Update on Peter's health on Day 2 in Prague. Not good, but well enough he reckons to go on the country tour, to visit a Chateau. This tour included a 'Falconry Show' and lunch. It was about a 40 minute drive from Prague.

We left the hotel at 9.00am. On arrival at Jemniste Chateau we were welcomed and taken into the Chateau by a lovely young woman, who was to be our tour guide for the morning. A member of the family who own the Chateau, always welcomes the guests. Today it was the son and first born of two children to Jiri Sternberg. The son was born in 1995, a year after his parents inherited the Chateau. At this time it was extremely run down. It is amazing what they have been able to do to the property in 22 years. His parents had just married and were in their early 20's, when they inherited the property. Today Jiri and his wife are still very much hands on owners. Apparently Jiri is often seen on the ride on lawn mower tending to the upkeep of the grounds.

After a drink of champagne at 10 in the morning (no alcohol for us), orange juice or water and the small welcoming speech by the son, we were taken out into the garden at the back of the Chateau for the Falconry Show.

It was interesting, but we weren't going to join the others and have photos taken with the huge eagle. We see how much damage these birds do to baby stock, especially lambs. The birds were fed bits of baby chicken after each performance. We can't say that the whole show really did much for either of us. We were told that England is the only country in the world that has been continuous with the tradition of Falconry. I did ask the relatives about this fact and was told that it really is only a tourism thing these days, with performances at castles. I guess that was all it was in Prague as well. The horse used in the show, had actually been used in a couple of movies. But we are not movie people, so it didn't mean anything to us, except that he wasn't any old horse!  

After the show we were taken on a tour of the Chateau and told the history. The Chateau was completed in 1725. However tragedy soon intervened and it burnt down in 1754. Only the Chapel survived the flames and the Chateau was reconstructed. The well known Sternberg clan purchased it in 1868 and it remained in the family until 1943. During the Nazi occupation the family refused to take German citizenship. The Chateau was taken from the family and used as a base by the Germans during the war. The Chateau was naturalised under the Communist regime in 1951. The Sternberg's did not get the Chateau back until 1994.  

There is the Main Hall in which there is a photo of Empress Maria Theresa. Maria fits into the family tree of the Sternberg family. There was porcelain and furniture from the 17th and 18th century on display. St Joseph's Chapel is the only section of the Chateau, still intact after the 18^th century fire and is very beautiful. We had to wear slippers during the tour so the flooring in the rooms were not damaged. They were quite hard to wear and you had to keep your wits about you, or you would have slipped and had a fall.

Then it was lunch in the restaurant and a walk in the gardens. The family also have a number of native animals, so the Chateau makes for a nice day visit to the country from Prague city. It is advertised as having a small zoo.

We were back in Prague in plenty of time to hit the shops. Peter had a rest while I had some retail therapy and then we both went for a walk to the 'Old Castle' area. We stayed there to watch the Astronomical Clock strike 6.00pm and I can't believe I fiddled around so much with the video on my phone, trying to get it recording, that I ended up with not one photo! Sometimes it is not a good day!

We dined at one of Ivo's recommended restaurants and had a nice meal, at a reasonable price. Tomorrow we pack up again, for the next leg of the adventure.