aaawwwwwww.............

hello all...

i've been quite busy lately at my new job which is basically selling jewellery at Tangs...

so i'm a retail executive for the Charles Winston line of designer jewellery at level 2 of Tangs..
so cool right.

suddenly i'm all high up and hoity-toity.

but seriously, i do like the job a lot... i like the chance to talk to so many different people.. i like the fact that i'm faced with pretty shiny things everyday...

yar i know so shallow..

but basically i can think of many worse ways to spend my time..

so things are good.

well as promised... more on the trip...

so in addition to prague we also went to two other towns in Czech Republic: Kutna Hora and Cesky Krumlov.

Kutna Hora was in history the centre of economy, owing to the fact that it was the site of the largest and richest silver mines.

But before we get to that there's this building in Prague that's particularly interesting.




This used to be the headquarters of the socialist government in Czech Republic. Since the fall of communism it has become the headquarters of a radio station that specialises in broadcasting to nations that remain under fascist rule. Owing to this, military presence is always felt around the complex to protect it from any threat, especially relevant after terror attacks escalated worldwide.





Saint Barbara is the patron saint of miners. This is Saint Barbara's Cathedral in Kutna Hora. The architecture is in the New Gothic style, with high windows and spires. Apparently the trend during the New Gothic period was for higher windows to let in more light, but as a result of those high windows the walls were quite unstable. Thus we have those buttresses that you see rising from the outer spires to support the main body of the building.
We sang in here!




The Town Square in Kutna Hora. Decision making used to be centred around here, and now it's a silver museum and also a musuem on the history of the town.

A notice like this one has been outside the door to the parliamentary chamber since 1595.










And I bought this bracelet at
Kutna Hora!






Cesky Krumlov is a town that sits snugly around the meanders of the river Vltava. The name of the town, Krumlov, derives from a word that means crooked, and refers to the winding river, and as well as the architectural facade of the village that has over the years evolved to accomodate the river's turns.

These are the sights that I saw for two mornings when I woke up. The Hotel Dvorak is situated right on the banks of the river, and faces directly the castle of Cesky Krumlov.

It's a fantastic way to start any day.















A monument in the town square erected after the Black Plague in the 16th Century.










The summer gardens of the castle. It doesn't look like much because it's winter now and all the greenery looks rather drab and the sculptures are boxed up as to protect them against the elements.










Right in the middle of the gardens is this amphitheatre that was built during the communist era. It stands as a point of contention between the UN World Heritage and the government over whether or not it should be destroyed and the area restored to how it would look 200 years ago.




The castle grounds have always been home to bears. This was due to the fact that bears represent power and might, and as well as being family symbols of the Italian noble family of Orsini that the Rosenbergs, historical rulers of Krumlov, thought they were related to. I don't know if it's a good thing or a bad to have a bear named after you., even if you were once Queen of Austria ruling on the Hapsburg throne.

One of the bears. We all thought that bears hibernated through the winter but this one actually came out while we were around. It also went on to poop before retreating back to wherever it was hiding before.

ah it's good to be back...

but then and again i must say that i've been to so many extremely beautiful places..
i wanna go again!

haha...




Christmas market at the Old Town Square in Prague.




And that's me!
Just round the corner from the square.
















Wenceslas Square, one of the major shopping districts in Prague. Not really much of a square, really, more like a boulevard. Christmas markets open here too, along the long stretch in the centre separated at intervals by small, pretty gardens.








Strahov Library, in Strahov Monastery. It's been standing since 1143 and it is today still a library, and as well as the Musuem of National Literature.




Church of our Lady at Strahov Monastery. Mozart once played the church organ there. That's actually not saying much since in Prague and the surrounding territories Mozart played a fair lot of organs that are still around today.





Look all the way down past that huge chunk about who built it to see his name. It probably just says he played in
there in 1787.


The gates to Prague Castle. The castle is the largest castle complex in the world, and also one of the oldest, built in the 9th century. It has been and still is the seat of administrative power in the country.














Charles Bridge, named after King Charles IV, with 30 statues along the length of the bridge. At the pedestal of the statue of St. John of Nepomuk there are two well worn images, of the saint being thrown into the river and the other of a dog, that was said to have come to the bridge to follow its master to death.








If you touch the saint and make a wish it will come true, as long as you tell no one what you wished for. If you touch the dog, a symbol of loyalty, you will one day return to Prague.












The highlight of the entire trip - Gold in the International Festival of Advent and Christmas Music.










And together with it a special mention for the outstanding performance of one of our songs.






and more to come soon...