This is guest post, courtesy of Eli Briody-Pavlik, my awesome cousin who visited for a few days on his way home after a summer studying in South Africa. Note: There is an abnormally high number of photos in this post (family documentation purposes), enter at your own risk.
You haven’t quite lived until you’ve toured with Zach Pavlik.
I learned this lesson over a four-day period in Prague in early September. Prior to my visit to Prague, I studied abroad for a summer in Cape Town, South Africa. I had been abroad before and I was familiar with the tourist lifestyle, however, I had never experienced a city quite like I did this time.
Zach and I did three things in Prague: we ate, we drank, and we walked. When I’m at home, I eat three times a day so that I have the energy to tackle my activities. In Prague, I did activities hoping to burn enough energy to tackle the next meal. Between meals, we tore through the streets in search of landmarks both famous and obscure. I have to give a nod to Robert Humphreys, with whom Liza and I saw an impressive portion of the city in a handful of hours in summer 2014. Many locations were familiar to me because of that trip. While Zach and I walked, we chatted about a year’s worth of adventures and thoughts (I’m lately into politics, and Zach’s lately into photography, among other things). Zach also endeavored to help me taste every beer in Prague. We gave it a good effort, but fell short. I was reminded of Zach’s German host’s famous phrase, “it’s not so simple.”
On my own in Prague, I might have had goulash and Pilsner Urquell. I might have climbed the entrance gate on the north side of the Charles Bridge and clambered up the Petrin Tower. Only with Zach would I have enjoyed a guided tour of the Miller Home (designed by Adolf Loos) that was led by Zach’s friend, Vendula. Without a local by my side I never would have ventured to the vast, sleepy cemetery of Olsany or to the castle Karlstein, where bay windows serve as fifth-story outhouses.
Zach devoted four full days to showing me a city that he loves, and I didn’t come away empty handed. I tasted a cheesecake that was so good I won’t ever feel the need to try cheesecake again. I repaired my relationship with sauerkraut. More importantly, I reconnected with my cousin and peeped through a window at the past year in his life.
I’m very fortunate these days to have the means to see the world. My vacations used to be more modest- we’d pile into the van and drive across the country, sleeping on the ground. Things are different these days. I watch the latest episodes of House of Cards between hot meals on my way to cities all over the world. One thing remains the same: high-quality Pavlik hospitality. Here’s to four days of good food and good company- and to many more.
You haven’t quite lived until you’ve toured with Zach Pavlik.
I learned this lesson over a four-day period in Prague in early September. Prior to my visit to Prague, I studied abroad for a summer in Cape Town, South Africa. I had been abroad before and I was familiar with the tourist lifestyle, however, I had never experienced a city quite like I did this time.
Zach and I did three things in Prague: we ate, we drank, and we walked. When I’m at home, I eat three times a day so that I have the energy to tackle my activities. In Prague, I did activities hoping to burn enough energy to tackle the next meal. Between meals, we tore through the streets in search of landmarks both famous and obscure. I have to give a nod to Robert Humphreys, with whom Liza and I saw an impressive portion of the city in a handful of hours in summer 2014. Many locations were familiar to me because of that trip. While Zach and I walked, we chatted about a year’s worth of adventures and thoughts (I’m lately into politics, and Zach’s lately into photography, among other things). Zach also endeavored to help me taste every beer in Prague. We gave it a good effort, but fell short. I was reminded of Zach’s German host’s famous phrase, “it’s not so simple.”
On my own in Prague, I might have had goulash and Pilsner Urquell. I might have climbed the entrance gate on the north side of the Charles Bridge and clambered up the Petrin Tower. Only with Zach would I have enjoyed a guided tour of the Miller Home (designed by Adolf Loos) that was led by Zach’s friend, Vendula. Without a local by my side I never would have ventured to the vast, sleepy cemetery of Olsany or to the castle Karlstein, where bay windows serve as fifth-story outhouses.
Zach devoted four full days to showing me a city that he loves, and I didn’t come away empty handed. I tasted a cheesecake that was so good I won’t ever feel the need to try cheesecake again. I repaired my relationship with sauerkraut. More importantly, I reconnected with my cousin and peeped through a window at the past year in his life.
I’m very fortunate these days to have the means to see the world. My vacations used to be more modest- we’d pile into the van and drive across the country, sleeping on the ground. Things are different these days. I watch the latest episodes of House of Cards between hot meals on my way to cities all over the world. One thing remains the same: high-quality Pavlik hospitality. Here’s to four days of good food and good company- and to many more.
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| In front of Panna Marie Vítězná, housing the famed Infant of Prague...this one's for you grandma! |
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| Nice little photo bomb on the side of St. Vitus |
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| Checking out the queen's summer house... |
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| The interestingly-similar-to-an-old-oil-drilling-machine Metronome of Prague, which can be seen from all over the city atop Letná |
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| One of the best views of Prague: Admired by Zach, captured by Eli |
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| Vegetarianism dies hard, but beer helps the pangs of guilt dissipate |
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| New-age architecture of Karlín business district |
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| My favorite lunch spot |
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| Some kids enjoying the summer cinema underneath the old aqueduct |
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| The good 'ol Prague sunsets on the Vltava |
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| About to embark on the famed Náměstí Míru escalator, the longest in Prague |
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| Catching up with a Colombian buddy from the Würzburg days...not to mention having a plate of svíčková, one of the most typical Czech dishes |
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| Among the tombs... |
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| The old freight station in Žižkov, where apparently a circus was going to be happening later |
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| Best fast food pizza place in Prague |
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| Delicious meeting with one of my students, Iva, mother of a recently married man and bestower of an amazingly made koláč |
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| Picnic at Vyšehrad, Prague's other fortress |
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| Spooking around outside Basical of Sts. Peter and Paul at Vyšehrad |
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| Trying to prove all those years on the Pavlik basement pool table weren't for nothing |
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| Keeping my ducks in a row |
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| Becherovka: Taste of Czech Republic and 13th spring of Karlovy Vary |
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| View of Prague Castle from the terrace of Villa Müller |
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| The best Vietnamese place in town...the Vietnamese make up the Czech Republic's largest non-white minority |
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| Some of that FC Sparta love...the biggest football (soccer) club in Prague |
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| Cukrárna Alchymista...cheesecake so good it'll make 'ya cry |
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| The senate of the Czech Republic |
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| It's a well-known fact that all the world's best beer is made by monks |
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| Don't forget to take time to stop and smell the roses |
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| Fried cheese, an amazingly Czech oddity of amazing edibility |
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| Prayers on the Charles Bridge |
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| Casually purveying the empire |
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| Pribináček, favorite sweet treat of Czech children and anyone with a decent palate and appreciation for gastronomy |
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| Vendula and Eli in the shadow of Karlštejn Castle. The castle served as the stronghold for Charles IV's jewels and later the treasures of the entire Holy Roman Empire |
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| Contemplating the mysteries of Karlštejn |
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| Stuck in the Dark Ages |
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| Castle's defenses slacking on the job |
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| Serious question: "What's the best Czech beer?" |
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| Winding down the trip at Mexiko, a quarry that was used to supply forced labor for political prisoners and dissidents |
