Category Archives: Dresden

Dresden, Prague

Dresden 2 Prague – August 18, 2015

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DSC_2950Our hotel in Dresden is only 800 meters from the main train station.  We were planning to walk but since it has been raining heavily since last night we decided to take a cab.  I am sure the driver took us the long way as we knew the route as the hotel staff mapped it for us.  But what do silly tourists know!

Boarding the train we discover that there are compartments.  This is the first train we have ridden with them.  Some have “Reserved” seats between specific stations.  Since we don’t know the intermediate stations it is difficult to know what seats are available.  We choose a compartment after asking the occupants if it is reserved.  We settle in.  Our compartment mates are a couple from Chile.  They endured a 17 hour flight to Frankfurt from Chile and face a similar flight back home.  They speak German as well as their Chilean Spanish.  The wife has a better grasp of English than her husband.  We enjoy conversation for most of the journey.

The ticket we purchased online takes us to the Praha-Holešovice train station which is north of the river and the main station.  We have no Czech cash and wander about the station for a bit getting advice a few times from a taxi driver who has offered to take us to our hotel.  We have no Korunas, there is no ATM at this station, the ticket machines take only coins and it is POURING RAIN.  He offers to take us to our hotel/apartment for 15 Euros.  Ok, Ok.  We bite.  A fixed fare taxi ride is definitely different that a metered one 🙂  We are whipping around Prague, over tram tracks, almost killing Czech citizens on our way to the address we were given.

He double parks in front of #9 gets his 15 Euros and is gone!  We go into the door of #9 and see a large stern looking guard type guy.  He does not look friendly.  I show him the email I have and he speaks and we catch “not hotel” and “is embassy”.  Okay then, this isn’t the place.  🙂  Good news is there is an ATM on the corner and we get some Czech cash, the smallest denominations the machine will dispense.  We get directions from a very nice young woman who points out that there is a metro station directly across the street and which station we need to go to.  Oh yes, did I mention it is POURING RAIN!.  The smallest note we have is 500 Koruna.  We have no idea how much the metro is, but the machines only accept coins.  We need change.  Stu tried to buy a bottle of water for 16 Kurona with a 500 Koruna bill.  The guys says he has no change and takes the water and puts it back on the shelf.  Hahaha.

There is a grocery store nearby, so I give it a go.  I find a bottle of wine for 109 Koruna (which I am pretty sure will not go to waste), and get 3 coins and some bills back as change.  I try to get more change for a 100 Koruna bill, but get shut down too.

Now with coins in hand, we head back to the ticket machines.  There is a button that says “English”  OK.  That changes the display to “Please select tariff”.  There are multiple buttons below with different zones, times and other things we know not of.  A kindly employee of the metro, who’s job isn’t helping tourists takes our coins, works some magic with 2 machines, coins in one, and out and in the other.  Voila, we have 2 tickets and a few coins left over 🙂

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We find our place Anyday Apartments.  We are home!!

 

 

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We have a kitchen,

 

DSC_2952A little eating area and dishes, glasses & cutlery for 3.  Nice.  We will go and buy some coffee and something for breakfast.  Maybe some beer for the little frig (lower door on the left below the coffee maker)

 


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A nicer bathroom than some places.

 

 

 

 

The rain is supposed to stop tomorrow by noon.  Fingers crossed.

Assmannshauser, Dresden

Bad Hersfeld 2 Dresden – August 17, 1015

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DSC_6640Our pension was so quiet that we thought we were the only guests. We didn’t see anyone last night when we checked in or after we returned from dinner.  Each of these rooms is uniquely decorated and have names on the doors as well as numbers.  Ours is the “Amazonas”.

 

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The wall decor is very tropical.  The room itself is at least 3, maybe 4 times larger than our tiny Amsterdam room!

 

 

It has a cooler downstairs that is basically an honour bar.  2 Euros for a beer.

We were astonished when we went down for breakfast that there were at least 20 other people there.  The breakfast buffet was sumptuous to say the least.  Along with the regular buffet items, it had scrambled and fried eggs, sausages, bacon and bacon wrapped dates (interesting).  They also had boiled eggs.  We have seen boiled eggs in other places.  Already cooked in a bowl or basket.  Stu saw the whole eggs and plopped one in an egg cup and took it back to our table.  When he was ready to eat it he started to crack it with his knife.  Goo started oozing out of the egg that was now obviously still raw.  He decided to hide with his napkin.  The woman organizing the breakfast somehow figured out what he had done (BUSTED!) and took him up to train him in the art of soft cooking an egg.  She showed him the egg cooking appliance and set the timer for the appropriate time.  Being impatient he went to check on his egg.  A lady guest sitting at the table next to us said “it should be OK”, so he started to retrieve it.  The Breakfast Lady says “did it ring??”,  Stu says “No”,  Breakfast Lady “It isn’t done yet!!  4 minutes”.  Giggles from the table next to us, he sits back down ruing his choice of egg!  Finally it rings and the egg is finally done.  Stu consumes and enjoys.  🙂

We get into our car and head off to Dresden.  We have a hotel near the train station and train tickets to Prague tomorrow.

The rain is lighter today and we are on the main road A4 to Dresden.  Much more pleasant than yesterday.

We are driving in the middle or right lane of the Autobahn.  Doing 120 K/hr we are passed with “peeyowwwww” by a whole list of German cars, BMWs, Audis, Mercedez, Porsches and Opels.

I am trying to get them on video and giggling with every one that leaves us in their dust even though we are going up to 135 k/hr!

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Just west of a city named Jena we go through a 3K tunnel.  That is followed by a small 600M one.  It is an odd feeling driving that far underground.

 

After arriving into Dresden and finding our hotel, we drop our bags and then head out to find the Budget office to drop off our car.

Mission accomplished we walk to the train station to get our bearings for tomorrow and back to our hotel.

Checked places in Prague to stay.  We had a couple of recommendations from friends.  We checked them out, some over 340 Euros/night.  We recall that we are in high season and prices are obviously much higher.  I check HRS.com and find a place called Anyday Appartments.  HRS has it for 81 Euros as I have now registered my company to get the “Business Tariff”.  Much better.  I decide to check Trivago and find it for 70 Euros!!  It pays to check around!