Home > Mission to Amsterdam > Archives > 2008 > July > 23 > Entry
Prague
The next stop on my journey was the beautiful and classical city of Prague, Czech Republic. I took an all-night bus to Prague and arrived early in the morning. The metro was easy to navigate and I soon found my hostel, situated right behind Old Town Square. The parts of Praque I saw walking to the hostel were so beautiful I could hardly wait to get out and explore the rest of the city.
Though I traveled Central Europe to experience a bit different culture and to keep costs lower, the state of the economy back home still meant I traveled rather cheaply. I thought I was doing well until I got to Prague. The city is beautiful and worthy of a visit, but definitely more expensive. The Czech crown was my fifth currency so I was getting somewhat better at calculating conversion in my head and at finding cheap ways of experiencing the culture and important things in the city. I seem to have a tracking device for local supermarkets. Restaurants aren’t all they are cracked up to be. Picnics in the park are the way to go. I am not a museum buff so after one of two good museums, I am content. In Prague, I went into an art museum inside a palace. The art was beautiful and so was the building.
One of my professors had been a missionary in Prague so I emailed him from the hostel and asked him for advice on what I should see. Once I got his list, I made my plans. Like any good tourist, I strapped my camera to me and took off to get lost in the city. Unfortunately, I usually end up getting lost in the literal sense. Prague was no exception, only this time I enjoyed the experience. I wandered through Old Town Square, looking at the beautiful old buildings and churches, then I wove my way through the little back streets to the Carlovy Most, or Charles Bridge. The old bridge is a tourist trap, full of vendors and musicians, and lined with old statues. Nevertheless it is obligatory to walk the bridge at least once on a trip to Prague. I wandered across, daydreaming about what the city must have been like centuries ago when the bridge was part of a trade route. The castle on the hill above the river only authenticated my reverie.
I must have walked about ten miles my first day as I criss-crossed the touristy areas of town. I didn’t go into any museums or buy anything but just contentedly strolled around and watched the busyness of the city.
The next day I got a bit more organized with my day and decided to walk up to the castle to see the changing of the guard and to visit a few different churches around the old town square. I stopped in at art galleries along the way and admired the student paintings. The castle was my fifth to see on my travels, though I decided I was content admiring it from the outside. The changing of the guard drew a huge crowd and I couldn’t get a very good view. On tip toes I’m five foot four inches. .. This doesn’t help in large crowds. We short people try and find a way to deal; Napoleon wore high heels, I weave my way to the front when I can. It’s not so bad.
That night I sat in the kitchen and talked with two middle-aged single women from Cambodia who were vacationing in Prague. They were having some hot water to calm their stomachs from the heavy Czech cuisine. We talked about traveling as women, life in America, life in Cambodia, and it was so much fun! They were the exception, not the rule in Cambodia; single women with careers stable and prosperous enough to allow them such a trip to Europe. Nevertheless, one would never guess by their outside appearances that one was a real estate agent and the other the family businesswoman. Their flowered bucket hats and linen shirts made them appear so docile but as we talked I realized that I couldn’t judge by appearances. I would love to see these women in their home culture, feisty and competitive while outwardly serene.
Comments