Sam's Eurotrip

I'm having a bit of trouble sleeping so I figured why not try for a little blog update for those of you back stateside.

I'll pick up where I left off, which was the end of our night spent in Dresden. Upon waking up the next day we went to the market to grab some food for breakfast and lunch - much cheaper than paying for meals at restaurants or on the train - and checked out of the hostel to head for the train station. We used the city tram system much more successfully than before, not missing any stops on the way, and made it to the train to head to Prague just on time. The plan, though, was to stop on the way in a border town called Bad Schandau, about 30 minutes south of Dresden on the Elbe, before heading into the Czech Republic.

Bad Schandau is a quaint little town on the banks of the Elbe which is best known for its access to the German national park of Sächsische Schweiz, which consists of hiking trails through beautiful forests and mountains that looked much like the Appalachains - the river is lined with rock outcroppings that reminded me of Chimney Rock south of Asheville. The woman on the train from Frankfurt to Dresden thought it would be a nice stop for us to make on the way, though Mother Nature must have thought otherwise. It was a grey day and the sky was unleashing downpours of rain intermittently, but we stopped at the train station anyway. Well, as soon as we got on the ferry to cross over to the town, the bottom dropped out; we figured we'd better just spend an hour or so walking around the town rather than getting stuck in the rain while hiking.

Needless to say, it was the right decision. After checking out the town, returning to the ferry dock, boarding the ferry, and paying our fare, the bottom opened up - torrential rain mixed with hail banged on the roof of the boat. We were thankful not to be up in the mountains in that mess. We made it to the train station and waited a short bit before catching the next train to Prague.

The scenery along the remaining two and a half hours of the route was very interesting. Towns were filled with a mixture of beautiful buildings with ornate façades and hulking, graffiti'd eastern bloc-esque structures. The rolling hills of east central Germany eventually flattened into the Vltava River valley before the train arrived into Prague, nestled between some larger hills along the Vltava. The first thing you notice when coming into the city is exactly what it is famous for, and that is the hundreds of spires that dot the skyline, colorful and stretching up into the sky, giving the city much of its charm and old-world character.

We got off the train and took the metro just a couple of stops before arriving at a second, smaller train station. Upon stepping out of the station we found that it was once again raining but were relieved to see that our hostel was literally across the street from the station. Having checked into the hostel, we withdrew some Czech korunas (the exchange for which is about 20czk to 1usd, making it seem kind of ridiculous to pay 30czk for a $1.50 beer) and headed out to explore. Rob had been talking a lot about a Czech delicacy of fried cheese with a mayonnaise sauce, so we were keeping our eyes out for some of that while exploring.

Prague has turned out to be quite a charming city. Though it does have a lot of eastern feel to it, it has the romantic air of a Paris or Rome. A few large cobblestone streets connect a network of smaller streets and alleys which are lined with shops, restaurants, and bars, and which cab drivers seem to have no problem navigating despite the buildings being no more than ten feet apart in some places. Divided into the left and right banks along the Vltava, each neighborhood of the city seems to have something to offer. Best of all, Prague was virtually unharmed in the Second World War, so essentially all of its baroque-era architecture remains to today.

Back to telling about exploring the city, we finally found a restaurant serving fried cheese while walking up a steep hill on the left bank while headed toward Prague Castle which is perched atop the hill that dominates the northwest side of the city. Ordering the cheese entree with some Pilsner Urquells (the beer of choice around here) was the best decision of the day. It was, indeed, delicious! Much more appetizing than the spicy curry brats in Dresden, ha, though I still think it seemed like something you would find at the NC State Fair. It was a great way to end the day, and after a little bit more walking and exploring we decided to call it a night.

Today (Saturday) was filled with even more exploring of the city. We started the day off at Bohemia Bagel, a great place near the main square that bustles with a lot of international students that are studying in Prague. There was a man with a little lemon Beagle sitting two booths down from us and I thought of you, Mom! It was pretty cute, sniffing around for affection before curling up in a little totable bed and, most surprisingly, not barking at all, ha!

From breakfast we headed across the river to check out St. Nicholas Church which has the most stunning, ornate interior. The amount of marble and gilded gold is remarkable and it easily rivaled the Vatican in grandeur though it was much smaller. We left the church and headed up the banks of the Vltava before crossing over to check out the "Dancing House," which is a cool piece of modern architecture that has become a symbol of Prague. It's actually really neat to see as its glass and metal makes it stand out amongst all the old façades. Feeling a little tired by midafternoon we headed back to the hostel to rest up before heading back out.

On our second venture out of the day we headed back across the river to a park that is perched on the same hill as the castle and had some amazing views of the city. We walked back across the famous Charles Bridge to the city as the clouds began to break for what looked to be a beautiful sunset. Wrong. As soon as we reached the hostel the sky opened up in a torrential downpour! It didn't last for too long, though, and we headed out one last time to get some grub. This time we found some cheap pizza and beer near the main square and had a great time sharing stories - especially those of Megan, Anna, and Rob from their travels in Croatia and the girls' time in Hungary. Tired at the end of another long day we retired by about 11:30, excited to check out of the hostel in the morning and into our apartment which we will have for the next 3 nights! It's just a couple of blocks from the main square on one of those narrow streets I mentioned so we are all very much looking forward to getting there and having our own space to spread out, do laundry, cook, and relax for a few more days in Praha.

What can I say? This city has had quite an effect on me, from its palpable old-world feel to its metropolitan and hip side, it really has it all. I can see why so many people choose to study here - NC State has an international campus somewhere in the city that I want to find before we leave - and I'm really glad to have planned to spend a whole five days. The next three should yield more great times as we plan to check out the Prague Beer Festival tomorrow as well as some of the other sights, including the castle and the Jewish Cemetary.

Y'all are probably getting spoiled with these long entries, but at least all the writing has made me feel a little sleepy. I'll attach some pictures below and then it's back to try and rest up for another day in Prague!

I miss everyone at home - Raleigh at large, even - and I hope y'all are doing great. I'll fill you in with more details from Praha in the next couple of days!

Cheers,
Sam


The view of the Vltava and part of the left bank (right side of photo) from the park.











Inside of St. Nicholas Church.


















The Beagle at Bohemia Bagel!












Bad Schandau's main square.












Part of Prague's main square.











[I'm having a bit of difficulty figuring out how to format the photos to my liking so I'm not going to add any more than 5 for right now, but what I may do is do a post full of just photos sometime later today if time permits. I'll get the hang of the blog eventually!]