Week 10: November 5-11
- Katie & Webster
- Nov 12, 2018
- 5 min read
Our week has been extremely busy! We have tried to fill every night with something exciting as we get closer and closer to coming home.
On Monday, Webster had a break from soccer so we went to see some fireworks! It was bonfire night, November 5, here in London so there were lots of events happening around the city. We got tickets to a big fair, bonfire and fireworks at Wimbledon. There had to be at least 3000 people at the event. We left our flat at around 6:30 after having dinner at home, then took the tube to Wimbledon. We first saw a big bonfire. They lit it with a bunch of torches and the flame was probably 30ft tall. It was so interesting! Then we saw a firework show that lasted about 15 minutes. Afterwards we walked through the fair and watched people lose their money on carnival games.
On Tuesday, Webster stayed home from work and got a haircut! We didn’t have our normal lunch date out but he was in need of a cut, and found a really good deal! In the evening, we headed to the Tower of London to see a Remembrance Day exhibit. In the old moat around the tower, there were 10,000 flames burning to symbolize the lives lost. It was SO busy because it was completely free (very rare in London). We spent some time looking at the exhibit from all angles and even FaceTimed Grandmom to give her a live look at the lights. It was spectacular.
On Wednesday, we spent the evening cleaning our flat and packing for our weekend away! I am watching The Good Place on Netflix and I had to catch up. Webster started watching Hell’s Kitchen and now he’s obsessed!
On Thursday we were invited to a networking session held by Laurier in London. It was nice to see some familiar faces and share some stories about our co-op experience. After the social we were invited to speak to the Dean’s Advisory Council about how alumni in London can help students like us, find jobs and opportunities in the UK. We are so thankful to have a wonderful support team at Laurier cheering us on, even when we are thousands of kilometres away!
We both took the day off on Friday to go on our third weekend away! We woke up at 4am, to head to our flight leaving at 7am to Prague! When we arrived in the city we headed to our AirBnB to check in. We stayed in a beautiful apartment (about 4x the size of ours in London) with skylights and windows overlooking the city. Since we had a very early start we took some time to relax before exploring.
At about 12noon we left our apartment to explore the city. We stopped for some lunch at a little grocery store. Then we headed to city hall to find the paternoster elevator Webster read about online. A paternoster elevator is never ending, it has continuous cars that are always open. You get on the car, it goes down, then sideways, up, sideways again, and back down. It makes a big square-circle shape. This was not a tourist spot so the employees in city hall must have thought we were nuts - we stood there for 30 minutes getting videos and checking it out.
Then we headed to the Old Town Square. We took some time to watch the street performers, look at the astronomical clock and the old cathedral (that looks like Hogwarts). It is such a wonderful spot, that is a must see for anyone coming to Prague.
Afterwards we walked to a small market just beyond the Old Town Square. The market had a mixture of fruits/vegetables and touristy souvenirs. Webster and I both bought a souvenir for less than £3! I got a painting of the city and Webster got a package of goulash mix to make a Czech specialty back in London.
We ended our evening at a restaurant in the Old Town Square facing the Clock Tower. Webster had a traditional Czech schnitzel as big as his head! I had a Trdelník (we pronounced it turtle-dinki) for dessert. It is a doughy cake cooked over a fire while wrapped around a stick, then the dough is rolled in sugar and nuts - It is a traditional Czech treat that was absolutely delicious!
On Saturday we woke up early to head up to the Prague Castle. We took our time crossing Charles Bridge and taking in the sights of the castle up on the hill.
Our first stop on the way up to the Castle was the John Lennon Wall. This artistic piece was installed to remember the musician and also give people a place to publicly be creative. The wall was covered in messages of hope, peace and love.
Then we began our climb up. Once in the tower walls, we explored the little city barricaded from the big city outside. The highlight was the huge cathedral which can be seen from kilometres away. No “royals” currently live within the walls but it was still fun to see what used to be many years ago.
Afterwards we climbed even further up the hill to the Petrin Tower. Sitting at the highest altitude in the city, Petrin Tower features breathtaking views of the entire city!
For dinner we treated ourselves to a Mexican favourite in Prague. Las Adelitas was recommended by a local who works in the British Embassy. It was delicious! I had hard shell tacos and Webster had enchiladas.
We spent the evening wandering around the town and listening to street performers in the city.
On Sunday morning we took our time getting up and checked out of our AirBnB at 10am. We stopped at a bakery for breakfast and then made our way to the Communist Museum. We learned a lot about life in Prague when it was in Czechoslovakia, now they are a part of the Czech Republic. It was really interesting to read and see pictures, artifacts and other things from a time period that seems so different but wasn’t that long ago.
Afterwards we wandered around a market and a shopping district peeking into stores and having a bite to eat. We walked through the Old Town Square one last time and saw one more street performer.
Then we made our way to the Dancing House, a unique building that is meant to look like someone dancing. It was about 2 km from the main city centre so we enjoyed a nice walk on the way.
To finish our weekend in the city, we took one last walk down to Charles Bridge and sat outside on a busy street.
We headed to the airport and we’re back in London by 9:30pm - travel in Europe is so easy. We were lucky enough to be some of the very few without an EU passport and got through customs very quickly. Luckily we made the 9:53pm train back into the city. We were back to our flat by 11:15pm...that is definitely a record! Today we are both back to work and looking forward to a busy week ahead exploring more in London.
Comments