Europe 2018

16 Aug 2018 - Things fell into place to allow Nick & I to travel to Europe: enough in savings, grandparent availability, buying tickets back in January and waiting/planning. We were all up, packed and out of the house by 9 am this Thursday morning. We drove to Green Bay, where the kids will be staying with Steve and Vicky until Tuesday. We visited with Steve, ate lunch, said good-bye to the kids, then drove down to Chicago. Had a brief panic when it seemed like all the economy lots were full and we were only 2.5 hours before takeoff. Found a lot open and a spot! Then many lines & much waiting - check bags, check IDs, check bodies & carry-ons. Once we were through all that and in the terminal, we celebrated the start of vacation with a beer at the Berghoff Cafe. After that, we went back to the gate to wait. Our plane was a bit late to the gate, but we weren't in any rush. Felix would be interested to know it's a 777 with 3-3-3 seating. Got our seats in the central section right in front of the bathrooms. No problems taking off ~ 7 pm. They served dinner (I got veggie manicotti; Nick got Indian butter chicken).

Cheers to 10 years!

17 Aug - Both of us tried to sleep on the flight, but without much success. Yay for coffee with the croissant and yogurt breakfast. I did watch Pitch Perfect 3, just because I could (and I thought I might fall asleep in the middle of it). I've written all of the above on the plane as we descend over Germany toward Munich. It didn't take very long to go through customs and get our bags. It was a beautiful, sunny, mid-80s day. We took the S-Bahn to our closest stop {to our apartment}. We walked from there, checking out the quiet neighborhood on Prinzregentenstraße. We were too early to check in by the time we reached 93, so we back-tracked to a small restaurant nearby. It was 11:30, so we got Augustiner beers and schnitzel for lunch. I got to use my very rusty German... A mistake when she brought us each a schnitzel when I thought we'd share. Oh well. My belly won't love it... We checked in, cleaned up and rested. Then we went via U-Bahn to the old town area. Nick's first real German experience. I wanted to see about getting a Dirndl, which I've wanted for years. I got a silver silk one that looks lice. €65 with blouse and apron. Next, we (increasingly annoyed) wandered until we found a place where we could get a drink and use the bathroom. I got mineral water and Nick got a beer. He was bugged by a bee which took a liking to him. We left there ~4:15. Since it was close, we walked down to the Asamkirche. So much gold leaf! Once we had our fill of Baroque splendor, we headed back up to the Marienplatz, making a quick stop for a postcard on the way. We killed 10 minutes waiting for 5 pm and the Gockenspiel show at the Neues Rathaus. Many other tourists from all over had the same idea. Over 6 minutes of listening to the bells and watching the figures, we'd had enough. On our way to find a bite, we found a store where we bought Felix's requested souvenir - a Germany soccer jersey (€30). We decided to go to the Hofbrauhaus for dinner. The place was packed, but we found a table inside. Nick got a liter of Dunkel. I got a half liter of their alcohol-free wheat and shared a cold meat sampler. We tried two varieties of of headcheese for the 1st time and agreed the red was better than the white. We were joined at our table by two German couples who got massive joints for dinner. Oh, we also got a giant Brezn from one of the Dirndl-clad girls. After eating and drinking our fill, we made a quick stop across the street to get Mom a Hard Rock Cafe pin, then headed back to Odeonsplatz in the gold hour. Took the U-Bahn back to our station. Picked up a few provisions at a nearby Edeke, then headed back to the apartment. It's been a long continuous day. It's 8:20 pm & Nick's asleep next to me. One thing that Nick & I both noticed is how little confidence I have in speaking German. It's only been 17 years since I was last here and had any use for it other than to amuse myself or teach a few phrases... Having some wine, then I'll read before falling asleep, too. Steve & Vicky got Skype set up, so even despite a poor connection, we were able to talk to them a bit. Asleep ~9:30.

First been in Germany!

Asamkirche

At the Marienplatz

Hofbrauhaus

Polka band!

