Nov 8th-22nd

We've had a quiet couple of weeks here with our usual work and school routines. Teaching six different classes has been keeping Charyssa very busy. Rod has been working on developing some new lab experiments demonstrating principles of medical physics as part of his sabbatical projects. We have however, found some time to do some fun things around Prague, several even outside as the weather has taken a milder turn. We went to the biggest mall in the Czech Republic, OC Letnany. It's big and they have their Christmas lights up. It's paradise for kids with an indoor pool and an ice skating rink. The kids had fun trying out the pool.


We also spent a sunny Sunday afternoon in a nearby park which was once the royal game park used for hunting. The white building is shaped like a star and was used as an aristocratic hunting lodge. It was built in 1556.






November 17th was "Freedom and Democracy Day", a national holiday which marked the 20th anniversary of the Velvet Revolution in this country. Things have changed so swiftly in this country as they've moved from a Communist system to democracy, and a real effort is being made to have people to look back and remember. We went to an exhibition at the National Museum that chronicles the last sixty years of Czech history and learned a lot. Just across the street you can see a McDonald's in a building decorated with Socialist art that glorified the common worker. We thought it was an interesting contrast.



On a lighter note, we took in a professional soccer game and got to see Prague's AC Sparta team beat Liberec by a comfortable 2:0 score. Happy Thanksgiving to everyone from us!

Oct. 31st-Nov.7th

Living in Prague has given us the chance to experience several different cultural celebrations this week. The first is well known to us Americans. While Halloween hasn't exactly caught on in the Czech Republic yet, there were some Halloween festivities for the kids. Katrina went to a party at the home of an American friend. Prague also has a small neighborhood that is overwhelmingly populated by Americans and they put on a fun trick or treating evening for the city. Max, wearing his coon skin hat, went as Davy Crockett, along with some friends from his school.

The next day was All Souls Day. Much like our Memorial Day in the US, it is a day when many Czechs go to the cemeteries to place flowers and candles at the graves of family members.

We were sad to say goodbye to Grandma Peggy on Tuesday. She arrived home safely and says she is looking for some hills to climb after a month of walking everywhere in Prague.

Finally, the week ended with a bang - literally. November 7th is Guy Fawkes' Day, an important event in the British calendar, and since Max is attending a British school, we were treated to an evening of fun and fireworks on Saturday night. This day commemorates an unsuccessful attempt to blow up the Houses of Parliment in the early 1600s. In England there are typically bonfires on this night, and Fawkes is burned in effigy. However, the school celebration opts for fireworks and a puppet show which is a Czech addition to the festivities.

October 26th-30th

Owing to Max's half term break, we were able to spend several days in the area around Salzburg, Austria this past week. If you've ever seen "The Sound of Music" you've seen Salzburg because the movie was filmed there. We have to say that when Julie Andrews sang "The hills are alive" she really understated the Alps. Those aren't hills, they are huge mountains!


Our trip gave us the opportunity to rent a car (a Czech-made Skoda) for the first time since coming to the Czech Republic. The rental agency has a steep discount if you rent a car with advertising on it, and we thought that sounded fine to us. As you can see, it had a bit more advertising than we anticipated! However, it drove well and got us where we wanted to go.


We chose Salzburg because it had a good location and many activities for children and families. We arrived in Salzburg at 6 PM, and much to our surprise EVERYTHING was closed. However, it happened to be Austrian Independence day. We were very happy to find a gas station open where we could buy some food for supper. We stayed at a terrific place, Haus am Moos, whose owner was extremely nice and helfpul. We would recommend them to anyone visiting the area.


There were so many fun and interesting activities. For us the highlights included going up a funicular on the Untersberg Mountain.







We toured a working salt mine where we put on our miner's uniforms and rode a train deep into the mountain and across an underground lake.








We also toured the Wasserspiel garden at Hellbrunn Castle. Here during the Renaissance, the Prince Archbishop held parties and the guests got all wet from the suprise sprinklers. Seems that what was fun then is still fun today, especially for Max!







In the city of Salzburg, there is a fortress that was so forbidding to look at, that no one ever dared to attack it. The views from the ramparts were lovely. We also toured the Mozart Museum. Although Mozart was never happy in Salzburg because it was too small and provincial, it is his birthplace and they are very proud of their native son.



We spent our last day in the Lakes region to the east of Salzburg. The scenery is incredible, absolutely jaw dropping to us flatlanders. We'll leave you with some pictures of this beautiful area.

The Dachstein range.






Halstatt, Austria









The Wolfgangsee, from the town of St. Gilgen