Prague has the allure of being a city that was once behind the iron curtain. It drives thoughts into my head of lines to get food and dreary government buildings. There was something very cool, having grown up during the height of the Cold War, that I was going to officially be on the other side of what was once the Iron Curtain. While there are remnants, still, of the communist rule I was pleased to see that the city is one in which history and culture survived this dark time in its history. Beautiful buildings and a lively culture abound.
The view from the train was mostly of farmland. There was an interesting farming technique I’d not seen before. Hay was bailed and then wrapped in plastic, usually white. The effect was the appearance of fields of mozzarella! Made me hungry. I had two trains on this trip, one from Munich to Neurenberg and then from Neurenberg to Prague. The first train was quite German. Sleek, clean and high speed. We sped alongside the Autobahn at 250 kilometers per hour, just slightly faster than I’d driven! I noticed there were several cars nearly keeping up with us. I love it!
The train from Neurenberg was old and a bit dirty. The train station itself was not the likes of the glamorous stations in Paris and London. It was quite dingy and dark. The images of a darker time came back into my head. I had looked on the map while on the train and it appeared my hotel was just a short walk from the station. As I walked I could see more lights and I came into Vaclavske Namesti or Wenceslas Square (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wenceslas_Square). My hotel was right of this square which is a huge square that is reminiscent of Times Square with lights and shops and throngs of people (plus casinos). The K&K Hotel Fenix was on a seedy street with “cabaret” spots (read peep show locations) but ended up being quite a nice hotel. Within walking distance of all major attractions in Stare Mesto (Old Town).
I arrived around 7:30 at night and given that most of the day had been on the train I wanted to go out and see the town. Unfortunately, I’d come down with a horrible cold and my body decided that sleep was more important. So the next morning, waking early from the pain of sinus congestion, I started my viewing of Prague. I got out of the hotel around 7 AM and walked to the Staromestske Namesti,or Old Town Square (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Old_Town_Square). Free of tourists at this hour I was able to see the buildings and take in the main square in the city which boasts buildings spanning 700 years. The St. Nicholas is a church on the square which has an astronomical clock (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prague_Astronomical_Clock) with which rings each hour with a show (similar but smaller than Munich) in which a skeleton, I believe representing death, rings the bell.
Next stop for me was the Karluv Most (Charles Bridge). This is the most famous bridge in Prague, though there are many. I was looking forward to rubbing the statue of St John Nepomuk which supposedly brings good luck, in hopes that it might help me rid myself of this horrible cold (though with the number of people that have rubbed this statue I would probably end up with something much worse!). Unfortunately the statue wasn’t reachable as a large portion of the bridge was under renovation. Key to note here that if traveling in the shoulder or off season you will often find that things are being worked on since it isn’t high tourist season. The bridge provides beautiful views of the Vltava River and the castle on the hill (as well as the mini-Eiffel Tower called Petrin Tower).
Walking further I aimed to reach the Prague Castle (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prague_Castle) and St. Vitus Cathedral (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/St._Vitus_Cathedral) at the top of the hill. The walk up the stairs should have been under normal circumstances quite easy given all the days on the stairmaster at the gym, however I wasn’t able to breath from my cold so by the time I reached the top I was huffing and puffing. The vantage point at the top made up for it with views of the entire city. The rain began at this point and I quickly made my way into the castle and on to St. Vitus Cathedral. This cathedral was built over the course of 600 years and finished in 1929. The stain glass rivals that of Notre Dame in Paris. The tower was not climbable since it was closed due to “technical reasons.” I wondered what was technical about the tower but didn’t ever find out. As I exited the castle it was really starting to rain and I’d of course left my umbrella in the hotel. I stopped to buy a cheap umbrella and then had the chance to watch the changing of the guard (I guess this is not just British tradition).
After a quick rest at the hotel I ate lunch at the U Prince Café on the Old Town Square. Here I was able to watch the astronomical clock and the square now teeming with tourists. It was an outdoor café with cover and heaters which was a great way to enjoy being outdoors while the rain came down. I had a few more stops to make including the Jewish quarter and wandered through the narrow, and very winding streets! I’d been told that the Four Seasons hotel had a great view of the river and also of castle hill. Given the rain and my worsening cold I thought I nice warm hot chocolate was in order. After warming up I walked along the river to, new umbrella still in hand and open, and arrived in front a Frank Gehry building knows as the Dancing Buildings (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dancing_House). These buildings remind me of several of the Gaudi buildings of Barcelona with a twisting shape that makes it look as though two buildings are intertwined. They are often referred to as Ginger and Fred.
A few weeks neighbors and friends of Sophia and Antonio had been in Prague and written up a list of recommendations for me. Lisa and Dave had given me a wonderful list of places in which I could tap into a pilsner (apparently the word originated here) but I opted to avoid that so that I wouldn’t set myself back on health. I decided to take their recommendation for dinner at a restaurant called Bellevue (http://www.bellevuerestaurant.cz/en/bellevuerestaurant/). I made a reservation and arrived at 8 PM for what ended up being a delicious dinner that rivaled many restaurants in New York. The beauty of Bellevue is that much of the food is organic and besides it has views of castle hill all lit up at night. The only disconcerting thing was that the semi-domed ceiling had the strangest acoustics in which I found myself listening quite clearly to a conversation of several American business people that were sitting clear across the restaurant. I guess it is a mini-version of the Capital Building in Washington, DC which has the same acoustics with several of its domes. I’d come back to this restaurant anytime, but bring your wallet. This was a splurge.
This morning I started the day off with another hot chocolate. This time in a café on the edge of the Old Town Square. The rain had left Prague but the temperature had now dropped dramatically. I’d grown used to sunny 70 degree days. It was now around 48 and windy. I count myself lucky that so far I’ve only had two days of rain and have had such wonderful temperatures with which to see Europe. I was also happy to wake up having gotten past the hump of my cold which was starting to subside.
It was here at this cafe that I thought about some interesting observations I’d been making the past few days. There were a number of exchange students milling about, a lot of Asian tour groups and a lot of retirees. As I looked around there was really no one in my age bracket. I was beginning to realize that those in their mid-thirties were all at home working! Along the course of this trip I’d see many young backpackers who I came to realize looked at me as an old man, which I don’t agree with but it is all in perception. I’d also met a number of older couples, including a nice couple from MA, who were in Europe because their children were there studying or working. This was a bit disconcerting to me as I realized this was, and would continue to be, a reason that it had been hard for me to meet people. I imagine most of the people in my age bracket had been here during the summer when holidays abound throughout Europe and the US.
After some retail therapy I headed back to the hotel to gather my things and jump on my next train that would take me to Vienna.