18 Aug - I slept until 7, Nick until 8. We got up, dressed and made breakfast. Nick realized müsli doesn't taste as good as it may look. We took the U-Bahn up to the Olympic Park. I had to use the restroom, so we went into BMW Welt. Nick & I looked around there for a bit. We then walked a bit to get a better view of the Olympic Stadium, but since Nick had other interests today, we didn't walk t it. We took the U-bahn to the Museum Quarter. Nick wanted to see the Glyptothek, because he'd never seen marble statues in person. Now he's seen many! We caught a bite to eat at a cafe on the way to the Alte Pinakothek. We spent a while looking at the paintings there - many variations on the same religious themes and a few others thrown in for good measure. From there, we took a tram to Karlsplatz and got on the U-bahn to Odeonsplatz. We went to the Residenz next. We enjoyed looking at all the amazing jewels/crowns. So much intricate work from long ago! So cool. Next, we wandered through the labyrinthine Residenz rooms. So much walking - I'm sure people get lost in there all the time. It was about 4 pm when we got done there, so we walked over to the Spatenhaus restaurant for refreshments. It was pretty busy (lovely Saturday afternoon) and our waitress was slow to serve us. That didn't make thirsty/hungry me too happy, so I insisted we order some dinner right away, not knowing when she'd get back. Nick got "meatloaf" (more like a slice of a gigantic hot dog) and I got spatzle. It was pricey, but we felt invigorated afterward. We took a tram toward the English Garden. I showed Nick where people surf (yes, really) and we went up to the biergarten at the Chinesches Turm. We were running low on cash and there was a €20 minimum credit card order, so I ended up with a liter of beer, too. So much beer... We enjoyed ourselves playing Pandemic on my phone and drinking while listening  to the band play. So many people here! We decided to take out some cash from the ATM and that's where the evening (hopefully not trip...) went off the rails. We realized we don't have the PIN for our credit cards and Nick didn't want to risk losing our debit cards. I, idiot that I can be, forgot that a debit card is HOW YOU GET CASH. It was a split-second packing decision. I wanted to get back to where we had WiFi so we could figure out what to do. Nick wanted to drink more. Cue argument. We talked through it and walked back to the apartment (with a little bit more arguing). All ok now. Unfortunately, we have no PIN at home (Mom & Dad checked) and we have to wait until Monday before trying to get cash from a bank using our credit card. I'm not sure that's going to work - we'll see. I'm actually nervous/anxious/self-loathing about the whole deal. Ugh.

