Hot Savannah Nights in Georgia! - State # 20

Savannah was my third time to the south.  I had heard a lot of great things about it, but I am not about the hype.  Well, the hype was dead on.  Savannah is that cool!  It really is up there as one of my favorite places in the US.  The humidity almost killed me, but the place is so charming I couldn't really complain.

This spring had been really crazy for me and I realized that I needed to get out of town to escape the New York weather.  For the past 3 weeks, we had been getting more rain than Seattle and Portland combined and I couldn't take it anymore.  It was time to take an extended weekend trip to get some warm weather!  I thought about a few places I hadn't been yet and it seemed that the south was beckoning me again. There are still a few states that I hadn't hit and to tell you the truth, I am a huge fan of the South, I really am!

This time I decided it was time to visit Savannah as I have heard that it's a beautiful place with a lot going for it.  My friend Ashley had been there before and it was one of the states on my 50 State Project that she wouldn't mind going on.  Score!

Defying Gravity

So, on Friday, we grabbed our carry-ons and off we went.  I have to say, I am not a fan of the small planes that Delta uses for their flights to the south.  You have to take a shuttle, walk to the 50 seat plane and off you go.  These planes are so tiny; it just doesn't seem natural.  Though I have never had a bad flight on one of these things, but still, it messes with my head!

When we left NYC, it was a rainy 68 degrees, when we landed in Savannah, it was 95 degrees with full humidity.  Talk about extremes, my body wasn't quite ready for that drastic of a change.  Still, I couldn't complain, the wet weather in NYC had begun to kill my soul and I wasn't going to complain about the heat, yet.

Our hotel, the Marriott Courtyard was in the Historic District.  Though it wasn't close to the major touristy locations it was still very nice.  It was a little bit of a walk but very nice, especially at night.  In fact, this was one of the first things I noticed about Savannah, it is completely a walking town, which I love.  So as soon as we dropped off our bags, we started to explore.

Savannah was built in Squares starting around 1733 in anticipation of its growth. Using this square system they would be able to build more squares around the originals. Twenty one are fully functioning and three are "lost squares" which are being worked on.  These squares are named after people or historical events and are very beautiful.  As you stroll through the squares, there are statues in the center and trees and benches everywhere making it a nice place to rest and beat the afternoon heat.  The trees are beautiful!  My favorite part was the Spanish Moss that was in almost every tree.  Spanish moss is the coolest canopy and I must have snapped 50 photos of the trees alone just because I loved it so much.

After taking in some of the squares, we decided that the first place to visit was River Street which is right by the river.  Huh.  We figured this would be a good place to get acclimated to the heat as it was cooler and had a slight breeze.  When we arrived, the sun was setting and the sky was a bright orange.  As the sun continued to descend, it turned into a huge sherbet pink orb that was breathtaking.  Simply amazing!  So far, Savannah was surpassing my expectations and that was just the first three hours!

After the sunset, we began walking along the river.  There, you will find a lot of shops and restaurants.  I ended up buying two summer dresses from a shop that were very reasonably priced and very cute.  I realized rather quickly that jeans were not the best thing to wear in Georgia in mid June and knew that a sundress would be the answer to cooling off.  I had no idea it got that hot so early on in the summer.  It was still 68 and raining in NYC, this was insane! 

After a while, we realized we were getting a little hungry so we decided to put our name on the waiting list at Huey's Restaurant and walk along the water some more.  With the evening came more street performers which brought a lot of entertainment.  I have to say my favorite performer was the older dude with lit up glasses who was singing and dancing while his partner played guitar.  His song choice was "New York, New York."  We had to tip the guy; he was a fun showman and singing our theme song!  After we gave him the money he asked where we were from.  We told him NYC, which brought a few chuckles from crowd.

Besides enjoying the street performers, we found out we could also enjoy our favorite beverage on the streets of Savannah.  What?!?  Yep, you can drink out of plastic cups on the street.  Insane!  If they tried that in NYC there would be a riot by thousands of stupid drunks.  The butt grabbing would be even worse that it already is! 

By the time our name was called to eat at Huey's, we were both slightly feeling the drinks, dehydration will do that to you!  It took about 55 minutes to be seated which was a bit long.  Apparently, Huey's is a hot spot.  The drinks were great, the food was just okay, but the staff was cool and took the time to speak to us and joke around.  They really were great! 

