So, right now the three of us are in our hostel in Vienna, staying one more night. We missed the overnight train to Rome because apparently A LOT of people travel from Vienna to Rome on Thursday night. Listen up now, definitely make sure you know the trains that require a reservation because it will make the trip run much smoother. And do not wait until the departure day to make the reservation. Because chances are the whole train will be filled with people wanting to take a 13 hour overnight train.
But anywho, back to where we left off in Prague.
On Saturday morning we got up and started getting ready for the day. While we were doing so we met two people from Washington DC, Jamie and Sarah. We talked with them a bit and got to know them and decided to explore the city together.
We first headed towards Prague Castle and hit up the markets along the way. Those markets sell everything. We bought some strawberries for 80 czk, about $5.00. And for how much we got and how amazing they tasted, definitely worth every penny. Once we got to Prague Castle we walked through the complex and took lots of photos. Found a crazy echo circle like the ones at Purdue that 'ping' when you clap and started making noises. A bunch of other tourists saw us in the circle and joined in on the fun. It was pretty funny. After that we walked towards the Lookout Tower on Petrín, the mini Eiffel Tower, and stopped at a genuine puppet shop to see the merchandise. The old woman running the shop showed us how to work one, Jack Sparrow. It was really cool. Continued on to the tower and walked through the park below the tower. Decided to walk up to the top of the tower to get a view over the city. Very cool, you could see for miles.
Walked towards the Charles Bridge and looked at souvenirs and counted all the mullets and fanny-packs. Went to a bakery and got some food, delicious. Then stopped at a traditional Czech restaurant and got some traditional Czech food. We also ordered a 'giraffe,' a beer tower, full of scrumptious Czech beer. That night we decided to go out to a bar and have a drink and then went to Karlovy Lazne, a five-floor club with different dance rooms on each floor. It was intense. Got followed around by some creepy 50 year old man who was skeezing on Sarah. Then walked home, to Keith's dismay, but stopped at TWO different food vendors to get food. If we had went home in a cab it would have cost 400 czk, about $25 plus tip, not happening. But we made it back safely, I was the DW, the 'designated walker,' that night. Ha ha.
The next morning Payton, Keith, Sarah, and I went to find the Alphonse Mucha Museum. Along the way we stopped at Giallorossa Cafe and had some more delicious food. Walked through the museum, only two rooms, but definitely stayed for about two hours. Amazing work, check him out. Art nouveau is amazing! After that we headed to the Dancing House, not as exciting as I was expecting. Saw some paddle boats in the river and decided to go rent one. Paid for an hour and enjoyed the sunset on the Vltava River. Went back and got Jamie then headed out for some Czech Chinese food...? It was okay, had some free Chinese wine afterwards whuch was nice. Then headed back to the hostel and crashed.
The next morning we all decided to go our separate ways, but meet up again for beer later in the day. Payton, Keith, and I headed out to a giant market and stopped at the giant TV tower. It has giant babies all over it. Weird. Headed towards the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, but the museum was closed. That trip was a hike, the museum is on top of one of the tallest hills around Prague. After that we descended towards the market, made a wrong turn, and realized we no longer had enough time to see the market. So, we sat around and waited for Sarah and Jamie.
When they arrived we headed up to the Bier Garten in Letenské sady, a park. After a pricey lunch we walked to the giant metronome, which is just that. A giant metronome. Then stopped by Stary zidovsky hrbitov, the Jewish Cemetery, and had a tour. That placed is incredible, there are headstones packed in it. Walked through a small synagogue that had all the names of the Jews affected by the Nazi Government painted on the walls. Astounding place. The walls are covered in names, it looked almost like newsprint. Very intense. Once the tour was done we headed to the Charles Bridge again and walked through another market. Random side note: there are markets everywhere in Prague. If you travel there, hit up as many as you can. Saw the sights on Charles Bridge, counted more hilarious tourists. Saw 13 fanny-packs there that day! After that we headed over to the John Lennon wall, which is a wall that everyone grafittis with inspirational messages. And I suppose there are some not so nice messages there too. We all wrote something, I drew a smiley face. :)
We decided to grab something to eat and headed to Cafe Louvre, where Sarah wanted to see the photography gallery, but it was closed. Still ate there though. Had amazing food, yet again. I hope you are seeing a trend. And of course, had dessert. Jamie had tiramisu, Sarah had nothing because she is lame, Payton had chocolate cake, Keith had pistachio ice cream, and I had poppy strüdle with plums and nut ice cream. Amazing. Once we were finished we walked back into old town and looked around. Then we headed back to the hostel to be lazy and sleep.
We all got up in the morning and caught the 8:39 train to Vienna. I chose the wrong compartment to stay in, it did not have any outlets to charge anything and it was right by the bathroom, which wreaked. When we arrived in Vienna we said our goodbyes and went our seperate ways.
We had walked to our hostel, since Niko did not respond and pick us up like he said he would. Lame-o. But we found it okay and got checked in.
I want to say, as a little conclusion, that Prague was one of the best cities we have stayed in so far. The character of the city is amazing, the architecture is awesome, and there is so much to do. You can find something anywhere you go. And we walked around quite a bit of the city and did not have any troubles with feeling safe. It is just a great city. If any of you ever get the chance for a European tour like us, or are thinking about heading somewhere in Europe, definitely make a huge effort to see Prague!!
That's all for now. I'll update more soon.
steinkraus.
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