Praha ha ha ha ha
Trip Start
Feb 05, 2008
1
64
70
Trip End
Ongoing
Prague,
Bohemia,
Czech Republic
Thursday, August 28, 2008
Okay, Praha or Prague as we call it. I realized as I sat down to write about this wonderful city that if all four people who are reading this blog/thing gave me a buck for every time I used the word 'beautiful', I'd have a pretty sizeable chunk of cash. That's what it is. Beautiful. In every sense of the word.
Its increasing popularity as a tourist destination over the past couple of decades has had the result that prices in the central area are now pretty much the same as those in Western Europe. Throngs of tourists converge on the picturesque old town square its surrounding streets and the Charles Bridge
View from Petrin Tower
. Art and music, clubs and buskers are everywhere. Small galleries with free exhibits featuring all sorts of modern visual arts are everywhere. In a successful attempt to get away from the high prices and crowds I booked at the highly rated Sir Toby's Hostel in district VII just across the Vltava River from the Old Town (Stare Mesto). No kidding, the prices in this working class neighbourhood were about half what they were downtown. I ran into Rachel who I'd met in Olympos in Turkey and again in Brasov, Romania. It's always neat when that happens.
I had five excellent days here. On day one I caught one of the very easy to use trams over to the base of Praha's famous flimsy version of the Eiffel Tower, the Petrin Tower. After it was a very reasonably priced and delicious lunch of roasted pork knee and Staropramen Beer. Later that night I got an opportunity to see some live indy rock at small campus club about the size of a rumpus room called 007 Straven.
On day two it was more mondo site seeing, the castle (don't call it a 'palace'), the cathedral (simply awesome) and the old town (beautiful!). Later I met a fellow I'd met in Novi Sad, John
The John Lennon Wall
. He has lived in Praha for the past two and a half years. We went for dinner and then he showed me a few interesting drinking spots. Funny, there were no open tables in one of the authentic Czech pubs we hit so John asked a fellow (in fluent Czech) if we could join him and the girl accompanying him at their table. No way. After repeated attempts he finally gave up, asking the guy to at least smile as we left. Be careful when you hit a Czech pub because they'll keep bringing beer even if you don't order more. You have to tell them not to bring anymore when you are done. Days three and four were spent enjoying more good food and excellent Czech beer, not customer service, and more sites and the city at a very casual pace. Restos right around the hostel served up some great local cuisine. Big meals were always less than 10 dollars. Roasted pork knee was the best!
The hostel offered an all you can eat breakfast in its cellar bar complete with cook your own eggs and pancakes stations and loads of fruits, breads and cheeses, all for about five bucks. I got five dollars worth of organic free trade coffee every morning. It was a great spot to linger and chat with other travelers from all over.
Sir Toby's was one of the finest hostels I've stayed at in all my travels, maybe even number two. Nothing has beat Hostel Lao in Mendoza yet. Next up it would be a night train to Krakow, $20 for a three berth sleeper, departing 21:24 and arriving at around 06:30.
