Destination Unknown: Part 1

Bu at Old Town Square in Prague.

We had a wonderful start to 2020. We had just visited Shanghai Disneyland for the first time and we celebrated Christmas in Hong Kong Disneyland. We had a wonderful New Year in Taiwan. Our butler had gotten a steady job on the side of being our butler and we got an apartment in Lahti, Finland. However, as they say, all good things must come to an end. Covid-19 arrived. 

After being stuck in our apartment for most of the year we had finally had enough. We made the decision to give up the apartment. We packed our biggest suitcase and booked a flight to Prague a few days prior to our departure.

Si enjoying lunch at Espresso House.

It was an interesting experience being at Helsinki-Vantaa Airport. So quiet and empty! Thankfully Espresso House was still open and we got to enjoy a Pumpkin Latte and Chicken-Mozarella Focaccia while making plans for our trip. At Espresso House we booked our first hotel in Prague.

Our lovely room 41 at Hotel U Prince.

We decided to stay at the Hotel U Prince, the same hotel as our dear sisters stayed at weeks ago. Mjau, we even requested the same room as it was guaranteed to be positively wonderful. Unbeknownst to us, stricter rules regarding the hospitality industry were implemented on the day of our arrival. Tourist attractions, such as museums, were now closed. It was now also prohibited to drink alcohol in public or for it to be served after 8 p.m. 

Getting creative with cocktails.

Grandpa had to get creative and buy mini bottles from the store and make his own cocktails in the evenings.

We took public transport from the airport to the hotel. It was really cheap and fast! We bought the 90 minute ticket to be on the safe side. It only cost 32 czk, that is only about 1,20 euros! The only downside is that you have to transfer from a bus to the metro.  Mjau, this can be a bit tricky if you have heavy suitcases. Thankfully we have a butler to do the heavy lifting for us.

Lovely interior design in the bathroom.

Our room was absolutely wonderful. Especially the interior design. The Hotel U Prince is right across from the Astronomical Clock and everything is within walking distance. The weather was not the best during our stay at the hotel so we got to spend a lot of time in our lovely room. We were able to watch YouTube on the TV so we got to enjoy watching Disney Food Blog and Mikey Chen videos on the big screen. We also got to listen to Disney music during the night to help us sleep better. Nothing is more relaxing than the music and blaring blue light emanating from the WDW Today Channel. 

Due to the new restrictions you were only able to get take away from the restaurants and cafés. Mjau, no bother, we get to enjoy our cake in our room in peace and our butler does not have to awkwardly sit alone in a corner of a restaurant. Incidentally it was our butler's 25th birthday during our second day in Prague so we celebrated with a delicious cheesecake and hot chocolate from the Choco Café. 

Birthday dinner!

As the museums were now closed to the public we were not able to visit the Lego Museum as planned. We visited the store instead. Mjau, we wanted to get the Steamboat Willie Lego set but our stingy butler refused to buy it for us. Apparently we do not have enough room in the suitcase for Legos. Mjau! How rude! How dare they deny us our right to Legos! Our butler has more belongings in the suitcase than we do. We only have our Christmas stockings and a box with our Minnie ears and some spare accessories and our Disney costumes. Only the bare necessities! We do not understand why our butler packed so many clothes. A burlap sack would do fine. There is absolutely no need for two pairs of shoes. Our butler only has two feet anyway!

We also visited Hamleys toy store as they played Disney music. Mjau, there we were again denied our right to new toys. Mjau, hopefully this means we get plenty of Christmas presents instead.

Romantic stroll by the river.

Interesting fortress.

After staying at Prince U Hotel we booked an apartment by the Vltava river. It was wonderful to be able to take morning and evening strolls down by the river. Mjau, they even have bars and art installations inside the old ice vaults. 

Art installation in the old ice vaults.

Our apartment was wonderful. Our apartment had two bedrooms and a bathroom with a bathtub. Perfect for our butler to simmer in her filth. We even had a really big kitchen, so our butler was able to cook us dinner.

The smaller bedroom.

The large bedroom.

Our lovely kitchen.

The kitchen was really well equipped with oven, microwave, kettle and refrigerator. Mjau, it did not come with a coffee maker and our butler was too stingy to buy instant coffee. Instead they bought us the cheapest regular ground coffee beans. Mjau, our butler then used a plastic wrapper from our frozen pizza and toilet paper as a coffee maker. Mjau! 

Coffee maker made by our counterfeit MacGyver.

Wonderful walk at the Karlovo park.

We did a lot of sightseeing in Prague and spent most of our time just walking around the city. Mjau, some days we would just walk for hours going down different streets looking at interesting buildings. The architecture in Prague is just breathtaking. 

Dancing House

Astronomical Clock

Astronomical Clock

Žižkov Television Tower

Prague has several wonderful buildings we recommend you visit. There are the famous Astronomical Clock and Dancing House. We also really like the Žižkov Television Tower. There are several castles, churches and cemeteries that are really nice. We recommend visiting the Vyšehrad Castle as the view from the fortress is really wonderful. For an even more wonderful view of the city we highly recommend walking up Letná Hill.

Vyšehrad Castle

View from the fortress.

View of the lake from the fortress.

View from Letná.

After six nights at the apartment in Prague we wanted a change of scenery and decided to book a train ticket to Ostrava. We mostly just walked around the town admiring the architecture and walked along the Ostravice river. We had a wonderful time sitting on a bench by the river, admiring the autumn colours and enjoying chocolate croissants and poppy seed filled Czech pastries.

Masaryk Square in Ostrava.

Enjoying a stroll by Ostravice.

New City Hall

In Ostrava we stayed in a hostel close to the train station to save some money. Mjau, some of us were not happy about this decision despite staying in a private room. Not everyone in our travel party is used to staying at hostels. We only stayed for two nights.

Our room at the Hostel.

Mjau, during our stay the restrictions changed yet again and it was now prohibited to stay at a hotel as a regular tourist. Thankfully we got to finish our stay there. As our receptionist said, maybe we are writing a book on Czech culture, who knows?

We decided it was time to leave the Czech Republic and went to the train station to buy a ticket for our departure.

On the train departing from Ostrava.