Prague Vol. 1: It's Pretty Old

It started with a train and then another train and then a bus and then a plane and then another bus and then another train.

After these few short steps we had successfully made our transfer to the next leg of our journey. We arrived at our hotel in Prague late at night after a quick trip on the metro. As soon as we exited the metro we were surrounded by charming old buildings and windy, cobblestone streets. We walked with anticipation in our hearts and map in hand. Would our accommodation be on one of these streets, in one of these buildings?

We arrived at said address and the answer was most clearly, no. A note on the door informed us that as reception was closed, our key was being held safely next door at Al Capone's Bar. Our building looked rather bleak and Soviet-era like in the midst of all of the antique, more charming buildings on the block. Well, for $40/night in the old town of Prague what can you expect?

Having retrieved the key from the bartender next door we proceeded to the oldest and most rickety elevator we had ever seen. Basically, just a box with a door that you opened, closed, then pressed a button and prayed that you would make it all the way up.

Having safely been deposited on the top floor we located our number and were informed that for the time being, we would be "the Huberts" as the sign on the door indicated. Upon opening the door and walking through the small apartment we were first pleased that we had a little kitchen complete with a two-burner hot plate (more than we had in Taiwan) and a fridge. