Linz to Prague

Country number 7 (of 8, Czech Republic scheduled as 8) should have been Germany, but with the lock trouble, we didn't have enough time to sail to Passau. So we docked in Linz (Austria). The trip length to Prague was similar, as I understand it, so no real issue there. Passau is famous for being at the confluence of the Danube, Inn, and Ilz rivers, and for having the world's largest organ. But hey. Linz, Linzer torte, the same. But that was not on our agenda for the morning.

Instead, it was grey and rainy, matching my mood about leaving the ship and this wonderful crew. I was lucky to be on the last disembarkation, giving me a few extra minutes. But as the saying goes, all good things.....

We had a rest stop on the way to Prague, at a Globus, which might be one of the most remarkable they-really-do-have-eveything-you-can-imagine places, and where I suffered from the human conditions of overtired and distracted. I removed my phone from my pocket in the restroom, not wanting it to fall out. I thought, this should be in my bag. I helped some other passengers, used the ATM, and bought some chocolate to share with the tour director. As I went to sit back on the bus, I remembered the phone.

Sore foot and all I ran back, checking exactly where I was and everywhere nearby too, in case. I found two nice young police officers on my way, who spoke some English too, and they helped me to lost-and-found. It took a few minutes there to find someone with English skills, but it wasn't there. I left a note and description, and the hotel information for Prague. I felt awful about holding up the bus, but apparently all that only took about 10 minutes.

Back on the bus I silently freaked out for a few. How stupid! I was so mad at myself. Was there anything on the phone that wasn't backed up.... Of course, all my trip photos, because no, I wasn't using the cloud because of security concerns. Anything else? Contacts, messages, all the normal phone things. So I took the work phone out of airplane mode and tried find-my-phone. Nothing, it wasn't connected. I put a lost message on the phone, with the hotel's phone number and the tour director's local number. I then sat and wracked my brain for passwords, changing email, Facebook, and my appleID. That was all I could think of. Oh, the cost of replacing it, bother. I figured that either someone would turn it in quickly, or it would be sold and wiped and resold. Yes, there was a lock on it. I hoped that the wipe/resell would be more profitable and expedient than trying to break into it.

Once we got to Prague and got people settled, I called the phone carrier and had them suspend the service, so that no one could connect it and start charging up calls with roaming fees or use the internet. I knew I'd posted a few photos, and emailed some to mom and to dad, so I could recover those, but at lower resolution. The others were all gone. The ones that bothered me most were the selfies with the tour directors and the hotel manager, the ones that I was planning to send to folks during this very afternoon in Prague, during my "free" time, and that I'd never get back. But as I kept telling folks, all my concerned participants, it's a thing. And as I learned later, the tour director and my group were amazed at my calm. I felt anything but, so I'm glad that's what they saw. Sigh.

But, I did still have the work phone, so while I failed to check the resolution settings, and they weren't as high as on my phone, I still had a camera for Prague. So once my room came available, I dropped my gear, when out for a very late lunch/ very early dinner, and a wander; we arranged the schedule for folks to have the afternoon to explore, and tours would start again the next morning.

 My room! I was on the top floor and didn't have regular windows but skylights. It was odd to see clouds and a church steeple, and only to hear the trams and traffic. But this was an amazing hotel, spacious and beautiful.

 Check out all the marble in the bathroom! The tub, though, was crazy to get in and out of. I can't imagine how folks who can't high step do it.

 The hotel was art deco, and fancy. This mosaic was in the entry.

 This was in one of our reception rooms where we had our travelers' corner and final reception.

 These are the dining room. Crazy!

The place I default chose for my meal was close by and art nouveau, which is what attracted me. And it was exquisite. Pricey, but by that point, I needed food and comfort, and while I know Czech food is great for beer and meat, I really wanted fish and vegetables.

 Then I wandered for a bit, much more than I'd meant to. But the architecture was overwhelming! This is the powder tower.

Old-style car tours are hugely popular. I did one my last afternoon when my friends from Toronto arrived. 

Churches and beautiful buildings. 

The city tower, where the astronomical clock is housed too.

The Old Town Square, near Wencelas Square. It was always busy and always beautiful.

I had a pastry while wandering, an amazing confection called a trdelník. I adore street food, which is hard in places where the water isn't safe. Luckily, that wasn't a concern here. These are pastry, dipped in cinnamon sugar, and baked over a fire. Then they are dipped again. The one I had was a vanilla dream, filled with vanilla cream and strawberries. Oh my.

Then the rain started. Even at a light drizzle, the city was spectacular. But the cobbles were getting slick, my foot really hurt, and I knew I had work to do for the next day. So I headed back, discovering that I'd ventured much further than I had intended. Or maybe I got a little turned around on the way. In any case, I was excited for a full night's sleep.