After walking and drinking some more, we realized that we should get some sleep.  We had a full day ahead of us and wanted to get up relatively early to see as much as we could.  So we headed back to the Marriott and were surprised to see that the sun setting does not equate a cool down, not at all.

The next morning, we were up pretty early hoping to beat the heat and humidity.  Not possible in Savannah in June, it was already in the 80s with 70% humidity and a UV index of 10+.  I realized it was time to go to the local CVS to take care of business.  There was no way my pale white ass could survive this without intervention from the strongest sunscreen available to man.  Otherwise, I would be burnt to a crisp and left for dead by Sunday.  We also decided to get some water to carry with us, as well.  I did end up getting a slight burn on my shoulders, but I truly believe that without that sunblock, it would have been a lot more.  I was spraying myself every 45 minutes to insure sun safety.

After the dousing, we headed to the Cafe Express for a quick breakfast.  The one thing I didn't like about the Marriott was that they didn't offer a free breakfast like every other hotel I have stayed in.  I can't really complain, because if they did offer the breakfast, I would have missed this fabulous cafe.  Everything is fresh to order and very good.  In fact, we enjoyed it so much we returned the next day.  The Eggel Bagel pretty much rocked my lame ass and made me rethink my Dunkin Donuts egg and cheese addiction.  Take your time here, because there is no rush.  That is one of the many things I like about the south, it's okay to take your time and you won't get dirty looks for it unlike NYC where they want to turn their tables as fast as possible and still get a generous tip with mediocre service.  That and the people are very polite, which I am a huge fan of.

Forsythe Park

After breakfast, we decided to take a tour of Savannah and choose the Oglethrope Tour.  There are several tours in different forms, from trolleys, to mini vans and carriages.  I have to say I am personally against the carriage ones as they use the horses for most of the day even in the stifling heat.  I can't imagine how those poor babies feel after carting a carriage full of people around in the sun all day.  Yes, they get breaks, but they didn't look happy.  No, I am not a PETA crazy, but I am a fan of animals, so I felt the trolley tour would be pretty humane, well except to my ass, the seats were kind of hard.

I'm not going to lie, the reason we choose the Oglethrope Tour was because it was the cheapest, ran for 90 minutes and got pretty good reviews.  It turned out to only be a 60 minute tour which was kind of disappointing.  That and our tour guide was from New Jersey.  Now I am all for hiring out of towners for tourism, but maybe not these specific tours, the reason being they probably won't have the same background as a local.  He told us his favorite places to eat which I researched before I left and these places were not rated well.  I wasn't on the tour for food advice, I was there for the history of Savannah.  We went by the William Mercer House without so much of a peep.  Needless to say, I was not pleased, but sometimes you have to take a gamble.  Next time I am in Savannah, I think I will try another company as I feel like I missed a lot about the history in Savannah. 

The funny thing was we learned more about the history from the other Trolley providers when they were stuck at a stop sign or light which made us die a little bit more.  Lastly, we were provided a free shuttle service until 5:30 that day, I can honestly say we saw one shuttle bus the whole 6 hours after our tour; just one.  Nobody is waiting around at a trolley stop in 95 degree weather, especially when there appears to only be only one to service the whole city. 

Anyway, maybe it was just a bad day for the company, but in the future I would check out a different option.  After the trolley tour, we decided to check out Savannah's shopping scene.  There were a few standouts.  Along the river there are mostly tourist shops for souvenirs and such, which is fine if you want to pick up gifts for people, but we wanted something with more substance.  We found that at the River Street Market Place along the water.  I loved this place.  It is made up of several vendors who sell their various wares, many handmade which I always like.  Some of it is overpriced, but a lot of it is very reasonable and very unique.  I ended up getting some beautiful smelling soap.  The scent is so amazing that I have put one of the wrapped bars in my lingerie drawer and transformed it into a melon smelling fiesta, ah yeah!  Ashley ended up walking out with an amazing necklace with matching earrings for under $20.  This place is really wonderful and definitely worth checking out.

Uncle Henry, Is That You?

Another standout is the Paris Market.  I loved this place and went back both Saturday and Sunday, 1) because it was hot outside but cool inside and it is a fun place to browse and 2) the infused fruit water is so good and refreshing. You can get it at the little bar at the back of the store.  It's basically cold ice water with fruit and mint sprigs left to soak for several hours.  Oh man it was good!  Especially since I had probably sweated half my body weight by the time I got there.  They also have beautiful Tocca perfumes in the back to sample and I used them generously to "freshen up" after walking around for hours.  Let me tell you, this place had it all! 

