October 1, 2015

 

 

The Jewish Quarter

We have a 4:47 am email from Pat telling us she in on her way to the airport.  Apparently the 30-40 minute drive takes 17 minutes that time of day.  We do a leisurely breakfast and try to get enough to eat to last until dinner tonight (well, maybe a snack later).  This is not a problem.

We start with a walk along the Vltava under sunshine and bright blue skies.  Mother Nature is rewarding us for dealing with the last three weeks of rain.  Our mission today is the Jewish Quarter, a site we missed on our last trip and almost missed now because of the Jewish Holidays.  There are plenty of tour groups and individuals roaming around near some of the areas of interest.  I would like to say that the late great Yogi Berra came up with the line, “nobody goes there anymore, it’s too crowded,” but I somehow know that it was actually Yogi Bear.

The Prague Jewish Museum is actually a collection of historic synagogues spread throughout the quarter, each with a different theme focused on a particular period of Jewish history in Prague in particular and Bohemia and Moravia in general.  There is a single $15 ticket that covers admission to all of them as well as the Jewish graveyard that was first used in 1412.

We sort of start in the middle and once we get in the flow the crowds seem manageable.  We have ample time to read the very informative English Language descriptions of the displays and events of significance.  One of the synagogues honors those Czechs murdered in WWII with the names of each person, their hometown and dates of birth and death handwritten on the walls.  Over 77,000 of them.

Another synagogue outlines the rituals and holidays of Jewish life which we find informative.  This is pretty new stuff for us and while the terms are familiar the details have somehow escaped us during our decades on the planet.  We complete the morning tour with a stroll down Pariska Street which was modeled after the styles of Paris (duh!).  All of the fancy shops and restaurants make up the storefronts on this tree-lined boulevard.  Oui!

It’s after 2:00 and if we’re going to have that snack we better get to it.  We find an outdoor table on the Old Town Square for a beer and a shared sausage and French fries.  Everyone is in high spirits, the square is packed (It’s 2:00 on a Thursday!!!) and we wonder if Prague ever shuts down.

Our last mission of the afternoon is a practice walk to the train station to see how it all works for our departure tomorrow.  Our arrival was a blur and we think we had better be prepared.  It may or may not help us since we don’t and won’t know where our departure platform is until right before we leave, but it was a nice walk anyway.  Back to the hotel for an hour rest and an hour cocktail before dinner.

Dinner tonight is at Emy Destinnove.  It was recommended by Jeff when we were in Krakow, and Jeff is a pretty good foodie so we pay attention.  It is about a 20 minute walk from our hotel and we are breaking a little bit of new ground away from the touristy areas.  The place is deserted when we arrive which always gives us a little trepidation but we’re eating at 6:30 which is early for many Europeans.  We again find a nice Moravian Pinot Noir, our server/hostess is welcoming so we begin to warm up to the place.  Once we order she brings us a couple coffee-table books about Emy Destinnova, an early 20^th century opera singer and obviously the namesake of this restaurant.  Not exactly a sports bar.

John stays with the swine, a perfectly done pork tenderloin crusted in black pepper in a brandy cream sauce with an assortment of wild mushrooms and grilled vegetables.  Mary has the shrimp and scallop risotto that is in our top five restaurant meals of the trip so far.  We have both had meals like this in the past and have maybe even cooked a few, but the execution is excellent.  We chat with the chef for a moment on the way out.  He is a New Jersey guy who opened this restaurant seven years ago and thinks it is doing pretty well.  He gets a lot of good press and is well respected among the U.S. expats who live or work here.  And we thought we had a lot of nerve.

After a couple anxious moments walking back we emerge back onto Wenceslaus Square for our last evening walk in Prague.  The shops are all still open and the streets are crowded with seemingly pleasant people.  There are no large groups of surly youths standing around on corners or people sleeping on the sidewalks and the whole effect is pretty civilized.  We’ll miss you Prague.

What did we learn today? The sins committed against or for religion are the source of some of the great atrocities of the world.