Prague

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When leaving Teplice, we got ourselves out of bed early for an early train connection to get us to Prague. Only to find at the train station that we had read the timetable all wrong and the train wasn't for 2 hours! After some very bad communication with sign language with the lady at the train station we managed to get ourselves a route to Prague - only taking 4 hours on 4 different trains! By the end of the journey we were experts at jumping across train tracks and climbing onto trains in the middle of the tracks.

Prague itself was beautiful. I am almost scared to say anything else given how many people rave about it. However, the city did not endear itself to us on arrival. We arrived mid afternoon at the main train station with, as usual, no place to stay! So we decided to go to the nearest internet cafe and find somewhere. A sign at the train station pointed to internet. It was down some stairs that looked a bit dodgy but we thought how bad can it be? Well, we started walking down the stairs and when the two people at the bottom didn't move out of our way we started to make more noise - still with no result. Then we were able to see over their shoulders to the little piece of paper with white powder which they were scrapping up with the standard razorblade. In unison Evan and I turned around and started back up the stairs and then promptly walked out in the rain to find an internet cafe - this seeming a better idea than disturbing the local druggies or other undesirables hanging around the station.

A couple of hours later we found ourselves in a nice hostel and promptly stayed there all evening and enjoyed the ambience. Evan spent most of the night in the pub staring at the ceiling getting ideas for our future home. We are now planning a cosy underground cellar at Donnybrook.

The next day was my 29th birthday! Evan surprised me by disappearing while I was in the shower and coming back huffing and puffing with a beautiful bouquet of flowers. Pity that in all the excitement I managed to lock us out of our room!

Prague was nice. We spent 3 days there just walking and walking - but not quite as muh as Berlin! We visited the Prague castle complex and walked up the 283 steps to the top of the Cathedral tower. The place was so full of tourists it was unbelievable - I would hate to see it during peak season. On our way out of the castle we decided to just wander and see where it took us. As a result we came across a wall (about 40m long) full of grafitti with a bust of John Lennon's head stuck on it - also covered in grafitti. Not quite sure why it is there, but it is obviously a bit of a shrine to some people. There were a few candles which had been lit in memorial.

Another interesting place was the Wallenstein Palace gardens. Inside there is a wierd Renaissance loggia - a massive grotto full of hidden grotesque faces and animals. It was quite entertaining searching them out. Then it was over Charles Bridge to the old town to have a wander around some more cobbled streets (more tripping over for Evan!) and watch the famous astronomical clock on the town hall. The crowds that gather here every hour are huge - just to watch the clock strike the hour and the skeleton ring the bell and a few other characters.

Our seond day in Prague we visited Kutna Hora - the town about an hour away which is famous for the Bone Church. The church is decorated with the bones of approx 40,000 people. We understand most of the deaths arose from war and the plague. The effect in the church was totally bizarre but suprisingly not macabre. After seeing the Church we wandered around the town before heading back to Prague. We almost got on a train going the wrong way! Lukily for us, we asked another traveller before it started moving, and got off in time. But we don't think some of our fellow travellers did! Oops!!

Our last day was spent quietly wandering around Vysehrad Castle grounds and the town centre - trying to take it all in. We couldn't of course - it would take years. But it was fun to try.

And so we left Prague. We definitely weren't sorry to be saying goodbye to a couple of our room mates in the dorm. Particularly the guy who went out and then brought a girl ak to the dorm with him. And yes - unfortunately I heard way too much. Sadly, I must say he was an Aussie - although he has been living in England for some years!

(Sorry guys - no photos of this one. Left the CD behind in safe keeping. Will try to add them later.)

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