A word of warning, if you are a male, you will most likely dislike this place.  It is chalk full of estrogen as it is a French Boutique and many men would probably find themselves getting an urge to run as fast as possible after five minutes.  There were a few guys when I was there and they had that caged animal look all over their face.  Hey,  at least the place was air-condition!  But if you are a person who likes boutiques you will love this place, I promise.  It kind of reminds me of Anthropologie but minus the clothes.  There are two full floors filled with great things for the house, jewelry, candles and other quirky things. For me the soaps were the highlight and I bought a few to add to my collection. Yes, I bought even more soap.  At least I will smell really good for the next two years.  This place is a little on the spendy side, but most of the items are imports which would explain the cost.  Definitely worth checking out if you get the chance, it really is special.

Watch Out, Panhandling

At this point, we decided it was time to eat so we went to B&D Burgers for their cheap prices.  That and they were voted the best burgers in town for the last zillion years.  Now, I would like to say we went there for the burgers, but that would be a lie.  We were there for the fried pickles.  Ashley had had them before; I never had and was told I had to try them.  I have to be honest, the idea of a fried pickle sounds absolutely disgusting to me but I decided to try them to appease the masses (my sick friends).  I didn't quite know what to expect at first, but soon realized they had not let me down.  They were as gross as I had expected!  They were really greasy, salty and not right.  Ashley on the other hand quite enjoyed them.  At least the turkey burger was good.

I won't lie, the fried pickles took their toll on my stomach as I am not a fried food person and fried pickles were just not for me.  So we decided to rest up at the hotel pool before going out that night.  The pool was in the shade and was a great break from the long, hot, day though we got a rowdy party a little later who were drinking and smoking in the pool.  Hmm...

After the pool, we freshened up and got ready for a ghost tour.  Now, I have never been on a ghost tour before, but was told you should if you go to Savannah.  After looking at the reviews, we decided on Tara Tours.  It was considered a pub tour but for half of the time we walked the streets of Savannah stopping at places of interest. We also stopped at three different places to refill our drinks and hear stories about the haunted locale.  I have to say, it was a pretty decent tour.  Tara is a 6th Generation Savannian and knows her stuff.   Also, her personality is just wonderful and she paces the tour just perfectly.  Our group was full of fun personalities too which made it even more fun, so all in all this was a big hit for us. 

While on the tour, we took photos of various places in hopes of catching something.  I did get a few "orbs," but I think many of them are just dust, though there are a few that may be the real deal if you believe in that stuff.  Whether you are a believer or not, it is a great way to learn the history of Savannah on foot, it isn't just ghosts.  To be honest with you, I learned more through Tara then I did though the Trolley tour earlier in the day.  I highly recommend this tour; it was a lot of fun!

After the tour, we grabbed another drink and walked around the city.  The night was less humid then the night before and was very beautiful.  The one thing I noticed about Savannah is there are a LOT of bugs.  I first noticed this during the Ghost Tour when in the middle of Alice Riley's hanging story, we had a big ass roach come charging at us.  It took all my strength not to scream and run.  Instead I lifted up my feet and prayed it wouldn't find a way on the bench.  Ashley tried to convince me it was a Palmetto bug, I told her a Palmetto Bug equals = roach, she wasn't fooling anyone.  These things were everywhere including the trees!  There also is an abundance of wonderful mosquitoes.  Fabulous!  I got bit at least five times on my left foot that night. Fantastic!  I think I also may have spotted a bat, but it could have just been the liquor so I can't be sure.

Sunday was our final day in Savannah and we wanted to hit things we had missed starting with the Cathedral of St John the Baptist.  This cathedral had been pretty hyped so I wasn't quite sure what to expect.  I had recently just been to the Czech Republic and was still reeling from St. Vitus, so I wasn't expecting much.  So after eating another Eggel Bagel, we headed over to Harris Street. 

You can't miss Cathedral of St John the Baptist, it is large and visible from many parts of Savannah and is very beautiful.  When we first got to the church, they were having a service so we had to walk around to keep ourselves busy.  After about an hour we returned and I am so glad we did.  As soon as I opened the door, I knew this place was very special.  No, it isn't as large as some of the cathedrals I have seen in Europe, but it doesn't need to be. 

