PRG

Prague attractions:

Charles Bridge, The Prague Castle and palace gardens, Old Town Square House at the Stone Bell, New Town, National Gallery: Veletrzni Palace, Sternberg Palace, and St. Georges Convent, National Museum and Antonin Dvorak Museum, Lobkovic Palace, National Technical Museum, Museum of Decorative Arts, Petrin View Tower, The Maze, The Powder Tower, The Municipal House, St. Nicholas Church, Vrtbovska garden, Bertramka (Mozart Museum), Church of Our Lady of Victory (The Prague Bambino), Old New Synagogue, Botanical Garden in Troja, Krizik Fountain, Jewish Town except Pinkas Synagogue, Bedrich Smetana Museum, Naprstek Museum, Troja Castle and garden, Wallenstein Garden, and the zoo in Troja.

The Slavic language is used, and English isn't common outside of hotels and a few restaurants/bars. Communication is accomplished through a combination of verbal and visual interaction.

Lala Restaurant in Pisek has really wonderful food.

Quick Tips:

If you like beer, go for a Budweiser in this country. Budweiser here isn't the same company nor the same taste. Budweiser once tried to acquire the company in this country but, fortunately, failed. The company that brews from the U.S. has the slogan, "The King of Beers." The company slogan in the Czech Republic is "The Beer of Kings." Taste the difference--it is far superior.

Best Way To Get Around:

Getting around Prague via public transportation is great if you can decipher the Slavic language. Single 2 zone fare is CZK 12, and 24-hour pass fare is CZK 70. The underground metro stops running at midnight, and limited all-night trams and bus service are available.

Beware of Metro C Hlavni Nadrazi at nighttime, especially if you're by yourself at that station. I've been warned that gypsies are on the lookout for targets. It's best not to be by yourself there.

Prague 8, where the hotel is located, isn't near the city center -- it's more on the fringe area of the city. Prague 2 is in a centrally located area. Local public transportation is readily available for this shortcoming. Local transit fare is CZK 12 or CZK 70 for a 24-hour pass, available from the metro stations, or single fares from some local merchants including the hotel.

We were greeted by Michael, with lots of fake smiles, who registered us. There was another person who introduced himself that provided massage service. We checked-in for a suite. The suite was recently remodeled, but second class and not tastefully decorated. There was one large, king-size bed and a twin in another area of the suite. The small cubicle fridge in the room was unplugged. Once plugged in and turned on, the fridge worked well.

The toilet area has pipes exposed, the toilet moved when seated, and the water feed was turned off. When the toilet feed was turned on, it leaked into the bowl constantly and made noise. The shower area lacked soap initially, but it was later provided when asked. We found three spiders during our stay of three nights, an average of one spider killed for each night we stayed.

There was a sink and cabinets have drinking cups, but lacked spoons, forks, and knives. The all-you-can-eat breakfast available for CZK 180 isn't worth the money for rolls, sliced deli meat, cereal, yogurt, coffee, and tea. Checking out was a slow, tedious process as Michael (not many smiles this time) was not customer-focused and was multi-tasking -- talking and doing several things at the same time; answering questions from the owner, buzzing people in the front door, checking us out. Allow at least 15 minutes for the check-out process, especially if you need to catch a train.

Trams: 10, 17 or 24; night tram 54 stop Stepnicna

Email: hotel@villa-mansland.com

It''s near the city center, and there is a fitness facility and swimming pool. You need a magnetic-stripe card to use the elevator, to enter and exit the fitness room, to enter and exit the swimming pool. There''s a 24-hour security guard inside hotel lobby.

There is a small bathtub/shower and an electronic safe in room, but no ice available. My partner said that no ice is probably the norm here since most of the world the water isn't potable, unlike the U.S. which takes water for granted and literally wastes it by flushing good quality drinking water down the drain. Most other countries don't have such a luxury, so drinkable water must be provided to the ice makers. Not even an ice bucket is provided in the room. They don''t want to encourage us to waste such a natural resource. I notice at home that I have ice melting away in my empty drink glass after consuming my beverage. The receptionist said to ask the bar for the ice -- they are suppose to help the hotel guests. I think that idea went over like a lead balloon. I later noticed later at the restaurant that when I requested ice in my drink, there were two or three small cubes of ice on the first round and none on the second round.

