After breakfast, our walking tour guide met us in the hotel restaurant at 10 AM. Her name was Irina. She took us on a five hour walking tour of the old town in Prague.

Irina grew up in post war Czechoslovakia after the Russians had taken over the country. She did not like life under the Russians. Her brother had escaped the country while on a trip to Switzerland. The Russians punished the family for his defection. Her father was fired from his post at the University. Her mother, also a teacher, was forbidden to teach in Prague and was forced to travel hours each way to teach in the country. Irina herself was denied entrance into University. It was a harsh punishment that no one in the family held against her brother. She credits Ronald Reagan with starting Czechoslovakia on the path to freedom with his two speeches, calling the Soviets an "evil empire" and the other demanding "Mr. Gorbachev tear down this wall!" She pointed in pride to the fact that Prague has recently named a street after Ronald Reagan.

She drug us for two hours through the back streets of Prague. Every corner, every intersection led to a new discovery under her instruction. She and Mary became fast friends, with Mary stopping at one point to show her the wedding pictures. We had lunch at William Lobkowicz's palace, an American who was re-gifted three castles in Prague after they had been confiscated by the Nazis and then again by the Russians. We ate on a patio of his castle overlooking Prague.

Throughout the day Irina took us to many churches. We lit candles or said prayers for family and friends in each of them. One, St.. George's, was built in the year 924, named after St. George who spread Christianity with his sword by slaying dragons, which history has redefined as pagans.
Another, The Infant Jesus Cathedral, has on it's shrine a doll of the baby Jesus made in the 12th century that has granted miracles to thousands of believers who have flocked to the church to pray for assistance. Or so the legend goes. But don't ask Irina about it, she is a believer. During our visit she introduced Mary to one of the frocked monks.

Check the photo album out for Prague to see the insides of these churches.
Strudel and coffee at the end of Irena's tour. Mary wanted to continue walking to the Jewish Sector which she pointed out on the map.
I have been afraid of many things in my life, nuclear war in the 1950s, being sent to Vietnam in the 1960s, trying to support a family of four in the 1970s, and trying to run a business since the early 1980s. But nothing is more frightening or more dangerous than Mary with a map in her hand. Civilized nations have been known to tremble when she says, "Let me look at the map." But, I have learned that getting lost isn't half as bad as criticising her map reading skills!

We wandered towards the Jewish sector of Prague, unable to find it until we stumbled onto it. Then back along the river to the Charles Bridge, built in 1325, and complete with knights in shining armor, dragons, and gargoyles. We ended up taking a boat ride for an hour before going to dinner in a small nondescript restaurant.

In the small world department, after finishing dinner at an 8 person table alone, three people came to the far end of our table awaiting our departure. They began speaking English, Mary said "Hello!" after several minutes discussion they asked, "Where are you from?" "Seattle," Mary replied. To which they said, "We're from Woodinville!" Yipes!

We finally got back to our hotel room around 8:30pm. My feet were killing me and I opted for a hot bath. Mary went on a solo walk back to the Charles Bridge to see how it looked when the gas lamps were lit. She returned around 9:30 and caught me having a cigarette on the street. She even brought me some ice cream.

After a brief discussion we agreed to leave Prague in the morning for the Black Forest.