Chaplog tries hard

First day in Prague

The family has been moving around. Wales on Friday morning, Manchester Friday lunchtime and Prague for Saturday lunch. I do not think we have stayed in a hotel before as a family. The girls were excited and had fun with the trouser press as soon as we arrived. We taught them the dangers of mini-bars and how not to spend money in general. Well I suppose that is the job of being a parent completed. Let's go into town.

The girls seem to slip into strolling around a town with ease. I am a slow learner but trying hard. The camera is useful as I can point it at things and feel as if I am doing something. I have tried walking around with a book and reading it at street corners while the girls look at a shop or something. I am afraid I cannot do this anymore as getting the book out, putting on the reading glasses, finding your place and putting the glasses case away before you read the first word is tedious to put it mildly. We happened to pass the Bethlehem Chapel. We had decided to have our evening meal at a restaurant close by so we popped in. The man who works downstairs in the heat has his painting on the wall and a fine one at that. There are some pretty life like figures painted on these walls. The noses of the peasants suggested a mixed background.

The highlight of the day for me was the guttering on the Chapel. The word Mega has been overused and trivalised as was turbo before it but in this case to describe the guttering it fits. The need for this piece of guttering design can be seen if you look at the area of the roof and where the water will flow. took me awhile to work that one out.

I went for a Sunday morning run early - 6:30 - am to avoid heat and people. Over the years I have done this in many hot countries in strange places. You can learn a lot about a place in thirty minutes or so early on a Sunday morning. To start with there are the casualties from Saturday night. There are the lads walking home from the clubs. I always feel a little superior on my run as I have done both, walked home at that time in the morning and I now go running. I have a feeling they have only done one of them. The girls still looking good after a night on the town. The homeless some of whom are obviously addicts of one type or another. Sad to say some of them were English. As I was running down a cobbled street I noticed a body in the middle of the road. It was in the foetal position, I ran towards it beginning to worry that I had found a dead man. As I got within a metre or so a reassuringly load snore could be heard. I ran around him looking up at the building I was passing. Lo and behold it was a police station. I have a feeling that the streets in general are cleaner and there a less homeless and drunks than you would find in London or Manchester

Posted by mikec at August 10, 2003 10:27 AM