Prague, Czechia. Thursday, 19th May 2022.
Had put Urmila's phone on the charger before going to bed the last night, as the battery was down to 1 %. Sleep broke at 04:00 this morning; and I remembered the phone. Got up to disconnect the charger - the battery was at 100%. Fell asleep again, to be awakened by the alarm at 05:00. Went down to breakfast at 07:00 and were off by 07:30.
A lovely blue sky, a gentle morning sun and a refreshing breeze! Perfect! Walked to the nearby underground station of Mustek and caught the metro to Nadrazi Weleslavin, in Prague 6. Exited the station to familiar sights. On foot to the bus stop of route number 355; duly caught one- virtually empty - and rode two stops through a very pleasant suburb, to Shirin Tower, a skyscraper! A rare commodity in this elegantly aesthetic capital! We had an appointment for 08:30 but were there before time. The appointment went off better than expected and leaving the modern building, we strolled towards the station of Nadrazi Welleslavin with its broad platform, admiring the uniform housing colonies and the spic-n-span roads, on the way. Met a lady with a cute dog; requested her to click our picture and she obliged. I patted the friendly dog, whose name, it turned out, was Bublina. urmila maintained a safe distance!
Caught the train back to Mustek. Back to our room for a very brief rest. Stepped out again to have a joy ride on a tram. Boarded tram no. 8 at the Wenceslas Square stop on Vodickova street and rode till its stop- Stary Hloubetin - taking in this beautiful city yet again! The roads and pavements, the lanes and by-lanes, the parks and gardens, the robust buildings with architecture ranging from the Gothic to modern; everything is a delight! Prague is a delight! Before reaching the last stop, we had spotted our favourite 'Lidl' at the previous stop, hence decided to check it out. Walked to the supermarket, once again admiring the residential buildings on the way. Purchased a packet of salty crackers, then boarded another tram for Jindrisska. Guided by Google, we found the restaurant Snemovna V Jabusky. We were here to avail ourselves of two pints of free beer, courtesy our hotel Ramada.
The walk took us through hitherto unseen areas of this magnificent capital, including a huge, glittering and sprawling shopping complex. The restaurants with their mandatory outdoor seating made great viewing. The beer at the restaurant was great, as was the cheese dish (forget its name!) we had ordered, to go with the drink. Then made our way to an Indian restaurant named Dhaba Beas for lunch only to find that it offered only a buffet! Decided to check out 'Sangam Indian Restaurant', recommended by the Malayali couple we had met yesterday at Kutna Hora.
For this, we had to walk to the stop of Namesti Republiky and ride a tram to Karlinske Namesti. The restaurant had a lovely decor. We were led to a separate, air-conditioned section. After much deliberation, each of us settled for a dosa - Masala; and chicken. They were quite tasty, as were the sambhar and chutney. Then caught a tram back to Wenceslas Square. Back to our room.
Enjoyed 'black tea' (no creamer!) in the room at 17: 15 and stepped out again at 18:15, for the river. Decided to walk till the National Theatre and then follow the river on its bank, till Charles Bridge. Followed the route advised by Google - through a park, along lanes and by-lanes, by shopping complexes, till we reached the huge and impressive shopping mall at Narodni Trida. This was the rear side of the mall. A crowd had gathered at one spot and Urmila rightly guessed that there might be something interesting! To our surprise, we found ourselves staring at the huge, metal head of Franz Kafka, the famous German speaking Bohemian novelist! I had known about its existence but had completely forgotten about it! It was sheer luck that had brought us here! At the stroke of 7:00 p.m., the face started rotating! Not the entire face at once, but a few of the metal parts at a time - lips, ears, nose moved. The head and neck rotated slowly. It was fun!
I knew the route forward and within ten minutes were at the river front. The views were, as expected, outstanding! Pedal boats were moving here and there with its occupants pedalling furiously; cruise boats were gently following their regular routes on the Vltava, leaving a trail of foamy water behind; the stately buildings were glittering as the evening sun gently cast its rays upon them; and people in their colourful best were strolling around! It was simply divine!
Watched the river for some more time, then reluctantly moved from there, in the direction of Charles Bridge. Just before the bridge, we cut off from the main road and followed a narrow, cobbled path to our right. We had done something similar on or visit here in 2014! Urmila could not recall! Sauntered along the cobbled roads and pavements, between rows of aesthetically appealing buildings, turning left/right/ moving straight; as advised by Google; appreciating everything; till we reached Wenceslas Square!
Halted at the Italian restaurant very near our hotel, for a drink. Sat out, sipping our individual drinks, watching people go up and down the square. I even shot a video from our table. rested the camera on the table, aimed it at the crowds and switched on the video mode. Back to our room by 20:45 or so, collecting tea bags, sugar sachets and half a glass of milk (creamer still not available!) from the friendly fellow at the hotel's restaurant.
It is now 22:08. We need not get out of bed before 06:30 tomorrow. Can take it easy, go down for breakfast by 09:30 and return to laze in the room till 11:00, the check-out time. A good thing is that the train to Krakow (Poland) will depart at 15:28, instead of 17:28 (the originally scheduled departure). Will reach Krakow by 22:20 instead of at ten past midnight!
