Dreamy Lake Iseo
Friday, May 25, 2012
Lake Iseo, Italy
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Shall we fly home today, Friday, or shall we spend the long Memorial Day
weekend on an Italian lake? Not a very hard decision, is it?! When we were planning our trip we decided to add on a relaxing few lakeside days before returning home - easy to do with the many lowcost European airlines that are ok for a short hop. A quick flight on Wizzair from Prague to Bergamo (actually the same flight we took a couple of years ago when one of our clients wanted to
add a bit of Italy to her Prague trip), and we pick up a car and drive to Lake Iseo.
Our original thought was
beautiful Lake Orta, which we love, but all of the hotels were booked with wedding parties for the weekend, so we began looking for another little lake, preferably with an island view... yes, we're picky!
Even with all of the photos and reviews available online, you never can know exactly what you're getting until you arrive, and oh were we thrilled with where we "landed" -
Hotel Rivalago in Sulzano.
This is one place where it is absolutely worth it to book a lakeview room - the vistas are spectacular from dawn til dark.
We can't wait to get out and absorb the beauty, and in minutes we're relaxing by the lake.
And shortly afterward sipping our favorite Italian aperitif, citrussy Aperol Spritz.
Tomorrow we'll ferry across and explore that colorful village on Monte Isola, today we'll just chill right here...
Labels: Aperol Spritz, Hotel Rivalago, Italy travel, Lake Iseo, Sulzano
A Riverside Lunch and a Memorable Concert
Thursday, May 24, 2012,
continued
Prague, Czech Republic
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Did you know that there's an Occupy Prague? A few tents and banners spread out on a nice green expanse near the river. We're on our way to a riverside lunch at wonderful Kampa Park. Rain was predicted for today, the final day of Music and Markets Prague, but it has turned out to be a glorious sunny day, perfect for our al fresco feast.
We sip rosé by the river as we choose from the enticing menu.
Barbara and I both choose the lobster bisque to start... and it comes with spoon- your- own caviar layered with crabmeat and lobster mousse - a luscious explosion of tastes with each mouthful of bisque.
The appetizers are so appealing that I choose another for my main course: carpaccio of beef with arugula and shavings of parmiggiano and a couple of bundles of foie gras wrapped in paper thin carpaccio - more amazing tastes!
And the desserts - stellar!
A cube of rich, dense chocolate garnished with gold leaf - Kirk is worth more now that he has swallowed this ;)
Our server sets a match to the lavender sprigs topping the strawberry cappuccino and wafts the fragrance through the air. Reminds me of our
Cinc Sentits meal in Barcelona - a feast for all the senses once again!
Oh do we have to get up from this table? The view, the warm sun, the refreshing breeze tempt us to stay....
But our day is not over - we have a wonderful concert to enjoy this evening, so across the bridge we go, one last time,then through the peaceful
Clementinum,
a former Jesuit complex that was a scientific mecca as well after Johannes Kepler founded an Observatory and discovered the laws of planetary motion.
The grand finale of our Music and Markets Prague tour is in the glorious Art Nouveau
Obecni Dum (Municipal Hall). Completed in 1912, the hall glows with the best work of Czech artists of the time and is the home of tonight's performers, the Prague Symphony Orchestra.
Colorful mosaics and frescoes please the eye in Smetana Hall, where the Prague Spring Festival kicks off every year on May 12.
Graceful maidens support the balconies,
and intricate giltwork, a distinctive mark of Czech Art Nouveau, artfully conceals vents and speakers.
Christopher Hogwood is conducting tonight's program, which begins with Stravinsky's intriguing orchestration of Bach's Four Preludes and Fugues, the
Preludes gracefully interpreted by the strings, and the Fugues by woodwinds - a pleasure!
Stravinsky's Concerto in Re, for strings, is followed by Mendelssohn's triumphant Symphony No. 2, the Lobgesang, or Praise Symphony. Rarely performed, it is a glorious piece in which the orchestra is joined by three solo voices and a choir. - wow of a finale for our week.
