Prague: the Czech Experience

Ready for another adventure, Klaus and I decided to travel to Prague for four days. Our day long journey to get there consisted of changing trains four times, which actually made the eight hours feel shorter. I watched out the window for signs of our crossing the border (the Czech Republic is in the EU), and sure enough, the picturesque Bavarian villages and perfect fields gave way to gray forest and then very small A-frame houses, and towns with their buildings gray and falling apart, marked with graffiti. From the industrial feeling, the grayness of the landscape, the delapidated past decadence of our train cabin (dirty red leather), and the drunken shouts and occasional screams from another cabin (you can drink in public in Europe), I couldn't help but imagine a man with an unshaved chin, a glass bottle of vodka and a crazed look charging into our cabin. Nothing too out of the ordinary happened, however, and we arrived safely at the train station.

It was cold, oh so cold. As we made our way to our hostel, I was aware of this slight feeling of sketchiness- men with their hands in their pockets waiting for something, graffiti on each building. It all seemed to climax when Klaus stepped on a piece of metal wire that went through the sole of his shoe and into his big toe! It was a mild injury, though, and I was assured he had his tetanus shot. Luckily, the hostel turned out to be very cool, with curly-cue designs on red walls, funky art, a comfy atmosphere, and an open kitchen. It was nice to return here each night.

Winter is not the best time to visit Prague, as it was so cold and so gray. We split up the cold hours with hot Gluwein and coffee breaks. Prague is a very very old city, and the architecture was definitely the highlight of the experience for me. Our guidebook was right in saying you have to walk looking up in Prague. The buildings are decorated with murals, painted designs, carved wood and carved stone, stained glass, towers and domes, courtyards and arches. My favorite are those in the Art Deco and Art Nouveau styles. Wow. Really amazing. I imagined the society here in the early 20th century, fur-coated and -hatted with pearls and bow ties, making their way throught the grand doors and under the chandeliers. The famous Art Nouveau poster artist Mucha is from the Czech, and I visited the museum of his work, too.

We went to a puppet show of Mozart's opera "The Magic Flute," drank Czech beer (I decided to forego the absinthe), ate delicious Italian food, and visited an incredible old and overgrown cementary. The broken angels on the frozen earth and cracked tombs revealing the coffins represented to me the slightly creepy, but magical and historical sense of the city.