Happy Easter!

The first picture is us at the Czech restaurant (more below).

The second shows us on a typical trip to the market. Lucas throws all kinds of things into my basket. This time it was a lime (accompanied by the exclamation "Guacamole!"), a head of cauliflower and an orange. It's a nice balance to my own indecisiveness.

The third pic is a store window dressed for Easter (more below).

And now a little about our weekend...

Friday night we decided to hop on a tram and go someplace random and new. We ended up going very fast and very far away from city center and to the end of the line. It was interesting because we got to see where people actually live.

But when we pressed the button to get out of the tram, the doors wouldn't open. It was late and we were the only people left, so we knew right away that we had done something wrong. Turns out we had gone past the last stop and into the tram resting zone. I started to panic a bit. Less about being stuck in a tram all night than being a dumb tourist family yelling and flailing our arms to get out!

But thankfully, Chris found a buzzer that signaled someone to let us out. So here we are at the top of the hill and the edge of civilization, alone, except for a babbling, wandering man half-heartedly testing the door of a very closed (surrounded with metal bars and chains) tobacco store. We waited a bit and caught a tram back down the hill. And a couple of stops in, it was once again bustling with teenagers, families and happy young couples.

Saturday we went to Prague Castle. It was crowded and Lucas was out of sorts because it was close to nap time. So while Chris went exploring, I watched him in this little circular stage/cupola area while he ran around with his new friend Gustavo (Guga), a 2.5 year old Brazilian boy whose family was living in England and visiting Prague for the weekend. It was very cute! His mom said that maybe we would see each other again in Prague. And the next day we did! - in the subway headed to a less tourist-y area so it was very much a coincidence.

Speaking of coincidences, Lucas developed a great interest in hopping last week and this weekend. This is a very cute sight to behold. It takes a great deal of effort for those 2 little feet to leave the ground simultaneously.

Sunday we took a long stroll across the river and down winding cobblestone streets to the playground where we spent the morning. On the way back we ate delicious Czech food in a quaint restaurant courtyard. There were blue bell-type flowers on the tables so we had a little of Texas with us. We ate potato pancakes, ham & kraut, chicken & broccoli, and Goulash with dumplings. A couple of Budvars were the perfect compliment.

The weather was beautiful, blue skies to offset the red tile roofs. The way people decorate to celebrate Easter is sooo beautiful! Everywhere, there are intricately hand-painted eggs for sale and people carry bundles of sticks whimsically embellished with colorful, thin trailing ribbons. Stores and restaurants hang the beautiful eggs on small potted trees and set them by the front door. Simple bouquets of Forsythia, another local favorite, remind me of good old Jo-ja. All day the church bells were ringing, a big hit with Lucas, whose favorite new question is a very announciated "What is THIS noise?" (Picture his eyebrows raised, lips pooched in a semi-surprised expression, nothing moving except for his big brown eyes right to left).

Additional tidbits:
-Saturday, I got a Thai massage followed by a pot of green tea!
-Monday, we found a great little vegetarian restaurant, Lehka Hlava (Clear Head). It felt good to stuff Lucas with hummus, olives, eggplant quesadillas, black bread and carrot juice.

-Lucas's new favorite things include ... dinging clocks, see-saws, metal grates on the sidewalk and octagons.