Cathedral of St John the Baptist is absolutely beautiful.  The first thing I noticed was that a tranquil color of blue was everywhere making it a serene experience.  The windows were lovely and the stations very unique.  We were lucky that the organist was in during the time we were there which added to the whole ambiance of the experience.  I could have stayed there for hours, but I get that way with cathedrals.  It was also interesting to watch other people's reactions to the cathedral when they first entered; yep, right there with you buddy.

After the cathedral, we were worried that anything else would pale in comparison so we decided that ice cream was in order, so we stopped in to Leopold's.  Leopold's is supposed to be the best ice cream in the universe so we decided to try it for ourselves.  I couldn't make an opinion off of just one scoop, so I ordered two: Mocha Chocolate Chip and Huckleberry Cheesecake.  The Cheesecake was very good, though the Mocha Chocolate Chip was just okay.  The ice cream is very good, the greatest ever?  No.  Still, I would eat if for lunch a couple times a week if I lived there, so yes, it was good.

After Leopold's, we headed to River Street Sweets to pick up some candy before we went to dinner and then to our hotel at the airport.  But before we made it we snapped a photo of the best sign in Savannah.  Apparently, if someone asks you for money you are supposed to call 911.  They don't like panhandlers so much.  I don't either, but felt that calling 911 was bit extreme.  I mean would they get there quickly enough to get "the perp" if you called?  Very odd!  We did get asked for a quarter by a man in orange, I guess I could have identified him in a line up, but we decided to let him go.

I have to be honest, during the whole trip Ashley and I went to all three of the candy shops a few times during the day, the reason why was because you could get free samples of pralines if you did, also there were samples of taffy and popcorn too at times.  I did end up buying some pralines to take back home so we weren't being too greedy.  I also bought some of the best turtles I have ever had, though they call them gophers at one place and bear claws at another place.  They were damn good no matter what you call them!

Before we headed to the hotel we decided to go to a nice dinner as a goodbye to Savannah.  We choose a place called Garibaldi's, which was slightly, excellent!  We didn't want to go in at first because we had been out all day and were wearing casual clothing and the pictures out front were beautiful and we felt we were under dressed.  The hostess assured us we were fine so we were lead upstairs to main dinner area.  We started with the cheese platter and then I had the Shrimp Gang Curry while Ashley had the veal.  The cheese platter was out of this world!  The mango chutney and the accompanying sauce were amazing, if we could have licked the platter, I think we would have, but we have manners, so we used the bread next to us instead, it really was that good.  The Shrimp Gang Curry had quite a kick to it and was pretty good, Ashley was in love with her meal so all and all our experience was a huge success.  Seriously, if you want a very nice meal for a decent price, this is the place, I really enjoyed it and am looking forward to going back one day.

We hated to leave Savannah so early in the evening, it was only 8PM, but we had a 6AM flight which means we had to be up by 4AM so we knew we had to get to bed relatively early.  It ended up being midnight thanks to the Food Channel.  I have to say that Savannah may be one of my favorite trips in the US so far.  I still have 30 states to go, but seriously, it was amazing!

I can't really describe what makes Savannah so special.  Yes, it is beautiful, the people are hospitable and the food is incredible.  But it really has a certain charm to it that I can't explain.  In fact, I am thinking of going back again this year in the fall when the weather won't be as unkind, though it did not take away from our fun at all, it just made us take things more slowly and really enjoy them.  I may even come back for a few days by myself to kick back and have some me time.  From my experience there is no better place than the south to do just that, with plastic cup in hand!

One Final Day in Prague - Day 6

Today was our final full day in Prague before catching our flight the next morning at around 9:30.  We planned on covering a lot of ground to see the sites we may have missed.  We ended up seeing a lot of famous buildings and statues including the peace statue with the words ”peace” in several languages entwined in the metal.  We also made it a point to see the dancing houses designed by Frank Gehry.  The building is pretty awesome and cool architecture like this should be encouraged more often.  It really is unique and worth checking out if you are in Prague.

