Hello from Prague!! Learning Czech is still a work in progress, but I think the appropriate greeting is "Ahoj" (pronounced like "ahoy, maties" in Pirate mode on Facebook).
We are excited to find ourselves in yet another new city. We both have a good feeling about this one - it's big, gorgeous, young, and fun to wander.
The train ride from Vienna was a pleasant four hours in a first-class compartment, complete with leather seats and a nice British boy. I'm trying not to be too girly here, but the FIRST thing that stood out to both me and Alysa about this guy was his beautiful leather bag and bracelet. It reminded me of a time on a tram in Zurich a few years ago, where a friend and I discussed that no American man would be caught dead wearing such pretty things. I guess we'll have to soak it up in Europe while we can.
Our hostel is located on a main strip of town called Wenceslas Square. (I tried singing the Christmas carol for Alysa, all of it, but she still doesn't recognize the tune. I'll keep practicing.) It's in the center of New Town, which is much more urban and chic than Old Town. We've gotten to explore both areas, and both are lovely.
We had a mission to find the Christmas market as soon as we got in, and as our luck would have it, it's located right on Wenceslas Square. The gluhwein (hot mulled wine) and cinnamon-sugar coated pastries served by street vendors were calling our name. Both were very traditional and dirt-cheap, therefore easily justified, and tasted fantastic.
From there we wandered aimlessly-but-with-purpose around the cobblestone streets of Prague, and found ourselves amid an English-speaking tour group. Needless to say, we helped ourselves. I'm sure this would be an entry in our How To Travel Cheaply tour book. We learned countless of fun facts, like how the Prague castle is lit up on Mick Jagger's dime and how Michael Jackson erected a statue of himself on the river valley. There were other not-so-amusing facts, particularly about the Jewish Quarter. Prague's historic buildings are so well-maintained because Hitler wanted to retire here. He created a vast Jewish cemetery (that is 4 meters deep - guess why) to commemorate his hard work. Today, there are only 1500 Jewish people still living in Prague, but many reminders of Hitler's long occupation.
It's also cool to think about how new this country is. Prague celebrates its twentieth birthday this year. Heck, it can't even get a beer legally in America. Actually, the country of Czechoslovakia only lasted seventy years. Czech people are said to be superstitious of bad weather as an omen that their country will end. After all, it has been through many political changes and corresponding natural disasters.
As we continued our wanderings, we found ourselves on the Paris street of Prague (it's called something like Paris-lativa, I swear). The lights above the street were breathtaking, almost as beautiful as those in Vienna's streets. We had awesome Indian food at a vegetarian restaurant, which we were pleased to find after so many meals of dumplings and cheese in Austria. We followed it up by grabbing a beer in an underground cave that had a labyrinth of bars. The beer was fantastic, as Prague claims to have the best beer in the world, and the venue was definitely a local's hangout. You'd have to be to navigate the place.
Brunch this morning was another surprise, because it was also vegetarian! I told Alysa that I've never been to vegetarian restaurants for two meals in a row, and I never thought that it would happen in Eastern Europe. It looks like I won't shrivel up into nothing in this town! I demanded an authentic Czech dinner though, which made things a bit more challenging, but I found a potato-mushroom soup that seems to be a Czech staple. They also serve many salads in Prague, which is unusual for any European city that I've been in. Alysa stuck it out with a meat, dumpling, and sauerkraut meal, which she reported to be less heavy than those in Austria. This restaurant was situated in a very underground restaurant as well - we've been meaning to Google the cave-per-capita statistic for Prague.
Touring the Prague castle was the highlight of our day. It is reported by the Guiness Book of World Records to be the biggest castle in Europe. It was certainly quite old so it was mostly made of stone and wood, unlike the glitzy palace of Vienna. We saw a Great Hall that horses could gallop into, via a special horse-galloping staircase. There was a fantastic cathedral in the center of the castle that had so much stained glass, gaudy tombs, and beautiful chapels that I know my dad would've been ecstatic. We saw another super old church (I know, two in one day?!) that was built before they had the technology to make a domed roof. It was humbling to sit inside such a beautiful, grand structure.
The palace came adorned with a picturesque side street where the servants of the castle lived and made their own community. This street was only a meter wide and both of us had to duck our heads to walk in the front doors. We saw the seamstresses' home, the little tavern (there used to be 1 tavern to every 7 homes in Prague, by the way), and the home of the local fortune-teller. It was like looking through a street of dollhouses, very similar in size to our current hostel room :)
Alysa also found her owl on this street, which is unique because it's a puzzle! The girl is finding the coolest treasures to bring home.
Near the church we stumbled across a cafe with fabulous homemade hot chocolate and another piece of history - the Lennon Wall. Apparently, when locals were running low on inspiration during the Communist era, this wall was painted overnight with themes from John Lennon. Every day it was repainted by police, and every night the words "Imagine" and "All You Need Is Love" would reappear. Alysa and I were awestruck by the beauty and meaning of this wall, and definitely got our artsy photo shots.
As for tomorrow, all I can promise is that we'll be enjoying the exchange rate.
Ahoj,
Melissa and Alysa
We are excited to find ourselves in yet another new city. We both have a good feeling about this one - it's big, gorgeous, young, and fun to wander.
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| Hi, Prague! |
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| "The City of Spires" |
The train ride from Vienna was a pleasant four hours in a first-class compartment, complete with leather seats and a nice British boy. I'm trying not to be too girly here, but the FIRST thing that stood out to both me and Alysa about this guy was his beautiful leather bag and bracelet. It reminded me of a time on a tram in Zurich a few years ago, where a friend and I discussed that no American man would be caught dead wearing such pretty things. I guess we'll have to soak it up in Europe while we can.
