Prague Castle and St. Vitus's Cathedral

I'm not sure if it was because we were there in mid-June, which is before most Europeans start their vacation time, or if it was because it was during the week, but things did not seem to be as busy as I was afraid they would be at the castle.  Lines were not very long yet and we only had to fight with a few people to get through doorways and passages.

That said, the first place you must stop on your trip is Prague 

castle.  While not necessarily the most impressive group of buildings, it definitely houses the most history.  Prague castle sits atop a hill that over looks the city and therefore you also get some of the best views of the skyline.

The all-inclusive ticket gets you into all of the buildings that belong to the castle, so be prepared to spend most of your day there.  I'm not going to spend too much time on the history, you will learn about that there or online, I'll just point out a few of my favorite things.

After you purchase your ticket you can also get an audio guide.  The main reason this is a good idea is because you get to bypass the lines, especially at the entrance to St. Vitus's Cathedra, that are created by the plethora of guided tours.  (In general I prefer not to do guid

ed tours so I can move at my own pace, but it may be something you want to consider.)  Other than bypassing the lines, the audio guide is somewhat interesting and tends to have a little too much information which can make each segment quite lengthy and will make your trip through the castle long.

There are some interesting stories, however, about saints who are buried in the cathedral, like that of St. John of Nepumuck.  St. John of Nupumuck was killed by being thrown off of St. Charles Bridge.  When his body was exhumed they thought they found his tongue in tact which became a symbol of his truthfulness and ability to keep a secret; but later they found out it was actually brain matter.

My favorite part of the castle was the small street of houses that once belonged to the goldsmiths and other workers who lived in the castle.  The small, colorful houses now are home to gift shops and souvenirs, but they still maintain their original integrity.  House 22 was the home of Franz Kafka, the famous Czech author of Metamorphosis, and now it carries books by Kafka in several languages.

Eyewitness Top Ten

I have said it before and I will say it again, the Eyewitness guide books are my favorite and by far the best ones out there.  In the week we were in Prague we managed to do most of the main tourist things.  Our main guide was the Eyewitness Top Ten: Prague, which is a great pocket-sized guide to take with you.  (They make a Top 10 book for most major cities and these are easier to carry around than the full size versions)  The Prague book has 3 maps of the city center, one of which is a transportation map of the tram and metro systems.  

Transportation in Prague is very well run and handy, however be prepared for everything to be in Czech, so you will need visual land marks to find your stops.  Most people do speak English in the tourist areas, but as soon as you get outside these areas it is difficult to communicate unless you know some German, which can be more helpful.  The Eyewitness book also comes with a small, but useful Czech/English dictionary that will help you just enough in those areas, otherwise you'll be fine.  Your best bet if you need some help from a person, is to find someone young, they are more likely to speak good english and can help you.

The Richness of Prague

You are sitting on a cobblestone pathway.  In the distance the bells of the church are just finishing their hourly labor.  The people bustle around you, there are so many languages being spoken that you have stopped pretending to identify them.  Near by a cello quartet rounds out a classical version of Stairway to Heaven.  You think to yourself, 'What is this place where where the whole world seems to meet?  Where classical music serenades you from every corner?'  As the music passes through you, the aromas of a dozen different types of food waft past you as the sun sets behind the Baroque cathedral.  This place where rock meets opera, east meets west, north meets south, the remnants of communism meets capitalism is Prague; a delicious cacophony of all that Europe has to offer.

Still a hidden jewel among the plethora of hip European vacation destinations, Prague emits a richness and diversity of culture that does not exist in other cities that I have traveled to.  Richness:  I cannot describe it any other way.  Richness of architecture:  The most beautifully adorned buildings covered with rich colors, golden accents and thousands of statues.  Stunning mixtures of Bohemian, Gothic, Renaissance, Baroque and Rococo designs that mix together like a delicious stew.  

The richness of different types of food from all over the globe that melt together to create a new Czech cuisine.  No longer just dumplings and goulash, in Prague you can find a variety of restaurants all with their own take on traditional dishes, as well as their own worldly specialties:  Italian, Turkish, Chinese, Cuban, Spanish, Mediterranean, Irish, etc.  

Richness of music:  if there is one thing you go to Prague for, it should be the music.  There are concerts in every corner of the city.  Music emanates from the streets, the churches, and the theaters.  Sitting in the Old Town Square you can feel the richness of the city all around you.