Peace

Again, we ended up in an old cemetery that we both wanted to see.  Okay, I know it is seems like I am a really morbid emo, but the reality is that I was still riding the high of La Recoleta in Buenos Aires.  I love the sculptures of old cemeteries because I find the art work beautiful.  I guess I could hit the local museum which I always do, but it isn’t the same.  So yes, I did spend a few hours there and cleared my mind.  I think well in cemeteries for some odd reason.  Maybe it is the lack of distractions and welcomed silence.  I live in NYC, sometimes you need peace and quiet.

I have to say, I enjoyed my time there though Noah and I got separated in the process.  I don’t recall the name of the cemetery, but it was huge!  I tried looking for him for about 40 minutes but feared we may be separated for the rest of the day.  I thought about sitting on a bench and waiting for him to find me, but I am not that patient of a person.  Yes, I would totally be that idiot who keeps wandering deeper into the woods instead of staying put waiting for rescue.  Finally, I spotted him crossing a path near mine and ran after him.  I’m telling you, this place was huge.

Next we decided to go to Vojanovy Sady near the Charles Bridge.  It really is worth a visit for some quiet time and to be surrounded by nature and beauty.  We both were surprised to see that the place was almost completely empty with only a few locals talking on benches or students studying textbooks.

When we visited Vojanovy Sady, the trees and flowers were in full bloom creating a fairy tale setting.  We ended up sitting on a bench for a while taking it in and people watching.  Before we left we came upon a group of peacocks near a patch of sand cautiously watching nearby children.  Sand mixed with animals is a magnet for children and I am sure the peacocks have dealt with grabby kids a few times and were very cautious. 

So we snapped a few photos of the birds and we were off to grab dinner and then head back over to the TV Tower to see the view of Prague at night.  For some reason, we had this idea that the view from the TV tower was going to be something like going to the Empire State Building in NYC.  It wasn’t.  Prague is one of the most beautiful cities you will ever encounter in your travels, but it is not a city that is impressive at night. 

In NYC, the views are amazing at night because we have 5 billion buildings and skyscrapers lit at up.  It really is a sight to see, but Prague is not like that.  The only thing really lit up that we could see was the freeways and Prague Castle.  It was more interesting to see people come into the viewing room and leave 5 minutes later in disappointment.  So here is a travel tip for Prague.  Do not come to the TV Tower at night as there is no view!  Disappointed we looked back at the Prague Castle.  It felt like it was mocking us, but the reality was it wanted us to see it one more time, so we did.  We left the TV Tower and hiked over to the castle to bid it farewell. 

Now the grounds of Prague Castle are definitely worth seeing at night.  Everything is lit up beautifully including the fountains and even St. Vitus.  Oh, beautiful St. Vitus how I love you.  It is amazing during the day, but even better by night.  I have to admit, I had a hard time leaving it as it never got old to me but it was almost 11PM and freezing!  I can’t even imagine how cold the Prague Castle gets in winter as it is on a huge hill.  I don’t think I want to know as the cold is not my friend. 

So, to escape the wind we walked back towards Old Town to take in the historic area one more time.  There is nothing to argue, Prague really is as pretty as everyone says it is.  It really is.  I can’t even come up with a smart ass thing to say about it which is rare for me.  If you love architecture or are into fairy tale settings, then Prague is your city.  It is kind of surreal to think that this magical city was closed to visitors until around 1990.  Now it is overrun with them!

The next day, Noah and I got onto the plane collapsing into our seats.  This was our first chance to really relax in days.  And even though my feet hurt I didn’t mind all the running around.  As Prague is definitely a must see in a persons’ lifetime.  Besides, I will have plenty of time to sit around when I am 80.

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!

Day Trippin' in Dresden, Germany - Day 4

The next morning we headed back over to the train station to catch our train headed for Dresden, Germany.  Dresden has an extensive and interesting history.  In 1945, when WWII was coming to an end, Dresden was almost completely destroyed by the Allied Forces.  Though, some of the buildings were leveled and lost to Dresden, many of the structures were built back to replicate what was lost.  After hearing about the history and seeing the photos online, I was sold.

