Czech Trip

Have to say, Czech is a country of beautiful castles. Funny thing is, Praha wasn't the most exciting city. Prague Castle is really bland if you've seen a couple European castles. It's more like a palace IMO. The astronomical clock is only interesting considering its age (installed in 1410). Took a while to study the time, not adjusted to day light saving. Impressive clockwork. Saw a production of Don Giovanni by Mozart at the Estates Theater, where it was first premiered in 1787. I really enjoyed the opera. Check the show schedule beforehand (http://www.narodni-divadlo.cz/en) if you ever plan on visiting Prague. Buy a ticket on the day of and you can get a discount (40% off!). Pretty cool to catch a world renown opera for only 174 CZK (less than 7 euro) per person.

Praha photos: https://plus.google.com/photos/113880069774612153445/albums/5919794372278949329?authkey=CLXZs9v21OPj8gE

Kutna Hora has the famous Bone Chapel. It's very magnificent. The town is only 1 hour away either by bus or train from Praha. The St. Barbara's church is also worth a visit. This website has useful info for visiting Kutna Hora: http://www.outsideprague.com/kutna_hora/kutna_hora_daytrip.html

Kutna Hora photos: https://plus.google.com/photos/113880069774612153445/albums/5919804093396374049?authkey=CMe69LnioYvuXA

Cesky Krumlov Castle was said to be the most romantic castle in Europe. It's just lovely. Although it's a good 3 hour- (by bus) or 3.5 hour- (by train) away from Praha, a definite must-see! It's got a medieval town around the castle. Also, be surprised by the bears in the front moat. They call it the bear moat. The castle's had bear keeping history since the 16th century. "the Český Krumlov Castle is decorated with ostentatious coats-of-arms of the lords of Rosenberg bearing the sign of the five-petalled rose in a silver field and bears as the shield-bearers. The Rosenberg family legend held that the Rosenbergs were related to the noble Italian family of Orsini. "Orsa" means she-bear in Italian, and it is this animal motif which especially the last Rosenberg rulers used to demonstrate their relationship with the house of Orsini." The Rosenbergs were one of the founding families of the castle. We saw 3 of the 4 bears in the moat. They love to hide under the bridge.

Cesky Krumlov Castle: https://plus.google.com/photos/113880069774612153445/albums/5919807247062133009?authkey=CLLxtaTCo_io-gE

Karlstejn Castle is another beautiful castle. It's about 40 min train ride away from Praha, so it's totally worth a visit if you get half a day. This is a full defense castle with proper gun holes, defense towers, etc. The kingdom stash its treasures inside this stronghold. You must join the guided tours to enter the castle. Note that tour 3 for the tower is only offered during the weekends. There is a nice little restaurant in the village to the castle that's got a cute little parrot.

Karlstejn Castle: https://plus.google.com/photos/113880069774612153445/albums/5919817003688622001?authkey=CJXPjLGjmePDpAE

The country itself is very inexpensive. You can get a decent meal for less than 200 CZK. Just need to stay away from the tourist spots and go where the locals go. Also loved the fact that tips are not compulsory and are really appreciated. Locals usually leave 5~10%. Need to be careful with the bill though. We were advised by our inn owner that some places love to scam tourists. Always compare prices. I've seen ice cream prices range from 20 CZK per scoop to 40 CZK in the same block. I guess keep a scale in your mind and only go to places where you think prices are reasonable.

Buy round trip train tickets whenever possible. You get a discount that way. Haven't quite figured out the discount system, but we got our tickets the day of or one day ahead and they were cheaper than advertised on the system online. You can check the train schedule before hand here: http://jizdnirady.idnes.cz/vlakyautobusy/spojeni/

Famous local cuisine is goulash soup and dumplings. Surprisingly, the soup tasted very much like oyster noodles in Taiwan (蚵仔麵線). The fat in the beef made it taste like 肉羹. Highly recommend it if you ever visit. Things in Czech are quite cheap. The soup was only 59 Czk (less than2€). They also have goulash in Hungary. The soup I had in Hungary had clear stock. I personally liked that better. The dumplings here are not really dumplings. They're more like steamed breads. There are some variations, potato dumplings and regular dumplings. Just think of it like steamed (instead of baked) white toasts.

my google map: https://maps.google.com/maps/ms?msid=205001138173737656601.0004e356e1fae6ea340e5&msa=0