Back to Prague - Day 5

The next day we slept in until 8:30AM.  Yep, for us that was sleeping in as Noah’s body clock still was waking him up way too early.  Even though he was on the other side of the room, I am not able to sleep with the tiniest bit of noise in the room, so we were making it another early morning. 

Excitement After the Clock

We decided to take our time because today we had decided that today was for us to take it easy and look for souvenirs while taking in what the streets had to offer.  We also decided that it would be a good day to finally check out the Astronomical Clock in Old Town.  While doing my research before I left for the Prague, I had heard that the Astronomical Clock was a real let down for many.  Not because it’s not beautiful, it is.  Rather, because the show that it puts on at the hour is well, less than stellar.

When people go to see the Astronomical Clock it is apparent that many have hyped up the show so much that they believe it to be something it truly wasn’t.  As we headed to the square, I told Noah that it was nothing spectacular and that he would be disappointed, that way when he eventually saw the show, he would think it was better than it was. 

There was quite a crowd when we got there, but we still had time, so we grabbed an ice coffee before returning.  We wanted something to perk us up before the “show.”  As the time got closer, the crowd became even denser with people ready with camera in hand to capture the excitement.

Sleepy Bumpkins

Finally, the clock struck the hour and the bells began to chime.  In the two windows near the face of the clock, the little figurines danced in circles for 30 seconds before everything became still.  El fin.  The crowd seemed confused and the sounds of “was that is?” filled the air.  The Brits next to use went on a tirade:

“That was shit!  Was that bloody it?!?  I was expecting lasers or fireworks!”

Instead of capturing the magic of the Astronomical Clock, Noah had instead captured the reactions of the crowd instead.  It truly was heartwarming to see the confusion on everyone’s faces.  Remember, it pays to do some research before hand that way there is less disappointment later!

After the clock fiasco, Noah and I headed onto the street to go to the Easter booths again.  While he looked for gifts, I went back over to the petting zoo to say hello to the tiny animals again.  Look, if there are cute animals around, I will drop everything.  And I did as I wasted a good 20 minutes before meeting up with Noah at a food booth.  He wanted a braut and beer and we were in the right place.  For the first time since I was a kid, I tried a braut as it was really cheap but passed on the beer.  I ended up paying $2.00 on a bottle of water instead while Noah got a beer for 1.50.  It just didn’t seem fair.  No wonder everyone drinks so much beer in the region!

Don' Fear the Reaper 

Noah was enamored with his braut, but me on the other hand, not so much.  After one bite, I remembered why I hated the things so much.  Biting through the skin is bad enough, but then I hit some sort of grisly thing and I almost threw up.  I was done after one bite and have vowed never to do that again.  Noah on the other hand was ecstatic as he got a free braut.  Lovely…

The rest of the day consisted of us walking around Prague checking out the street scenes and shopping.  We both ended up getting some crystal which was fancier than either of us really needed, but it was worth it none the less.  That and we ended up running onto death while going towards the Charles Bridge, he seemed pretty cool, though disturbing.  Okay, it wasn’t the most exciting day for a blog, but we had a good time. 

At dinner we opted to stay in the area we were staying in as we were already by the mall getting groceries and wanted to drop them off at the hotel.  After the pit stop, we roamed the streets in search of food.  In the neighborhood we were staying in, there was a lot of ethnic food but strangely everyone prepping the food was Czech.  We peeked into the sushi place; Czech.  We peeked into the Thai place; Czech.  We peeked into the Mexican place; yep, still Czech.

We must have been high that day because for some stupid reason we decided to eat at the Mexican food place in the middle of the Czech Republic.  I know and love Mexican food very well, it is an old friend, but I was kind of tired of the Czech cuisine after the braut incident and wanted something familiar. 

It was odd seeing the Mexican décor in the middle of Prague.  That and there was not one Mexican in the establishment.  That can’t be good for the food.  Well, it wasn’t.  It was a watered down Taco Bell, except it served liquor. Though, the good thing was that after a few margaritas, the food wasn’t all that bad. 

I will say one thing about the Czech Republic, they sure know their liquor.  Well, except for the absinthe.  We noticed a lot of tourists buying it in restaurants as it is illegal or watered down everywhere else in the world.  After a few drinks, it is always funny to watch the faces of people drink something that comes to them lit on fire and tastes completely different than expected.  I did not try it as I have heard it tastes like crap and I hate black licorice.  But I sure enjoyed the free show from the others drinking it for the first time.  So did the locals.  Ah, good times!