God-Given Trip

Finally, I've finished blogging my trip to Prague (actually most). I really hope to keep it in my mind but I'm such a forgetful person. Soon...all will be gone. Thank God for weblogs that motivates me to pen down my wonderful memories. haha!

Day 1 (8th June) - Wednesday

We were in Amsterdam(transit) about 5am and both of us have 3 hours before the next flight to Prague. Hero ler...I told Paul, " Come...Let's go to the city. Don't waste this opportunity". Paul gave me that look and said, "Really ar?". Me...of course, I gave the 'abuthen' look le...Then, we went to buy train ticket but then we left 2 and half hours and the train was delayed. So we don't know what to do. Suddenly, we felt like... better not le... Let's quit cos we were afraid we will be late BUT we paid 6 euros for one ticket return. Means 12 Euros(RM60). We walked to the counter (praying in our hearts), feeling so embarassed and asked the lady for refund. She didn't asked anything but immediately refund us the money. Praise the Lord! Joker ler...

We reached Prague about 11plus. We were a little lost in the airport. Someone was supposed to pick us up but where? We saw this guy and we asked him but he gave a negative response so we waited. After some time, Paul decided to ask him again. He made some phone calls and yes! He's the one. Duh! We took a cab to the hotel. Wow...so nice. Very modern look hotel. Rooms...superb. Toilet...superb. Heated floor man...

After bath, we went to hunt for food at the nearest mall. Our hotel was very convenient. There were shops, malls, metro and tram station nearby. We had our 1st pasta meal (food court). Okler... At night, we went to a 'Jet Set Cafe', nearby for supper. We felt so sleepy when it was about 7pm. Jet lag...

Day 2 (9th June) - Thursday

Paul hasn't started work yet so we decided to do some exploring. We were supposed to walk to the town area but ended up walking the wrong direction. So we asked around for directions. We got confused after some time - the map was no help. To make things worse, 90% of the people don't speak English, so it was tough. Communication break down. The currency, even worse... In Prague, they use Crowns and we need to divide the prices by 6 to get RM. Habis. Maths all karat liau. Simple division also take hours.

We met with an incident today. We were taking pictures of a dog, then a 'tourist' came to us, asking for help to take photos. While Paul was taking pics for him, I was busy taking pics too. Then, I saw a guy approaching them. I walked over to check out. Suddenly, the new guy asked them to show their passport and money. I was shocked because I didn't know what was going on. He asked me to show my money too and was quite stern. Then, he let us go. He shook both our hands and told us that guy was up to something. Later, Paul told me the 1st stranger asked him to change some money. Before Paul could do anything, the other appeared immediately from nowhere and identified himself as a cop. Thank God for an efficient policeman. Or else we'll kena con. What an experience.

Then, we walked to the national theatre. I went to buy a ballet performance ticket for next week - Swan Lake. It was quite cheap - about RM130 for the best seat. Very excited. But I will be watching alone because Paul has to work and he doesn't enjoy ballet. Falls asleep without fail :P We also went to the open market. Not a very big market. Things are pretty expensive because it's a tourist spot. But the fruits were fresh. Bought some cherries, figs and strawberries. We had a wonderful lunch. Oyster and mushroom pizza... so delicious and not that expensive.

At night, we went for dinner with Paul's colleagues at a restaurant called 'Ambiente'. The food was delicious. Big portion. But the best was tiramisu... superb. Very smooth.

Day 3 (10th June) - Friday

Paul started shooting today. We started at a hotel. A very beautiful hotel – the type where we normally can’t even go near. Today, however, we walked around as we pleased. I brought along my laptop to do some work but I paid more attention to the crew shooting. Very interesting. What was the best part about it? Well, you can eat and drink all the time. Food and beverage were provided throughout the shoot: fruits, chocs, snacks, etc. In the chilly whether, hot coffee was perfect. The lunch was interesting. The crew has a personal van, where they cooked and served the food. They served pretty good food: pasta, meat, salads, rice and etc. It was basically a pig-out session cos everything was free. Woo-hoo.

I met some new friends too - the talents. They came from different countries just to be in the ad. Some are pretty and handsome but some… heh, no comment. I was wondering why those not so pretty were chosen. But when I looked at the monitor, I saw that they looked really good. Weird. The shoot ended about 8 plus. Then, we went for dinner together at a very nice restaurant. The ambience was nice but food was not very good :P Anyway, who cares? Manage to try new and expensive stuff – for FREE.

Day 4 (11th June) - Saturday

We covered a few locations today. But as I walked around the places we shot, I ended up seeing the Powder Tower again. So weird. We did some very interesting shoot but sorry can’t say anything. P&C. Wait for the adverts to be on tv le.

It was very cold today. Almost like winter in Sydney. Instead of sitting around, waiting for them to set up (which took even longer than the period they shoot), I went for a stroll. It was in town so there were many shops. And it was SALE TIME :P I bought a few sweaters. Quite worth it. The fitting rooms here have no locks. So you need to be smart. Hehe!

About 12am (midnight), we went for shoot again. A little tired but I enjoyed it. Around 2 or 3am, I felt hungry so went to see what food was left. There were some cold bread stuffed with ham, cheese and vegetables. It was good even though it was cold. Haha! The shoot ended about 6am but the sky was like 9am. Real tired by that time. We went back to the hotel for breakfast and then went to bed. Gila, from KL time to Prague time, now New York time pulak! Skipped church. 1^st time after years :P Sorry God.

