I navigated myself to the hostel, checked in, and went to the grocery store. I don't like to spend money on restaurants when I travel, especially at over-priced tourist locations. I prefer bringing a self-packed sandwich, knowing that's probably what I would have bought anyway. I usually can buy three to four days worth of sandwich materials for the cost of one restaurant sandwich. This hostel made things a bit more difficult because they didn't have a guest kitchen to keep things cold, but I managed. The lack of a kitchen was definitely made up for with really, really nice bathrooms and very clean, cushy bedrooms. After stocking up on food goods (and breaking that 1000K note, check), I went back to my hostel and ate lunch. I then went upstairs and got a map from the front desk hostess, who highlighted good tram routes and walking routes to various parts of the city.
I spent the rest of the afternoon wandering and giving myself a crash course on Prague. I should note now that Prague is SO BEAUTIFUL. Old buildings, cobblestone streets. Mainz has similar settings, but somehow is lacking the same charm. The weather was bright and sunny, and not too cold. I decided to take my dinner up to Prague Castle and eat at a spot overlooking the city. I packed up dinner and hoped on the tram that is supposed to go all the way up the hill to the castle entrance. About halfway through the ride, I had a feeling the tram wasn't going to the castle, but since I knew from the map the castle was toward the end of the line, I decided to keep riding. We arrived at the end of the line with no Prague Castle in site. So I walked across the street and got on the tram going the other direction and rode back to my hostel. The sun was starting to set and it was absolutely beautiful - a big, dark red sun and rich shades of pink. I was miffed. It would have been perfect, watching the sun set over the city during my dinner. Instead, I ate dinner in my hostel. I looked at my map back at the hostel and discovered that I simply took the tram in the wrong direction. Then I was even more upset with myself, because if I had stopped to think for a second, I would have corrected my route. hmpf.
On Tuesday, I got up early to beat the crowds at Prague Castle. It opens at 9am and I wanted to be the first to get my ticket. This time, I took the tram in the right direction, arrived when I wanted, and enjoyed the sites crowd-free.
At around 11:30, I had seen all that I wanted, and began moving my way down the hill, as the swarms of tourists moved in. But first, I managed to get a great view of the city.
At the bottom of the hill I wandered through the old town a bit and found a Starbucks. I went down to their basement without buying anything and ate my lunch while taking advantage of their internet to catch up on emails and the news. Afterward I walked across Charles Bridge to the city center to wander for a bit before going to the Jewish District.
And when I say "wander for a bit before going to the Jewish District," I really mean I wandered around and then found myself in the Jewish District. I visited the Old Jewish Cemetery and a few synagogues. By far, my favorite is the Pinkas Synagogue. The walls have been whitewashed, with the inscription of the names of 77,297 Holocaust victims, together with their dates of birth and death. Where the precise date of death is not known, the date of deportation is written instead. Their names are arranged according to the towns and villages where they were living prior to deportation, presented in alphabetical order. I wanted to take pictures, but there were Jewish Community officials in every corner, preventing me from doing so.
I stayed in the Jewish District until all of the synagogues and museums closed, then made my way back to my hostel. On a whim, I decided that I wanted to go out to eat (and I wanted good beer, let's be honest). I stopped in a hole-in-the-wall pub, took a seat, pointed to something on the menu that looked cool in Czech, and awaited my surprise. I was brought.... vegetable risotto. And it was DELICIOUS. And the mystery beer was DELICIOUS. And it all cost less than $7. I love Eastern Europe.
On Wednesday, I lived the dream: I read Kafka in Prague. Like a big nerd, I had brought an excerpt of Der Prozess (The Trial) with me. I got up early and walked to a bridge that overlooks the Charles Bridge, Prague Castle and the city. I chose the spot with the best view and read. And then, like an even bigger nerd, I went to the Kafka Museum. I figured this would be a one hour event, but I spent two and a half hours in the exhibit. It's not that big of a museum, my friends. I read every word, watched every film, and looked at every picture. The information was well presented, and quite clever if you're a fan of Kafka's works. Afterwards, I ate a quick lunch and joined a free city tour to learn a bit about the history of the city I had wandering the past few days. The guide was very knowledgeable and entertaining, so it was well worth my time. Throughout the afternoon, however, the weather turned from cold to worse, so after the tour was finished, I checked in for the night. Since it's the low season, my hostel was pretty empty, so I read (more Kafka) and went to bed early, so I could catch my very early train the next morning.
Prague was definitely a success.
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