Prague is HOT!

We had planned to travel by train to Prague and Berlin and were very excited about trying something different. Temperatures in Germany had been above normal for awhile already but on the day that we left, they went through the roof. When we arrived in Dresden to transfer onto our final train to Prague, it was about 38 degrees. We found that our train was having difficulty getting the air conditioning to work so we sat in stifling heat and tried very hard not to move a muscle. Prague actually did hit 40 degrees that day and we felt like we were in a sauna. As we traveled to our airbnb apartment, however, we could already tell that we were going to love this city. A couple of people helped us find our place (when you travel, you can never ask too many questions) and before we knew it, we had a new 'home'. We fell in love with our cute fifth floor apartment with a balcony. Even though there was no air conditioning, a couple of fans did the trick and soon we were settled in. The next day was spent getting to know Old Town Prague. Prague was never bombed during the Second World War so the architecture is phenomenal. And since the Velvet Revolution, the gray sooty layer that covered all the buildings has been cleaned off and replaced with all the colors of the rainbow (well maybe not beige). We spent most of our time just wandering through the narrow streets of the Old Town, spinning as we took in the 360 degree panorama of the Old Town Square with its many churches, statues, and shops, and finally walking across the infamous Charles Bridge. It can take a while to cross the bridge because there are countless hawkers of just about anything artistic you can imagine. You also have to stop to listen to the Dixieland Band (why Dixieland in Prague I don't know). Elaine and I practiced a few dance steps (more practice will be needed) while Matthew pretended not to know us. There are about seventy five old statues of religious figures lining the bridge which most tourists were trying to shoot at every possible angle. Amd last but not least, the bridge is the perfect spot to take in the breathtaking beauty of the Prague castle as it looks down over the Vltava River flowing below it as well as the Old Town. Luckily for most tourists, camera film is a thing of the past or you could easily go broke here. We climbed up to visit the castle (good King Wenceslas is buried inside the cathedral) before hurrying back down to take in a baroque performance in the Mirror Chapel in the Klementinum. It was advertised as the hall where Mozart had played and loved the acoustics. Funny how there are countless classical music performances all over the Old Town claiming some connection to good old Mozart. This is after all the city where the movie Amadeus was filmed. After a very full day, it was time to head back to our 'home' and turn the fans on to cool off for the night.