Again, it was another early morning for us, but the train ride is over 2 hours and we wanted a full day to take in the sites of Dresden.  Both of us were physically tired from the constant running around during our trip, but the train was on time and things appeared to be running smoothly.  That is until we heard a familiar sound tear through the early morning air.  It was a sound I would recognize anywhere and it chilled me to the bone.  To our right on the platform were the screeching girls from our Kutna Hora outing.  How was this possible?  What were the odds?  I knew one thing, there was no way I could put up with that again, especially for over two hours.  I grabbed Noah and we headed to the left.  He told me we had to stay in a specific area as the front cars were reserved.  I didn’t care!  We needed to be as far away from them as possible as the sound of their early morning screeching was already burning my brain and making my blood pressure rise.  In the end, we ended far away from them and never heard from then again.  Though late at night, sometimes I will wake up in a cold sweat with the sound of the banshees invading my dreams.  Horrifying!

The train ride to Dresden wasn’t too exciting.  Though, we did end up in a cart this time rather than the side seats which were nice as the carts were more comfortable.  The views were okay, but nothing to write home about, so Noah and I had a discussion in Spanish about how our cart mate looked exactly like Dominic Monaghan.  I was pretty convinced that it was him, but Noah didn’t think he would be taking public transportation, especially this specific train with his money.  I felt it was the perfect opportunity to blend in with everybody else for a while.  In the end, we never did solve the mystery of Dominic Monaghan as I took an hour nap instead.  Though a little FYI, he did get out in Dresden if that matters, which it doesn’t.

After exiting the train, we needed to get some Euros from the ATM and then a map.  The historic area is about 10 minutes away from the train station, but it was about 75 degrees and beautiful so we didn’t mind the walk. 

After walking across a large concrete courtyard, we came upon the structure Frauenkirche and all I have to say is, wow!  Frauenkirche was completely destroyed during WWII and finally rebuilt sometime in the 1990’s.  One of the original walls can still be seen in the structure. Frauenkirche serves as a Lutheran Church which is accessible to the public, but pictures are not allowed to be taken.  It is defiantly worth going inside as it is extremely beautiful and serene.  But after about 10 minutes, we headed back onto the street to see what else Dresden had to offer.

It didn’t take long to hit the main tourist area which consisted of a lot of booths with a lot of people selling various goods and different types of food.  It also didn’t take long to find most of the tourists.  I guess I was a little naïve in that I didn’t think there wouldn’t be that many people interested in Dresden, especially with Prague so close during the Easter Season.  It wasn’t a big hindrance, it was just crowded.  So we did what any good tourist would do, we grabbed a hulking ice cream cone and moved down a side street cut off from traffic to see the sites.  There we came upon The Fürstenzug which is a Mural of the various Sachsen Rulers.  Apparently, it is the largest ceramic frieze in the world.  It is definitely worth looking at close up as the art work is interesting.

After passing The Fürstenzug, we came upon the Sashen Palace and Katholische Hofkirche.  Zwinger Palace which use to be part of a Fortress is also close by and a must if in Dresden.  Zwinger Palace is a very popular place for tourists and locals alike and really is amazing.  When you walk into its main garden, you almost feel as if you are walking into a small city.  The gardens are well groomed and gorgeous, but make sure to take the stairs up to the walkways above to get a great aerial view of them.  

There are plenty of things to see around Zwinger including many art museums, but Noah and I enjoyed just sitting in the gardens people watching.  We had done a lot of running around in the past few days and Zwinger was a nice way to bring it down a notch.

After Zwinger, we decided to cross the Elbe River and catch the views from the opposite banks.  They definitely did not disappoint.  The area on the other side of the river is less touristy and reminded me a lot of Central Park with people chilling with friends and playing various sports.  Though I have to say, the view is a hell of a lot better than Central Park’s. 

For the rest of the day we walked the streets way from the craziness until dinnertime rolled around.  We headed away from the more touristy area to find a place to grab food, though, the further away the less likely someone is to speak English. Up until Prague, I had only been to countries where I knew the language well enough to get by, so this trip had been a new experience, but with a little patience from both sides it always works out.  Though, Noah does speak broken German which helps in Dresden, but not well enough to have a full on conversation.  We did end up with a waitress who spoke English quite well, and they even had a practice session in German to test Noah’s skills.  I speak about 10 words in German, so I basically sat there clueless smiling a lot.

Again, I had a problem with dinner as the food is similar to the Czech Republic; meat and more meat.  I settled on fish and beets with a dill potato.  Almost every dish at this restaurant came with beets, which I am not a huge fan of, but I will eat them.  Noah basically broke it down for me explaining that beets and potatoes were what came with a standard German meal.  He should know, he was raised on them.  I also expected the potato to be a massive spud smothered in butter and dill.  Nope, it was a small baked potato with one sprig of dill lying on it.  I found that in Europe when you order something there are no surprises or frills.  It is exactly what it says it is, unlike the US where it comes with sauces and garnishes galore.  It isn’t a bad thing at all, just different than what I am used to.

