Praga (pr-aw-ga) – Prague

         

  …so as you know, the first day in Prague started nice and early….too early honestly….but it was good, we were up at 3:30 and out the door and taking a cab to catch the bus as soon as we were able to find and wake up the guy with us (he was one of the people who stayed out all night, but they came back to the hostel about 3 to pack up their stuff and apparently he fell asleep, but since he was the only guy we weren’t in the dorm with him and had to find him first) we were off to the airport J….the group heading back to torino took off about 40 minutes before Natalie and I, so we made our way to our gate after saying goodbye…we discovered during boarding, that we were the first flight with this company going from Brussels to Prague, so they gave us chocolates when we were boarding! It was great J J…

            …we got into Prague about 8:30 in the morning, went to the ATM to get ourselves some Czech Crowns and were off to the city….we found a cheap shuttle into the city center….i say it was cheap but literally everything in this country was! It was so awesome, I loved it!!....but when we got in, we were immediately off, walked through the old town square and saw the Astronomical Clock for the first time, so so cool J….but we would come back here….the real goal was Wenceslas Square….for a Scmazney Syr ( I don’t think I spelled that right, oh well J) literally fried cheese….a really popular thing here! And something that Natalie had been really craving and was totally excited about eating J (Natalie studied abroad in Prague in the Fall semester of 2011)....deep fried cheese on a sandwich, slathered in ketchup and mayonnaise…. And a beer….literally this was our breakfast…and we weren’t the only ones eating and DRINKING at breakfast, tons of people were it was so weird, but also so so awesome!!...

            …after this first stop, we were off to find our hostel and hopefully drop off our bags at least….when we walked up, we saw a tour bus of students going inside so we figured a better decision would be to go get a coffee and let it die down a bit….when we returned we discovered we were able to check in right then…it was great, the hostel was very modern and really really nice, nicer than Brussels AND both nights were cheaper than the one there haha….but we were very happy with it and the staff was awesome J…

            …when we were done getting settled a bit, we were off again…this time to Prague Castle…we were able to metro pretty close, and when we got out Nat found our next snack…a EuroHotdog…..it was delicious….you don’t realize how much you miss hotdogs until all you have is Wurstel…but a EuroDog, is a bagette style roll with a hole punched into it, then ketchup and mustard, then the hotdog J….perfect lunch ish snack J….then she showed me the Senate Gardens…did I mention it was also totally gorgeous outside, because it was….but the gardens were so so pretty….the first part was a giant fountain/pond….and there were Peacocks walking around, one was an albino one too….totally cool….then the second part were normal gardens, but the back wall was really cool, a giant sculpture…dripping rock, it was called, but the coolest part was the fact that it was a giant seek-and-find…there were faces, rodents, and snakes hidden in it…really a neat thing J…

            …after the gardens we started the trek up to the castle…..a trek I proceeded to call, the Trail of Tear-Doom….it just seemed to fit….a totally steep incline, and covered in cobblestones (most of Prague is cobblestones, trust me, my back is still feeling them)….we stopped part way up for a Kofella (again probably didn’t spell correctly), the Czech soda…sooo sweet, but really good….when we finally made it to the top of the hill and all of the stairs….the view was spectacular! Completely breathtaking….see during WWII, Prague was controlled by the Nazis (partly because Hitler thought it was the most beautiful city in Europe) so it was sheltered from the intense bombing that occurred in the rest of Europe, so much more of the history is still standing here J….

            ….after marveling for a while we headed into the castle, funny enough, I thought that the castle looking structure you see in pictures of Prague was the castle….nope….thats the Basilica in the castle….we got a ticket that allowed us to go into 4 of the attractions up there….1. Part of the castle itself…really cool to walk around in, and see it all….everything, down to the door handles were so so cool….one room is bright red, not by design either…there was a fire once, in which they discovered that in intense heat, this specific stone reacts and turns red….really neat…

            …the next attraction was the actual Basilica, an amazing Gothic style church with really intricate stained glass….and an AMAZING separate side altar in its own room….the entire room was a fresco….loved it….

     

       …third stop on the list was another smaller church, right behind the basilica….entirely really raw stone…with not just a relic but the entire body of a saint…really cool….finally we went on the last stop, Golden Lane….a small lane with shops through very small doorways….we could have come home with all sorts of treasures from here…but we were good, I found just a toy for Elliot and Nat found something for an Aunt….at the end we found ourselves at another gorgeous vantage point with Trdlinks….my most favorite Czech treat J….its a piece of dough, rolled into a snake, then coiled around a solid wood dowel, then rolled in sugar and almond pieces, and placed spinning over coals….ssssssooooooo gooooodddd!!!....

 J….loved them….

           …after the adventures at the castle, we headed back down the hill for a park to nap in…we wandered our way back to the Senate Gardens and figured this was a perfect place for some bench naps….and nap we did, after about 30 minutes later we woke up feeling so so much better….we wandered some more, towards the river…and found some beautiful swans in front of Charles Bridge…perfect…naturally we spent some time just watching, but then eventually wandered some more, ending up on the bridge itself….it was wonderfully full with vendors and street performers…the best being a 3 violin, 1 cello, and 1 drummer group

            …we took our time weaving and roving our way through the streets, metro and trams and ended back at the hostel again….this time really was to relax for a bit….Natalie got in touch with some friends that studied with her here in Prague that have since, graduated college and now teach English in Prague….one was working so we headed out to go see her….she works at this great little restaurant/bookstore….but everything is in English!...her friend, worked in the bookstore part, where I was able to find the next book that I wanted to read, in English which was so great and unexpected!....and we just sat and talked with her and hung out….we ended up even ordering some dinner too….great burgers and beer…perfect….

            ….after her friend finished closing, we were all off together, to go out with another of her friends, whose birthday it was….the three of us really only went out for a drink, because Natalie and I were dog tired….we went home and it wasn’t long until we were happily sleeping in the hostel…