library.

We went to the Czech post office,

milled around Czech book stores, tried out the subway system, and mostly got around by tram, which is pretty fun. It amazes me how similar EVERY public transit system is almost exactly the same. While waiting for the tram, we saw Obama's procession out of Prague, which was a ton of police cars with lights and sirens going and a bunch of black tinted cars and SUVs.

We've been trying a lot of awesome food: yesterday we had soup, then pork with dumplings, gravy and sauerkraut, and then this crepe-like thing with whipped cream and chocolate sauce, a full three course meal, plus beer for $7 USD!

We've also had a thing that was a lot like a German brat, and nummy Czech breakfasts, which is a lot like the stuff on the train, and then this dessert that seems to be everywhere here, called trdo, which was a cylindrical pastry with cinnamon and sugar on the outside. Num!

Tomorrow morning we're off to the land of biergartens--Munich, Germany!