At BMW Welt

Near the Olympic Stadium

Found a doppelgaenger

Nefarious-looking painting

At the Residenz

At the Biergarten within the English Garden

Sunset over Munich by the Friedensengel

19 Aug - My mind was whirling and felt anxious and so I couldn't fall asleep until at least 1 am. 7:30 came too early! I was dragging, but we still got out the door on time to take the U-Bahn to the Marienplatz. Both of us are stiff and sore from all the walking and standing yesterday. We arrived at the meeting point [for our Mike's Bikes tour] under the Toy Museum arch with plenty of time. We are part of a group of 13: a middle-aged couple from New Zealand, a young couple from Louisiana, a father/son pair from Toronto and a family of 5 from DC. Our tour guide, Kevin, was from Ireland. We walked to get our Mike's Bikes and started our tour heading through the "most expensive shopping street on the continent" (Maximilianstraße). Our first stop was Max-Joseph-Platz, where Kevin told us about previous incarnations of the Nation Theater, destruction by WWII bombing of much of downtown Munich. Next, we biked into a courtyard of the Reidenz, where you can see that most of the facade was painted, not cut stone. From there, we biked to the Hofgarten. A few words about the Bayerisches Staatskanzlei. They (the citizens of Munich) decided to make it a government building with glass walls (transparency) instead of a beer garden. There is one monument to WWI soldiers but none for WWII in Munich. Charlie Brown and the Chocolate Factory was filmed in Munich (some nearby). We got our picture taken in the Hofgarten, then we biked to Odeonsplatz. Here, Kevin told us about the statue in the Feldherrnhalle (apparently, you don't have to do much to warrant a statue); Leopold expanding the city north; a "gentlemen's agreement" not to bomb churches. We went inside the Theatinerkirche to see the white Baroque interior, found the monument to Nazi resistors (gold-painted bricks on Viscordigasse) and rubbed a lion's nose for luck. From there, we biked west on Brienner Straße past the obelisk to the Nazi documentation center. Kevin spent 45 minutes talking about Hitler's rise, the Nazi party & actions, and what the buildings around us were to them. I didn't know that BMW used forced labor in WWII and the Quandt family has never apologized for it. From there, we biked all the way to the English Garden. Kevin explained how the beer garden is the 2nd largest in the world, but serves more people annually. We got lunch (potatoes/meat for Nick, a salad for me and beers, of course). Had a nice lunch eating and chatting. A giant wasp (murder hornet!) came by - 1.5" long! After we ate, we biked down to see the surfers. Lots of people there since it's a beautiful Sunday. Next stop by the Friedensengel, where we saw the sunset last night. Fun fact - government buildings in Munich may have gold mosaics on the est side. Helpful for orientation! One last stop along the very-low Isar, then back to the Mike's Bikes shop. I was feeling pretty beat, so we headed back to the apartment to rest. Roused ourselves ~6, got ready and headed out to find dinner. Not many places open which take credit cards. Ended up at a Vietnamese restaurant called Thao. Good food & mojitos. I wish I had more of an appetite (still nervous about the money situation. And my reaction is bothering Nick, I can tell). Finished dinner ~9, headed back to the apartment and collapsed. So many aches! It's now 9:30 and I'm feeling sleepy.

At the Hofgarten

Viewing the Isar River

20 Aug - I slept much better last night. We were up, fed (scrambled eggs in our kitchen) and out ~7:40. We got to the Hauptbahnhof around 8. We went to the bank there... and were shot down in our attempt to get cash. We got on our train to Mittenwald, which left promptly at 8:32 am. Pleasant journey south. Nick enjoyed the changes of scenery. We played Pandemic to pass the time, then stared out the window as the foothills became mountains. We arrive around 10:30 am in Mittenwald. We were shot down twice asking for credit card cash advances. Oh well... We walked rather quickly through their quaint, painted pedestrian zone, and out of town. I wanted to see the Ghost gorge (Leutasch Klamm). We hiked on a flat trail for ~15 minutes, then up a very steep trail for about 20 min. Good thing it was cooler - 70s. Once we reached the crest of the hiking path, we descended a bit down toward the gorge on catwalk-type structures with clear views of the sheer drops below us. We made it to the panoramic bridge suspended high over the chasm. I probably would have crossed it, but there was a big group doing pictures about halfway across. My palms were so sweaty, I was terrified I'd drop my phone over the rail. Managed to hang on! We scurried back to the path and back to civilization. Thankfully, neither of us fell on all the loose gravel on the path. It was 12:30, so after checking that credit cards were accepted, we had lunch and refreshments at the Brauerei Mittenwald. I had the unfiltered "cellar" beer. Nick had their Oktoberfest and Dunkel. He had pretzel soup and weisswurst. I had a mushroom omelet. Next, we walked to the cable car station. €59 for both of us to go up and come back down - so worth it! We were the only tourists in the car on the way up to 2244 m. What a view! For a while, we could see in all hazy directions. We hiked on the path around and crossed the border into Austria at one location. It got cloudier as we hiked and Nick got a bloody nose 2/3 of the way around, unfortunately. The climb/hike wasn't easy, but we made it. There were also sheep with bells up there - constant bell ringing made for an interested atmosphere. It was also much cooler - glad I had a jacket along. We were packed into the gondola down like sardines; more of an adventure with more people. We got down to the start a little after 3, so we walked to the train station. We hoped they'd let us take the 3:30 return instead of our reserved 4:30 time. It didn't see to be an issue (our tickets were checked twice) and the one change we made in Garmisch was easy. We got back to Munich ~5:30. I went on a quest to buy stamps and postcards. Once both were acquired, we took the U-Bahn back to our apartment. We picked up provisions at Edeke, then Nick cooked us pasta in the apartment. My appetite is returning. Quiet evening packing up, cleaning up, catching up. My mom saved our trip by sending money via Western Union which we will pick up tomorrow in Prague. Hooray! We also Skyped with the Kids & Steve and that made us very happy. :)

Mittenwald

The Leutasch Klamm bridge

View down from the bridge

Getting lunch

Warm welcome to 2,244 meters!