We had a smallish room, which made efficient use of space. The hotel arranged for our transportation to the airport since we needed to be there at a very early hour in the morning. Our driver was on time, waiting for us, very professional, and got us there safely.

Access by train: Main Railway Station, Masaryk Railway Station; Metro Line C, I.P. Pavlova station; Trams 4, 10, 22, 23, stop I.P. Pavlova; automobile exit city center I.P. Pavlova square.

Cote Jardin Restaurant inside hotel is available 6:30am till midnight.
Email: h3194@accor-hotels.com.

We ordered monkfish and pork medallions. Ordering Cola Light, we got very small servings of the drink served with three ice cubes on the first round, and no additional ice for another round. The food was good but not exceptional.

They serve a extensive buffet breakfast Le Grand Bonjour 06:30-10:30. For exceptional dining, go to Lala's Restaurant in Pisek; not only is the food great, but the cost is less.

My partner ordered a red wine, but the waitress brought out a bubbly white wine instead. My partner decided to keep what was brought and liked it after tasting it. My partner doesn't really care that much about food - when he was growing up, he had to eat his mom's cooking, which wasn't very good. But just about every mouthful of food he eats, he's going, "mmm, mmm, mmm." He was really enjoying every bite of his meal, so much so that I had to pay for our meal. I'd never seen him so satisfied with a meal like this.

Speaking English with our waitress wasn't really a good idea. The food is first-rate, world-class, my best dining experience for this trip to the Czech Republic - and the price is so reasonable. It was a great value for the money -- we have paid more in Prague for food that was not nearly as good.

They will serve duck l'orange with 24 hours’ notice. Credit cards are accepted; tipping is not necessary. The taxi driver gouged us for the ride to the train station, however, choosing to ignore our request to be on the meter - remember to insist on being on the meter before departing. These taxi drivers - doesn't matter where in the world you are.

Pisek information

Email lala@cityhotel.cz

Coffee was very good. The tiramisu, a fresh, multi-layered cake with cream filling, was delicious.

We couldn't ask what was fresh, as the worker didn't speak English.

Pisek information.

E-mail: pinocchio@seznam.cz

Tram 5, 9, 26, Nighttram 55, 58 Bolzanova, 5 min walk from Metro C Hlavni Nadrazi.

Pisek information.

An international food court there requires you change your money for credit on a card and then lets you buy food using the card. Thai, Indian, Japanese, Chinese, French, and Czech foods are available.

There is a free daily bus starting at 10am that runs at 30-minute intervals from Nadrazi Holesovice. Make sure you're out of there before that last free bus, or you'll have to find another local bus, as we did, to get back.

Tel: 420 2422 8456

There is a free daily bus starting at 10am that runs at 30-minute intervals from Nadrazi Holesovice. Make sure you're out of there before that last free bus, or you'll have to find another local bus, as we did, to get back.

Home-delivery shopping is available through this store location, but you must be 18 or older. Register for Internet orders--orders must be at least CZK 501 for CZK 199 delivery fee; over CZK 2,000 delivery is free. Payment must be made in cash.

Groceries DS: Monday-Friday 7am-10pm, Saturday 8am-8pm, Sunday 9am-8pm

Delivery orders phone daily 8am-5pm: 222 003 134, 222 003 136
Email delivery: mdolensk@cz.tesco-europe.com
Transport: metro B, stanice Národní/Můstek

tramvaje - 6,9,18,22,23

www.csa.cz/en/czechia/cz_home.htm  Czech Airlines was the
airline we used to fly into Prague when we booked our flight through Northwest/KLM. The fare from Amsterdam to Prague costs as much as the fare from the US West Coast.

The service was nice, but the uniforms look dated, and the service is
dated - and not for the worse either. The service and attitude were like
stepping back in time to the 1960s, especially regarding the food service, with
a nice meal that included a full silverware set.

Prague Public Transit
has routes 110 (Zlicin metro line B, Prague 5), 119 (Dejvicka metro
line A, Prague 6, with stops to Terminal Server -- north terminal --
and Terminal Jih -- south terminal). Current fare
was CZ$12, and tickets may be purchased from ticket machines in the
north terminal newsstands and Public Transport counters - or buy them
from the driver for CZ$15.

It was very difficult understanding Czech language, and spoken English isn't common. Some of the more modern vehicles pronounce the next station stop as well as display the station stop.

When you first board, time-stamp your ticket onboard. It's an honor system, with inspectors doing spot checks to make sure you have paid.