Cesky Krumlov....and a bit of european culture

there is not a negative thing to say about this place-when we finally got there. yes i am implying that we got lost again on our way to the hostel. we could have said it was a nice walk on a beautiful day, after a long train ride were it not for the extra 50lbs we were carrying on our backs. but when we finally made it, dropped our things off and headed into town, all was forgotten. the center of cesky krumlov is made up of a handful of narrow, winding cobblestone streets all leading (quite literally) to the town square. on each side of the streets are shops, hostels, and restaurants-most of them with little patios outside over looking the river vlata. its the most charming town i have ever been in- almost so much that it doesnt seem real, kind of like those fake towns in disneyland where as a child you just wanted to go and live there. we had a really nice italian dinner (italian is by far the most prominent genre of food in europe so far) and then went for what is now my favorite dessert, palacinky a.k.a. thin pancake filled with ice cream and chocolaty goodness topped with whip cream. After dessert we called it a night. the next day we got up for our complimentary breakfast at the hostel which was served by Jan, the nicest guy ever. we went into town to the local modern art museum which had some really cool art, outweighed by one really bad piece which involved woody from toy story in the famous painting "scream." im sure edvard munch is turning over in his grave. after that we rented a canoe and went out on vlata. we were on the river for about 2 hours, winding thru the town and in the woods. there are lots of dandelions in the czech republic and so there are always little remnants floating in the air. i think it adds to the charm of the place.




heres a bit of european culture that we have noticed:

*when you are eating at a restaurant and you are finished with your meal, you have to ask for the bill, otherwise you will be left sitting there all night--we have had many awkward games of trying to make eye contact with our server so we can ask for the check.

*people laugh more and louder

*everyone buys flowers. there are flower shops on every corner and at every train station.

maybe we americans should take a hint from the europeans...slow down and enjoy the restaurant we are dining at... laugh more and so loud you either make the people around you uncomfortable or laugh with you...and buy more flowers




...also three things we cant get away from out here:

roller blades
ugly lap dogs
tony romas

prague

today was our first day hanging out in prague. we got here last night from leipzig (we spent a day there.got lost. found our hostel and met the VERY friendly owner who told us in detail every "must see" in the city. didnt do anything he suggested and instead did what we do well...shopping...i (shells) got some really sweet kicks...i.e. paisley nike dunks. that i couldnt resist). prague today has been incredible. cobblestone streets, old bridges and castles, and of course the john lennon wall, which as all of you who know us would know that was our favorite. plus being able to wear sweaters makes everything better. our hostel turned out to be really cool. its clean and modern and we are in a 6 person room but there is only one other person there...which is great but he never leaves the room and goes to bed super early. also.. he snores. all part of the experience right? haha

berlin...fantastic voyage

so we made it. (safe and sound..for the moms) the flight to heathrow was long but passing Coolio on the escalator totally made up for it! and yes his hair is still the same as it was in Fantastic Voyage. when we finally got to our hotel that we BOOKED and paid for a few months back, we were told that "there have been many complications" so they put us in another hotel. luckily it is brand new and in a better location. we are probably 200 meters from a part of the east Berlin Wall that is still standing and covered in some amazing graffiti. today we got to go to the Hamburger Bahnhof, an incredible modern art museum that used to be an old train depot that had two of our favorite artists...one being jeremiahs biggest influence, Anselm Kiefer...and the other was Robert Rauschenberg. If you have never heard of either of these guys please check them out..itll change your life. The city is amazing. all of the architecture is built weaving in and out of huge green trees and water. its definately our fav. stop so far. haha we are here for a few more days then off to leipzig...

pre-game

so here it is...the sazdanoffs giving the people what they want. we will do our best to keep this as updated as we can on our trip, but ill be honest i cant promise anything. 

cheers to the next 5 weeks!!

shells