Day 9 - - Second Day in Prague / New Hotel / Communism Museum / Torture Museum

Today we lounged around enjoying the time in our spacious suite, checking out at the last minute and storing our luggage so we could easier sightsee.  We headed to the Jewish Quarter, where a number of Synagogue's exist (Europe's oldest synagogue, Spanish Synagogue, etc.), where there is a Jewish cemetery, etc. We also found a small Jewish cafe were we decided to try a corned beef and pastrami sandwich quick before we went to see the astronomical clock to view it, where various things happen on the hour, with the most being 12 noon. We then wandered around the old town and actually got lost and amazingly ended up at our hotel by accident. The streets are so curvy and winding here.

We saw King Wencaslas square where so many historic things have taken place in the Czech Republic's history. It was in that New Town area we saw Starbucks, Burger King, KFC, McDonald', TGI Fridays, etc. I was interested in the Communism Museum so we found it, next to the Casino, and enjoyed looking at various artifacts and a movie on Czechoslovakia's 40 year oppression as a Russian satellite state. George Bush visited the Czech Republic on the 1 year anniversary of their Velvet Revolution that occurred in 1989. One of the events that led up to the social unrest and eventual overthrow of Communism in CZ was a college student that set himself on fire to protest the continued occupation.

Our sightseeing then took a macabre turn as I convinced Carol to go see the Medieval Torture Museum that was on the way back to our hotel. It is amazing to see the various kinds of torture implemented during the Medieval times right up to the not too distant past (waterboarding, etc.). Fortunately neither of us had bad dreams as a result of this experience.

We then relocated across the river to another hotel Carol had reserved for two nights and it is just a stones throw from the Castle and Parliament buildings. The hotel name is The Green Lobster and it had a wood beam ceiling much like the Palace Suite, but it was painted. The Green Lobster room also was a four room suite and is very old.

Marionette's are very popular here and they have a National Marionette Theatre.

For dinner this night I looked up a Chinese Buffet on my phone and talked Carol into checking it out. It turned out to be the worst dining experience we've ever had. So my advice is don't ever go to Prague and try the Chinese buffets. We were both so glad food poisoning did not set in and we are experiencing no ill effects.

Today we will spend much time exploring the Castle and all surrounding areas.