Prague Castle and Charles Bridge

Before we left, everyone said there were two must go places in Prague, Prague Castle and Charles Bridge, so we headed out. Just as we got close to the bridge, the sun came out, and the view was amazing!

 

Charles Bridge and Prague Castle

 

Prague Castle from the Old Town side

Charles Bridge from the Prague Castle side

Charles Bridge was built in 1357, commissioned by Charles IV, who laid the first stone. It crosses the Vltava River. It has been through a lot of damage and repairs over the years. It used to be a crucial connection for trade from Western Europe to Eastern Europe. Today it is a pedestrian bridge host to vendors and 30 or so statues from various artists with various themes.

 

There are towers on either side of the bridge that served as defenses. In 1648, at the end of the Thirty Years' War, the Swedes all but destroyed the river side of the tower in an attempt to take over the Old Town.

Just to my left in the above picture was probably my favorite of all the places we went. It was a marionette shop, and I was like a kid in there. I really like the characature look of them, and how they are just hanging there ready to be animated.

 

I checked into going to see a show, but it didn't work out. Maybe next time!

 

Posted with Blogsy

Praha

Chris and I went to Prague this weekend! Growing up in the height of the USSR gives me a certain strange feeling about Eastern Bloch countries. This is my 4th former Soviet country this year! When I was a kid I used to imagine I was a spy in Czechoslovakia along with my imaginary friend Carol. I was a bit disappointed when the country didn't make it through the reorganization, but hey, it's still the same land, even if it lost the name. So here I am, finally in, well, the Czech Republic.

The city center is absolutely georgeous! The architecture is even better than In Budapest, and that's saying a lot. The buildings are all tall, and the streets are not in boring crisscross grids, but rather in curvy, windy patterns, which makes for some really cool street walking.

 

 

The buildings are very different from each other and extremely detailed.

 

 

There are a lot of painted buildings as well.

 

 

The sidewalks are all cobblestone, small cobblestone, and many varying patterns. Even when we switched hotels to further out of the city, all the sidewalks are patterned.

 

After the first day of getting to know the city, we were ready to head out and see more the next day!

 

Posted with Blogsy

Summer??

According to people who can read and speak Swedish, it was still summer here till this week. Swedish meteorology says it is summer till it's below 50 5 days in a row. The Swedes and I have a very different view of what summer is. It's been between 45 and 55 for two months now, and the trees look like this...

 

 

But nonetheless, I will bid it adieu. So goodbye to sun, which inspired me to ride my bike to work,

 

...and to meet Chris for ice cream in Stortorget.

Goodbye to warmer temps that inspired awesome pool parties,

...and playing hooky from work to meet Chris in Copenhagen.

Goodbye to dry weather which inspired last minute BBQs,

...and outdoor lunches.

Goodbye to after work picnics,

 

...and beautiful sunsets.

I'll be anxiously awaiting your return next year.

Hello to boots and scarves and sweaters. Hello to November, one month from December, the month that takes us back home to the US!

 

Posted with Blogsy

Crayfish

In mid-August, it's crayfish time in these parts. There is a festival in Malmö that is kicked off with a big crayfish festival. Eric from work organized a group to go and Chris and I joined in. Claiming the tables starts in the wee hours of the morning, but the festival doesn't start till 7 PM. Andrea was kind enough to go early and save a table for us. Seeing as how we didn't want to picnic all the makings of a crayfish party to Malmö, we had some friends over and ate before we went.

We had crayfish, Västerbotten pie (cheese pie), and cheesy mushroom toast.

 

Crayfish here are saltwater and bigger than what you'd expect from a typical New Orleans dish. They are also pickled in dill brine.

 

Keeping to Swedish weather, it was raining, but we went anyway. There were thousands of people there and country music was on the stage.

Above is Asier from Spain and Gareth from England. Below is Eric. He is very good to help all us expats integrate into Swedish life. It's always good to have friends.

It was a great party!

 

 

Posted with Blogsy

Smörgåstårta

Sandwich cake. Imagine making a cake where the layers are white bread and the icing is a mayo based sandwich. That's smörgåstårta. Kerstin was making one for some event and made a miniature one for Chris, her adopted son.

 

 

 

Posted with Blogsy