Prague! (part one)

After driving all day from Bremerhaven, I finally made it to Prague late on Friday night. It took some effort to get to my hostel because although its website showed pictures of its sign on the building, the sign wasn't there in real life. I drove right past on the first shot and even though I figured out pretty quickly that I had gone too far, I was trapped in a maze of one-way streets and pedestrian zones. All the streets are cobbled and I don't speak Czech so it wasn't easy figuring out where the pedestrian zones started and ended. Nevertheless, I found my hostel, parked in a garage, and checked in.

After checking in, I got cleaned up as quick as I could, and then set off to find something to eat and drink. I succeeded so well at finding something to drink, that I can't remember my success (or lack thereof) of finding something to eat.

The next day, I got up, showered and set off to explore Prague which turns out to be one of the most beautiful cities I've ever been to. The winding streets, the architecture, it was all amazing. I really wish I had had someone traveling with me because it seems almost a waste to have been there by myself. There's a medieval clock tower in the center of the city, from the top of which you have awesome views in all directions. Because many buildings are built so closely together, some of the best views of a couple churches are from the clock tower. Additionally, the clock has a set of very elaborate chimes, and at noon a skeleton comes alive to pull the chain that rings them.


I had lunch at an Irish pub nearby where I had an awesome hamburger and watched the final match of Tri Nations rugby between New Zealand and Australia. It was really cool to watch because it seemed every Kiwi or Aussie tourist in the city was at the pub watching the match. Not only were the younger travelers harassing each other, the older crowd (grey-hairs in their 60s and 70s!) would harass each other too. The women too! The game was pretty exciting. New Zealand was favored to win and they took an early lead. Australia then had 3 unopposed scores and that really set the Aussie crowd off. The Kiwis finally came back to win 28-24 and the pub erupted in shouts and cheers. It must have really worried someone because shortly after, about 8 police cars and over a dozen police officers had shown up, looking ready to control a riot. I was done with that mess, so I left to see more of the city.

I wandered around and found the Charles Bridge which spans the River Vlatava and connects the Old Town to what in the 14th Century were the suburbs and the Prague Castle. As with any structure nearly 700 years old, there is a lot of history in the bridge, including the spiked heads of 20-something revolutionaries which were placed there as a deterrent to future wannabes. There are 30 really cool statues lining both sides of the bridge with various stories attached to them, however these are all replicas of the original 17th Century statues which are all housed in the National Museum now. The bridge was incredibly crowded with tourists, vendors, and street performers and I bought a cool photo of the bridge, cleared of people, and with Prague Castle in the background. Other than my Jeep, it was probably the best purchase of the trip.