The Xmas decorations were being put up - they looked fantastic. We all wondered why cities don't make so much effort in Australia. The Xmas market stalls were being set up too. I'm very sad that we are just two weeks too early for the Xmas markets here and in Germany.
We then took the train out to go for a ride on the world's oldest big ferris wheel, built in 1897. When we got there the kids were appalled to see that the ferris wheel was in the middle of a huge amusement park - appalled because we had to ride and go, to get back to Greg at the hotel! They couldn't stay and play! The carriages hold about a dozen people (some are set up for candlelit dinners!) and our regular carriage had graffiti all over the inside of it, which Bella & Liam felt compelled to add to!
Back at the hotel we collected Greg and the car and I started making lunch on my lap (it was another car picnic day) when we realised we'd left some of our food in the hotel fridge. Luckily we were just up the road so Greg raced back, and was able to retrieve most of it! The drive to Prague was slow. We had lots of "willages" to go through, at 50 km; we'd barely reach 90 km before there would be another village. Hitting the border, we were unexpectedly confronted by some huge casinos. It was like something out of a mid-western film. In the middle of no-where, obviously inspired by Las Vegas, there was an enormous plane, a huge globe, a castle (complete with dinosaurs), a Tara-style mansion - it was quite eye boggling and to go with it, was big billboards offering boundless adult entertainment. Greg and I were both disappointed that we didn't stop to take photos, as it was so unexpected and.... weird. As we drove along there were a few random women standing near but not on the roadside. We couldn't help but think they were looking for some business. They were well rugged up though, as it was cold!
Eventually we hit the freeway - it's always a relief to go to two lanes and be able to safely overtake (or, as is more often the case for us, be overtaken, as we insist on sticking to the speed limit!). However there was a lot of roadworks going on - work happening on the gap between the inbound and outbound lanes, which meant they significantly narrowed the two lanes. This is quite hairy when you are going past trucks as there is not much space to move!! The roads were noticeably worse than Austria, but no where near as bad as Poland (our benchmark for seriously crap roads from now on!). We saw a gorgeous sunset, the first sunset I think I've seen on our trip so far :-)
We arrived in Prague in the dark. We are used to this, because it gets dark so early now. We found our apartment - the Prague Holiday Apartments (www.prague-holiday-apartments.com) which is costing us 168 Euro for the three nights. I booked a two bedroom penthouse apartment, and that is what we have. We are on the 7th floor, and unfortunately, the lift only goes to the 5th. Luckily we can cope with a few stairs. The apartment is lovely - we really like it. Because it's at the top of an old building, there are lots of funny roof angles! Our main bathroom - the only one with a shower - has been interestingly arranged with the shower/bath under the lowest end of the ceiling - see the pic of Liam hitting his head! Greg, Bella and I have to sit to shower! We have a terrace off our bedroom with lovely roof top views of Prague. We are on the same side (about 30 minutes walk) as the Prague castle. The receptionist recommended a restaurant across the river for "authentic" Czech food, and it was really good. I had goose for the first time ever, it tasted quite a lot like duck to me! Everyone enjoyed their meals and drinks. I liked that I could order my wine as a double, instead of a piddly little glass!
Greg cooked bacon, eggs, tomatoes and mushrooms this morning. Turns out this is a great way to get the kids out of bed promptly! Getting them out of the apartment though took a bit more time... it was well after 10 when we finally got going and bought our transport ticket (valid for 72 hours). We caught the tram to the castle but had to walk the last km or so (steeply uphill). It was quite misty/smoggy. The weather forecast predicted rain and snow, but we managed to get through the day without either. The castle is huge, and impressive. We opted for a one hour English tour which took us through the cathedral and part of the castle apartments. We still have more of the castle to see tomorrow,as we ran out of time - it closes at 4pm during the winter season. We decided to have dinner in tonight, so the kids went back to the apartment and Greg and I went to the supermarket. Greg thought he'd cook carbonara - quite a simple operation you'd think, but next time we are looking for ingredients I'm going to do a google search first on the spelling. I couldn't find cream - I asked a few people but couldn't find one who spoke English. I ended up taking a guess, and back at the apartment discovered it was sour cream. Very close!! So I'm enjoying a nice French chardonnay as I type this.
One thing I didn't expect on this trip, was how much the cold weather would ravage my hair. Bella is also suffering - our hair is very, very dry and straw like - we don't like it! I ended up googling how to cope with curly hair and winter, and you probably wouldn't be surprised but there is heaps of info on it. Most of it recommends covering your hair with a silk scarf and then a beanie, not a very good look but apparently the cold wind is very hard on dry, curly hair. Another suggestion was putting a hair mask on, covering it with a shower cap and then your beanie. I've found a hair mask but shower caps in Prague are proving to be more elusive. I'll keep the search up though. So when you see pics of me with my attractive beanie on, you'll have to guess if I've got an equally attractive shower cap underneath it! If not, I'll definitely have my lovely floral silk scarf which I picked up at the op shop today on our way to the castle!
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