Misadventures in Prague

I think there may be several lessons learned from our trip to Prague/Praha (in no particular order):

1. Street food always smells good, always hits the spot, and is generally the best bet
2. Taking public transportation you are not sure about can lead you somewhere you never meant to be
3. Prague has a vibrant drug life with African men all too willing to help you join in the fun
4. Being on time is a key tenant of travel
5. Even if you look like a tourist while doing it, you must look up and enjoy the sights ahead of you and behind you
6. Staying in the city center is a must when travelling for a short weekend

This weekend was a blur. We started with a 4:45 am taxi ride to Kelati station and this time we knew exactly where to buy our tickets and made it on time to our train. The ride to Prague is about 6 hours and we made it there with almost an uneventful train ride except for the second to last stop we realized we had been riding in a reserved cabin and had to vacate quickly to let the angry and unsympathetic Germans who had reserved their seats into the cabin. We were then off to our hotel on the outskirts of Prague to drop off our bags before touring the city for the rest of the afternoon. While the metro in Prague is quite simple and very easy to understand, the bus system is not very user friendly - especially for those who speak no Czech.

So in our first adventure with the bus - we took a bus from the metro station closest to our hotel and then rode it literally one stop up to the top of the hill and then had another 10 min walk to the Hotel. At the very least when we arrived we had a clean cheap ($20 per person) room that would more than do for our accommodations. While walking back to the bus we had previously taken, we noted that bus 224 stopped right in front of our hotel on both sides of the road. Keep this in mind for the next part of the story.

We then made our way downtown and to the Astrological Clock Tower and Old Town Center. We climbed - literally climbed - all the way to the top of the tower - I am guessing it is about 10 stories high and had an awesome view of the city. By this point we were all starving and ready for something more than the bread and cheese we had eaten on the train earlier in the morning. While we were thinking of sitting down and eating something as we walked across the town square the lovely aroma of street food overwhelmed us. We were all convinced on this one stand serving Kilbasa in a French roll. In the words of Jo - oh my sack(sec)! These things were AMAZING. It hit the spot like nothing else has while I have been here. I could not have asked for a better meal. Of course we could not stop there - oh no. The trdlo - dough cooked over an open fire with sugar and cinnamon covering the outside - and hot wine were needed additions to complete the meal.

Full and warmed, slightly, we headed off to cross the river over the St. Charles Bridge. The views at dusk were amazing but it did remind me that I love Budapest's bridges so much more. I guess I do think that Budapest has something particularly unique and beautiful that only it can provide. The St. Charles bridge does have something unique in that it has several ornate statues covering it and a flea market of sorts all across the bridge.

We made our way across the bridge to find some sort of festival going on. Although we were clearly late to join in we stopped for a dark beer in a pub in the square to figure out our plan for the evening. The beer was great and we solidified our plans to go back to our hotel, change for the evening, and head back out for dinner and drinking/dancing.

And so began misadventure #2 in the Prague public transportation. We arrived at our metro stop and the first bus to arrive was the infamous bus 224. We decided what the heck - we know it eventually stops at our hotel because we have seen the bus stop. We hop on and ride to the top of the hill and the bus turns the opposite way of our hotel. Damn - we are going to have to ride this all the way around but I do see another bus 224 cross our path so I know it eventually goes the other direction. We ride the bus waiting and waiting for it to make its loop until it makes its way to a different metro stop and then stops telling us we have to get out. What a disappointment. We have at this point probably been on the bus for at least 30-40 min and we are further from home. So, we get back on the metro and start over again - but this time we take the tram up the hill - this sort of goes off without a hitch except that Laura and Jo get off the tram one stop too soon and I ride all the way to the top of the hill and wait for them to arrive for our 10 min trek through the unplowed sidewalks back to our hotel. By this point I am freezing, tired, a little cranky and really want to call it a night but in the back of my mind is the thought that I can't come to Prague and waste my time sleeping in a hotel.

Laura, Jo, and I primped for about an hour, reheated ourselves and headed out. I must also mention at this point that no fewer than 100 16 year olds are staying at our hotel with very few chaperones. We stopped at nearly every floor on the way out of our hotel as we listened to screaming giggling teenagers who are likely to be doing these shenanigans for the next few hours - I am glad I went out and did not try and sleep! I guess in an attempt to torture ourselves we decide to again try the 224 bus to take us back to the station. We go to the sign to figure out what time it will arrive and it suddenly appears. We hop-on and in less than 2 min we arrive at the metro station - couldn't have been easier. Still have no clue on why the first damn bus never went to our hotel.

We have a few recommendations from Jo's secretary for places to drink and eat and head off to find these places. The first stop looks ok and we enter the bar to find.super cheap beer - $1.50 for a 16 oz beer. We also order a bit of food but none of us are all that hungry after our street food feast earlier in the day. We finish our food and beer - another delicious dark beer - and head off to the next place. Laura and I had looked on the map to determine which tram would take us closest to the next street location and thus begins the saga of public transportation #3.

To be continued…..