Prague III

Hard to believe-- but this trip is nearing its conclusion. This is our last evening in Prague-- tomorrow morning Zak and I catch a train to Vienna, then its Shabbat back in the Old Empire, and a 7:30 AM (argh!) flight back to Los Angeles on Sunday.

While I am not ready to do a full wrap up yet (nor to cheat myself out of three more days possible adventures) I am starting to get ready for this trip to come to an end. I have discovered that backpack/hosteling nomadism is not the same thing as a "vacation"-- there is a lot to do and see and it really hurts to waste even a minute. However, this was an exceptionally long year for both Zak and I, and we will both be working hard this summer, so I think I will enjoy spending my one week home in Long Beach on the beach and not moving terribly much.

The last two days in Prague have been very nice. We got pretty chummy with another pair of guys traveling-- two Minnesotans named Jimmy and Dave. We spent the past two nights hanging out with them in the garden of the hostel, playing chess and talking.

Jimmy joined Zak and I for the biggest adventure of the past two days-- a trip to the "Bone Church" of Kunte Hora-- an hour outside of Prague. The entire space is filled with human bones, arranged in whimsical decorative patterns and a massive grand chandelier. All told, the guidebook says that there are the bones of 40,000 individuals on display in this church, and I have no trouble at all believing it. I am not sure what possesses a medieval monk to do such a thing-- but questions like that are, perhaps, better left unasked.

Also in the town of Kunte Hora is the Phillip Morris Museum-- a small, free display space in the largest cigarette manufacturing plant in Central Europe. We were treated to displays of cigarette cases throughout the ages and a multi-media exploration of how the tobacco leaf becomes a refreshing Marlboro. This is one odd town.

We rode back to Prague in a train compartment together with a very odd Canadian goth, who told us that she came to Prague exclusively for the purpose of visiting this church (she also told us that the only thing that interested her in Paris were the catacombs.) She proceeded to show us her eccentric piercings and a scar on her chest in the shape of a keyhole that he boyfriend had lovingly given her. All I could think was Linda Blair in the Exorcist, so I was plenty glad to get out of that compartment and on my way.

In the evening, Zak and I made our way, dutifully, back down to the Old Town Square and did the ritual battle with the tourist hoards. We did manage to find a nice spot by the river with a view of the Castle, and it is always pleasant to wander and talk with Zak, but downtown might be getting a little old.

This morning, we trudged down once again and went to a series of Paneria's-- a chain, cheap pastry shop all over Prague-- where we ordered various delicious things and talked. Really, one of the high points of this trip has been the chance to hang out with Zak, and before him, Ben-- they are both pretty neat-o guys and we don't get to see too much of each other these days. Pastry never hurts either.