DON'T PRAGUE ABOUT IT - PRAGUE, CZECH REPUBLIC - DAY 20
We did A. LOT.
We slept sporadically again and walked off the train at six in the morning greeted by 7 degrees Celsius weather (44F). We were not ready. This is humid cold. Colder than Ireland. Colder than Iceland. Colder than the realization that when you become an adult, your childhood dreams might be as dead as your grandmother.
We trekked ten minutes over from the train station to our hostel which we couldn't find for an hour...And apparently neither can anyone else! While searching for our hostel, we can't even take shelter because nothing is open, it's windy on top of the freeze, and we're in an open, flat strip mall with no place to duck in. This level of cold has no mercy. When we did finally get to it, it was the smallest sign, INSIDE of a restaurant window's side panel, not facing the open street!
We go in, drop our bags, and hang out in the kitchen until we can feel our faces again. We plan on a free walking tour, anticipating that it will warm up as the day passes and the sun comes out. Still unprepared for the cold, we walk over early to the main square in Old Town. The cold is relentless, and we succumb to it fast. We go to the nearest, most touristy restaurant because it's the only thing open, and we're desperate.
The restaurant waiter can see us coming in, tired and shivering. They open extra early for us. Kay and I make a plan to eat well because we've agreed to take two free walking tours back to back to see the entire city in one day.
We order A TON OF FOOD, and finish everything. I have coffee, fresh orange juice, and a full English breakfast. Considering this was now our breakfast and lunch together, the price was well worth it.
We stay as long as they let us, until our tour starts. At this point, the sun had come up, and the main square comes into full view- Prague is absolutely breathtaking. One of my top five European cities along with Rome, Stockholm and Ghent. Kay and I wished we had another full day here instead of Budapest, but hindsight is 20/20... We just hope to make it back one day.
We kick off the tour for Old Town, and begin with the main square. The Astronomical Clock is under renovation until the next year so no luck of seeing that. Due to previous bombings in WWII, the tower's foundation has actually shifted, rendering it under construction. I won't bore you with too many historical details, so I'll try to keep it short. We saw the church in the main square across from the clock, and learned that one tower is bigger than the other. Catholics say it's to represent Adam and Eve. But actually, Prague's cathedrals and churches have gone through multiple architects which is why none of the city's architecture has any uniformity. We also see the building where Mozart premiered Don Giovanni. I liked this especially because, as you know, "Amadeus" is one of my favorite films. I was really overjoyed to see where it all happened. Next, we went to the New Square. Ironically, New Square is still 700 years old. At the end, we stopped in the Jewish corner. They were persecuted here, before, during, and after WWII. They were only allowed to stay in the section behind Prague's Old Town square because the neighboring river would often flood, hitting the Jewish quarters first, in hopes of driving them out. Today, it is the wealthiest, and most beautiful quarter in the whole city. We also passed by the very famous Spanish synagogue, but it was 30 U.S. dollars to get in- Nah. We touch the statue of Franz Kafka, thank and pay the tour guide, and book it back to the main square in Old Town.
At this point, Kay and I can't feel our legs or faces. Despite having 5+ layers, this wet cold is slicing through every article of clothing, and right to the bone with painful ease. (We'll try harder tomorrow). The high was 19C (66F), but still felt like 7C (44F). It was so cold, my phone kept dying- Most of my photos are on the pro camera. I must say, it was much warmer in the Swiss Alps.
We hike back to the tourist center in the main square and duck in somewhere warm until our next tour. We question if we should even go, and all our life decisions.
You guessed it, we decide to suffer and stick it out. We make it to the second tour regarding Prague's castle and cathedral at the top of the hill across the bridge. (Nano, we saw the tower that you went up. We actually ended our second tour on another overlook, so we didn't go up on that one).
