The main conference headquarters at the Hilton--there were also events held at the Hilton Old Town, and my hotel was in between the two locations.
Atrium of the main Hilton
Trying to balance a professional look with staying cool in 25C+ (80's F) heat!
I was thrilled to meet Rhonda Zaharna, one of my favorite public diplomacy scholars. I had admired her work for years, and in person she was incredibly kind and helpful, and gave me great support & guidance about publishing my research!
Tram cafe on Wenceslas Square
Vaclavske Namesti, Wenceslas Square, site of uprisings, crackdowns and celebrations. It also had some great bookshops and chains like Debenhams and Starbucks
There's something ironic about drinking an international capitalist symbol on Wenceslas Square--there were two Starbucks locations!
St Wenceslas, the patron saint of Bohemia
Note the Starbucks on the left and the McDonalds on the right...terrible!
Pasáž Lucerna, "lantern passage", a shopping arcade off Wenceslas Square with gorgeous architecture
Kino Lucerna, a cinema dating back to 1907
Upside-down parody of the St. Wenceslas statue in Lucerna passage
The Old Bohemian platter at New Town Brewery--see the menu below for typical Czech dishes
Entrance to the New Town Brewery--I just loved the architecture in Prague. You always need to be looking up, because the modern street-level shop fronts are nothing special but the buildings are amazing
Lunch for less than £5 from a market stall in Namesti Republiky (Republic Square)
Another favorite architectural gem--Hotel Europa on Wenceslas Square, currently under renovation
It's hard to make out the detail, but it's gorgeous art nouveau
C&A's bad English...
Another view of Wenceslas Square
More gorgeous architecture
Town Hall on the left
That gorgeous building is their Hard Rock Cafe...
Goulash at Pivovarsky Dum--it's like a meat stew with dumplings (3 types!) and raw onion and chili pepper on top, to spice it up (the sauce has paprika in it, but it's quite mild)
Tycho Brahe and Johannes Kepler monument--Brahe was Danish and Kepler was German, but the two astronomers worked together in Prague (1600-1601), and Kepler took over as Imperial Mathematician after Brahe's death
Strahov Monastery
The monastery is beautiful and peaceful, with two gorgeous Baroque libraries--you can only look in from the doorways, but they are beautiful:
Monastery gates
The view out the back of the monastery was awesome--lovely panorama of the city
Loreta, a Baroque pilgrimage site with Santa Casa (Mary's home) and chapels
Santa Casa
Inside the Santa Casa--a black Mary and Jesus
The Church of the Nativity--cherubs everywhere!
St Wilgefortis
They have a good collection of reliquaries and ossuaries
I love filigree
This was decorated with diamonds from the wedding dress of the woman who left her fortune to the church
Walking down the hill to Mala Strana
Cucumber lemonade (no hint of lemon taste...it was cucumber juice on ice)
School kids performing in traditional Czech outfits outside of Town Hall
Chicken with a plum and almond sauce
Charles IV, after whom Charles Bridge and Charles University are named
The wall around the Jewish neighborhood, Josefov
Synagogue in Josefov
Wall around the Josefov cemetery
On the tram to Prague Castle
We watched the changing of the guard
St Vitus cathedral at Prague Castle
St George Basilica--gorgeous medieval murals on the ceilings
Golden Lane--a row of tiny, cute little shops that was originally barracks for the soldiers in the castle
I'm not 100% sure, but I think this is the President's residence at Prague Castle
At the gate to Charles Bridge
George only wanted to play with rocks...much like he did when we went to the castle in Alicante
Little misery bear here didn't want to take photos--he'd rather be playing on the ground
He was probably the only person on Charles Bridge who didn't want to take a selfie...
Dinner at U Tri Ruzi, my favorite of the various breweries I tried in Prague
They were surprisingly kid-friendly--the bathroom had a baby-changing mat and the waiter was very sweet about George. He drew a little road on a placemat for George's toy car to drive on!
In front of the Powder Tower on the way back to the hotel--George was still being camera-shy!
The next morning we did a bit of shopping before our flight home in the afternoon--the architecture in Prague is just incredible. This is the Koruna (Crown) building on Wenceslas Square
George was not cooperating with the camera, but as he only had about 24 hours in Prague, I carried on taking pictures regardless!
Sparky's toy store had this awesome rocket with a Lego wall
Apparently some barista in Prague loves me
I love Krtek (Little Mole)--it's so cute!
This is the hotel Queen Latifah stays at in "Last Holiday"!!! It's real! It's being advertised at the Prague airport! I want to go back!
