Na Zdravi from Prague

What is one to do when their significant other tells them they HAVE to travel to Prague for work in January?  ... I tell you what... you Join Them!  Kris got the opportunity to travel abroad for MolsonCoors to help with a system launch.  That meant travel to the Czech Republic to visit with his colleagues over at the Staropramen Brewery.  I chose to tag along since he was traveling alone from Denver.  It wasn't for me... It was so he wouldn't be lonely on the trip.  This was the beautiful site I saw from my hotel room each day.  All I did was sit and stare out the window until he returned each evening for our one meal a day together.

Since we had half a day Saturday and all day Sunday together, we decided a little sight seeing was in order.  Our first stop?  Had to enjoy a Staropramen of course! Na Zdravi from the Staropramen Brewery where we enjoyed a Granat Special (Amy's all time favorite!) and a Czerny Dark!

Then it was time to see the sights!  We did a lot of walking... and I mean a lot.. I was tracking at an average of 21K steps per day on my fitbit.  Everywhere we went; we walked along the beautiful Vltava River.  It was fairly cloudy and cold that first day, but was glad to get some sun later in the week. 

The beautiful St Charles Bridge is one of the most visited sights in Prague.  Another bonus about it is that so many other sights are right near the bridge.  We got to see the Astronomical clock, the Church of Our Lady before Tyn and St Vitas Cathedral; which were all located in the Old-Town Square.  The Tyn church was really cool as it is said to have inspired Disney for the Cinderella castle!

We even did a walking tour of the Prague Castle.  It was so fun and we even ran into tiny snowman! The snowmen were cute cause we saw one on our way up... and many, many more on our way down from the tour.  Kris got to check out the local Prague barkeeps room from back in the day on our tour.

Before Kris started his work week... we had to check out the tour at the Staropramen brewery. Staropramen is the 2nd largest beer producer and innovation leader in the Czech Republic.  Pretty Impressive!  I loved how the Copper Kettles making the wort looked just like the ones at the Coors facility in Golden!

Since Kris had to work on Monday, we packed in a very busy Sunday... that meant checking out the Old-Town Square at night. We heard the lights were amazing and we were not disappointed!  Here we are on the St Charles bridge again and with the Tyn church behind us.

Oh man!  Monday came too fast.  Kris had to go to work and I just sat in my hotel room and dreamt of his return.  And if you believe that... I have some oceanfront property to sell you in Colorado!  I did get to enjoy a lovely breakfast with my husband each day.  After he went to work, I just might have gotten cozy in my bed to read a book, headed to the gym and still have a full day of tours before Kris got off work.  This stay at home wife thing is Awesome!  One of my favorite spots was the Dancing House in Prague (aka: the Fred and Ginger Building).  It is called that as the architecture used the legendary dance duo, Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers, as his inspiration.  It was so beautiful during the day, that we just HAD to come back that night for dinner!

On other days, I hit other popular tourist spots.  There was the Lovers Lock Bridge (kinda sad to tour this one by yourself...), where lovers lock their love for an eternity and throw the key in the river. One of my favorite spots was the Lennon wall. The wall dates back to the communist regime, where young adults would write their grievances on the wall.  Even though authorities would paint over it, the next day it would be full of poems and flowers again.  Today, the wall is ever-changing and represents a symbol of global ideas of love and peace.  I enjoyed the local artists who performed there.  My favorite was the guy pictured with me.  His sign said: "Need money to repair my time machine to go back to the 60's" I also got to see the changing of the guards at the Prague castle as well as a political figure arriving one day.  I to this day don't know who it was... but I can tell you... They were a Big Deal!

Kris and I enjoyed several wonderful meals out together each night. We tried Duck foi gras (don't need to do that again), Beef Tartar (which the Woodards lovingly refer to as Tiger Meat) and many traditional Czech meals of Dumplings, Goulash and of course Schnitzel.  It was all amazing! My favorite meal was at the Strahov Monastic Micro-Brewery, located at the Strahov Monks Monestary... and no - even though the property is located there, the Monks were never involved in the brewing process.

Once the weekend arrived; I was able to take Kris back to all my favorite spots.  Here we are at the Lennon wall and being all romantic at the Lock Bridge.  Yes, it was way better with him there! Thank you for the wonderful opportunity to travel to Prague, MolsonCoors! Was quite the opportunity for both of us!