We stayed a night in Prague with the Rhos before heading to Vienna but we just explored the main tourist areas. After we got back from Vienna, we had a day and a half to see as much as we could – or so we thought!
We started off our day by heading to Starbucks. Marco is one of those people that need a cup of coffee to get going in the morning. We crossed over the well-known Charles’ Bridge on the way and snapped a few photos of the castle and cathedral over the river.
There are lots of people selling souvenirs or doing caricatures on the bridge. It seems as though it is only used by tourists.
We both liked Prague but we also felt as though it had a bit of a ‘Disney’ feel to it. Contrarily to Vienna, the tourist attractions are all concentrated in one area. In this area there are only tourists and things geared towards tourists. Vienna is much more spread out and we could constantly hear German around us, which made it a more unique experience. This picture shows a bit of that Disney feeling – with buildings that look like they were restored just for pictures such as this one.
The Prague Cathedral is situated in the middle of the very large castle (one of the biggest in the world). It is hard to get a picture of the front of it since the castle walls are not far away.
The castle was built from 1344- 1890ish. It is the only cathedral I have seen that has been so recently finished. This stained glass is from the end of the 19th c. The ones at the front of the church are visibly much older.
Every major city we have been to recently has had some sort of memorial to the former President of Poland who died in a plane crash not long ago. This one was located in the cathedral.
After ‘escaping’ from the Disney Castle and Cathedral area, we walked down a little hidden garden path to take some pictures and then went up the funicular to Petrin Hill. Prague is known as the ‘City of a Thouand Spires.’ You can get somewhat of that from this picture.
On Petrin Hill is the Petrinska Rozhledna, an observation tower which is to resemble the Eiffel Tower. We climbed the endless stairs to the top to see the Prague skyline. We also walked around the gardens which are just blooming on the hill.
We continued on our walking tour through Prague. This is the American University of Prague that the Rhos go to. A little bit smaller than Grove City J.
Close to their university is the Lennon Wall. It started during the communist regime and was covered with John Lennon-inspired lyrics and graffiti. There are some pretty ridiculous things written on it too. Close by is also a little area called Kampa which reminds me of Venice – canals with houses on either side.
A monument that spells ‘Revolution’ in Czech to commemorate the 1989 fall of communism.
The New Old Town Square in Prague. We looked at the sites here quickly but did not spend too much time here.
At the end of the day, we were ready for some peace and quiet. On my list I had a park written down that is on the outskirts of the city (Vysehrad Castle). It was a castle at one point but pretty much all that remains is the wall. It was beautiful and we were pretty much the only non-Czech people there.
That night we took Jake, Hana, and Devon out for dinner as a thank you for letting us crash at their place while we were there. It was so great getting to see familiar faces. They were the best part about the city! It makes me even more excited to see everyone back home.
They took us to a Czech restaurant that is far away from the tourist crowds. It was SO cheap. Beer was 1 euro and this entire plate was 6 euro. It was delicious. After numerous trips to ‘MacDo’ as the French call it, and Burger King, I was ready for a real meal.
The menus were hilarious. What does that mean!!?! Something warm to the ball? Something to beer?
The next day, we planned on going to see the Jewish Quarter which is supposedly very cool. Little did we know we’d wake up the next morning to a cancelled flight in the evening and need to leave right away….more details to come about that in the next post!
In general, we liked Prague but it isn’t a city I would return to like I would with so many others. I am happy I got to see it, but the Disney feel and the techno music blasting everywhere ruined part of the charm of the city. Guess it would be better if I liked to go clubbing…
Tidbits about Prague:
- Lots of tourists – especially from France
- Even though they are in the EU they use the Czech Crown which is pretty cheap
- Obvious that it was Communist at one point in time
- Highest number of atheists in Europe
- Lowest birth rate in Europe – their population is declining at such a rate that there are major government incentives to have children (according to Hana!)
- Their fashion is well…unique…same with hair styles. We saw lots of females with brightly dyed hair.
- Not so friendly over all
- Lots of beggars but no gypsies.
I think this blog is more negative overall, but don’t get me wrong, I really enjoyed the city as well. Maybe someone who has lived/studied abroad there can correct my ‘first appearances’ of Prague.
P.S. I am not sure why the photos are not correctly oriented. I'll try to fix it.
I'll email you more probably, but I had to comment here! is the 'revolution' monument in old town square? I don't remember seeing it when I was there 2 years ago. and yes, it is very touristy, very Disney-esque, but also as you mentioned that is mainly only the case in the area where you spent the most time - near the castle and in the old town. there are a lot of cool, more chill, more czech hangouts but they are spread out around the center, and less dense with everything to do; it's harder to get around but made it nice to spend months there because there was stuff worth uncovering over time. anyway... we oughta chat soon :) love reading about your travel romps! naskledanou!
ReplyDeleteAmanda
It's not in Old Town Square but it's close by! It looks pretty new but I'm not sure when it was built. It would have been hard to miss when you were there so I'm assuming it's more recent. My internet is really shaky at the moment (have it for about 5 minutes a day....) so I'll let you kno when it's back so we can chat!
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