Oh, Prague. Finally, Prague. I'm almost nervous to write this post because it's all been built up so much, and I had to somehow narrow down my 200 favorite photos to around 30. Our four days in Prague were full of ups and downs, the bluest skies we've ever seen and a lot of rain, the most wonderful people and the least wonderful people, the best food and the worst food. All parts making a whole, I can only look back with so much amazement at our time there. I'll try to provide the abridged version... Forgive me ahead of time.
It was quite a bit of stress getting Pepe and ourselves to Praha. Driving in the Czech Republic is a very strange experience, especially without GPS and with cops outnumbering civilians on the road... but that's all I'll say about that. Regardless, we made it in good time and checked into our perfectly located hostel (just off Wenceslas Square). Michael had come down with a sickness something awful, so for the first night I worked on the blog while he slept like a baby, broke his fever, and got better. We got up the next day a healthy pair, and set out to explore. We wandered until we found the gate to the old city (or Powder Tower) and then the Old Town Square, and just stood in awe for a while. This is where Michael would give you a comprehensive history lesson, but I'll just say that Prague is an incredibly old city with an incredibly sordid and interesting history and yet, in spite of itself, has aged so gracefully. It's truly breathtaking.
We continued through the maze of Old Town out to the famous Charles Bridge, crossed into the Mala Strana, or Lesser Town, and found ourselves in Medieval Times. The streets are lined with tall, narrow, colorful buildings and roads are cobblestone, all leading to a striking baroque cathedral in the center, all being overlooked by an incredible castle and another gothic cathedral on the hill. It's a sight that can't be described, but must be seen (go!). After paying 29 czk (just over a Euro) for a half liter of beer each, we went down to the river for a different view of the other side of the city, and then headed off to find dinner. We got a sour taste in our mouths thanks to an attempted, but avoided restaurant rip-off and then Prague redeemed itself with one of the best and cheapest meals of the trip at a local hockey bar, believe it or not. The next day was another of wandering. We checked out the Jewish Quarter where Michael marveled at how tiny the people must have been, and headed back across the Bridge to head up to the castle/cathedral (the largest castle in the world, don't you know). Once again, we were blown away. Photos just don't do the cathedral justice, and seeing the actual room where Bohemian Kings and Holy Roman Emperors held court gave me a feeling of awe I can't really describe.
The next day we had the prospect of a fancy 4-star room to look forward to (thanks dad!), so we packed up our stuff, got an early check in, and headed into the old town where our cute little mint green boutique hotel stood just inside the city gate. And then the rain started. Despite how tempting it was to stay cozy in our first king size bed and reconnect with the real world on our first flat screen on the gloomy day, we instead went to out first Czech mall and bought our first European rain jackets. We dragged our cold, wet feet back up the hill to see the Golden Row, a little cobblestoned lane of Medieval houses behind the castle. Michael had to almost double over just to fit through the doors, but it was a worthwhile adventure, if only for the 40 foot hallway lined in Medieval knights' armor. We returned to our hotel, and soaked our frozen feet in a hot bath to thaw out, cleaned up, and went for a nice dinner in the hotel. I wont get into why it turned out to be not so nice, but we had some compensating to do, so why not adventure to a hip underground bar with a drink menu that is literally a hardcover book complete with original comic-style illustrations. Bugsy's Bar is a must see in Prague: unbelievably creative and delicious cocktails, worth the cost, not touristy, and such a cool atmosphere. If I wasn't so terrified of the wrath of an angry (or should I say angier) Czech person I would have had one of those menu books in my big purse so fast. It was a perfect way to top off an imperfect night, and we strolled home across a barren town square, too drunk to care about the pouring rain.
This is getting long. Really long. So I'll be brief(ish...). We woke up with mixed feelings about leaving Prague. I had a last minute rendezvous planned with a friend of mine from the Bay Area, Nicole, who now lives in her native Czech Republic with her unbelievably sweet girlfriend Gina. We were so desperately happy for familiarity so we didn't care at all that the rain confined us to a 2 hour conversation in the hotel lobby. Nicole is the most animated, hilarious, awesome person, Gina literally never stops smiling, and they came with a fuzzy little playmate for me so aptly named Puppy - a welcome departure from the typical locals. Listening to the chronicles of their first 8 months as expats validated pretty much every bad feeling we had about the country and its people, but also provided a fascinating peek into the Czech side of things. If you spent most of your life rightfully paranoid that your neighbor might turn you in for something they heard you say through the wall one night, you might not readily trust the world and smile unabashedly either. I finally allowed Puppy to be pried from my arms and we hugged our goodbyes. We left Prague happily, thanks to a just a little taste of friendship and human connection with these two amazing people. On to Munich we drove.
The next day we had the prospect of a fancy 4-star room to look forward to (thanks dad!), so we packed up our stuff, got an early check in, and headed into the old town where our cute little mint green boutique hotel stood just inside the city gate. And then the rain started. Despite how tempting it was to stay cozy in our first king size bed and reconnect with the real world on our first flat screen on the gloomy day, we instead went to out first Czech mall and bought our first European rain jackets. We dragged our cold, wet feet back up the hill to see the Golden Row, a little cobblestoned lane of Medieval houses behind the castle. Michael had to almost double over just to fit through the doors, but it was a worthwhile adventure, if only for the 40 foot hallway lined in Medieval knights' armor. We returned to our hotel, and soaked our frozen feet in a hot bath to thaw out, cleaned up, and went for a nice dinner in the hotel. I wont get into why it turned out to be not so nice, but we had some compensating to do, so why not adventure to a hip underground bar with a drink menu that is literally a hardcover book complete with original comic-style illustrations. Bugsy's Bar is a must see in Prague: unbelievably creative and delicious cocktails, worth the cost, not touristy, and such a cool atmosphere. If I wasn't so terrified of the wrath of an angry (or should I say angier) Czech person I would have had one of those menu books in my big purse so fast. It was a perfect way to top off an imperfect night, and we strolled home across a barren town square, too drunk to care about the pouring rain.
This is getting long. Really long. So I'll be brief(ish...). We woke up with mixed feelings about leaving Prague. I had a last minute rendezvous planned with a friend of mine from the Bay Area, Nicole, who now lives in her native Czech Republic with her unbelievably sweet girlfriend Gina. We were so desperately happy for familiarity so we didn't care at all that the rain confined us to a 2 hour conversation in the hotel lobby. Nicole is the most animated, hilarious, awesome person, Gina literally never stops smiling, and they came with a fuzzy little playmate for me so aptly named Puppy - a welcome departure from the typical locals. Listening to the chronicles of their first 8 months as expats validated pretty much every bad feeling we had about the country and its people, but also provided a fascinating peek into the Czech side of things. If you spent most of your life rightfully paranoid that your neighbor might turn you in for something they heard you say through the wall one night, you might not readily trust the world and smile unabashedly either. I finally allowed Puppy to be pried from my arms and we hugged our goodbyes. We left Prague happily, thanks to a just a little taste of friendship and human connection with these two amazing people. On to Munich we drove.
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