Day 5 (12th June) - Sunday

Holiday…. No shoot today. About 4pm, we went out for a walk. We took a tram and got out near Charles Bridge. The weather was good, not hot. It was very relaxing walking at Charles Bridge. Many people were selling paintings, ear rings and souvenirs. We loved the jazz band . Paul did some recording with our digital camera. We even saw a Japanese wedding couple taking some wedding pics at the bridge. So romantic.

After that, we walked up to Prague Castle. There were many shops along the way to the castle. They sell very nice things like candles, souvenirs and etc. We finally reached the castle after 20mins. Wow… huge. The architecture was awesome, especially the carvings. I wonder who was the poor guy who had to chisel and carve so many ornaments and sculptures out of the pillars. Of course, I went on my own shooting spree with my digi/video cam. Standby, roll-tape and action!

Then, we took the tram again to town to meet up with Paul’s colleague and the crew for dinner at Ambiente again. Haha! I ordered seafood pasta and it was just so so cos I still prefer the seafood spaghetti at Kensington :P Of course, tiramisu must be on the table le. Paul’s colleague ordered tiramisu as her main course. Later, we walked to Old Town Square to get a cab back to our hotel. The Square at night is sensational. So pretty. Like out of a storybook. Pictures don’t do justice. I have many but all don’t quite capture the magic of the Square...

Day 6 (13th June) - Monday

Day 7 (14th June) - Tuesday

Day 8 (15th June) - Wednesday

I didn’t follow Paul for shoot. I have my own plans so I stayed in the hotel. In the morning, I went for my last groceries shopping at Carrefour. Grabbed quite a lot of stuff. Stayed in the room and did some work for Pastor. Waited…and waited… At last, 5pm. I took a bath and then off I went. I took a tram and got off at the National Theatre. I went to eat alone at the Chinese restaurant that we went yesterday. I ordered rice, soup, vegetable and a meat. I couldn’t finish and the waitress came and laughed at me. I knew it was too much after I found that the soup was a thick glob of kanji-goo stuff. Lousy le. Malaysia has the best soup.

It rained the entire day. A rather depressing Thursday. Alone and far away from home. Surrounded by sullen locals who speak no English and seem to blame you for it.

After dinner, I walked to the National Theatre. The day is finally looking up. I’ve waited for this day since I was in Malaysia. I can’t imagine I’m watching Swan Lake in medieval Europe. The theatre is frozen in time. Classic luxury. As usual, I couldn’t resist. I asked the attendant to take a picture of me. I really enjoyed the show a lot. Totally awesome. It made me regret that I stopped ballet lessons. The ballerinas were so beautiful and they were so graceful. I found out the audience here really shout “Bravo! Bravo!” The show ended about 9plus. Then, I took a tram back and waited for Paul.

Day 9 (16th June) - Thursday

Day 10 (17th June) - Friday

Time to say goodbye… *sob-sob* We left the hotel about 9am to the airport. I asked for an 8hour transit in Amsterdam so we were so excited. But, when we reached Prague airport, there was a notice written, Amsterdam train on strike. Aiks… So how?

When we reached Amsterdam airport, we quickly asked for directions to get to the city. The airport was packed with long cab and bus queues. The train ride to the city normally only takes 20 minutes. But what to do – of all days, got strike, The lady at the information counter told us to take a bus to a certain stop then take a tram to the city. So we followed her instructions. We squeezed our way to get into the bus. Due to the ‘mayhem’ of the day, the bus driver didn’t bother to collect fare from the passengers. Happily sitting in the bus, hoping to get to the station soon but it took us 1 stupid hour. Aiks. What a waste of precious time. Ok, nevermind. It was only 1pm. What to do? We couldn’t find the tram so we waited for a bus. Bus after bus…it just went off. Almost an hour has passed. It started drizzling. Then, I spotted the tram. I told Paul, “Let’s just get on la.” Better than wasting time doing nothing, looking at nothing – IN AMSTERDAM. We ran there. The tram driver told us we couldn’t get directly to the city. Argh! But he offered to inform us what to do. Good enough. We hopped into the tram.

After some time, we reached the city. Praise the Lord! It was only 3 plus. We were so hungry. Our flight was 8.50pm and we need to be at the airport, latest by 7pm. We went to hunt for food. We had a fantastic meal. Nothing great. Paul had his favourite falafel and I had a burger. Why fantastic? I have never tasted such delicious and juicy meat before. So satisfying. We took a quick bite then went looking around. There were so many shops. The buildings in AmsterdamPrague but the things they sold were unique, nice but expensive. Every price times 5. Pokai liau. We bought a painting for Paul’s dad and we shopped a little here and there. Oh, we bought some funky light bulbs. Haha – go Amsterdam by light bulb. Sampat. are not as beautiful as

About 5plus, we have decided to take a cab back to the airport. We have no choice cos we were afraid of missing the flight. It cost us a bomb. A 30mins drive cost us 40Euros. Argh! Don’t convert. Too painful.

Phew…so we got home after 12 hours flight. What a wonderful trip. It was awesome. Thank God for this trip. It was truly His blessing.