Prague Highlights Day 2

Day 2 of Prague was spent enjoying the sunshine, doing loads of walking, visiting the Jewish sites (traveler tip- lines at the bookstore are much, much shorter than the museum. I bought a pass that allowed access to the Jewish museum, cemetery and Pinkas synagogue), soaking in the beautiful atmosphere and ending the trip with a FaceTime lunch at cafe with my sister, some goulash and some Czech beer. It was a beautiful day!

Luck is universal

Music man

A tribute to those who lost their lives in the Terrezine concentration camps

It is said the Jewish history in Prague was perfectly preserved because Hitler planned on using it as documentation of an "extinct race".

The cemetery

When the Jewish citizens of Prague ran out of space to bury their dead, and purchasing more land was not allowed to them, they placed layers of soil on the existing graves and placed the tombstones upon the new layers of soil as Jewish custom does not permit the destruction of graves or tombstones. This is why the tombstones are placed so closely together, to account for the number of graves in the cemetery. It is estimated that there are approximately 100,000 people buried in the cemetery (only 12,000 or so tombstones are visible) which has 12 layers of graves.

Easter decorations in full effect

Technology makes distances seem so small :)

Looks WAY better than it tasted, unfortunately.

Ahoj! (Goodbye in Czech)

Book review- Water for Elephants

From the Jacket Cover:

Though he may not speak of them, the memories still dwell inside Jacob Jankowski's ninety-something-year-old mind. Memories of himself as a young man, tossed by fate onto a rickety train that was home to the Benzini Brothers Most Spectacular Show on Earth. Memories of a world filled with freaks and clowns, with wonder and pain and anger and passion; a world with its own narrow, irrational rules, its own way of life, and its own way of death. The world of the circus: to Jacob it was both salvation and a living hell.

Jacob was there because his luck had run out—orphaned and penniless, he had no direction until he landed on this locomotive "ship of fools." It was the early part of the Great Depression, and everyone in this third-rate circus was lucky to have any job at all. Marlena, the star of the equestrian act, was there because she fell in love with the wrong man, a handsome circus boss with a wide mean streak. And Rosie the elephant was there because she was the great gray hope, the new act that was going to be the salvation of the circus; the only problem was, Rosie didn't have an act—in fact, she couldn't even follow instructions. The bond that grew among this unlikely trio was one of love and trust, and ultimately, it was their only hope for survival.

My Review:

Unlike my previous post, Water for Elephants is a book littered with characters that you can't help falling in love with. Both Jacob and Marlena are extremely relatable by being people living in less than perfect circumstances, making questionable decisions but still having a moral compass even when their situations disallow it. But more than that, Gruen has created a masterpiece out of Rosie using real life instances of elephant behavior and building a character that stays with you long after you've finished reading. Even though this book is somewhat melancholy, I highly recommend it for an entertaining read.

Book Review - Gone Girl

From the jacket cover:

Marriage can be a real killer.
 On a warm summer morning in North Carthage, Missouri, it is Nick and Amy Dunne’s fifth wedding anniversary. Presents are being wrapped and reservations are being made when Nick’s clever and beautiful wife disappears from their rented McMansion on the Mississippi River. Husband-of-the-Year Nick isn’t doing himself any favors with cringe-worthy daydreams about the slope and shape of his wife’s head, but passages from Amy's diary reveal the alpha-girl perfectionist could have put anyone dangerously on edge. Under mounting pressure from the police and the media—as well as Amy’s fiercely doting parents—the town golden boy parades an endless series of lies, deceits, and inappropriate behavior. Nick is oddly evasive, and he’s definitely bitter—but is he really a killer?
As the cops close in, every couple in town is soon wondering how well they know the one that they love. With his twin sister, Margo, at his side, Nick stands by his innocence. Trouble is, if Nick didn’t do it, where is that beautiful wife? And what was in that silvery gift box hidden in the back of her bedroom closet?
  

My review:

I find it really hard to relate to books where I despise every single one of the characters. I found it hard to even latch on to one person in this book as a source of moral redemption.

That said, I read this book cover to cover without putting it down. The writing style and the plot line is so frenetic it sucks you in and doesn't let go until you are finished, even if it does leave you feeling a little hollow and a lot unfulfilled.  Time for a palate cleanser in the form of Bridget Jones' Diary ;)

Prague highlights Day 1

Just so you know, these posts are horribly delinquent. Even though the time stamp of these posts is May, Europe actually happened in the month of March.