Or second guide takes us through the opposite direction to discuss King Charles and Charles Bridge. We touched John's statue to ensure we come back to Prague. You have to be careful and touch the falling priest on the plaque. Many people have accidentally touched, and shined the statue of the dog and the Queen- Supposedly college students had spray painted that spot gold to play a prank on tourists. We carry on upward to St. Vitus Cathedral from a tram. We shiver and shake, and curse through everything. Once inside the cathedral, we learn that it took over 700 years to build because Prague was always stuck in a war. War requires money, people, and time- The same requirements for building a grand cathedral, (and for making movies). It was finally finished in the 1920s, with a Czech insurance company providing the remaining funds needed for completion. Believe it or not, there are some insurance employee figures in the stained glass windows in suits. On the outside, the architecture starts as Gothic, then Renaissance, and is topped with Baroque, (again multiple architects). The primary reason Prague is filled with Baroque architecture is because everything was ruled by the Hapsburg Empire until Communism overtook the country, and then eventually achieving independence thereafter. We also learn about the Haps incestuous family tree, including Rudolf. Because everyone was inbred, everyone was really depressed, and completely deranged, including having a lot of physical deformities. Our tour guide favored Rudolf, so we also learned that he was a bisexual man, living with his male lover for 11 years, and both were both obsessed with art. Rudolf had a MASSIVE pornographic art collection, and a favorite self portrait that looks like it was done by Arcimboldo- Only to be snatched by the Swedes during the 30 years war...Sweden still has it today. On top of that, Rudolf was VERY interested in astronomy and alchemy. He had employed and funded astronomer Johannes Kepler’s work, and his colleague and mentor before him. I liked this because I learned of Johannes’ work when I attended University. A future Hapsburg descendent included Marie Antoinette. Her mother had 16 kids to be heirs to their Hapsburg wealth, but only 13 survived. Lastly, and Ironically, all of these cathedrals and churches throughout the city mean absolutely nothing to the Czech people because the country is 80% atheist or agnostic after being ruled by Communist Russia, where "your country is your religion". The last cool fact I remember, is that through a ton of Protestant and Catholic feuds before Communism, Prague's favorite punishment was defenestration, or more commonly put, "throwing people out of windows". Seriously.
The tours were INCREDIBLE, and we saw the entire city for only a small donation to the guides! Like I said, it's so beautiful, I wish we could stay just to take our time through the city and further soak it all in.
At the end of the second tour, everything hurt, and even though I was well covered everywhere except for my face and legs, Kay and I couldn't stop shivering. We stiffly and robotically book it back to the other side of the bridge like moving icicles, hopping along as though we're characters in a South Park episode.
Kay initially wanted to see this concert playing Vivaldi music in this area. I was skeptical and asked if she really wanted to see it, or if she just wanted to see it because her friends did this when they were here. I think it was the latter, but once she incepted the idea in my mind, I ended up wanting to go more than she did.
We get to the concert hall, and the tickets are sold out. I try to hide my disappointment and brush it off. But knowing Kay, she whips out her phone, and snags them online. Not all heroes wear capes. We get in last minute and warm up inside the venue. It's a special building because it has been continuously left derelict, and reconstructed after every war, until using it for this events like these. In the end, we actually ended up listening to Vivaldi's Four Seasons, and some Mozart with one organ player, a four string ensemble and an opera singer. It wasn't an orchestra performance at the Kennedy Center, but it was lovely all the same- I get to say I listened to a Vivaldi performance in Prague! It cost a pretty penny by our standards, but was well worth it, and still cheaper than the Spanish synagogue visit!
After thawing out to live classical music, we literally run to dinner. Everything is really cheap here as well, so we order a starter, drinks and a main dish. Overall, we're spending "a lot" here, but that's only because we're doing a lot, and we accomplished everything in one day. We even debated going out tonight because Prague is so well known for its nightlife, but honestly, Kay and I were too freezing and tired. Plus we're moving too fast through each country now- Everything until Croatia is only a day or a day-and-a-half.
Tomorrow, we're just aiming to get some of their famous Nutella pastries here, and some of their famous spiced wine. The Nutella pastries are called Trdelnik, (pronounced "turtleneck"). We also want to see the remaining two Cubism architecture buildings. We saw one today, and the style is inspired by Picasso. I've never seen this type of architecture before, but it's certainly a new favorite. More tomorrow night! We leave for our train to Austria tomorrow after lunch.
As always, love you!
-eM
