Croatia and Prague 2008

Yesterday we took a tour to Cesky Krumlov (an old castle about 3 hours by bus in the south of the CZ Republic). It's a nice castle surrounded by a winding river. We had carp! for lunch. It's what they have for their Christmas meal here. My fish must have been a huge one because it had some humongous bones. They put some spice on it so tastes like any other white fish. I liked it better than the lake trout Pete had. Lots of walking around again. My feet has never hurt so much For dinner we had some gyros (made from real pieces of chicken on a rotating skewer) - pretty yummy. We're pretty much done with the meat and sour krat food that's authentic Czech.

Today we had an American breakfast at the Boheimian Begal (a chain here). Then we took a trolley up this hill and climbed this structure that is supposed to look like the Eiffel Tower. We got some nice pictures of Prague from above. I hung out at the square reading my book while Pete went to find a Jewish girlfriend at the Jewish cemetary. Tonight we took a ghost tour of Prague - walking again. At least we got our Thai massages before. We both got a 2 hour traditional massage for about $60 each with tip. Not bad considering a Coke and Budweiser costs $20 in the square. It's easy to get ripped off here. Not as cheap as we expected.

Tomorrow will be a non-walking day hopefully. I plan on reading in the square again and not sure what Pete has in order. We also have to figure out how to get to the airport on Sunday morning. The trip is winding down. It's been 2.5 weeks. We really liked the first two weeks in Croatia. Prague in the last couple days has been really tiring. We've been turning in around 11-12 at night. Looking forward to coming home and sleeping in my own bed!

I'll post the pictures when I get back.

Bye from Prague!
Paul

We spent Tuesday morning picking up our laundry and checking out Zagreb for the last time. Took our propeller plane from Zagreb to Prague ($500 for this one way ticket). Took the bus and then the train from the airport to our hostel. The hostel is in the heart of the old town square so it's in the right spot but the rooms are small and totally reminds me of my old dorm room. Brings back memories. Pete and I paid extra for our shared rooms (as opposed to sharing a bunk bed with 10 people). We spent the evening checking out the town. I spent $10 for an espresso and water in front of the anatomical clock (had to hear Pete bitch and whine about the expensive coffee the whole time!). It seems pretty expensive here in the center. Maybe it is cheaper in the out skirts of town. One dollar is about 16 crowns. We were hoping that it would be cheap here but apparently it is not. If you like beer (which doesn't apply to me) then Prague is your place. The beer is the same cost if not cheaper than water!

Today we did the "Ultimate Tour" of Prague. In this group of about 20 people there were two other Americans - one from California and one from St. Paul! They guy from St. Paul just graduated from William Mitchell Law school. Some pretty amazing pictures of an old city. We are still nostalgic of Croatia's beaches and pretty women. They have better looking women in Croatia. They do have a lot of more expensive and nice cars in Prague. I saw the brand new Porsche 911 (which wasn't in the states yet when we left).

Took lots of pictures today. Boy are my feet sore! Maybe a Thai massage is in order soon. It ranges from $35 / hour to over $100/hour for a Thai massage here.

Talk to you soon!
Paul

P.S. - no other car incidents to report other than the run in with the garage and the post and my speeding ticket

Yesterday we drove to Plitvice National Park. Another amazing place. Very clear water for a lake. Lots of carp (fish) in the lake. They don't allow swimming in the lakes which was a bummer. Pictures are worth a thousand words here so when I'm able to post the pictures (probably when we get back) then you'll see.

We drove to Zagreb after a long day of hiking. We're staying at the Palace Hotel which is the oldest hotel in the city. They've renovated the hotel so it's nice inside. It's about $200 a night so the most we've paid so far. It took us all morning and lots of walking around to find a place that will do our laundry. It took us all afternoon to find an internet cafe. It's on the third floor away from the main square. It will probably take us the rest of the afternoon and evening to find a spa so we can get a massage or foot massage.

Everything is better here! Even the coffee - gives me a great buzz everytime without the runs - unlike the ones in the US.

Tomorrow we return the car and fly off to Prague! Maybe it gets better in the Czech republic???

Paul

Today we are on the island of Korcula. It is supposed to be a nice island with lots to do but since it is after August, everything is shut down early. We have yet been able to find a bar with people in it. At least the weather is good. We thought about jumping this island and going back to our favorite beach in Brela but decided to stay. We took a bus to the other side of the island. It dropped us off at some in a deserted wine vineyard. Fortunately we found this beach which happened to be pretty much deserted. I fell asleep and woke up to see some young hot topless women sun bathing next to us! Turned out to be not such a bad island after all.

Tomorrow we catch a ferry back to Split and then plan on driving back to our favorite beach in Brela.

Talk to you all soon!
Paul

Since the last entry, we stayed in Brela for a few days and went to Makarska at night for dinners and coffee/beers. We rented a boat yesterday and went along the coast near Brela. We went to some secluded beaches and snorkeled. Not much to see in these waters.

Today we drove to Omis - our formerly favorite town. Spent the day there hiking up to this castle. The beaches in Omis were not as great as we expected. We're in Split now and bought our tickets to Korcula (an island). We have no idea what it's like there but we'll find out soon. We're probably going to separate ways with Letti and Ume tonight.

Fortunately no new car incidents to report...

Paul