Walking up to the doors of The Emblem Hotel a guy runs out and grabs our bags and welcomes us. He shows us to a nice relaxing a couch where he asks that we sit and provide our passports. We sit and relax as he goes to check us in.
I see a lady walk in with Starbucks and asked where Starbucks is. The concierge overhears and assists with directions and explains that we would each be provided with a cell phone that would have recommendations along with GPS and the ability to call to and from both within and out of country. I think this was too good to be true.
The man returns from checking us in, and ushers us to our rooms carrying our bags. Service like I have never seen. Such a great place right from the start.
The room is very clean and has plenty of space. There is a “sleep spray” beside the bed. It smells of lavender. I jump on the bed and it is as cozy as it looks. I walk over to the desk is maps and guides along with the cell phone the concierge mentioned. WOW!!! I look in the closet and there is t-shirts and socks for purchase. The socks are awesome! I ended up buying 3 pair. They are called Happy Socks. The bathroom has a nice vanity set with Q-tips and make up sponges.
I change and go downstairs to meet my coworker. I look up coffee places and find the coffee shop Albert Einstein use to go and work from. Sounds like a winner. We begin the walk to Café Louvre and take in the streets hustle and bustle and smells. Everywhere you look there are things to take in. We see a Beer Museum and decided after coffee we need to make our way back to this.
The coffee at Café Louvre is amazing along with the atmosphere. It does not disappoint. We are now juiced up to conquer Prague (still a bit jet lagged but will most definitely push through).
We make our way back to the Prague Beer Museum. A walkway leads us back to an outdoor patio. We walk through the patio and at the back there is a place to purchase tickets (~20 USD each). The ticket includes the museum and a beer tasting. We are in! We go into the museum and see old style bottling methods as well as the various materials that have been used for bottling over the years. The most interesting fact I learn is that in the 20th century Anheuser-Busch (American) and Budweiser Budvar (Czech) were in a trademark war over the name Budweiser. In 1939 Budweiser Budvar conceded exclusive rights to Anheuser-Busch. In 1994 Budweiser Budvar decided not to sign a trademark agreement dividing the territory across the world. In 2010 Anheuser-Busch lost its last instance of appeal with the EU which means it may not register the name Budweiser as EU trademark for beer.
We leave the museum and walk across to find beer! We walk down some stairs to a rocky style cellar with tables and taps. We receive our 4 hefty beer samples and find a table. It’s 4 lagers; 2 light, 1 semi-dark, and 1 dark. We try them and make opinions. I really like the 2 light and the dark. Not a fan of the semi-dark. The dark is surprisingly light texture. The look makes you feel like it will be a meal but is light and refreshing.
We leave the museum and start making our way back to our hotel. On the way we see a graduation class in front of City Hall taking pictures. We join in and take pictures of them too to join in on the experience (we tried later to figure out what they graduated from but have not figured this out yet).
My coworker (Brian) and I get back to the hotel and split ways to rest for 30 minutes and to get changed. We meet back up at 4:30 and make our way to the Grand Bohemian Hotel to attend a Mozart Dinner. We walk through Old town where all the action is happening. All types of entertainment as you look around. Guys painted gold or silver that look like they are standing on air, panda bear costumes, street car food, and so many people taking it all in. We take pictures as we make our way to the dinner.
We arrive at the Grand Bohemian Hotel and go down to the ballroom. What we arrive to is unlike any other. The ballroom is gorgeous with balconies and beautiful art on the ceilings and gold all around making us feel luxurious. We are escorted to our table and are told we are upgraded to front row seating. We have unlimited drink passes and are given champagne right way. We order red wine and wait for the performance to begin.
Musicians walk out on stage. A waiter soon comes ask me if I need wine. I look at my already full glass of wine and look back at him. Then starts the performance. He begins singing opera and I realize I am part of the act. After the first set, we are provided soup while we wait for the next set. The soup is great. It’s split pea and has great flavor. The next set comes on and is just as good. At the end of the set we are given beef with potatoes and vegetables. The last set comes on and has an amazing finish. We are then of course provided with dessert. With our bellies full, the show is over, and we make our way out back to the streets.
We see a sign for a rooftop bar and make our way up. We walk through a mall to get there. The place is called the Fashion Terrace. The perimeter is decorated with beautiful flowers and the view is amazing. We take in the city over a couple of drinks.
We decide to leave in time to catch the top of the hour (9pm) because we read that the clock in the square puts on a performance. We try to get out the way we came, but no such luck as the mall is closed. We see an elevator and try to get out this way, but no luck. It requires a badge. We look around a bit confused. There is no other way out. We go back to the elevator. We press “G.” It works. We get down to the street and hustle to get to the square for clock show.
We get there at 8:58 and anxiously wait the 2 minutes anticipating what is to come. 9 ‘o clock strikes, and nothing happens.
We wait a couple more minutes…nothing.
We decided to go to the top of the clock tower and see what views it has to offer. The ceilings are covered in beautiful art.
We get to the top and the views are incredible. I get a picture of the entire square (thanks to my fisheye lens for my phone by Moment).
We ask about the clock performance and find that it is under construction (will have to see that on the next visit).
We are both exhausted from the flight and all the adventure and decide to head back to the hotel. We sit down at the bar for one last drink and then split for shut eye.
Tips From Trips: Use the elevator for the clock tower. There will be time to get exercise. Conserve your calves for later.
Woman Wanderer 