Today I am up way too early again. This time there is no one around to make coffee, I'm still too wary of helping myself to the cappicuno machine. I want to go for a run so put on my running clothes and hope to go across the street to see my little bird friend at the cafe. It is not open yet! Apparently, the Czech's don't get up and get moving on the weekdays until, oh, about 9:00! So, nothing for it but to run. I ran down our cobblestone street, past the embassies guarded by policie and beginning to fill with men in suits. I took a trot up the Vtalva river watching the sun warm the mist off this ancient city. Yep, one more thing to strike off the bucket list!

I make it back to my little cafe, and while they are open, the Cappucino machine hasn't warmed up yet and the kitchen isn't open. I'm invited to sit down and wait for the coffee, which I gladly do. It's cold outside!!! The waitress brings a lovely cup and on the tv I hear the familiar song "Love and Marriage" - Ted Bundy is beginning to whine in Czech. Hilarious.

Alex is up now and goes exploring while I shower and get ready. It is a very chilly day. We decide to take the tram we were told will give us a good layout of the city. It takes us around the south of the city to it's eastern suburbs. We moved from Art Nouveau grand buildings to communist era cement and glass. More of the working class neighborhoods out here. If you are going to visit Prague and read the advice to take this tram, don't. It takes you to areas of the city you'd probably not visit anyway so it is a waste of time.

We took the tram back into town and stopped at the Vysehrad - a fortress housing an exclusive cemetery and 360 degree views of the city. We first stop at a neighborhood restaurant for lunch, U Semika. A quaint, austere, library of a restaurant. I ordered a cabbage soup, Alex had penne, and of course, pivo! Simply delicious. We walked up the road to the fortress. Apparently one of the royalty's younger siblings was a tad jealous his brother got to live in the big Hrad, so he built this place. As with many things here it was partially built, torn down, built up again, torn down etc. Finally a church presides over the area and the cemetery purposely has kept politicians and the like out. Dvorak is here along with other artists and composers. The entire area is a park, with trails and trees - a peaceful area to walk around. There is a trail around the perimeter offering, as I said, 360 degree views of the city. Gorgeous.

We left there and headed across town to Josefov, the old Jewish Quarter. We bought tickets for entry into all the old synagogues and museums. This area is suprisingly preserved - in an ironic twist of fate, Hitler wanted to keep this area as a monument to an extinct race. The Old-New Synagogue is the only medieval synagogue left in Europe. It was built in the 1200s it is a fine example of simple gothic architecture. As with many stories of jews everywhere, the history of Jews in Prague is not a happy one - the first pogrom beginning in 1090, again in the 1300's when 3000 jews were massacred over Easter. We all know the story - heck, Jesus was the most famous jew to be murdered for his religious beliefs! There is an ancient cemetery here too: gravestones dating back to the 1400s. At one time over 100,000 jews were buried here, on top of one another, six palms apart. It is now a jumble of old headstones. I thought I'd feel more emotion here, but due to the crowds the atmosphere felt more zoo-ish than museum-ish. The Spanish Synagogue is an extraordinary work of art. We were not allowed to take pictures, but I snuck some anyway.

We were exhausted by now and worked our way back to the hotel. After a brief catching of our breath we went to a restaurant down an alley near the hotel - Alex had found it while he was exploring this morning. It is called U bileho lva, offering traditional Czech food. OMG, another wonderful repast. I keep trying all the traditional food and have not been disappointed at all yet.

We came right back to our hotel and I fell promptly asleep - at 8:00 pm!