Bathtub CARP and other Czech traditions .....

On Sunday, we enjoyed a buffet breakfast and relaxed at the hotel until we left at 1 PM for Nuremberg.  It was about a 3 1/2 hour drive and the countryside was quite similar to western PA.  Our guide, Blanka, told us about the places that we were passing and also a little about Czech traditions.

Christmas Eve is the big day of celebration with Christmas Day being more low key.  About a week before the holiday, vendors on the streets begin selling live carp - they have big barrels filled with water and the people choose their special Christmas carp!

They take their carefully chosen, soon to be dinner, carp home and are then faced with the task of keeping it alive until Christmas Eve so they fill their bathtub with water and the carp swim happily in the tub until "D" Day.

It's a Czech tradition to fast on Christmas Eve until the evening meal and then the families enjoy their holiday meal of ..... yep ..... CARP along with potato salads.  Just imagine the events of the 24th of each year, when Dad wrestles the carp out of the tub and executes it!  This also makes me wonder how the family bathes during the week before Christmas??  (our guide specifically said that they DO bathe) Hey carp .... move over, I'm coming in!!!!

SO all is well with the world and the Christmas CARP is on the table!!!

The Czechs decorate their Christmas trees after the children go to sleep on 12/23.  When the kids wake up on Christmas Eve morning to a decorated tree, they know that they have been good all year and will get food and gifts from .....Santa??? NOOO, not Santa, from Baby Jesus who flies around on Christmas Eve bringing gifts to all the good boys and girls.  While trying to find a picture online of a flying Baby Jesus, I've discovered that this person is not really Baby Jesus but "Christkind.  

The Christkind is the traditional Christmas gift-bringer in many parts of the world and was used by the Protestant Reformation in the 16th and 17th centuries  to discouraged the belief that St. Nicholas brought gifts on December 6.  The Christkind is a child usually depicted with blond hair and angel-like wings.

Another Czech tradition occurs on Easter Monday when the men were permitted to beat the women with willow rods until noon.  This was supposed to give the women "energy!"  After the beating stopped at noon, the women then served the men special colored eggs that they had prepared.  

That was Blanka's verison.  I have done some research and will add the following:

It's called Red Monday and the men (usually in groups) visit their female relatives and friends and spank them on the butt with special whips handmade from willow rods with ribbons at the end.  

The willow is the first tree that "wakes" in the spring so being spanked by the willow was thought to bring fertility and vitality to the women through this act.

The question in my mind - was alcohol involved in this spanking tradition???  OF COURSE it was!!!  I found that the women were lucky if they were one of the first spankings of the day because the "mob" was still sober.  At each stop, the men were given refreshments (vodka) and left over Easter eggs and other things from the Easter baskets.

Walpurgis Night - April 30/May 1

Another Czech tradition is the burning of witches on the last night of April.  Ancient tradition said that evil powers were at their peak on that night and people had to protect themselves, their homes and their livestock.  People believed that crowds of witches flying on broomsticks traveled to a witches' assembly that night.  People would light huge fires on the hillsides and throw burning brooms up into the air to weaken the witches' power and to get rid of them.  

In modern times, this has become a fun tradition.  Throughout the country on April 30, fires are set and "witches" are made from straw and old clothes and burned.  When the fire is roaring, they roast sausages (can you say Czech weenie roast??), and sing and dance to music.  I'm thinking that alcohol is involved here too!!!!

May 1 - the Day of Love

On the evening before May 1 (oh my, isn't this the same night that the witches are burned???), the single males cut down tall trees, remove the branches and decorate them with flowers and ribbons.  They are then erected in the village square and guarded overnight because other males travel about trying to steal as many Maypoles as possible.  

The girls travel around trying to kiss their love interest under a blooming cherry tree or birch tree.  It is thought that if a girl was not kissed, she would wither and die within 12 months.

Needless to say the bus ride to Nuremberg went quickly and we all enjoyed the stories of the Czech traditions!!!  It was time to say goodbye to Blanka :(  

Folklore Garden

Saturday ended with dinner at Folklore Garden, a restaurant in Prague with traditional Czech cuisine and musicians and dancers in ethnic Czech apparel.

The dinner started with mushroom potato soup, coleslaw and then a big pot filled with ham, chicken, roasted pork, mashed potatoes and cubed potatoes - all served family style.  The beer (pivo) and wine were included and flowed freely!  The show was filled with Czech music and dancing.

Several of our group members took the stage!

I wore a pedometer during our trip and the number of steps that I took throughout our day in Prague was 17,891 ..... do you think this counteracted all of the food and pivo????  

This ends our day in Prague!!!!!!

Charles Bridge

After lunch, we found Karlova St and followed the crowds to Charles Bridge.  Constructed between 1357 and 1402, the bridge has been home to battles, processions, executions and most recenty, film shoots - none of which happened while we were there!  The bridge was jammed with people but we enjoyed the carnival-like atmosphere with vendors selling art, jewelry, caricatures and musicians.  We enjoyed the 30 huge statues of saints and religious figures that were originally installed to draw people back to Mass.  Today, all of the statues are reproductions with the originals housed in museums throughout Prague.