The other difference is that beer is cheap and huge!  Noah ordered on the conservative side and still, the beer was almost as big as his freaking head!  In most cases, beer is cheaper than buying fruit juice or water.  As I don’t drink beer, I was pretty dehydrated during the week as the water prices were killing me.  Noah was dehydrated as he had beer all day long.

After dinner, we headed back to the train station to grab our 8:30 train back to Prague.  But not before grabbing some amazing pastries for the ride back with a few of the Euros we needed to spend before leaving Dresden as the Czech Republic was still on the Czech Crown (Koruna).

The trip to Dresden had been a success and one I would like to make again in the future.  It really is worth visiting as the architecture is pretty spectacular and the history amazing.  Both of us were a little disappointed that we didn’t spend a night in Dresden as seeing the sunset on the city has to be quite a sight.  The trip to Dresden solidified the fact that I needed to come back to Germany and spend a solid 7 – 14 days checking out the country.

A Side Trip to Kutna Hora - Day 3

Before coming to Prague a few friends of mine suggested that I do a few side trips while in Prague as there were great cities nearby that might interest me.  The one that was suggested the most was Kutna Hora.  Kutna Hora houses a very odd tourist attraction; the Sedlec Ossuary or the more commonly known name, The Bone Church. 

A Chandelier at the Ossuary

In the 13th century, Jindřich, who was the abbot at the time, brought back a pocket full of soil from Palestine and sprinkled it about the cemetery making it a very popular place for burials.  Because of the soil and a little thing called the Black Plague whicht swept through Europe, the cemetery became over run with bodies.  It was decided that the best way to deal with the problem of 40,000 skeletons lying around was to make art work out of them.  Okay.  Because of this creative endeavor, the Bone Castle was created!  Just to repeat, the church is completely decorated in skeletons.  As sick as it seemed, we knew we had to see it with our own eyes and decided to make a day of it.

We got up early, ate breakfast and hopped onto a train to Kutna Hora.  The trains were a little older but they were clean and functioned fine.  They had compartments that would seat about six per room.  We were one of the last on the train so we ended up sitting in the seats outside of the compartments like plebeians.  Still, we didn’t mind, we got a good view of the passing landscape though there wasn’t much to see. 

Me at the Bone Castle

Within a few minutes, we had a accosted by a group of the most annoying college girls who decided to sit next to us.  They were really loud!  Not just kind of loud or excruciatingly loud!  They were shouting like 6 year olds at recess who were being chased by Sasquatch!  Two compartments slammed the doors to keep there screaming at bay, but they weren’t the type to pick up on subtleties.  Both Noah and I were embarrassed as they were English speakers so we assumed they were American.  Eventually, it came out that that were actually Canadian as they spoke about their university and where they were from.  I wanted to suggest that they start wearing Canadian patches on their bags and clothes so people would not confuse them with Americans as we already get a really bad rap all the world over. 

Now, I only bring this up because it was so painful to have to listen to these people scream for an hour and a half at 9:00AM in the morning.  I am not a morning person and I had not had a coffee in two days.  Also, I am not a fan of people who don’t understand that using your inside voice on crowded transit is always appreciated.  This was not boding well for me as the train was crowded and there was no where to escape.  As soon as we arrived in Kutna Hora, I ran to the door to get away from the group as I could not deal with hearing them screech in the Bone Church.

The walk to the Bone Church is a good 15 minutes away.  There was a bus, but because it was such a nice day so we opted to go by foot.  Once we arrived, we were surprised to see that the Ossuary looked like an ordinary church.  There was nothing that strange about it from the outside.  So, we went to the front door, bought our tickets, and prepared ourselves for the macabre.

The Bone Castle

I have to say, at first glance I was a little confused.  After you buy the tickets, you head down a few flights of stairs and are lead to a medium sized room filled with a bunch of bones.  I looked at Noah, confusion clouding my face.  I have to say, I think the reviews and photos I had seen online were quite deceptive.  The place was smaller than I had imagined and not nearly as impressive as expected.  It was a just a large, dank room decorated with bones.  I mean, you could probably see something like this in the townhouse of some twisted sicko in Queens. 