Looking toward Austria at the border

21 Aug - Another good night. Nick & I were up, dressed, fed and packed. I put the travel locks on the suitcases to keep our belongings safe. Right before we left the apartment building, Nick wanted to get his sunglasses out of the clothing suitcase... and the lock wouldn't open. I swear I set both locks to the same combination! He wasn't happy, I wasn't happy, but we caught the next train to the Hauptbahnhof anyway. When we arrive, we used up the rest of our Euros on coffee, sandwiches for the trip and candy for the ids. We had scoped out where the train should be when we were there yesterday. Went to the track 30 minutes early - and the wrong train was on the track. Information informed me that there was no 8:43 train, despite what the timetable said. She directed me to the Travel Center. There, the man told me we couldn't catch a train today, but there was an express bus at 10:15, and, as it was our only option, we reserved seats. Cue cranky Nick. Lugged our suitcases 10 minutes to the bus terminal and proceeded to wait. At least we had a problem to solve. Fortunately, I managed to get the combination right and open the suitcase! (The 1st number was 1 off where it should have been - fixed that!) The bus came at 10 and we got on. I think we scored the last two available seats. Whew! It was a direct bus to Prague that only made 1 stop to change drivers. Beautiful countryside. Passed the 4.5 hours reading, playing Pandemic, doing word searches. Got a quick into to Prague as our bus approached the train station. We got our suitcases and headed straight for the nearest Western Union. We were surprised by the beautiful cobblestone patterns of the sidewalks. I stopped to take pictures of tome of the patterns. A few noisy blocks later, we got our cash! Hallelujah! We caught a tram shortly thereafter to our Airbnb apartment at Sokolovska 43/53. Easily got inside! Unloaded! Hooray! After getting settled and starting to wash some clothes, we headed out to get my Prague souvenir. We walked toward the edge of the old town which started off sketch, but was vibrant when we turned the final corner. The shop was busy, so I made an appointment for 6 pm. We headed out in search of beer to pass the time (it was 4:30). We went into a very small, very local pub which served craft beer (Pivovar Hostomice at Pivnicev Sourenike Hosto on Souvenika). They had 3 progressively darker beers on tap, and we tried them all while playing Pandemic as old guys watched a soccer commentary show. We headed back to Tribo at 5:40, where, shortly thereafter, I got my nose pierced. I've wanted to do it for a while, and I'll remember it more having done it here. It stung for a second, but didn't hurt much. Only 650 czk (~$30). We went in search of dinner. After a few false starts, found an Italian restaurant. We each got pizzas & drinks. Really hit the spot! My appetite is returning! :D We walked back toward the apartment, stopping at the market set up in Namesti Republiky. We bought Iris a wooden musical carousel, a print of the Charles Bridge & a magnet for us. It was such a pleasant evening. So many people out for a Tuesday evening. We walked back, stopping at the Billa grocery store for provisions. This apartment is on the 2nd floor facing the street, so it's warm (but there's a good fan) and there's a fair amount of city noise, but it's not too bad right now.

First beers in Czechia

Nose pierced!