View of Charles Bridge from a distance

Now, close up and personal!

We were warned to be aware of pickpockets on the bridge and in other popular tourist spots so we were very careful with our belongings and had no issues with theft.

Our guide told us about the numerous Romania "beggars" throughout Prague and they certainly were everywhere!  It was a bit disconcerting when we saw the first man on his knees on the cobblestones with his upper body flat on the ground with palms outstretched for donations.  There were men and women, some barefoot, some deformed - quite pitiful but certainly not welcomed by the Czechs.  Look carefully at the following picture and you will see a woman in the blue with her hands folded in "prayer" with her dog ...... hmmm ..... that dog sure looks well fed and groomed to me!!!!  

On the other side of the bridge, we went down the steps to Kampa Island - a popular park now covers the island's southern end but it was once home to a thriving pottery industry in the 17th century.  The northern half is home to upscale restaurants, hotels and embassies.  Much of the island was flooded in 2002 and has been replaced.  The Certovka (Devil's Canal) separates Kampa Island and Mala Strana.  

After the assassination of John Lennon, a Mexican art student painted a portrait of Lennon on a wall and this has become a "shrine" to the former Beatle.  The original portrait has been painted over many times and other artwork and graffiti has been added.  The painted-over remains of the original Lennon can be seen in the first picture below high on the wall to the right of the arch. 

There was a bridge over the "Devil's Canal" where couples attach locks to signify their everlasting love.  Some were basic locks and some were quite elaborate!

There was a St. Wencelas Day festival going on with vendors, music and food.  It was quite interesting and we wandered around for a while before heading back across the Charles Bridge.

We passed the Powder Tower on our walk back to the Prague Hilton.

Pivo makes me stupid!!!!

After the pivo (beer), I was in need of the WC and I was directed up a windy flight of steps to the second floor - the bartender followed up behind me to turn the lights on in the hall way.  There was no one else around so I entered and locked the stall behind me.  When I was done, I turned the lock but the door didn't open.  I tried again and again - the lock made a noise like it was opening but the door wouldn't push open.  Well, this is a fine situation that I had gotten myself into - locked in a bathroom on a dark second floor of a bar in the Czech Republic.  I kept turning the lock and pushing the door with no success.  I knew no one was around on the second floor but I also knew that eventually Dave would miss me and come looking for me.  So I kept turning the lock and pushing the door.  Then I started knocking on the door and turning the lock and pushing the door.  Then as panic began to set in, I started yelling - HELLOOOOO - is anyone there???  Knock, knock, knock ...... I'm locked in here ......  anyone?????

By now, I was on the verge of freaking out!!!  I told myself to calm down and try this all again.  I looked at the door analytically and noticed that there were no hinges on it ..... hmmmm ...... if there are no hinges, how does it open???  Ohhhh ..... could it be???  So, instead of pushing the door, I slid the door and ...... it opened!!!!!!   YAY!!!!!!   I was free!!!!!!!!!!!  But wait a minute, if I slid it to get out, I must have slid it open to get in ..............

The moral of this story is ....... beware of Czech beer because.........  PIVO makes me STUPID!

All I can say is ..... I'm so glad no one heard me knocking and yelling ...... crazy Americans!!!  Pivo makes them stupid!!!!

U Tri Ruzi

We started to follow the crowds to Charles Bridge but got a bit disoriented and wandered some side streets.  All of a sudden, I saw a pub that I had read about on Trip Advisor - U Tri Ruzi - a brew pub with six of their own beers on tap.

I had a nice autumn lager and Dave had a pilsner - the Czech word for beer is "PIVO" - we enjoyed many fine glasses of PIVO!!!!

We ordered a plate of sausages and a plate of cold meats, both served with mustard and a grated cheese.

Old Town Square Prague

Our guided tour ended in Old Town Square

The Astronomical Clock

Beautiful buildings

The Hard Rock Cafe Prague

Street Vendors

Prague's Jewish Quarter

Prague's Jewish community has experienced many highs and lows over the years - the Passover slaughter of 1389, recognition by Charles IV of the community's autonomy in 1716, the ending of many discriminatory measures by Joseph II - just to name a few.  In 1938, the Munich Agreement gave Hitler possession of Czech lands and he restricted the Jewish population of Prague to a ghetto before he deported them to concentration camps.

We visited the Jewish Quarter on a Saturday so nothing was open to tourists.

The guide pointed out a clock on one of the buildings with hands that go backwards so that the past is not forgotten.

The Old New Synagogue in Prague is Europe's oldest active Synagogue.  It was originally called the New or Great Synagogue but when newer synagogues were built, it became known as the Old New Synagogue.

The Old Jewish Cemetery was quite small and could not accommodate the needs of the Jewish community so when the plot was full, graves were built up in layers.  The tour guide said that estimates put the number of graves at around 200,000 with the oldest headstone dating from 1439.  The last burial took place there in 1787.  It was closed so we could not get in and it was difficult to take a photo because it was on a hill with walls around it.