Five days was just enough to get a taste of this exquisite city and to want more.  I fear there will never be enough time to see all that she has to offer.  Every time you turn a corner you meet a new site, an undiscovered church, plaza or restaurant which seem to have appeared just for you.  It is almost as if Prague is still somehow undiscovered even though millions of tourists migrate there every year.  Your very own forgotten land ready to be discovered.

And so the journey begins...

On Monday I will be embarking on my 6 week journey through Europe, starting with Prague, Czech Republic.  As we go, I will be reviewing everything from hotels and apartments to attractions.  I have never been to the Czech Republic and am very excited to go there.  I have heard amazing things about it and can't wait to find out if they are true.  Czech back frequently for updated posts and ideas for your next vacation.

Side note.  Currently I am staying at the Super 8 Motel in Troy, Missouri off of Highway 61.  It is the best Super 8 I've ever stayed in.  The rooms are clean and comfortable and the staff has been very helpful.  We were given a room originally with a leaking toilet and they immediately switched us into a suite, which is always a plus.  I highly recommend this hotel to anyway weary travelers wondering into the St. Louis area in the future.

The Jackson Hole Lodge

For the first night of our Yellowstone weekend we stayed at the Jackson Hole Lodge in Jackson Hole, Wyoming.  While the lodge isn't the most beautiful hotel I have ever been in, it is perfectly adequate especially for the price.  We found a room for $55/night at www.hotels.com, but the rooms normally cost $80-110.  Jackson Hole is one of the most expensive cities in Wyoming, so this is a great price.  

The rooms are comfortable and clean and sufficient for most travelers.  If you are a like fancy hotels and luxury accommodations, this is not the place for you, but it is a really great deal.  The best part about the hotel is that it is located a very short walk from the downtown area where there are dozens of restaurants and clubs.  If you were to go there in the winter for the ski season this would also be a great location because it isn't too far from the slopes, we could see them from right off the veranda.  It is very easy to get around town from this hotel.

The night we stayed at the hotel we walked down to a restaurant called Sidewinders.  This restaurant was not located in the downtown area, but rather a little further west of the Lodge.  It was a typical american restaurant with steaks, burgers and wings.  I had a Philly cheese steak sandwich and my husband had the Dagwood sandwich and we split chicken fingers for an appetizer.  

The food was great and the beer was icy cold, but the service was terrible.  I have never felt so ignored in my life.  We sat in the bar so we could get the happy hour drink special and the waitress took about 8 minutes before even coming to our table.  It took just as long to get our order taken and even longer for our food to be delivered.  Everyone working seemed like they were on vacation instead of working.  While a relaxed atmosphere is not a bad thing in a work environment, it is still important to remember your customers.  

Hopefully if you check this restaurant you will get a better server, because the food really is good and i can recommend eating there, as long as you are not in a hurry.  The Jackson Hole Lodge is also highly recommendable because it is inexpensive and good quality for the price you pay.  It has a really great location also which will help you see all Jackson Hole has to offer.

Yellowstone and Teton National Park

From the tranquil beaches of Portugal to the peaceful mountain tops of Yellowstone National Park the world provides numerous spaces where one can relax and be rejuvenated.  While I do not consider myself an "outdoor person," I am often overwhelmed at the splendor of the natural world.  As I headed off to Yellowstone and Teton National Parks, I was expecting to see something special, but never did I imagine the spectacular beauty that I witnessed at every turn:  soaring mountain tops, icy blue lakes, towering trees, graceful animals, powerful geysers, and majestic waterfalls.  The quaint towns acted as time warps transporting me through the years when visitors first began going to the parks to hundreds of thousands of years ago when the parks were first created.  There was so much to see in just the four short days that we were traveling that it will take me a few posts to cover it, but here I would like to give a brief overview.  

The first day we drove up to to Teton National Park and then down to Jackson Hole, Wyoming, where we stayed the first night.  I did not know that real "western" towns (like those from the movies) still existed, but Jackson is one of them.  The central part of town is filled with rows of shops and restaurants with faux-façade fronts and verandas.  We stayed at the Jackson Hole Lodge, which I will review in a following entry.  