Namesti Republiky

22 Aug - Tossed and turned most of the night with the heat, noise and light. Bed was comfy, through. We got up at 7, both showered and had a breakfast  of ham & cheese on rolls with instant coffee. We walked down to the Florenc station to buy 3-day transportation cards. We rode the tram up toward the Prague Castle and, once near the grounds, overwhelmed by the number of tour groups there. Yikes! We quickly (amazingly) bought our tickets for 250 czk each (~$10) and headed straight for St Vitus Cathedral, with every other tour group in existence, too. We made our way in and marveled at the stained glass within. We took a loop of the nave, each ogling our own interests (me, stained glass; Nick, any reference to Bohemia). My left pinky toe has developed into a giant blister, so we didn't move too fast. After seeing all that interested us inside, we headed out into the courtyard. We passed on the old palace (too similar to what we saw at the Residenz), but went into the basilica for a short time. We left the castle via the golden lane, took in the sweeping view of Prague, then headed down the slick cobblestone steps toward the tram lines. We caught the #22 and rode it through the new town and across the river. If was 10:30, so we found a nice little cafe at which to rest (SmetanaQ on Smetanovo nabr). We started out with coffees, then we had fresh crumpets with sour cream & fresh fruit. Nick had a beer as well. Once we were completely rested, we walked up to the Charles Bridge. It was crowded and hot, but we walked all the way across and back. We didn't have a plan for today other than the Castle, so the rest of the day we're winging it. We decided to walk in the Jewish Quarter. The line to buy tickets was pretty long, so we passed. We walked through the area a little bit, then headed toward the old town square. It was slightly disappointing to find the astronomical clock being repaired. Oh well. We walked on to a recommended restaurant for lunch - Havelska Koruna. I had a traditional Bohemian potato soup with Gembrinus beer. Nick had beef goulash with bread dumplings with Kozel dark beer. It was a cafeteria-style restaurant that was pretty inexpensive. Once again, we set out. I bought some fresh berries for ~$10 (yikes! oops...) at the market nearby. At least they're tasty. We walked back up to Namesti Republiky and caught the next tram to our apartment. We stopped in the Lokal next door and made reservations for dinner tonight, then headed up. Turned on the fan and relaxed. We had a nice video chat with the kids. After that, we rested, read, played cribbage. Right before we left to go to dinner, I whacked my knee hard on the footboard. Ow. We went to the Local Hamburk across the street for dinner. Nick had chicken schnitzel and 3 Kozel darks. I stepped out of my comfort zone by ordering the beef neck in horseradish sauce with bread dumplings. Actually pretty tasty. The place was very busy. People were taking beers to go (?!) or drinking them on the sidewalk. Interesting. Since we're going to be walking a lot tomorrow, we headed back to the apartment (or in my case, limped...). Spent the rest of the evening relaxing and checking on the Brewers score.

Stained glass in St Vitus

Old town Prague behind us

On the Charles Bridge

23 Aug - We didn't set an alarm for this morning. I woke up ~6:30 anyway. I guess I'm acclimated! This morning, after getting ready and eating pizza leftovers for breakfast, we took the underground train to Wenceslas Square (Vaclavske Namesti). We walked away from it first and saw the relatively new kinetic Franz Kafka's Head. Pretty cool how the the shiny silver "slices" of the head move separately. We could have watched that move and changed for a long while, but we didn't. We headed back to the Square. Again, so crowded. I picked up some postcards and a souvenir pen at a bookshop, then Nick & I wandered the streets looking for a reasonable place to have a morning beverage so I could write my postcards. We found the perfect tiny cafe (Veget on Stepanska). Our server spoke in very good English about how hot the summer has been here. We finished our beverages, then continued on to the Square. We walked up to the statue of Wenceslas. It was about 11. am and already hot. We walked back northwest along the Square and onto Jindrisska to the main post office. It took a few minutes for my number to be shown, but we got our postcards started on their journey to the kids. From there, we walked around the block to the Mucha Museum. Nick & I enjoyed looking at the small collection of prints and paintings, photos and sketches on display. We picked up postcards of prints as souvenirs. Next, we walked back toward Namesti Republiky. with a quick stop into the Municipal House. Nick was interested in an overpriced drink at the Americky Bar, but I needed food first. We walked up to Sisters, where we ended up getting five different types of chelbicky (Czech-style open-faced sandwiches) which were highly recommended and quite tasty (Dlouha 727/29). Nick was a bit frustrated afterward that I turned down the Americky Bar and picked where we ate. He said he just wanted to try more beers. So, I led him to the Pivovarsky Klub on Krizikova, where he could choose from 250+ beers (literally). He had four of the six on tap. I tried one of the other two. That satisfied both of us. We walked back to the apartment with a quick side-trek for pistachio gelato for me. Headed up to our warm apartment and relaxed with our phones. Nick didn't want to wait to eat as late as we did yesterday, so we picked one of our host's recommendations and set off towards the heart of Karlin (so many young professionals around here!) to Restaurace Salandy on Saldova. We tried a new type of brewery (Krusovice) with our entrees (beef goulash for Nick, calamari risotto with peas for me). That was tasty. We headed back towards Sokolovska and popped in the Billa for a few items. We took the tram back to the apartment. It's early (~7), but it's so hot & busy out. We just had a quiet night on our phone, calling it a night ~10:30.

