It's a Good Day

Saturday, July 25, 2015

Today’s plan is the result of the weather.  It started thunder booming before six a.m. and is supposed to be wet and drippy off and on all day.  We’ve scrapped our original idea and will, instead, finish up our shopping and retrace some of our steps from yesterday with an eye toward one of Andrea’s restaurant suggestions for a late lunch.

Downstairs for breakfast and internet – but the wifi is worse down there, and the loud German is too much for us, so we finish eating and adjourn to our room. A bit of writing, a bit of photo editing, and we’re off.

 First stop, the garnet factory store where Andrea shops, and the on to St. James church.  Perhaps we can grab a photo.  Hmmm, the door is locked!  That’s okay, we can shoot through the window!  OH!  There is a legend about this church.  The story goes that a thief broke in one night, intending to steal some of the church’s valuables, but a woman caught him by the arm.  When she did, she was left with the arm while the rest of him disappeared!  You can see the arm hanging near the front door and it is said that his ghost returns every night!

Then we’re on to the Old Town Square so we can find the Ungelt and check out the glass store and the Koh-I-Noor store.  I remember their pens from back in the day!

Much better view of Tyn Church

Church of St.Nicholas

 We find our way to The Rope Maker’s Wife, our intended lunch spot, and settle at one of the outdoor tables.  Marilyn has a ginger lemonade and I have a Pilsner Urquell.  We place our orders and chat for a moment with the couple sitting at our table.  He tried to teach us how to say the name of the restaurant and thank you.  You can vaguely hear the similarity to Polish, but not enough to make the Czech pronounceable!  I’ve ordered “Filled chicken breast with blue cheese and broccoli” and Marilyn has selected “Vepro, knedlo, and zelo, a classic Czech dish of roast pork, potato dumplings and sauerkraut”

Our meals come, except that my stuffed chicken looks an awful lot like a pork cutlet!  “Jesus” says our waitress and she goes off to fix the problem.  Marilyn’s food would get cold, so she starts eating.  Marilyn finishes eating and then our little girl comes back with my chicken.  It is lovely and she says dessert will be on her, for the mistake.  I finish my meal, which is really tasty, and we agree that we are probably too full for dessert.  But when she brings the apple strudel with cream that we had been drooling over, we manage to find the room!  Splitting it gives us just the right amount.

As our food is settling a rain and wind storm comes up and everyone rushes inside the restaurant.  Our lady finds us a table in the back room and we decide to have something to drink while the storm subsides.  I have an Irish Coffee and Marilyn has a Coke Zero.  We finish up about the same time that the storm does, so we pay our bill and head out.

A note about the Rope Maker’s Wife.  The story goes that the rope maker and his wife were very happy;  but he had to travel a great deal in his work.  She asked him if she could open a pub to keep herself occupied while he was gone.  He agreed and soon her pub became famous;  but not just for the food.  When the rope maker found out about his wife’s extracurricular activities he strangled her with one of his own ropes.  It is said that her ghost still haunts the pub and will do so until she heals all the souls suffering for love.  If you have spousal problems and touch her painting, the magic will work and you will see the results!

Andrea said that Mosen Crystal is the best.  It sure is gorgeous!

Interesting people on the street!

You can tour in one of these beauties!

There are lots of toy and game shops.

They are advertising "Don Giovani"

You can pay to feed his larger pig, on the ground by his feet.

 After lunch we walk to the Powder Tower and Gate for some better photos, then come back by a different street, stopping into shops as we go!  We get home and are ready to take our shoes off and settle down for the evening.  There must be fireworks somewhere because we can hear the bangs, but can’t see the results.

Must be a bachelor party!

We know we're almost home!

This is the club, the Chill Inn

Night falls.

And the parade begins.

As before, the kids start lining up for the club downstairs around ten o’clock;  but tonight the air is decidedly cooler and we can close all but one of our windows.  I know they’ll quiet down by one, so it’s all okay.