Prague #2
Trip Start
Jun 28, 2008
1
12
27
Trip End
Aug 29, 2008
Prague,
Bohemia,
Czech Republic
Wednesday, July 23, 2008
After a long train ride in a cabin with a family that didn't speak a word of English, I found my way back to the hostel in Prague. Someone was in my bed but there was still one in the room for me. I met up with one of the girls for breakfast and we headed into town to check out the Jewish Ghetto.
We went in to one of the oldest Synagogues in Europe. It was very simple and unlike any of the Cathedrals I have seen. The only reason why it is still standing today is because it was chosen to be a shrine. It was intended to be a reminder of the "successful" extermination the Jewish people. Instead today it is still used for Jewish services. We also went into another part of the Ghetto, the Jewish Museum, which had the names of every Holocaust victim written on the walls. It was overwhelming. On the top floor there were poems, stories and art that had been done over the years by children in school for a school project. Every effort is being made to remember those affected by the Holocaust and to teach the next generations about it in hopes to prevent it from happening again. During the war, the Jewish people in this Ghetto of course were not allowed to leave, but people were dying and there was no where to put them. There is an old cemetery that has over 12,000 gravestones but in addition is 7 layers deep. They just brought more dirt in and kept on burying.
Christina and I were craving veggies so we went to a vegetarian restaurant for lunch and then headed down Charles bridge to check out the street vendors. There was lots of stuff to choose from but a lot of it was too big for me to buy. On the other side of the bridge we went into St. Nicholas Cathedral. It is not nearly as big as St. Paul's in London but it is jammed with huge statues and paintings. You could spend days in there and discover a new statue that you hadn't seen!
After dinner, we were planning on going for a night bike tour but unfortunately Busabout was wrong and there weren't any in Prague. We indulged in some very expensive sundaes and went on a river cruise. Yet another view of the city and worth every penny.