Goodbye Prague - we look forward to returning!
Labels: Charles Bridge, Christopher Hogwood, Kampa Park, Obecni Dum, Prague Symphony Orchestra
Cathedral and Castle
Thursday, May 24, 2012
Prague, Czech Republic
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Pradsky Hrad - Prague Castle - is visible from all over the city, gleaming in sunrise and sunset on Hradcany hill.
We begin our morning visit at St. Vitus Cathedral in the third courtyard of the castle complex.
The glorious window of Alfons Mucha always captures my imagination - that thoughtful praying boy,
those glorious Slav robes.
The cathedral alone can occupy hours of time, there's so much to appreciate, such as this gilded relief Annunciation in one chapel.
The exquisite Golden Door façade is now fully visible after years of painstaking restoration.
Fourteenth century architect Peter Parler's uniquely distinctive open vaults soar over the entry.
There are only a few pieces of furniture in the oldest castle rooms, such as this bookcase with land records from the 16th century.
A rider's staircase, broad and shallow, enabled horsemen to ride up to the Great Hall.
Built into the walls of the castle is the fairytale- hued Golden Lane, where the alchymists of medieval King Rudolf's day brewed their magic.
It's time for us to taste some magic of another kind for lunch, so we hop on Tram 22 for the roller- coaster ride downhill to the river...
Labels: Alfons Mucha, Golden Lane, Prague Castle, Prague travel
Trumpet from the Tower and a Glorious Chorus
Wednesday, May 23, 2012
Prague, Czech Republic
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We're back on Old Town Square this morning, fitting in a don't - miss
Prague event during our morning of shopping for Czech treasures. Yes, it's a
must to join the crowd and watch the Astronomical clock strike the
hour. The skeleton rings the bell, and the figures beside him nod and
move as the disciples make the rounds above. The grand finale? A
trumpeter plays a cheery tune from the top of the tower
.
We've asked what are guests are interested in... they already have more crystal (a long- standing Czech craft) than they can use, and have already found some lovely garnet jewelry (another Czech treasure) and are interested in antique or vintage finds, so we stroll through one lovely square after another - this one with an intricately lacey well
and a beautifully frescoed shop. Notice that I only snapped the upper floors - the bottom floor is now a McDonalds!
Above us on one street is a man hanging by one arm. We've asked previous guides, but have never found out the WHY behind this quirky sculpture. Just for fun, I guess.
Bric a Brac's always an intriguing stop. The owner knows the story behind each one of his thousands of "finds" and Gary unearths a fascinating old carved wine canteen that has a tale to match.
We continue on, through colorful squares,
and across Charles Bridge, strolling to the tune of a dixieland band, then an organ grinder.
Lunch today brings a taste of France to our week
where the
frites are as good as any we've had in France, and the special secret Café de Paris sauce is a creamy, herby Bernaise - fabulous with the rare, thinly sliced steak kept warm on a tableside burner.
After a few free hours, we walk to Saint Simon and Jude for an evening of
Rachmaninoff Vespers thrillingly performed by the Slovak Philharmonic Choir, then float home, melodies still streaming through our minds, to a good night's sleep.
Labels: Bric a Brac, Cafe de Paris, Charles Bridge, Prague shopping
A Royal City and a Palace Dinner
Tuesday, May 22, 2012
Prague and Kutna Hora, Czech Republic
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Today we get out of the capital, riding through countryside about hour and a half out of Prague to Kutna Hora, a World Heritage site well worth a day trip, with a magnificent cathedral, ancient silver mines, and the former Royal Mint. The town became increasingly famous in the 13th and 14th centuries for its silver deposits, and eventually accounted for as much as a third of all the silver production of Europe.
Outside of
the town of Kutna Hora is a church made famous by its decoration of
bones - everything from an heraldic shield, to pillars and posts and a
chandelier are made of bones from ancient graves.
