Picture Perfect Prague!

There comes a day in your life when waiting anymore feels like a waste of time. Euro Trip was just that for me. There came a time when I decided to take the plunge all by myself. Sounds like m talking about getting married or some bigger decision in my life? It was big to me. Introvert by birth, in this trip, I was like a panda trying to learn kungfu. But just like in the movie, I started to enjoy every minute of it.

Now that I had decided to fly solo, I decided to put myself in self created experiment by not only travelling alone but also making sure that I am surrounded by more and more strangers – instead of cozy hotels, I decided to crash at hostels sharing room with other travelers and I purposely did not carry any internet or phone with me when I was out on roads.

How did it feel? On the first day, it felt like I was a self torture trip but as days passed by, I became more comfortable with choosing my own path, deciding my own routes, and dealing with last minute gate changes at airport, finding my way around the cities while taking directions from strangers, and meeting some great people on the way. All in all, the trip changed my opinion about myself. I, quite literally, surprised myself.

Prague or Praha is so different from any other European city with its colorful architecture, charm, and monuments around the city. I was on a family vacation in Prague after travelling solo for about 20 days in other European cities.

What caught my eye about Prague is its very distinctive architecture and aerial views with orange roofs. We spent 4 days in the city and it made us feel at home instantly. We took a travel pass each which covered all our trips in trams, metro, and buses for entire duration of our stay. This transport system of Prague was extremely efficient and covers each and every part of the city. Best part about this was that we stumbled upon such beautiful hidden gems of Prague when we were just travelling one side of the city to another in trams.

Prague is a perfect place to relax, savor world cuisines, explore charms of European history, and beautiful landscapes. Here is are the things we saw in Prague apart from just chilling out on old town square, near the river, at Charles bridge, actually pretty much everywhere.

Prague Orloj or Astronomical Clock

It is the third oldest astronomical clock in the world installed in 1410. It is a medieval astronomical clock mounted on the Old Town Hall at Old Town Square which is still functioning. Every-time the minutes hand hits 12, there is a mechanical performance that takes place here. Hundreds of tourists gather around with their cameras to capture it. As this happens every hour you can plan your time and accordingly. The clock was considered one of the world’s wonders in Middle Ages.

St. Vitus Cathedral

Founded in 930, it is a Roman Catholic metropolitan cathedral and the seat of the Archbishop of Prague. It is the largest and the most important church in Czech Republic. The church is built in Gothic style of architecture and is part of Prague Castle complex and hence under the purview of government. The Church houses tombs of many Bohemian kings and Holy Roman Emperors.

Charles Bridge

Construction of Charles Bridge started in 1357 and completed in early 15th century. The bridge was built in place of old Judith Bridge which was destroyed by the floods in 1342. It used to be the only and most important connection between Prague castle and old town till 1841. This bridge was famed in India via a Bollywood movie Rockstar. It is one of the most famous bridges that take you across the river Vltava which divides the city in two parts. The Bridge showcases plenty of statues, art peddlers and musicians all through the day and evening.

Prague Castle

Built in 1240 at the historic center of Brugge, Belfry is a medieval bell tower which housed city archives. In 1280 the tower and city archives were destroyed in a massive fire and the tower was rebuilt. One can take the Ariel view of the city from top of this tower. My suggestion is to definitely climb the Belfry, although I couldn’t do so, due to holiday rush we didn’t get the tickets after standing in the queue for about an hour.

Josefov, Jewish Quarter

Jews settled in Prague in 10th century. During Second World War when Hitler was bombing Jewish settlements across Europe, Prague was the only city which was untouched as the city was so beautiful. It was one of the largest Jewish communities in Europe. In this area you can find Jewish cemeteries, museum, synagogues, and historic grave yard.

The John Lennon Wall

It was a normal wall which from 1980s began to be filled with John Lennon inspired graffiti and lyrics from Beatles songs by students to mark the end of communist era. This site is very popular among young artists and tourists. The atmosphere at the wall is just amazing with some musicians singing John Lennon songs, market selling street food, tourists and artists writing or painting on the wall.

Powder Tower

Powder Gate/Tower is one of the 13 city gates of Prague. It is a Gothic tower which separates old town from the new town. It was built as an attractive city entrance in first half of 13th century. Tower was used as military or mining companies to store gunpowder or explosives till 20th century.

If you want any information regarding this trip or Prague, please write it in comments section below and I will try to answer it as soon as possible.