Prague Day 4, Part 1-The Old Town Square (again)

November16

We were winding down our stay in Prague for still had some lovely sights and eats ahead.

We started the day with one of our last opportunities to connect with our lovely server for the Pekny Restaurant. She was so patient with us when we kept asking for butter for our toast and ketchup for our eggs. We saw her when she was there in the evening and then early the next morning. She was such a hard worker, and we would have loved to have caught her on a break so we could truly get to know her.

In the midst of our strolling and shopping, we stopped for a morning refreshment. We had heard the rumour and could substantiate by that time, that Coca Coola and bottled water were more expensive than draft beer and some house wines. Coffee varied in price too depending upon whether you ordered an American (expresso diluted with water), regular coffee that was sometimes instant Nescafe and a cappuccino or latte as I had selected above.

Sister #2 had some more shopping to do in this lovely square that was so close to our apartment. When the sun was out the weather was glorious. I was usually warm with my black raincoat that had an enormous hood which protected me from spurts of wind or rain, but my sisters who packed lighter than I did were often chilly. Conversely, when we were covering ground in the many airports that we flew in and out of, my coat was a cumbersome burden-I found I couldn’t free up a hand to get onto an escalator and I had a heck of time remembering where everything was when I had to produce a boarding pass or passport. So there you have it-the pros and cons of packing light on a, October European vacation.

I didn’t have many pre-conceived notions of buildings that I didn’t want to miss, with one exception. A tour guide had told us earlier that the last building standing in Europe that hosted the composer Mozart was just down from the square on a side street. I wanted to see it and was so glad I did, but not because of the building itself.

This fascinating sculpture commemorated the premier of Mozart’s Don Giovani in 1787. Canada wasn’t even a country then!

As we strolled back towards Old Town Square, I was surprised to see this North American Institution-Hooters. Good grief. What a shame.

We did another lap around the square and Sister #2 realised that she was hungry. We didn’t want to dine without Sister #3 who was back at the aprtment, so she decided to pick up a Kubasa on a bun that she had been eyeing up. The line was long. She was content with the Czech klobásy, a version of a favourite from home. The Canadian sausage is always pork seasoned with garlic in a natural casing. My Polish/Czech Dad loved it when he was alive!