Abroad: Czech It Out!

View of Prague from the top of Petrin Lookout Tower

I know I am so behind on updates, so before I jet off to Greece and Italy for spring break (ug, my life is so hard), let me rewind to our trip to Prague two weeks ago (February 24-27).

Our trip began on our flight from London to Prague where we met the 20 or so drunk members of Beefy's Stag Party. Between their singing and inability to stay seated to the stewardesses threatening to call the police upon arrival, the plane ride was full of excitement.

Friday morning, we have our first lesson on the Czech. Courtesy of the night shift worker at our hostel, we learn that the Czech Republic is the number one beer consumers in the world. Of course he tells us this while nuzzling a beer at 9 am in the morning when we come down for breakfast.

We had originally planned on doing an 11am walking tour of Prague but got lost on the way to the meeting point and ended up wandering around New Town and Old Town. Thankfully we did have a map and once we knew we weren't going to make the early tour, we headed in the direction of the meeting point for the next tour, and decided to meander down random streets. It's amazing getting lost in a city, let alone one that doesn't speak English. You are completely responsible for yourself and there is no one to help. Only you can rescue yourself or find your way.


market place

Elise, Andy, Blaine and Kate wandering in New Town

We ended up finding things like Mozart's house, a local market and authentic dining that we may not have been able to find otherwise.

Later in the day, we met for the afternoon walking tour at the Astronomical Clock Tower in Old Town Square. The Astronomical Clock is a medieval clock which has two main dials. The lowest dial illustrates the months of the year and the farming conditions associated with each month. "The Walk of the Apostles", a clockwork hourly show of figures of the twelve Apostles, is also present by the lower dial. The upper dial is the astronomical dial which includes many inner rings. The Zodiac ring is a movable circle marked with the signs of the zodiac which indicates the location of the Sun. An outer ring indicates Old Czech Time and swings back and forth to coincide with the time of the sunset. There are also sun and moon hands on the face of the clock which not only tell the hour but also tell the time the sun and moon will rise and set. Buildings around Old Town Square such as the Clock Tower have been known to be the official way that arguments were settled in the early fifteen century. The challengers would race up to the top of the tower and try to throw one another out the window. Who ever lost would fall towards the ground where they would be impaled on spears.

Astronomical Clock

Prague suffered considerably less physical damage during World War II than some other major cities in the region, allowing a lot of its historic architecture, most of it dating back to the 12th century, to stay intact. Besides the Astronomical Clock, in Old Town, you can find buildings such as St. Nicholas Church, Tyn Cathedral, and the Jewish Quarter. In the Jewish Quarter the Old New (translated from Alteneu) Synagogue is Europe's oldest active synagogue.

Old New Synagogue

Friday night we ate in Old Town where I tried mulled wine for the first time and ate chicken stuffed with peach and gorgonzola with risotto on the side. Afterwards we went on a pub crawl which was super fun! We started in an old church which was empty except for some string lights, hippie tapestries, and a giant stone head of Joseph Stalin. From there we went to three more clubs, each one seeming to get classier and more expensive as the night wore on.

Andy, Kate and Elise

But look, we got t-shirts!

Saturday morning we hit the other side of the river to explore Charles Bridge and the Lennon Wall. From the beginning of the fifteenth century until 1841, the Charles Bridge was the only connection between Prague Castle and Old Town which sits on opposite sides of the river. The bridge is decorated with tons of statues all the way across and during the day is covered with tradesmen and musicians.

Charles Bridge

view of the river from the bridge

Next, we hit the Lennon Wall which is decorated with colorful graffiti and messages of Peace, Love, and Beatles. We took tons of pictures and then grabbed a pen and added our names to the wall!

Sam and Andy

We ended up staying on the other side of the river for dinner and ate at a restaurant by the water. After dinner we ended up at an outdoor restaurant (thankfully with heating lamps!) back in Old Town Square. We sat, drank, ate dessert and laughed at all the drunk people walking by.

Elise, Sam and I

Sunday morning, Elise and I got up early to go to Petrin Hill where we saw the Memorial to the Victims of Communism. The memorial is a series of seven bronze figures descending a flight of stairs. The figures are decayed and broken higher on the steps but become whole the closer they get to you at the bottom. On the top of Petrin Hill are a bunch of parks, gardens, and sights such as a mirror maze and the Petrin Lookout Tower. The Lookout Tower aka Prague's Eiffel Tower is essentially a mini version of the real one Although not as large as the Eiffel Tower in Paris, Elise and I climbed all the way to the top. At least I can say that I climbed the stairs to the top of one of the Eiffel towers!