Praha (Prague) August Bank Holiday 09

On the August bank holiday we headed to Prague with Nadia's sister Laura and friend Anna. Prague was great, it is a short hop from London, it is cheap, there is lots to see and do & the weather was good the whole time. Prague is well known as a Stag & Hen doo destination but I guess most of the action happens after 10pm so clearly most of this riff raff was lost on us.

We went on a good walking tour here which is the same company we have used in the past in Amsterdam, Berlin & Paris. The company is below.... http://www.newpraguetours.com/index.php?option=com_frontpage&Itemid=1

Above- Prague Castle

Above-Taking in the sights from Lentenske park. Below is the Vltava River and the park in the background is Petrin Park.

Above- The Metronome on the hill at the top end of Lentenske Park represents the time wasted during Joesph Stalin's reign.

Above- Prague Castle by night and in the foreground Charles bridge.

Above- The astronomical clock- Up there with Maniken pee in Brussels and the Mermaid in Copenhagen in terms of overrated sights. This Medieval bad boy manages to conjur up 100's of people on the hour at which time four figures are set in motion. The 4 figures represent four things that were despised at the time of the clock's making; vanity, greed death and infidelity.

Above- On the steps of Wenceslas Square is where a student set him self alight in 1968 in protest of the Russian communist reforms.

Prague Castle is not really a traditional style castle, it is more like a giant church with a host of surrounding buildings. If you go there I wouldnt reccomend getting the castle tour ticket as most of the buildings are accessible without a ticket.

Above- the Jewish Cemetery, where they estimate there are 100,000 burials with over 12,000 gravestones in the space of rugby in goal area!

Anna, Laura & myself

Above- Nadia and Laura pose with the guy with no head and a little man on his shoulders.... based on a Franz Kafka short story.

Above-this huge muscular thing in the middle of the square was very prominant, I am not sure what the brown thing is beside it though.

mmmmmmmmmmmmm Pork

Easily the most interesting statue I have seen so far in our travels, although the one at the bottom of this post is pretty up there.

On Charles Bridge there are many statues, this one in particular though when stroked is supposed to bring good luck....that's if the Purrell didnt sanatise the luck as well as the dreams.

Above- I am told from a relaible source that this building is an example of cubism.

This green dude sits in the centre of the square, which is surrounded by a number of stalls offering traditional Czech food, including the giant pig on a spit shown in the photo above.

Above- Still working on what this is all about

Amsterdam- Aug'09

On the weekend of the 2nd of August we went to Amsterdam for my birthday. Unbeknown to us however, this also happened to coincide with one of the largest gay and lesbian events in Europe, that and the fact we were in Amsterdam - one of the most open-minded cities in the world meant we were in for some sights!!!

Despite Amsterdam having a bad reputation with the red light district and their open-minded attitude to drugs it is also home to some really cool stuff- Van Gogh Museum & Anne Frank's House which we both really enjoyed.

Above- so many flower markets, distinct lack of tulips this time of year though.

The day we arrived there was a Canal Parade with about 100 amusing and spectacular boats, decorated with participants wearing fancy dress, navigating their way through down the Amstel River. There was about 350,000 people watching the parade so you can imagine the chaos!

Yip things were a little crazy at ground zero of Gaysville.

Intially I thought the 3 'X' symbol was to do with the porn industry and it was in relation to being X-rated, I was pleasantly surprised to find out it is the official flag of Amsterdam. The 3 'X's allegedly represent the 3 threats to the city: water, fire and pestilence (disease).

Above- The Amstel River in quieter times

Above-Bizarre little shops dotted all around the place which has burgers, fries & all other types of hot food in little vending machines. Rumour is that the salmonella special there is excellent.

A typical shop window in Amsterdam, apparently the coffee there is super.

Above- The Van Gogh Museum was really cool, no pictures allowed inside though so you will just have to take my word for it.

Anne Franks House was packed with tourists (definatley recommend booking online if you ever go)- it's really good and a must if you ever go to 'the Dam'

Pilgrimage to Canterbury- July 2009

We did a few trips around England during the summer, partly because we had not had a good look around in our own backyard yet, and also because Nadia was renewing her visa!

