NoahandMominPrague, part 5: Final Miscellany

Hey guys,

One last post from Prague, just cleaning out all the rest of my camera.  It was a great trip!

Mom and I went into an absinthe bar, which was pretty cool.  Best selection of absinthe I've ever seen, for sure:

Actually, we saw a couple absinthe bars . . . is absinthe popular/prevalent/native to Czechoslovakia?  I suppose wikipedia would know . . .

[edit:  Yup, historically popular in Prague, largely due to the artists' scene]

 Also, they had this picture on the wall which is just too adorable:

Speaking of bars, the bar in the hotel had mirrors on the ceiling angled so that you could see the bartenders working.  I thought it was interesting--plus I had perfect timing on this picture, which I think was funny :D

Thought I'd put up a pair of shots from one the churches we visited--been in a lot of churches these past few months, but this may in fact have been the most purely opulent interior.  Truly impressive:

Also, you didn't really think that I'd go this long without posting pictures of food, did you?  Czech food is interesting, fairly similar to Hungarian--very heavy on the meats, pork being predominant.  Really hearty food, that's for certain

For dinner one night Mom and I simply went to a pub and got a great deal on a giant, slow-roasted pig trotter.  Mmm, delicious.  Those traditionally "cheap" cuts of meat are still just as tasty, you just gotta take your time cooking them, that's all

(as a side note, I love pickled peppers, especially when they're good and spicy like this one was.  Perfect accompaniment to the pork)

Also, they have Langos in the Czech Republic!  Prepared, as you can see, by Fabio's sketchy Eastern-European cousin

 The texture on the langos was perfect, and you can see that they were serving them practically right out of the oil, which was delicious. However, instead of sour cream they tried to put ketchup on mine.  No thanks, I opted for the cheese alone

Incidentally, from watching the way they handled the dough I'm guessing that langos dough is very similar to pizza dough.  Probably not identical, but got to me to thinkign how it might work to deep-fry pizza dough.  Maybe I can get Alix to bring some for me from work once I get back to Seattle . . .

And finally . . . Two-Face Dog!!!!

Well . . . I thought it was worth taking a picture

Anyways, that's all from Prague.  Still plenty of things to post about from Budapest though, so I'll be back later.  Thanks,

Noah out

NoahandMominPrague, part 4: The Charles Bridge

Hey everyone,

So, one of the major attractions of Prague, after the Old Town Square, is the Charles bridge.  It's this gorgeous bridge across the river, lined on both sides with incredible statues:

Obviously, most of them are religious imagery.  Still, the craftsmanship is fantastic:

On the other side of the bridge is the newer part of town, at least compared to Old Town (erm when I put it into black and white that statement seems rather obvious, doesn't it?  Well, moving on).  I took a picture of the banners--no idea what they mean but, like statues, you can never have too many banners

Incidentally, while we're on the subject of statues, I think Prague might beat even Budapest in statues per square meter.  Check it:

 Mom and I had an informal competition for most statues in a single pictures . . . this was, I believe the winning entry:

Anyways, not a lot to write about, just some gorgeous pictures I wanted to make sure to post.  See you later

Noah out

NoahandMominPrague, part 3: The Prague Astronomical Clock

Hey guys,

One of the coolest features of the Old Town Square at which we stayed is the old Prague Astronomical clock, which has apparently been around since 1410.  In addition to telling time (albeit without adjusting for Daylight Saving's Time), it shows the time of sunrise and sunset every day, the lunar phase,the solstices and equinoxes, and the progression of the astronomical signs--all by clockwork.  That's pretty awesome

First, a shot at night:

And here's a picture during the day:

Flanking the clock are figures representing vices:  Vanity and Greed on the left, with Opulence on the far right.  Closest on the right is of course Death

The second face is a modern-style Gregorian calendar, added in 1870:

At the top of the hour, Death (not just a statue, but in fact a clockwork figurine!) rings a bell and the windows at the top open so that the twelve apostles can proceed by (sorry for the bad picture, best I could do) while the hour tolls

Finally, once all the chiming is done, a bugle tune is heard.  I at first assumed that this was part of the clockwork as well until I looked up and realize that no, it's just a dude with a bugle!

He gets to play the tune every hour and then stand and wave while all the tourists mean cheer him.  Pretty sweet gig :)

Anyways, as I posted last week, we stayed in a hotel overlooking the square.  I actually had fun, even when we weren't down to watch the clock, getting to watch the comically large crowd that shows up at about 5 til the hour that then immediately disperses

I hear it's a godsend for pickpockets ;)

Cheers,

Noah out

NoahandMominPrague, part 2: The Jewish Quarter

Hey guys,

A little more solemn of a post today.  Although the tourist sites were wonderful, and I do have stories and pictures to post, the real reason I went to Prague was so that I could tour the Jewish quarter.  My grandmother, on my father's side, was a young Jewish girl living in Czechoslovakia.  Her parents, my great-grandparents, had the vision to see what was coming and the courage to uproot and leave their homes in 1934.  They left behind many of their possessions and numerous friends and relatives.  As far as I know, none of my other relatives on that side of the family survived

These pictures are from Pinkas Synagogue, on the walls of which are written the names of every Jew in Prague who was killed during the Holocaust

My grandmother's maiden name is Haber

This is but one wall in one of four rooms, all covered in names

Adjacent to the synagogue is the cemetery.  The  tombstones are slanted and the ground is a good 5 or 10 feet above street level because this was the only place where the Jews were allowed to bury their dead.  They were forced to bury bodies on top of each other, causing the ground to become uneven as the earth settled

And this apartment complex is located at 14 Husova street--the address my grandmother grew up in.  If my great-grandparents had not had the courage to leave it behind, I would not be here

A solemn and sobering experience, one in which I am very glad to have partaken

Noah out

NoahandMominPrague, part 1!

