Prague - Living up to its Hype for 1,100 Years

Over the last few years, and as I have visited more and more places, I have come to notice that there are two very different ways to go about seeing the sites.  The first option is to go on a 'big bus tour'.  The second option is to not go on a 'big bus tour'.

The gang on Charles Bridge
 (From left to right: Marcel, Florentia, George, Joris, Me, Julian)

By big bus tour I'm talking about those groups of 50 plus people that are chauffeured from city to city in those huge chartered buses and then are herded around like sheep to see the most famous sites.  I've seen them everywhere (they're pretty easy to pick out),  large groups of people ambling along after their guide who's almost always waving a big flag with the name of the tour company emblazoned on it, so that pick pockets and con artists have to do as little guess work as possible I assume.  Occasionally the guide stops to shout some facts into the crowd of generally uninterested tourists before shepherding them all back onto the bus in order to make it  to the hotel in time for their pre-paid lunch.

The main facade of the St. Vittus Cathedral. Located high above the city in the castle complex.

 Don't get me wrong, I can see why this would be attractive to some people.  It offers you the opportunity to meet MANY fellow travellers and the convenience is unparalleled.  Its just not for me.  That's why even I was surprised when I signed up for one of these trips myself. A University run weekend in Prague with a group of friends.

Rear view of St. Vittus Cathedral

Yes, I feel like I spent most of my time on the bus (its about a nine or ten hour drive from Ljubljana), and yes, everything we did had to be negotiated between the fifty or so people on the trip.  But all in all it was a good weekend, although I think that was mostly just because Prague is such an awesome city.  Its a place that I have heard lots about and have wanted to visit for some time.  My brother Jordan spent a couple of weeks there on a school trip when he was in high school and so I think my interest in the city stems from  his many stories and memories, in addition to those of many other friends of mine.  All of them had nothing bad to say about Prague.  In fact, most of them fell in love with the city.

Prague's very famous Astronomical Clock

There were many things that impressed me about Prague; the history, the architecture, the cheap beer, just to name a few.  But what surprised me the most was the scale of the city.  I had one full day in Budapest, and while I didn't see everything, I was able to get a good grasp of the city.  After two days in Prague, on the other hand, I still feel as though I only saw  a tiny fraction of even just the Old Town.  I guess I'll just have to go back, for longer next time.

It's crazy to think that in the past few weeks I've been in five different countries, even if just for a few hours in a couple of them.  Its even crazier to think that in the coming weeks I'll have been to who knows how many more.  I don't know exactly where or when, but that just makes it that much more exciting.

Thanks for reading.
Mitch

Clock tower looking over Old Town Square and just above the Astronomical Clock