Prague: First Impressions

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Now that I am writing about my travels I am beginning to see a pattern with my reaction when arriving in new city.

I notice the similarity to my excitement when arriving here in Prague to when we arrived in London and in Kos Town.

Emerging from the subway station which brought us from the airport and I was in awe. I was so looking forward to have 9 days here and such a big contrast to Greece!

On arrival at the airport we had struggled with the ticket machines for the bus. Three out of four of the machines didn't work as busses that I had wanted to catch were passing. I had downloaded instructions of how to get to our accommodation. The good thing was that the busses were very regular but I was a little stressed as it was already quite late and I thought the transport would start slowing down. Anyway we were amongst about 15 other Czechs and tourists that were also struggling, so there was plenty of assistance. Through out the journey, changing from bus to Metro people were increasingly helpful.

Once we got onto the Metro Tomas got excited as it was familiar to him, similar to what exists in Stockholm.

It was 11pm as we walked across the Vltava River bridge to our Ajrbnb and an exceptionally warm, still night. Stunning architecture everywhere and lights reflecting into the water. Most cities are lucky to have a few beautiful buildings or even a suburb of beautiful buildings but here it appeared for as far as the eye could see. Keeping with the similarity Tomas saw in Stockholm he remarked that it looked like "Stockholm on steroids" and we were staying in an exceptionally beautiful location.

The reason that Prague is so beautiful is that it was one of the only European cities that managed to escape from being bombed during the second world war. All the beautiful old buildings and history have managed to stay intact in order to retell their stories.

Upon arrival we were greeted by Filip, who had taken our reservation. He showed us the rules of the house and introduced his mother, Daniella, who only spoke Czech and French. I scratched together for my very rusty French. After reflecting on what I had said, it was amazing that I had at all been understood as my language had been dispersed with so many Swedish words that I had created a new language all of my own.
She offered us cherries and it occurred to me that cherries are normally a Christmas fruit but here it was summer. Yay!

Our room and the apartment was beautiful. Probably built in the 16th century; enormous rooms with bay windows and stain glass. Thick concrete and stone walls. From our window on the second floor nothing was obstructing the amazing views of the river. The bay window with three double panels faced directly to the famous Dancing House building and along the length of the Vlatva river where three romantic looking bridges were visible. The furthermost bridge visible was the famous Charles Bridge. The kitchen and bathroom were both newly renovated and modern.

By day I could make out the crowds lingering on the Charles Bridge in the distance and little boats dotted on the water skimming in every direction.

The apartment we were staying in was very special. It had been lived in by our host's grandfather and even though it was not owned by their family, if I understood correctly it is owned by the state, they had the first right to live it. It was passed along in the generations..

Our first job was supermarket shopping, so we walked to the closest shops at Andel. Looking at restaurant menus along the way we remarked how cheap prices were for such a beautiful city.
At the supermarket I became excited about the wonderful selection of heavy whole grain breads and fresh baked pastries.

After an unhurried morning we ventured out to sightsee at about 1.30pm. The day before had been a very long day at Gatwick airport and it took some recovering from. We had arrived from Greece at 1.30am and then had waited until 6.30pm for the flight to Prague.

Slowly wandering along the western side of the river toward the Charles bridge, I had never been in such a spectacularly beautiful city and it was blowing my little mind. Why did we only have nine days here? What an over sight! So many beautiful, romantic buildings it was breath taking. Each was a complete masterpiece. The city is like exploring an art gallery. Cafes on balconies and in little gardens hidden in little nooks in the labyrinth of streets.



I remember thinking something quite similar about the architecture in London and in Kos Town as I could not compare them to anything else. Each place we had visited had been a notch higher in my experience and beyond my expectations.

We have been so fortunate to have visited some of the most beautiful places in the most stunning of weather but I feel completely blessed to experience this city.

I think that this hits me so hard because coming from Australia and living in New Zealand, both being comparably young countries have architecture that is mostly practical and economical. Much of the food in our supermarkets is heavily processed, naturally tasteless and with little tradition. Flavours usually come from sugar and salt and not from the basic ingredients. Real food is usually difficult to find. It is very pricy or I need to make it myself.

Visually I was overwhelmed. To add to all this I got overwhelmed with flavours, as well. Such good, wholesome, basic under processed food.
In Greece it was the ice creams with rich, thick cream with real flavours, here it is the breads with whole crunchy, course grains and the easy and cheap availability of sweet summer fruits. The prices both in Greece and here, a fraction of what I have been used to paying.

So, they were my first impressions and this made me eager to see and taste as much as I could.

A pattern for exploration followed for the next few mornings. Waking at 5.30 in the morning with the sun streaming in and heating the room we got going early to beat the heat. I dragged Tomas out of the apartment as early as 8 am and for the next four days we walked and walked and walked. I wanted to take it all in.

By day five, Monday, we had hit the wall with exploration and had a feel for where we were and where we enjoyed spending time. We became more selective with spending our energy

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Photos

A lovely Square below the Bridge
Taken early in the morning without crowds. In the evening there are cafes and musicians everywhere here. Great atmosphere.

Comments

[Sue Harcombe]

Perfect Prague
James and I went here 9 years ago and I fell in love with it too. I am so envious of you both being there - it really is a magical place. Enjoy your time.