Our hostel is located on a main strip of town called Wenceslas Square. (I tried singing the Christmas carol for Alysa, all of it, but she still doesn't recognize the tune. I'll keep practicing.) It's in the center of New Town, which is much more urban and chic than Old Town. We've gotten to explore both areas, and both are lovely.
 |
| Wenceslas Square, the view from our hostel |
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| Old Town center |
We had a mission to find the Christmas market as soon as we got in, and as our luck would have it, it's located right on Wenceslas Square. The gluhwein (hot mulled wine) and cinnamon-sugar coated pastries served by street vendors were calling our name. Both were very traditional and dirt-cheap, therefore easily justified, and tasted fantastic.
 |
| Christmas Market! |
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| Christmas Market food! |
From there we wandered aimlessly-but-with-purpose around the cobblestone streets of Prague, and found ourselves amid an English-speaking tour group. Needless to say, we helped ourselves. I'm sure this would be an entry in our How To Travel Cheaply tour book. We learned countless of fun facts, like how the Prague castle is lit up on Mick Jagger's dime and how Michael Jackson erected a statue of himself on the river valley. There were other not-so-amusing facts, particularly about the Jewish Quarter. Prague's historic buildings are so well-maintained because Hitler wanted to retire here. He created a vast Jewish cemetery (that is 4 meters deep - guess why) to commemorate his hard work. Today, there are only 1500 Jewish people still living in Prague, but many reminders of Hitler's long occupation.
 |
| The famous castle |
It's also cool to think about how new this country is. Prague celebrates its twentieth birthday this year. Heck, it can't even get a beer legally in America. Actually, the country of Czechoslovakia only lasted seventy years. Czech people are said to be superstitious of bad weather as an omen that their country will end. After all, it has been through many political changes and corresponding natural disasters.
As we continued our wanderings, we found ourselves on the Paris street of Prague (it's called something like Paris-lativa, I swear). The lights above the street were breathtaking, almost as beautiful as those in Vienna's streets. We had awesome Indian food at a vegetarian restaurant, which we were pleased to find after so many meals of dumplings and cheese in Austria. We followed it up by grabbing a beer in an underground cave that had a labyrinth of bars. The beer was fantastic, as Prague claims to have the best beer in the world, and the venue was definitely a local's hangout. You'd have to be to navigate the place.
Brunch this morning was another surprise, because it was also vegetarian! I told Alysa that I've never been to vegetarian restaurants for two meals in a row, and I never thought that it would happen in Eastern Europe. It looks like I won't shrivel up into nothing in this town! I demanded an authentic Czech dinner though, which made things a bit more challenging, but I found a potato-mushroom soup that seems to be a Czech staple. They also serve many salads in Prague, which is unusual for any European city that I've been in. Alysa stuck it out with a meat, dumpling, and sauerkraut meal, which she reported to be less heavy than those in Austria. This restaurant was situated in a very underground restaurant as well - we've been meaning to Google the cave-per-capita statistic for Prague.
 |
| Alysa's food that looks almost good enough to eat. Almost. |
Touring the Prague castle was the highlight of our day. It is reported by the Guiness Book of World Records to be the biggest castle in Europe. It was certainly quite old so it was mostly made of stone and wood, unlike the glitzy palace of Vienna. We saw a Great Hall that horses could gallop into, via a special horse-galloping staircase. There was a fantastic cathedral in the center of the castle that had so much stained glass, gaudy tombs, and beautiful chapels that I know my dad would've been ecstatic. We saw another super old church (I know, two in one day?!) that was built before they had the technology to make a domed roof. It was humbling to sit inside such a beautiful, grand structure.
 |
| The very old church, from the 9th century |
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| The cathedral in the middle of the castle |
The palace came adorned with a picturesque side street where the servants of the castle lived and made their own community. This street was only a meter wide and both of us had to duck our heads to walk in the front doors. We saw the seamstresses' home, the little tavern (there used to be 1 tavern to every 7 homes in Prague, by the way), and the home of the local fortune-teller. It was like looking through a street of dollhouses, very similar in size to our current hostel room :)
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| Alysa in relation to the tiny homes (notice... she's ducking) |
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| ...and me in relation to the knight's armor |
Alysa also found her owl on this street, which is unique because it's a puzzle! The girl is finding the coolest treasures to bring home.
Near the church we stumbled across a cafe with fabulous homemade hot chocolate and another piece of history - the Lennon Wall. Apparently, when locals were running low on inspiration during the Communist era, this wall was painted overnight with themes from John Lennon. Every day it was repainted by police, and every night the words "Imagine" and "All You Need Is Love" would reappear. Alysa and I were awestruck by the beauty and meaning of this wall, and definitely got our artsy photo shots.
As for tomorrow, all I can promise is that we'll be enjoying the exchange rate.
 |
| Don't tell anyone what I have in my wallet. |
Ahoj,
Melissa and Alysa
Melissa and Alysa
ReplyDeleteSimply amazing writing and pictures, you make me feel like I am there with you and thats awesome. Thanks again for sharing. Absolutley the best. Beautiful girls in beautiful cities with young men with purses. It just doesn't get any better.
Love you both!!!
dad g
Hi Alysa,
ReplyDeleteYour mom told me that you're in Prague, so Mary helped me find your blog. Uncle Rich and I visited a fun beer garden when we were in Prague last May. The name is "U Fleku" and is located at 110 00 Praha 1, Kremencova 11. Web address is ufleku.eu.
Looks like you guys are having a great time. Can't wait to hear more when you get back to the states.
-Mrs. C.
The black AMX cards are made of titanium. Might set off an alarm in airports.
ReplyDeleteRick Steves eat your heart out, we've got your replacement.
D&S