Tones of Pink: March 2008

To Vienna To Vienna ...

Saturday, March 29, 2008

It's time to say goodbye to Prague, as we will be making our way to our next destination, Vienna (Wien).

Neat and New train....

It was snowing along the way....

Reached and checked in to our hotel, which is the first time we are staying in a hotel in europe. heh heh....

With a history of 100 years, the staff in this hotel are friendly and nice! the rooms are big and cosy, and we even had breakfast here every morning.

The clean toilet...

Check out the hotel: http://www.hotelkugel.at/content/en/en_zimmer.php
It was super cold in Vienna on our arrival, -11degrees.....arghhhhhh, the wind was strong somemore!
we didnt even have the mood to take out our cameras for cam-whoring.
Still, we brave the weather, and went out for some street shopping before the nite falls....
Found this on the street, they looked so damn appetising, huge buns!

but it wasn't that nice, for 2euro, u only get flour and some custard cream inside. And of cos it tasted like it was in the fridge for a while, cos it was freezing on the streets.
Even these pretzels are gianantic in size!

Since it was a Saturday, we decided to walk to Nashmarkt (Fishmarket).
You can find a unique mixture of Austrian traditions and oriental influences.

I so felt like having a bite on them!!!

but bought a 3euro doner kebab instead....hee...

It is a great place to shop for goodies and to have lunch at one of the many stalls, coffee shops and restaurants.

By the time we went back to the city, it was almost dark.
One unique thing in Vienna, shops close really early, like from 5.30pm onwards, even restaurants!
and they are close on Sundays, yes, every single shops, even the supermarkets!
And so, when we felt hungry, there wasn't many food left to choose from, therefore, we settled our dinner in Nordsee with salmon and potato, and because this is the only salmon left, Livingstone and I had to share....
Many pple were practically flowing into the shop to sweep what was remain on the counter.....

The quiet street at nite.

Labels: vienna

The Last of Prague

Saturday, March 22, 2008

Its blue sky! and we were so happy! We had seen enuf of gloomy sky, so we pack our barangs barangs and there we go, ready to explore Prague city all over agn.
(and its snowing....hee hee....)
At the square:

Look at the beautiful sun!!

And the cotton wool in the sky....

Went on top of the tower to catch a bird's eye view....very beautiful.

and its super freaking cold and windy up there!!!

most of the time i hid indoor, behind the windows.... lol

livingstone with his castle.... =)

Limo outside a church wedding...

The astronomical clock. mounted on the southern wall of Ols Town City Hall in the Old Town Square. The Orloj is composed of three main components: the astronomical dial, representing the position of the Sun and Moon in the sky and displaying various astronomical details; "The Walk of the Apostles", a clockwork hourly show of figures of the Apostles and other moving sculptures; and a calendar dial with medallions representing the months.

In one of the churches...

Overlooking the Charles Bridge and the Castle.

The sky turned gloomy again....

Along the Charles Bridge...

Reflection....somewhere near the castle....

And then, a 'bear' came with a signage....

haha, obviously a strike...a mini one-man show strike.
This day, the castle main door was not open to public, there were many officials and even reporters reporting live in the premise.....

So cute, vintage van wor....

Then, as we ascend from the castle....strolling along the Charles Bridge....it started snowing again.....

yeah, bought 2 of those small huts.....actually it is the minature golden lane....

OK, rem the legend i told u abt on the Charles Bridge? Here it goes:
St.John Nepomuck will help keep your secret!
This priest was one of the few who were entrusted with the confessions of queen and wife of king Wenceslas IV (Vaclav).
The king was very peace-loving, at least that is how Czech historians write of him.
Nevertheless, his life has one cruel and dark point which reeks of the blood of an innocent man --John Nepomuck. The king was said to be a very jealous man.
After one trip, upon returning to Prague, he wanted to know from John Nepomuck what the queen had said during her confession. He refused to disclose this to the king though, saying that it was a secret of confession. The king was angered by this and sent the priest to the dungeon. According to some sources, the king himself took part in some of the torture.
Then John Nepomuck said that if the torture stopped, he would tell only one soul present in the chamber what the queen had said. The king thought that would be him and agreed to the deal. John Nepomuck then asked that all people leave the chamber, and he would whisper it to the king's dog. King Wenceslas IV was then supposedly so enraged, that the priest was tortured to death.
At night he was thrown from the Charles Bridge into the river. According to another version, he was still alive when thrown into the river.
When the people found this famous, but now dead priest, he was buried in Prague castle near the cathedral. Later, when the cathedral was rebuilt, the tomb had to be moved. When the body of the priest was unearthed, they found that within his skull there was a perfectly intact tongue. The same as found in any one of us.The church said this to be a miracle, a symbol that the sanctity of the confessional was not broken , and claimed sainthood for him.
Beneath the statue of St.John Nepomuck are two metal plates which detail the story. On one there is the priest and a listening dog in a room. The second is the image of St.John being thrown from the bridge to the river. Anyone who touches either the dog or the priest and wishes for some secret to never come out, will have that wish fulfilled. Both of these metal plates, with the dog and the priest are just shining from the constant touching.

That's the interesting Charles Bridge, also known as 'Karluv Most' in Czech.

This is another interesting sculpture in one of those lanes we passed by...

At nite....how can we miss the nite scene....

The castle at nite....

the old town square.....

Labels: prague, Travel

Day trip to Kutná Hora

Tuesday, March 18, 2008

Have you heard of this place?
I did, I had rx pictures via email about this skeleton church, but I have never imagine myself stepping into it.

So, since we are in Czech, we might as well make a trip there!
Suppose to go there early, but we got stuck, and you know why? We got caught for not buying a ticket at the train station. arghhhhh...
People, if you are travelling in Prague, at Staromesky station, pls purchase tickets, the inspector will stand behind the pillars and wait to inspect u. BUY TICKETS IN CZECH!
Anyway, we negotiated with the inspector, and we got away with just SGD70 of fine, instead of SGD140. And of cos we didnt get the reciept la. The inspector pocketed the fine lo.

And so, we continued our journey to the The Sedlec Ossuary (kostnice Sedlec) a small Christian chapel, located beneath the Church of All Saints (Hřbitovní kostel Všech Svatých) in Sedlec, a suburb of Kutná Hora in the Czech Republic.

We took a train to Florence, passed the underpass to find the eurolines tickets office (Autobusove NAdrazi) and approach the ticket counter to buy the bus-ticket Kutna Hora (1hr 15mins journey). It is the last stop. And to go to the church, transfer to bus 1B.

Here I am, pretending to be asleep....while waiting for our bus.

Entrace to the church, on the floor.

The Church entrance.....eerie...

The ossuary of the "Bone Church," as it is popularly known, contains approximately 40,000 human skeletons which have been artistically arranged to form decorations and furnishings for the chapel.