Praha

Prague, unlike Dublin, looks its age. It is so beautiful that it feels as though you are wandering through a mystical place, a fairy tale land disconnected from reality. Cobbled streets and sidewalks, narrow twisty streets, statues and marvels of architecture and murals everywhere, millions of churches with delicate spires, beauty beauty beauty. I'm not sure how one place can contain so much, without letting any of it fall into neglect.



Those of us who were continuing on to Prague from Dublin arrived midafternoon, exhausted, muddled our way through a public transportation system in which we couldn't understand a single word of the language, and found ourselves in the centre of Old Town. After a little difficulty locating our hostel (it was above an Italian restaurant and did not have a single sign out front), we armed ourselves with cameras and extra memory cards and wandered through the city to the castle in the growing dark.

Here, I think pictures can do it better than my meagre descriptions can.

The entrance to our hostel:
The cathedral all lit up:
The castle, as seen from across the river:

The following day, we mapped out a huge loop that encompassed everything we wanted to see, and walked and walked and walked. I think by the end of the day, though, my eyes hurt more than my feet, from so much looking. Here is a small sampling of the magic that is Prague.

Old Town Square and Tyn Church:
The famous Astronomical Clock:
Typical street:
Municipal House, example of 1911 art nouveau architecture:
Giant Metronome in Letna Park:
Bridges in a magical mist:
Gabe, Nami, and me in front of said bridges:
Back to the castle:
...and the cathedral:
Another typical street:
The John Lennon Memorial Wall:
We happened to be in Prague just days before the 20th anniversary of the Velvet Revolution, when Czech youth peacefully overthrew the Communist government (17 November 1989). Here is what one man who participated in the revolution has to say today:
Frank Gehry's Dancing House:
Spanish Synagogue in the Old Jewish Quarter:
Franz Kafka statue:
Interesting advert for...something:
Wenceslas Square with Jennifer and Nami:
Riding the funicular up Petrin Hill (Gabe, me, Jennifer, Nami):
Petrin Tower, modeled after the Eiffel Tower:
Three medieval ladies, three modern: me, Nami, Jennifer:
Nami and I try absinthe:

I think the entire trip was a blur. London to Dublin to Prague, little sleep, lots of walking and seeing and doing, a whirlwind of sights. An incredible week. Even now, looking back at these pictures three weeks later, it is hard for me to realize that we were actually there, that we saw such beautiful places. It's like a dream. Maybe that's all right, maybe remembering Dublin and Prague as a dream is better than trying to make it real.