Day two brought us to Yellowstone park itself.  This was a great time of year to visit the park.  It wasn't too cold (between 40 and 65 degrees over the course of the weekend) and it was sunny, which kept it feeling warm.  The best part of this time of year is that it is not tourist season yet, but it is warm enough to enjoy all the park has to offer.  We didn't have to deal with lots of traffic.  The major attractions, such as Old Faithful and Mammoth Hot Springs were not crawling with people.  You are still able to enjoy the peacefulness and tranquility of nature without the sound of a million tourists.  The weather was mild enough where we could go for a 3 hour hike and barely break a sweat.  Finally, as spring comes in, the animals come out and you have the opportunity to see all of the new born baby animals that have joined their herds.

For lodging you have several options.  There are 5 hotels inside the park at various intervals and all are near at least one major attraction.  We stayed at the Old Faithful Inn, which was extraordinary.  I highly recommend spending at least one night in the park, but it can be expensive, so for those of you who want a more budget friendly option, there are many hotels in Montana just outside the West entrance to the park.

  

The other benefit of going early in the season is that the prices are much lower for lodging, both in and outside the park.  The early part of the season does have some disadvantages, the largest being the presence of snow.  Yellowstone accumulates a large amount of snow during the winter, and by this point it is not all melted, so some of the trails and roads are still closed.  All of the lower elevations seemed to be clear, but some of the higher elevations were closed, but we were still able to see all of the major sights.

The weekend brought about amazing experiences, including a bear sighting, and I will unravel all of my experiences over the next few days.

Tranquility Rediscovered

In the middle of a popular beach destination, there sits a small village seemingly a million miles from nowhere.  Whitewashed buildings with terracotta roofs and terraces cluster in the rolling hills at the edge of the cliffs that plummet into the ocean a hundred meters below.  As I gaze from the balcony of my apartment in Areias de Porches, I see orange roofs sprawling out to the North and the tranquil blue waters of the Atlantic Ocean to the South.  For three days there has not been a single cloud in the sky, and in that month of March the temperature remains a steady twenty-six degrees Celsius.

A seagull flies overhead and draws my eyes to the sea, a thousand shades of blue and green stretching to the sky.  A series of cliffs and beaches stretch as far as the eye can see.  At the edge of one of the cliffs sits a small church, pure white against the aquamarine background.  I had not seen more than two-dozen people since arriving in the small village, something very unexpected since I had heard so much about the area.  I had expected beaches crowded with tourists and unhappy locals, but was pleasantly surprised to find only a few, very content locals roaming the quiet streets.

After taking in the quiet scenery, I walk the short distance from my apartment to the beach. A light breeze carries the smell of sea salt and the faint aromas of local cuisine.  The nearest beach, also my favorite, is nestled quietly between two towering cliffs, one of which holds the church.  The sand is glistening white and warm against my feet.  There is no one else there except for a few people in the restaurant that sits 50 meters from the water.  I say hello, they wave and smile, and I continue on my way to the beach. 

Yesterday I noticed a hole in the cliff of the church and was curious as to where it would lead me.  Like the wardrobe that leads to Narnia, the cave calls to me, “Come see my hidden wonders.”  The idea of the unknown intoxicates me and I cannot help but be curious as I walk slowly toward the base of the cliff.

It is the perfect time of day, the sun is warm, the water is cool and the tide is low enough to reach the cave.  I enter the opening and am able to stand, at first.  The cave begins to narrow, forcing me to crawl through.  It is longer than I expected and I loose almost all of the daylight.  Finally, I see light at the end of the tunnel.  I reach the exit and am forced to practically lie down in order to get out.  I crawl out of the cave and am blinded by the brilliant sunlight. 

Not knowing where I had gone, I look up to see a small, isolated stretch of sand.  No one else is around and there are no other entrances or exits to the secluded alcove.  Small rock formations jut out of the water.  The sliver of sandy shoreline runs in and out of the rock structures and into the waiting ocean current.  Not twenty meters from the sparkling water rises one of the magnificent cliffs of the Algarve, completely isolating the bay.  All I can hear is the calming sound of the water lapping against the shore and the call of seagulls, miles away.

I spent 3 hours on that beach that day in Porches, Portugal; calm, quiet, and tranquil in the sun until the tide forced me back through the hole to reality. As I returned through the cave, I could hear the sound of children laughing and playing in the water.  The delicate aromas from the restaurant invaded my senses bringing my journey to an end.  Exploring the unknown caves of the Algarve coast led me to many adventures that week; but no others led me to the peacefulness of that isolated shore the way that hidden, magical portal did on that beautiful day in March.