Kafka Head

At Wenceslas Square

So many beers

24 Aug - I woke ~ 6 am, then red/dozed for a while. We ate ham & cheese sandwiches again for breakfast. Big difference in the weather today - cooler and rainy. We left the apartment ~8:45, then took trams & the Metro to the main train station. Today, we are taking a day trip to Plzen (Pilsen). About 9:15, we learned where our train was and headed to the track/platform. I bought the tickets with seat reservations. On our way there, we had a Hogwarts Express-like compartment all to ourselves. So nice, quiet and easy! The countryside was beautiful Lots of rolling hills. The trees, however, look very stressed from the lack of rain here.) We got to Pilsen at ~11. We found a place to eat lunch (Bistrouska on Koterovska). Nick got the chicken schnitzel and I got cod with mushrooms. interesting combination, but good. We ate in the garden behind and made friends with a little cat. :) It was noon when we finished eating, so we walked back to the train station to go on the other side. Granted it was overcast and cool, not the bright sunniness we've had in Prague, but, frankly, Pilsen looks pretty rough around the edges. Much more industrial and run-down where we were (though downtown may look very different). We were too early for our 1 pm tour, so we scoped out the gift shop, then had a beer in the bar area. It started to rain, so it was good to be indoors. We finished our beers in time for our tour to begin in the Visitor's Center. We learned the history of brewing in Pilsen and at Pilsner Urquell (forgot to mention this as the brewery of which we were getting a tour). We saw the bottling plant, the old and new brewhouses, and were treated to beer straight from the barrel (made only for tour groups...) in the underground tunnels. We ended up in the gift shop, where we got a few souvenirs. Apparently, we were the first tourists to take the beer sign off the way to buy it. Hey, if you don't want that to happen, put the stock out where people can find it! We left ~2:55. We had reservations for the 4 pm train, so we found a cafe to kill time. Got a reminder that Turkish coffee isn't great when I ordered something "different." Our trip back to Prague was far less pleasant: the train was packed, there was a very lout and unhappy 1-year-old that yelled nearly the entire 1.5 hour trip, it was rainy and we both faced backwards. It was a relief to get back to our apartment ~5:45. One of our first orders of business was to make reservations for Saturday night. Once that was done, we set off without a plan, looking to find a place for dinner. Ended up deeper in Karlin at Restaurace Globus at the corner of Krizikova and Brezinova. Nick had a burger and fries (fancy, though) and I got a cheese sandwich (also fancy). On our way to/from, I picked up a pair of superfluous cobblestones for souvenirs. :D Once back in our apartment, relaxed. Bed ~10:30.