There was nothing to do but make the most out of the situation.  We had to put it into perspective; the history of the ossuary was quite impressive.  That and there were 40,000 bones in this one church.  40,000!  Though, to me, the numbers appeared to be a lot less.  In the end, it was a decent experience though it is kind of odd to realize that thousands of people come here a year to come gawk at a place decorated in bones, it really is kind of sick. 

After checking out the Ossuary, we went outside and walked around the cemetery before walking to the city of Kutna Hora itself.  We had heard it was a very cute place.  Too bad we never found out.  We got lost three times in the residential area and decided to head back to Prague.  Things just weren’t going our way.  The only upside was that the 4 screeching girls missed the train and we could hear them screaming on the platform as we pulled out of the station.  Finally, a bright spot in the day!

Sculpture

Don’t get me wrong, I am glad I went to the Ossuary as it is a unique thing to see when in the Czech Republic.  I just wouldn’t suggest you go there unless you really have an interest or are passing though to get to somewhere else.  I guess I see it as that huge blockbuster movie that everyone raves about.  Everybody builds it up to be the best thing you will ever see and in the end, it just doesn’t live up to the hype.  If you go, prepare yourself to be underwhelmed so that when you do see it, it will be better than you imagined.  Reverse psychology does wonders!

After we returned to Prague, the rest of the day was pretty chill.  We walked around the city until we came upon one of the old historic graveyards.  There are many of them to see and they are quite interesting.  Yes, it is odd, but I have an interest in graveyards for some reason.  Not because I am a sicko, but rather because I find the sculptures and mausoleums to be beautiful works of art.  Also, it is a quiet escape from the hustle and bustle of the city.

What I found interesting about Prague is that the graves are manicured beautifully.  It is not uncommon to see family members having a picnic beside the grave as they clean it up and decorate it.  It is also not uncommon to see children playing along side the graves as the adults work on it.  It may seem odd to some, but to me it was impressive as the people seem very comfortable with death.  It is a much healthier attitude than in the US where nobody talks about it and avoids the topic as much as possible.

I have to say, there were a lot of beautiful sculptures and I found it to be quite peaceful.  I even found some graves with one side of my family’s name that is quite rare.  I have no idea if we are related, but I snapped a few photos and handed them over to the genealogist of the family.

The TV Tower

Something to be aware of if you go into the cemeteries.  One: there are homeless people who do stay there and they will ask you for money.  There was an odd woman who kept checking out my necklace (which was cheap) and asking for money.  She wasn’t all there as she was talking to herself so we began speaking Spanish and she left us alone.  That isn’t to say that homeless people are scary, dangerous, deviants, but it is good to be wary at times.  And two: the cemeteries do close at around 5:00PM or 6:00PM so check the gate for times.  We ended up getting locked in with a group of about 10 other people.  They don’t check the cemetery, they just close the gates and lock it up. 

We waited for about 45 minutes, but even after a few phones calls, nobody was coming.  I had no interest in staying there all night and we had no idea what was going to happen as nobody in the group spoke English.  In the end, Noah and I made our escape by scaling the twelve foot gate.  We thought the other people would think we were animals, but they actually laughed and cheered us on.  We offered to help the others over, but many of them were older and didn’t think they could do it.  They did tell us that they had called the police and someone should be there within the hour.  I am sure, in the end, they got out, but we didn’t want to take any chances. 

Street Scene

Our last stop for the day before dinner was the Žižkov Television Tower or just the TV Tower.  It’s just what it sounds like, a transmitting tower for TV.   It was built between 1985 – 1992 and can be seen all over Prague.  Many people in Prague dislike the tower as some feel it has destroyed the more traditional skyline.  It also had the honor of being the #2 Ugliest Building in 2009.  Quite an accomplishment! 

Besides being an eyesore, it has the distinction of having one of the most disturbing features I have ever come across.  Naked crawling babies with bar codes for faces!  Yes, that is correct!  Naked crawling babies with bar codes for faces!  Even I, with my messed up imagination, could never come up with something so disturbing.  It is definitely worth checking out unless you have a weak ticker or are prone to nightmares. 

After the TV Tower, we grabbed dinner and walked all the way back to our hotel.  It had been a long day and it would be an even longer one the next day as we would be getting up early once again for our next side trip; Dresden, Germany.