Prague

Coming off the bus from Vienna, I was still a little bummed about being away from family on Christmas and everything being closed etc. etc.

I had high hopes for Prague, thus allotting it the most amount of days in my Christmas/New Year’s itinerary. I had seen the pictures and read the guidebooks and blogs and was overflowing with excitement to go there.

Then we get out of the bus and I was immediately underwhelmed.

The buildings surrounding the area were a little dingy and the metro station was a wasteland (plus nearly impossible to navigate…it took us at least 5 minutes to buy tickets and 10 minutes to find our line).

Once we made it into the actual city, though, I was blown away. Prague quickly became one of those cities that lived up to my expectations.

My first impression of the old town came after sundown (despite being only 4 in the afternoon) and consisted of Christmas markets, tasty treats, and an amazing folk band blasting their hits.

I know that we saw the Christmas markets in Prague after Christmas, but I wasn’t impressed for the most part. Sure, there was great food to be had and some neat trinkets to buy, but by and large most “gift stalls” (as opposed to food stalls) were selling things that you would find in any of the numerous souvenir shops around the area. I didn’t get that authentic feel that I have grown to know and love from so many other Christmas markets.

So, I won’t be rushing back to Prague at Christmastime.

Instead, I’ll maybe head back in warmer weather!!

Prague is, by far, the coldest city in Europe that I have ever visited. Well below freezing most days we were there plus a wind that cuts through you and literally chills you to the bone.

Need I remind you, I was wearing 3 pairs of pants, at least 8 layers on top, and as many socks that would still allow my foot to have circulation in my boots. Even still, I was somewhat miserable after about an hour of being outside. Then we had to retreat to a café to thaw out and then give it another go.

On the plus side of that, though, is that you don’t have to worry about rain because precipitation brings snow and snow brought out such a beauty of the old town. I got to view this my last day and a half in the city and it truly felt as though the city came to life from a fairy tale.

We allotted time to do a free walking tour of the city (something I ALWAYS try to do whenever I visit a new city) and finally got a better sense of where everything was and what it was all about.

We started in the Old Town Square which is actually still intact. Only one major building was bombed and removed from the destruction in WWII. Compared to all the heavily bombed and rebuilt cities I have seen recently in Germany and Austria, I enjoyed seeing the original architectural beauty of the city.

We made sure to see the Astronomical Clock which was ridiculously disappointing. I mean, for the time that it was built, it was really revolutionary. Even compared to the Glockenspiel of Munich, which is considered to be the most disappointing tourist site in Europe, I would say that this one was even lamer! (Don’t get me wrong, though. The clock itself was neat. It was the “show” that played on the hour from those little windows, if you can even call it that…)

Wenceslas Square, the largest “plaza” in the city (I use quotation marks because I would not call the large majority of it a plaza…just a road) is/was home to a lot of major demonstrations in the city, especially during the last 60 years or so with the Nazis, Soviets, Velvet Revolution, etc.

One area that I found really interesting to see was the old Jewish Quarter. This small area lies a short distance away from the Old Town Square and was (and still is) the home to hundreds of Jews in the area. The Old Jewish Cemetery sticks up above the street for a singular reason: space. It was impossible to acquire more land, so when they had filled the plot of land with tombstones, their only option was to build up and very tightly together.

A short walk away from the Jewish Quarter, we came across the Vltava River. Across the way is the other main touristed area in Prague, principally the Prague Castle.

The favorite way to get over to the other side of old Prague is via Charles Bridge, a half millennium old bridge decorated with statues and images (that you have to rub for good luck, obviously) and filled side-to-side with tourists, vendors, and (I’m just guessing here) pickpockets. I would have loved to stroll the bridge at sunrise (in warm weather) to get it a little bit more to myself because it was hard to completely enjoy waddling like a group of penguins across the river.

Once on the other side, we wandered the gorgeously old streets and made sure to check out the John Lennon Wall.

*Sad Story Time*

A couple of months ago, some art students decided to completely paint over the John Lennon Wall with white paint and left the message “wall is over” in order to spike a wave of artistic talent from the new generations.

If you look in my pic, where it says “war is over” was where it said “wall is over.” I’m glad that it’s not like the wall is bare (had we come a month and a half earlier, it would have been devastating!) but it was still sad and barer than it should have been.

I decided to take a tour of the Prague Castle in order to learn more about the history of it all. Sadly, because it was so cold that day and the wind at the top of the hill was atrocious, I had a difficult time fully concentrating on the stories being told.

I do remember that it was a beautiful and huge castle. It was like a city inside the city. The cathedral, St. Vitus Cathedral, had the most breathtakingly intricate stained-glass windows I have ever seen.

As we walked through the castle’s grounds, we also came across the Old Royal Palace, the Basilica of St. George, and the Golden Lane (gorgeous old houses) among other buildings I’m sure were pointed out to me. My brain was just frozen.

As you leave the castle, you are greeted with the most spectacular view of Prague.

Seriously, look at this!

I ended up loving Prague, just as I thought that I would. I only wish that it was warmer thus I could have enjoyed it a bit more!! I actually extended my time there (and then remembered that I set my itinerary so I would be back in Germany before my 90 day visa expired. Oops! They didn’t check my passport, so thankfully it didn’t end up mattering) and know I’ll be back again.