Czech This Out! A Saturday in Prague

This weekend, Jin and I took a very quick weekend trip to Prague. The flight there was very entertaining. A mom and daughter duo in the seats across the aisle from me were celebrating mom’s 60th Birthday. They were having a great time when they accidentally spilled some red wine on the lady beside them. After buying her wine and a chocolate bar and apologizing profusely, they all got chatting. It was so nice to see some genuine human connection for a change. People are so wrapped up in their phones and stuff that I feel like strangers don’t talk much anymore, especially Londoners.

We arrived Friday night and headed to Hostel One Home in the centre of Prague. In order to get into the hostel we had to walk through a creepy dark tunnel full of books in which I thought we may be murdered. In the end, the hostel turned out to be really nice and super social, everyone was very friendly. We stayed in an 8 bed mixed dorm and met so many North Americans. Jin and I walked to Ali Baba Kebap to get her a snack at 11:30pm. It was the wildest kebab shop I’ve ever seen! There were loads of drunk people, but the music was fun and the workers were singing and dancing along and they looked like they were living their best lives. We wandered around the streets for a bit and headed back to our hostel. We visited with some of the people in our room and then went to bed. I couldn't believe how many people were still wandering around the streets at midnight, and not just drunk people, but families and kids. One of the first things I noticed about Prague is that the streets are ridiculously clean, it was such a refreshing change from London! 

On Saturday, we got up at 7am and began our day. We wandered around the streets of the beautiful Old Town. It was amazing because the streets were empty! We saw the Astronomical clock - a medieval clock that was installed in 1410, making it the third oldest astronomical clock in the world and the oldest clock still in operation. The Old Town Square was all set up for an Easter market which was super fun to see later in the day when it was open. 

We got a delicious latte and continued to wander till we reached a very empty Charles Bridge. It was crazy to see the difference in how busy it was later in the day when we walked back over it! We saw the John Lennon Wall and visited Prague Castle. According to the Guiness Book of World Records, Prague Castle in the largest castle complex in the world. You can wander around it for free which I would recommend. We got tickets to go into the various buildings because it was raining, but you really aren't missing anything if you don't buy a ticket. A regular ticket costs around £9 but I got a student one for about £4. First, we went into the stunning St. Vitus Cathedral. I don't think I have ever seen such beautiful stained glass and I absolutely loved the Gothic exterior of it. Next, we went into the Old Royal Palace which's history dates back to the 12th century and is made up of Gothic and Renaissance styles. Its Vladislav Hall is used for inaugurations and is the most important representative hall in the country. We ran into another Easter market and shared some delicious potato dumplings with cabbage and bacon, it was a good vibe. We then went into St. George's Basilica. Founded in 920, it is the oldest surviving church within the castle complex. Lastly, we wandered down Golden Lane. It is a lane full of small dwellings that used to be inhabited by the defenders of the Castle. The tiny houses were occupied until World War II. From 1916 to 1917, one of the houses was inhabited by the writer Franz Kafka. The name of the lane is derived from the goldsmiths who used to live there. It is a beautiful lane. Many of the buildings hold shops now, one of my favourites had all of the things in it made by people with disabilities. There was also a museum of weapons/torture devices/armor. The lane is free to admire after 5pm when the shops close. 

We admired the beautiful views of the city and then walked to a café called Bake Shop. We took a break and had a snack and then checked out the narrowest street in Prague. Squeezed in between two buildings off U Lužického semináře street, the narrow walkway is essentially just a staircase that is  less than 20 inches wide. You can press a button on either end to signal a walk/don’t walk traffic light. It was a fun little thing to experience. We stumbled upon a fantastic bookshop called Shakespeare a synvoyé. It was huge and had a great variety of books. We crossed back to the other side of the river and wandered along it. We saw stunning architecture and a really unique office building called Dancing House. We stumbled upon a cute riverside Saturday Farmers Market which was a vibe. 

We went to U Fleků for lunch which was a lot of fun. It is the oldest surviving brewery in Prague. The restaurant/brewery is made up of eight different halls that each have their own history and serves traditional Czech food and beer. The atmosphere was a lot of fun! The servers walk around with trays of shots of traditional mead and you can take one if you want; they do the same with beer, you have your choice of light or dark. The honey mead shot was delicious and the beer was good too! The food is served quickly and was tasty, I had the goulash with speck and bread dumplings. Two guys walked around playing music which created a really fun atmosphere. 

After lunch we walked around the Old Town some more. We saw the Franz Kafka rotating head, though we didn’t wait to see it rotate. We made our way to the Municipal Library to see the unique book tower that uses mirrors to make it look like an endless tunnel of books, it was cool to see. We found a spot to get a traditional Trdelník which is made from rolled dough that is wrapped around a stick then grilled and topped with sugar. I got a pistachio ice cream one, super filling but super delicious! 

We strolled around some shops and headed back to our hostel for a rest. We got talked into joining the pub crawl with our hostel, it seemed pretty much everyone in the hostel was going. We sat around getting to know people and a German guy came out with fruity schnapps shots for everyone. One of my favourite things about travelling is meeting cool new people and hearing about their adventures! We all headed to the first bar called Drunken Monkey. It had unlimited drinks for the 2 hour duration we were there for. You could get half litre bottles of beer and low alcohol fun flavoured shots that tasted like juice. People were dancing and talking and playing beer pong. At one point, people on the stage poured alcohol from bottles into peoples mouths… I have to admit, I was one of the people. Around 9:30 we all headed to another bar/club and did some dancing. Finally, we walked to our last destination as a big group. We made lots of friends and danced some more. Around 11:30, Jin and I left. We got some electric scooters and scooted back to the kebab shop for a snack and headed back to the hostel. 

Flying out of the airport in Prague was an unusual experience. After arriving at the airport, Jin and I headed straight through passport control and ended up in duty free on the other side. We were very confused on where security was as we suddenly found ourselves among the gates. At this airport, each gate has its own security check which happens when the gate opens. It made for a much quicker security check. We flew with EasyJet, I forgot how squishy it can be, we flew on a small plane where the aisles are wider but the seats are squishy. Jin and I had the aisle seats in the very last row of the plane. The back is a wild place to sit… the flight attendants gossip a lot which is entertaining, there were multiple hungover people that weren’t feeling too great being cared for, and it was very bumpy and wobbly feeling. Luckily, the flight is quick! We landed in Luton which is a terrible airport to fly into if you ask me. 

Prague was a stunning city full of art, music, history, and rich culture. I would’ve loved to have more time to explore it, but I don’t regret the quick trip. It’s so nice to do something different for a day and the weekend feels so much longer. I felt like we were able to see most of the big sites and get a feel for the general vibe. Some things I would’ve liked to do if we had more time is go to Výtopna Railway Restaurant, where your food and drinks are served to you on a mini train that goes around the restaurant and the Anonymous Shrinks Office, where they use psychoanalysis inkblot theory cards to pick the best drink for you and surprise you with it. I would’ve also liked more time to wander around the Jewish Quarter, check out some of the unique museums, go in the cool elevator at new city hall and visit the National Gallery.