We headed down to breakfast and were greeted with a fantastic, "Dobry den". Unfortunately this wonderful greeting was offset by a lack of clean tables for us to sit at. In the end we found a corner and settled in. Everything for breakfast was from the buffet including coffee and juice. I started with a savoury run and finished with a sweet run. Quality was acceptable and no more. On a side note I did notice they had a big pile of instant noodles and kimchi hidden at the side of the buffet which is not something I was expecting to see.
DSC04569 by Simon Halsey, on Flickr
DSC04570 by Simon Halsey, on Flickr
It was then time to check out and take the rather forlorn airport bus into town for our stay at the Hilton Prague Old Town. Despite being forlorn it was cheap and probably not an awful lot slower than taking a taxi.
Our hotel was a short walk from the main station and we descended through a small park learning pretty quickly that Prague public peeing is definitely a thing, as well as wrotten egg drains!
Hilton Prague, Old Town
Check in at the Hilton was fine, the front desk agent who was in training (and who I managed to encounter each day) was able to combine our reward night with our paid night. Unfortunately as of a week and a bit prior to this trip I was no longer a Diamond guest, just a simple silver which meant my welcome amenity was a bowl of peanuts and a water bottle, at least my pet elephant would be happy.
DSC04571 by Simon Halsey, on Flickr
DSC04573 by Simon Halsey, on Flickr
DSC04575 by Simon Halsey on Flickr
Our room on the 6th floor was fine with the finish in the bathroom being a noticeable upgrade over our Marriott room.
DSC04576 by Simon Halsey, on Flickr
DSC04577 by Simon Halsey, on Flickr
We quickly settled in and decided to spend our morning exploring around the old town including the famous square, racist clock and surrounding streets.
DSC04578 by Simon Halsey, on Flickr
DSC04614 by Simon Halsey, on Flickr
DSC04616 by Simon Halsey, on Flickr
DSC04627 by Simon Halsey, on Flickr
DSC04628 by Simon Halsey, on Flickr
We stopped for lunch at Pivovar U Tří Růží a nice friendly Czech pub restaurant just off the worst of the tourist trail. Service was friendly and in English, though we'd have been OK to translate through our guidebooks if need be.
DSC04646 by Simon Halsey, on Flickr
We started with some nice frothy house beer, I had the special of a wild boar burger and Ms. Spymon had the schnitzel.
DSC04650 by Simon Halsey, on Flickr
DSC04651 by Simon Halsey, on Flickr
DSC04652 by Simon Halsey, on Flickr
Both were well cooked and portions were generous. The price was very reasonable no doubt helped by the low price of beer. Absolutely stuffed we had not an inch of room to sample dessert. What we needed was a long and ambling walk in search of art.
DSC04657 by Simon Halsey, on Flickr
DSC04662 by Simon Halsey, on Flickr
DSC04663 by Simon Halsey, on Flickr
DSC04664 by Simon Halsey, on Flickr
DSC04674 by Simon Halsey, on Flickr
Our guide book did not prepare us for what an unremarkable building the Trade Fair Palace would be on the outside. It was so unremarkable that on our bus ride in to town that morning we mistook this functionalist masterpiece as a communist era office block.
DSC04684 by Simon Halsey, on Flickr
Inside however it was a different story. The simple form of the building allowed the art works to shine (once we found them). There is no map and the guy checking tickets seemed more concerned with people visiting the free area of the museum. We spent some time stumbling around in almost darkness, trapped at the dead end of a Brian Eno multimedia installation.
Once we realised it was just a simple matter of taking the lift we headed upstairs and went backwards through the history of French 19th Century art. The permanent collection here is pretty impressive and with the museum lacking any kind of crowd it was the perfect place to wander and feel amazed and occasionally annoyed at the works on show. We then looked at some early 20th century Czech art as like I mentioned we'd gone backwards.
As the museum closed at 6 we had to move around at a decent pace to look at the quite fantastic Czech modern art on the floor below. Feeling we'd just started to scratch the surface it was time to go, but not before checking out the two quite stunning installations on the ground floor. One of large black, still water pools of different heights (they look flat from on high) which have light beamed on them and are backed by slightly vibrating mirrors distorting and disorientating you and the space around it and you. Secondly we sneaked in to the Ai Wi Wei installation of a giant life boat full of inflated occupants that investigates at the movement of people. The sheer scale of the boat and the words that go with it were quite overwhelming.
DSC04678 by Simon Halsey, on Flickr
DSC04679 by Simon Halsey, on Flickr
We needed to recharge after all that emotional energy and the attached coffee shop seemed like a good place to do so. In hindsight perhaps not. Before this coffee I can't remember the last time an espresso nearly knocked me out. Part of me thinks that perhaps they just messed up the coffee but that was one bitter, sour, fruity and strong little cup.
DSC04681 by Simon Halsey, on Flickr
I was certainly awake now and enjoyed some interesting people watching of the arty types and their dogs.
We walked back to the hotel taking a back street detour which included walking through a small park with nice views of the city. I think this afternoon was my happiest time in Prague not sat stuffing my face with food.
DSC04690 by Simon Halsey, on Flickr
DSC04697 by Simon Halsey, on Flickr
We had a small rest back at the hotel to freshen up and get ready for dinner at Maso a Kobliha.
Truth be told I was a little worried about this place. The online write ups were good but the menu looked really basic. We also didn't get off to the best of starts ending up on the worst table of the house, a small crate by the door that we were able to quickly vacate for a much better one.
DSC04703 by Simon Halsey, on Flickr
DSC04705 by Simon Halsey, on Flickr
We started off splitting a portion of scotch egg and croquettes. The scotch egg was perfectly cooked, warm, slightly soft yoke, spicy meat filling and crisp outside. The croquettes were the same, crisp on the outside and soft in the middle.
DSC04706 by Simon Halsey, on Flickr
DSC04707 by Simon Halsey, on Flickr
For mains I ordered the Veal schnitzel with mash, fried egg and anchovy. Ms. Spymon took the Reuben sandwich. What turned up was a giant piece of meaty Veal, crisp crumbs on the outside, tender and moist within and with great flavour.
DSC04708 by Simon Halsey, on Flickr
I had a quick bite of Ms Spymon's sandwich and the quality of the meat was something else.
DSC04710 by Simon Halsey, on Flickr
Confession time ahead, after a recent change of diet I know longer thought I needed eating jeans, turned out today I did. Between a little hit of sunburn, some strong beer and a crapload of food I was fit to burst and had to skip dessert. After trying Ms. Spymon's blueberry ice cream it was the right decision for my health but not for a taste experience I'd never forget. I can't remember the last time I had ice cream so rich and creamy. There was no way in hell I'd have survived the night if I'd ordered a whole portion. I was struggling so hard that the owner was worried I was not having a good time. The only thing that was upsetting me was a lack of room for dessert and of letting my country down at the one British restaurant in Prague (excluding the stag do curry houses).
DSC04711 by Simon Halsey, on Flickr
I was rolled back to our room, I can't say the fresh air helped and I was not back to normal till the next day, thank goodness as I had booked us an epic breakfast.
(PS. Sorry for the delay in finishing this one off)