Czech it out...long weekender to Prague

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We left Cardiff and headed for East Midlands airport for our long weekend getaway to Prague, one of the places we‘ve been really looking forward to. We boarded our flight and left on time but were delayed in Prague after one of the passengers had to be detained by the local police. After catching the bus into the centre of Prague and finding our hostel, we had a bit of a walk around Wencelas Square and then called it a night.

The next day we got up and did a walking tour of the city, making our way through the streets and being amazed by the fantastic architecture. It was a case of ‘spot the local’ in the streets as Prague is a very popular getaway spot and it was peak season. But the sights were still impressive none the less. We eventually piled into the old town square along with all the other tourists to see the unusual Astronomical Clock. It was built in the 15th century and after it was completed they blinded the guy who built it with a hot poker so he couldn’t repeat it. But he still managed to stumble his way up the clock tower and break it. The clock is so complicated that it took them 80 years to fix!

Charles bridge was the next on our agenda,. it was built in 1357 and it is said the reason it has lasted so long is that they mixed egg yokes in the brick mortar. The architecture was the real highlight of Prague with places like Hrad Castle, St Vitus Cathedral, the Dancing Building and others making for some nice photos. In the evenings we got a chance to enjoy some of the great local beers which were not too expensive but the days of super-cheap Czech is definitely over in the capital.

Our trip to Prague would not have been complete without a beer in a traditional beer hall and trying some Absinthe. We started one afternoon at U Fleku which was very touristy but good fun with large tables and big steins of dark local brew. Later, we found ourselves a nice absinthe bar, made our selection and waited for it to arrive. We decided to avoid the stuff that was illegal everywhere except the Czech Republic due to the high content of alcohol and thurgon (a hallucinogenic herb which is why they call Absinthe the Green Fairy) and got some mid-way stuff. The waitress came out and gave us the run down on how to drink it, lighting it on fire over sugar cubes. So we went through the process which was quite enjoyable to watch even if it did taste like poo.

We had a quiet day for our final day, wandering around the souvenir shops and taking a last look at the beautiful buildings before flying back to the UK and driving back to Cardiff where Mick has to start work for the first time in 28 weeks!

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Photos

View over the river to Charles Bridge
You can see Prague Castle on the hill in the distance

The dancing building
Nicknamed the Fred & Ginger building it is actually meant to look like this