So anyway, I work up bright and early Saturday morning and got dressed to go meet up Lucas and Patricia. I was to meet them at the astronomy tower, which in hindsight wasn't the best idea because A) I had never met them so didn't know what they looked like and B) the area was absolutely jam packed with tourists. Anyways, Lucas some how managed to find me and they very graciously took me up and gave me a tour of the Prague castle. Lucas is a tour guide in his spare time and without him I would have had no idea how to take the tram up to the castle (the area for tram tickets is underground in a decrepit building).

After a good three hours of touring the castle, I bid Lucas and Patricia (and their friends) farewell and made my way back to the astronomy clock for my free Sandeman's tour. Our tour guide, Bara, was just fantastic. She was so enthusiastic about Prague (being a native) and was so well versed in the history and little pieces of trivia that it made the three hour walking tour extremely enjoyable (even though the -5C degree weather was less than ideal).

After the tour, a few of us decided to do our own version of a beer crawl (a lot slower paced, a lot fewer beers) and had a great time chatting and getting to know one another over some fun flavored ales (there was a valentine flavored ale that they were pushing on us to help finish the cask). It's always fun to meet new people that are traveling from all over. Jenny and Lisa were visiting from Switzerland (although Jenny is originally a Texan), Tara was traveling through Europe from India, and the boys Raj and AP were in town from London for a bachelor party that they seemed to have misplaced ;). To brave the cold and walk back to our hotels, we ducked into a bar and took shots of absinthe. That will warm you right up!

Passage to old town square

The astronomical clock - built in the 15th century

Balloons let go by a bride and groom

Statue of Jan Hus- leader of the Hussite movement

En route to the castle

Beautiful vista

Multiculturalism at it's finest- with Patricia and Lucas

A tribute to Franz Kafka

The old-new synagogue

Tribute to Jan Palach- the 21 year old who publicly set himself on fire to protest the Soviet invasion of the Czech Republic in 1969

From Left to Right Tara, Me, Bara (our tour guide), Raj and AP

L to R - Jenny, me, Lisa and Tara

The whole gang

One for the road!

Shilpa goes to Prague

I had the weekend to myself in the Netherlands, and I'd already been to Amsterdam. I thought I'd go to Paris but the Thalys was experiencing serious delays due to weather conditions so I decided I would book a ticket to Prague instead since it's always been high on my list of places I've wanted to visit (the list is extensively extensive).

Anyways, I landed in Prague at around ten thirty at night and changed my money at the airport. Even though the Czech-Republic is part of the Schengen, they use the Czech Koruna (or crown) instead of the Euro. The conversion of CZK to USD is about 100 CZK for 5 USD.

Here is where Prague is on a map in case you were wondering.

My first impression of Prague wasn't the most stellar. The driver of my taxi was abrupt, drove recklessly and shamelessly requested a hefty tip. I couldn't see anything that distinguished the city from any others in the night time and the streets were lined with what appeared to be young prostitutes.

The first restaurant outside my hotel was an Indian restaurant so I ate some spicy vindaloo and tucked in for the night. I decided not to forgo my initial perception and start the next day fresh and excited.

Interesting facts about the Czech Republic:

1) Czech parents typically choose a name for their baby based on a register (unless they want to battle with authorities). Each baby name corresponds to a date in the roman calendar so people get to celebrate a birthday as well as a "name" day in the event that the two aren't one and the same

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Name_days_in_the_Czech_Republic

2) Independent Czechoslovakia was established at the end of the first world war.

3) Czechoslovakia was invaded by Hitler's army during WWII which led to the Prague uprising.

4) Czechoslovakia was a Communist state from 1945-1989. The country achieved democracy through student protests and largely non violent demonstrations which in turn led to the movement being called the "velvet revolution". Coz it was a smooth transition. Geddit?

5) In 1993 the country amicably split into the Czech Republic and Slovakia during the "velvet divorce".

6) A majority of Czech citizens do not believe in religion, leading the Czech Republic to be one of the least religious nations in the world.

**Everything mentioned above was gleaned from the exemplary Sandemans half day Prague tour. If you're in Prague I highly recommend you check it out. If you need more justification than gaining insight and knowledge into a country and culture that has a beautifully old heritage and an excitingly new government, then let me just tell you, the tour is free.**