One such trip was Canterbury, which is in Kent to the east of London, it was a nice day trip and very easy to get to by train. We went on a great walking tour around the place and learned a lot about the histroy of Canterbury, all of which I cant really remember....

The most noteable thing we were told was about the Cathedral, which goes back to 597AD. In 1170 Archbishop Thomas Becket was murdered in the Cathedral and ever since, the Cathedral has attracted thousands of pilgrims.

Above- The famous Cathedral & some 'pilgrims' in the foreground.

Above- many of the houses on the main street jutt out on the second and third stories. This was to ensure that the land owners maximised the space they had, but also made sure that on the ground floor the wagons could get through the street.

I never did work this one out, but the fact that they had a banner made suggests that this 'cat sale' was not the first in Canterbury and probably wont be the last.

Above- Gun powder tower and entrance to the high street- almost as impressive as the big tap when you hit Wallacetown.

Wimbledon- The Lawn Tennis Championships 2009

Wimbledon 2009 was a spectacular affair that culminated in a 5 set marathon between R.Nadal & R.Federer with my man Roger cementing his place as the greatest tennis player of all time. Fortunately both Nadia and I were privileged enough to go to Wimbledon to see some the early round action. Its such a cool place and we will definately go again next year, fingers crossed I can get a ticket in the ballot!

Strawberries and cream- a must have at the championship

Above- the que card, If queing was a sport - The English would be untouchable in this area, they make queing at art form and really embrace it as one of their favourite extra curricular activities.

Above- the que for the que, this que literally stretches kilometres long, when you get in you get a sticker saying rather sarcastically 'I survived the que at Wimbledon'. it is organised in rows from A to Z which then feeds into a mainstream que- very impressive.

One of the most surprising things for me about Wimbledon was how close all the courts are too each other, this photo shows this.

Fiona, Amruta and Becs & I take in the action in the mixed doubles
Above- it has many names- Henman Hill, Laura's Lump or Murray's Mound- it is actually just a big screen outside the main court for those who were not fortunate enough to get seats. This group of people had to stay until midnight to watch Murray win in 5 sets.

Above Cara Black & Leander Paes in the mixed doubles- they went on to lose in the final.

Above- none other than Maria Shagherover (Sharapova) at the top of the board was playing in the lawn championship, unfortunately I did not have the pleasure of watching her play though.

Hampton Court & Cambridge (May 'Staycation' II)

Hampton Court

In a change of pace from the first May Holiday weekend, for the second we went to Hampton Court and Cambridge. Each are less than an hour at of London so quite manageable for a day trip each. Hampton Court is home to the 'Hampton Court Palace' which if I am being perfectly honest was definately a little underwelming.... thankfully though there was a also a food festival on which was much more my style!

Above- Hampton Court Palace.

Below-Sheeps milk ice cream... could be the next big export for Southland

Cambridge

Steeped in history, Cambridge is well worth the visit. The town buzzes with university students and the town is scattered with all the university halls of residence many of the same names you will see pop up in universities & schools in New Zealand.

One of the best ways to see into all the halls & the sights of the town is via punting on the Cam River. We set out to Cambridge on a sunny afternoon and in typical 'Wilson style' hiring a guide was too expensive, so we did it ourselves (NB when I say 'we' this is the royal 'we' I actually mean 'me'). We had some close calls & collisions, but overall everyone managed to stay in the boat, some other punters where not so fortunate!

Above- Showing off my 'punting' skills. FYI the pole is actually really long and its quite difficult- take my advice and just get the guide.

Nadia and Amruta soaking up the sun whilst being shunted around by yours truly

Above-Someone call the grass police there has been an incident- Possibly the naughtiest thing Nadia has done in her life!

Above- one of the halls of residence, I forget which one but they all look this spectatular

Above- inside Kings chapel

Cambridge's version of Manchester's famous street- I think I was looking out for Mike Baldwin at the time

Nadia outside Selwyn College in Cambridge- this hall was named after the really famous one in Dunedin at Otago University, or maybe it was the other way around :-)