As the late afternoon sun had come out, I was continuing my action-packed day in Prague. After a guided tour through Pragues Jewish Quarter, a savory and informative lunch in Pragues oldest kosher restaurant, followed by a tour of Municipal House, Pragues Art Nouveau masterpiece, I had just finished a boat tour on the Vltava River that gave me a completely different view of Prague from the water. Our knowledgeable captain had shared many stories...more
One of Pragues key attractions is the Jewish Quarter, the former Jewish ghetto of the city. So on this bright, yet blustery day I strolled from my hotel on Wenceslas Square over to Old Town Square to meet my personal tour guide for the day who would be meeting me for an informative tour of the Jewish Quarter.I met Richard just after 10 am a few steps away from the Astronomical Clock and learned that he is a political science student who also does...more
Always on the lookout for historical structures, I had planned a visit to another renowned Prague establishment: the Radisson Blu Alcron Hotel, established in 1932 at the height of Art Deco as Pragues premier hotel of that era. Martina Pavlikova from the hotel welcomed me and graciously took me on a tour of this Art Deco Jewel.The hotel was the brainchild of the original architect-owner Alois Krofta, who named the hotel after himself using the first two or three letters of his first and last name, and adding the final n, which was inspired by the Alcron, a boat from Greek mythology. It was Kroftas intention to build a hotel that would compete with the most splendid properties in Vienna and Berlin, which were more popular destinations at the time. He was successful and soon the Alcron Hotel became the preferred destination of statesmen, politicians and aristocrats.The hotels splendour became apparent right away when I entered the lobby: white Italian marble and decorative copper railings are luxurious relics of the thrilling times of the Jazz Age. The hotel was completely refurbished in 1998 under the guidance of renowned interior designer Maria Vafiades, using authentic Art Deco...more
On a somewhat cool and breezy day, bright sunshine woke me up and I stepped out on to the balcony of my room at the Hotel Jalta. This four-star hotel is located on Wenceslas Square, the main square of Pragues New Town district. To my left, at the top of the square, the imposing neo-classical faade of the Czech National Museum dominated the view...more
My local experts Jitka Simkova, owner of Prague Walks.com, together with her colleague Karel had given me a great introduction to Old Town Prague. The day was getting late now and the air was definitely getting cooler.We had turned around in the middle of the Charles Bridge and started walking eastwards again. As Karel had another appointment he...more
At the end of my delicious lunch at La Rotonde, the Art Deco restaurant at the Radisson Blu Alcron Hotel, my personal tour guide for my walking tour of Prague came to pick me up. Petra Bedlasova is a historian, artist and photographer, and she is also one of the expert guides for Prague Walks, one of Pragues most well-known tour guiding companies.Just steps from the hotel we entered one of the local landmarks just off Wenceslas Square: the Lucerna Palace is a passage that connects Vodickova and tepnsk streets, a true entertainment complex that houses many retail stores, restaurants, a movie theatre, a music bar and the prestigious Lucerna Grand Hall, one of Pragues most famous concert halls. The complex was built between 1907 and 1921 and the first part of the arcade was opened in 1907. Opened in 1909, the Lucerna Cinema was the first permanent cinema in Bohemia, and held the screening of the first talking movie in 1929. Various Art Nouveau and Art Deco details adorn this complex, and one of the most visually stunning details is an upside down horse by Czech sculptor David Cern. It has been hanging from the buildings glass-covered dome since 1999.We stepped out of the building on...more
Many backpacking lovers often self assume that planning a trip to their favorite destination is a hard task that involves lots of labor and pain! These reluctant to take initiative steps guys daily visit their dream places in their...more
After the rain and drizzle of our first day in San Francisco, day two of our adventure began more promisingly: bright sunshine greeted us as we made our way by public bus to Washington Square, the heart of San Francisco's Italian-flavoured North...more
Our last day in San Francisco welcome us with bright blue skies and brilliant sunshine. In the morning we had already hopped on one of the citys moving landmarks and experienced a ride in the open-air cable cars that make this city such a favourite...more
San Francisco a dream destination for so many people across the worldWell, in February of 2008 I finally had to opportunity to revisit San Francisco, one of my favourite cities in all of North America. In just a bit more than four days I had a...more
After our interesting introduction to local history as part of the Victorian Homes Walking Tour we had to switch hotels for one night and grabbed our overnight bags to move to The Handlery Union Square Hotel in downtown Geary Street, just next to...more
A long and harsh winter can take the wind out of you and just make you feel like you want to get away. And what a long winter it has been: Toronto has experienced one of the harshest winters in a long time, with near-record snow accumulation. I knew...more