Passports and Toys

Charles Bridge and the Vltava.
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Jeremy and Haley went to the American Embassy first thing this morning to fill out paperwork for a temporary passport to replace the one he lost the other evening. Once he’d filled out all the paperwork, they handed him his actual passport, which someone apparently found and turned in. I guess he won’t carry it in his pants pocket any more.

Prague Castle has a toy museum. It’s interesting to see all the adult activities that are replicated in children’s toys: transportation, homemaking, nurturing, war. We talked about favorite toys this evening and what wasn’t in the museum. (When Doug mentioned a few things, and I said, “Balls!” he thought I was being rude, but I was just noting the lack of balls in the museum.) Haley remembered a favorite chemistry set, Jeremy legos, and Nathaniel beavers.

Christian Dior Barbie.
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What the Toy Museum had in spade was Barbies! The whole second floor was filled with Barbie in Christian Dior, Barbie having twins (with Doctor Ken attending), hippie Barbie and Ken (longer hair, not painted anymore) from the seventies, and, of course, Skipper.

The Toy Museum charges 70 crowns for adults and 120 crowns for a family with children up to age 15. When the ticket taker asked for 140 for Doug and me, I tried to tell her the two of us were a family, but she didn’t buy it. We needed to have children with us to count as a family. The metro system also has some price oddities: 100 crowns for a day pass, 330 crowns (!) for a three-day pass, and 500 crowns for a five-day pass. It’s 550 crowns for a month-long pass.

Menu Mystery. We have not seen an Obama American.
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We’ve eaten in an interesting variety of restaurants. Nathaniel has taken us to some traditional Bohemian eateries, where you can get what looks like the entire leg of a pig. Today we had lunch in a place called Maly Buddha, which was a little more to Haley’s vegan tastes. My Lonely Planet guide was a bit snarky in saying of it, “Like stepping into a Saigon temple, Maly Buddha is all tinkling music and an atmosphere of enforced peace.” After the crowds of Prague castle, enforced peace wasn’t so bad, and I ordered one of their “healing wines”: žen šen bílé—good for high blood pressure, relaxing. It tasted like some sort of brandy—with mint leaves in it—and it was very relaxing.