The majestic church of Saint Barbara, patron saint of miners, is our first stop in Kutna Hora. Our own Barbara strikes a pretty pose in front of her namesake.
Inside, a marble statue
of a silver miner gives us some insight into the ancient work of this
town. The miners wore white in order to be more easily visible in the
dark mines, and had a wide leather apron on their backsides, used for sliding down the deep shafts.
The Italian Court, named for its original 14th century Florentine occupants, is a former royal residence and mint, now home to a museum showcasing coins made here from the 1300's to the 1700's.
The Czech tolar, origin of the name of our US dollar was minted here.
The Royal Audience hall is now the Town Hall - what a place for meetings!
Back in Prague, we enjoy a rather Royal dinner ourselves, in one of the palaces below Castle Hill - the Palffy Palaç, where we have the elegant candle-lit dining room all to ourselves!
Returning to our hotel on the other side of the river via metro, we take what seems like the world's longest escalator down to the green line -
Good night, Prague...
Labels: Kutna Hora, Palffy Palac, Prague, Prague travel
A Castle on a Hill in Prague
Monday, May 21, 2012
Prague, Czech Republic
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It's always a pleasure to start the day at the beautiful
Hotel KK Central.
One of the most beautiful Art Nouveau buildings in Prague,
the landmark building was designed in 1900 and became famous in the Twenties and Thirties for its cabaret, cinema and theater and is on the list of historic sights in Prague's Old Town. An elegant elevator glides up and down between swooshes and curves of burnished brass.
The breakfast room sits on stilts above the old stage, surrounded by plexiglass to give a floating feel to our morning buffets.
Today we're exploring the gardens of the magnificent palaces below Castle Hill. The Waldenstein Palace and Gardens were built by an army officer with his rewards from the Thirty Years' War between Catholics and Protestants. The palace is now part of the Czech Senate, and the expansive gardens are open to the public. That grey drip-castle wall in the back left is an artificial grotto.
Look closely and you'll discover faces, a snake, a frog....
Showy peacocks announce themselves with shrieks, gracefully strutting their beauty.
A Sala Terrena (outdoor living room) is lavishly frescoed, and sometimes the setting for al fresco concerts.
The prettiest way up to the castle is Nerudova Street, where the homes still display their pre-number ID - this house was known as the Three Fiddles,
this one the Red Lion.
There's a Green Lobster, the Three Suns, the Black Oak, the Golden Swan... until the late 1700's when Maria Theresa ordered houses to be numbered, homes and businesses were identified in this way.
Almost to the castle, we look down at the colorful facades as we walk.
We're early enough to grab a great spot to watch the noon changing of the guard at the castle. Just before the hour, the new platoon marches to the first courtyard from the barracks further up the hill.
Spiffy in their cool uniforms (designed by the man who also did the costumes for Amadeus, much of which was filmed up by the castle) and spotless white gloves, they go through the drill to the tune of a
Czech rock-star composed fanfare - always entertaining to watch.
Our usual pleasant walk through more beautiful gardens is foiled today - sewer repairs going on beneath the castle gardens. So we walk down another path to one of our
Prague favorites, U Zlaty Studny - The Golden Well.
What a perfect day for lunch on the terrace!
And the food is as fabulous as the view, from a main course of Seafood and Risotto
to a dessert of pale lime fluff and berry garnish - each plate as beautiful as it is delicious.
When we reach the end of the tour, Zlaty Studny once again is named the favorite of the week. Their cuisine is truly stellar!
This evening's concert is an organ, trumpet and vocal program, and we're welcomed to the Church of St. Francis of Assisi by herald trumpeters.
Walking through Old Town Square on the way "home", we enjoy the golden-lit towers of Tyn Church.
Labels: Art Nouveau, Hotel KK Central, Prague, Prague Castle Changing of the Guard, U Zlate Studny, Wallenstein Gardens