Hi everyone!

So, since Hungary is a pretty Christian (Catholic?) nation, we get the Monday after Pentecost off.  In other words, 3-day weekend!  And, since I have some time off stacked up from coming in on weekends, I decided to take Tuesday off as well to make it a 4-day weekend.  With all that time, my mother and I decided to take a weekend trip to Prague :)

Our hotel was literally right on the main square in Old Town.  That's proper use of the word literally--here's the view from our window:

This was really awesome because in Prague, most of the sights are within walking distance of the Old Town square.  This meant that we could go see something, then come back to the room and rest for a half an hour, then go out and see something else.  We repeated this like 4 times in a single day, and it was awesome.  Best way to see a city, for sure

Here's our hotel room.  We had the top floor, which was pretty cool (it meant there was almost no noise from the square) but it also meant that our room was weirdly shaped due to the roof XD

 That being said, it was a great little room and an incredibly pleasant place to stay!

Anyways, I'll be posting pictures all week long so I don't want to throw everything up here all at once.  But here are just a few pictures I took in the square:

 The astrological clock is one of the main features of the square.  Pictures don't do it justice, it's really really cool.  I'll probably devote a whole post to it!

 

And here's Tyn Church.  I wish I had a better picture of it, because it's absolutely gorgeous--apparently that whole "Disney" aesthetic isn't artificially created, it's pretty much taken straight from buildings like these.  Fantastic

And yes, street food.  Delicious, delicious street food.  More on that later, to be sure

Anyways, like I said I have plenty to write about and I'll try to post pictures all week long.  Stay tuned!

Noah out

Castle hill! (finally during the day)

Hey guys,

So, finally made it to Castle Hill during the day.  I've been a couple times at night (you've seen some of those pictures--the one I put up for my hitatus, and all the ones from the palinka festival) and while it's absolutely gorgeous at night, there's a ton of cool stuff to see during the day (and the pictures come out better too)

We started by taking the little tram up the hill.  Yeah it's a little touristy (and, by Budapest transport standards, expensive) but it's actually pretty fun.

Here's the view from the bottom . . .

 . . . and a view almost from the top

Castle Hill has the absolute best view of the city.  Which . . . makes sense, when you think about it.  If you were a king, wouldn't you pick that spot for your castle?  Not like you're the one hauling stones up the hill

As would be expected, the statuary up at the castle is absolutely gorgeous

By the way, I noticed this at Parliament and I'll note it here as well:  Apparently, Hungarian lions are just really, really haughty

 (This one kinda looks like ClaudiusScar, doesn't it?)

 And finally, take note ladies and gentlemen, this is how you make a fountain.  God that is so manly.  Just looking at it makes you want to grow a moustache

(click to zoom in)

 A few more pics of the other side of the hill, I'll try to get those up later.  Cheers!

Noah out

Fish :D

Hey guys,

Huh, been an uncommonly long time since I posted pictures of food on here!  Clearly this must be remedied

So, the other night my mother and I visited the restaurant that Tamas's dad says has "the best fish soup in Hungary".  This obviously had to be investigated

(oh and yes, Hungary is landlocked, so this was all freshwater fish.  Carp, catfish, and trout, respectively.  Occasionally freshwater fish have a kind of muddy taste . . . I assure you, add enough paprika and this is not a problem at all)

First up was "fish cracklings" . . . you know.  Small nuggets of fried fish.  I don't really see how you can possibly go wrong here

Oh, here's a zoomed-in shot of the chili paste in the background.  It's actually very, very similar to the Chinese-style chili paste you'll get in like a Dim Sum restaurant.  A little sweeter, and usually with a slight smoky flavor.  Pairs fantastically with . . . well, everything, really

 Next we split a big cauldron of the fish soup.  Yes, it comes in a cauldron.  This is awesome

(oh, and in the background, you can see where my "taking pictures of food" genes come from) 

The soup was, as advertised, delicious.  Since eating here I've looked up recipes for Hungarian-style fish soup.  The list of ingredients is, pretty much the following:  Fish, water, paprika, and of course a generous portion of lard.  Good times.  Combine those properly and you get some magic 

Last course we had was smoked trout with horseradish.  A simple dish, but man . . . perfectly executed.  The trout was smoked just enough to lose the fishiness without counteracting the natural sweetness of the fish, the horseradish was clearly homemade and delicious, and if you combine it with bread, butter, and a glass of white (oh yes, the wine was the missing piece to complete the puzzle) . . . fantastic

Anyways, yeah.  Best fish I've ever eaten in a landlocked country ;)

Noah out