Made a friend in Pilsen

Trying beer at Pilsner Urquell

Czech provisions

25 Aug - It was loud outside for a long time, so neither of us slept well. Friday night, eh? A cold front must have come through, putting an end to the heat wave and ushering in 60s and winds. Nick liked the temp. After breakfast, we made our way via Metro to Vysehrad. Since it was early for a Saturday morning, there weren't a lot of people around. We walked around the high-walled fortification, taking in the views of the city. We spent some time in the amazing cemetery next to the church. Many beautiful mosaic-encrusted shrines and tombs. Many famous Prague elite were buried there. After finishing our walk, we headed back to the Metro station. We decided to get some brunch (it was 11 am), and got off at I.P. Pavlova. We didn't find much to interest us in that area, so we walked down to the river by the Dancing House and walked until we came to the cafe at which we ate on Wednesday. Got our brunch & coffee and a break for our feet. After that, we headed toward the Charles Bridge and the Prague Beer Museum. We each tried two different kids of beers at this pub which had 30 on tap. From there, we meandered through the old town until we came to Namesti Republiky. Caught a tram back to the apartment ~2 pm. We relaxed and video chatted with the kids a little bit, then took a side trip to exchange some of our Koruna back to dollars. We picked up some food for breakfast tomorrow at Billa, then headed back to the apartment again. We got ready and headed down the street to Gate for dinner. [While we ate, Nick reminded me about something that happened earlier today. While we were at the Vysehrad cemetery, we suddenly heard orchestral music coming from the cell phone of an older Asian man. It took us a second to realize that he was jamming to a Dvorak song in front of Antonin Dvorak's grave. A funny, fitting tribute.] We had a nice dinner, though pretty heavy in my case (potato dumplings filled with smoked meat with a side of cooked cabbage and caramelized onions. Nick had a giant burger.) We decided earlier today that our original plans of going to the Cloud 9 bar and having exorbitantly expensive cocktails for the hell of it wasn't "us." Instead, we walked down Sokolovska/Karlin to the Krizek wine bar and had a liter of burcak between us. This yummy, cloudy, pale yellow wine is half-fermented with Czech or Moravian grapes and is only available mid-August until November. The bar at which we got it just got it in on the 21st, so nearly everyone there was drinking this year's offering. Sweet, slightly fizzy, definitely dangerous. On my already full stomach, I dared not have anymore. The sky threatened rain as we made our way back to the apartment ~7:30. I packed up a few more things. Since it's going to be an early morning tomorrow, we're taking it easy tonight.

Dvorak's tomb

On Vysehrad

SO MANY TOURISTS

Trying burcak

26 Aug - We woke around 5:30, finished packing, ate a bit and got ourselves on the public transportation. By tram, metro and bus, we got to the airport ~7:30. It was pretty quiet, so we breezed through check-in and security. We had some leftover Czech Koruna, so we bought some plum brandy to take with us, two coffees and two macarons to share. Left with 7 czk. : ) We leisurely sipped our coffee, then made our way to the gate for our 10:25 am flight from Prague to Zurich. The weather was good in Prague. We sat at the back of the small connector flight. Pretty quick and uneventful. When we got to Zurich an hour later, we were dropped off on the tarmac and loaded on to a bus. We were concerned with how far we were from our next departure terminal. We hurried through the terminal, only to find we had to go through passport control. Waited..., finally through. Took the underground metro to the E terminal. After using the facilities, went through yet another passport check before joining the line to board our flight to Chicago. Didn't get a moment to sit from landing until boarding. Oh well - no time to be bored. Nick and I got a row of 3 to ourselves. Unfortunately, there is a loud toddler across the aisle. Our 12:55 flight left ~1:20. After a while, we were served lunch. I got gnocchi; Nick got chicken and pasta. I watched the movie Lady Bird, then tried to nap. The little one could use one, too. Spent the remainder of the flight reading, resting, watching The Good Place, watching our plane's progress. No delay when we got to O'Hare! Huzzah! Went through all the customs/security checks, claimed our baggage (double huzzah!) and headed to our car. Picked the lane without an attendant (unbeknownst to us...) and we needed one to leave the lot. $174 to park in the economy lot of r 10 days. Yikes. Anyway, drove homeward. Missed by the storms in the area. Made good time, even with a quick stop. Talked quiet a bit about our personality styles and parenting. Got home ~8. Mom, Dad, Felix & Iris got here just after us. We were so happy to see them! Good to be home. The kitties are happy we're back, too. And now, since I've been awake since 5:30 am Prague time/10:30 pm here time and now it's 9 pm, it's bed time!

All of our pictures are here. If you're interested in where exactly (and I do mean exactly - trains, trams and all) we went, I made this Google map. Videos I took on the trip are here.

The beers were big, but I persevered. 

Total trip cost: $4,201.05
{transcribed 1/30/2020}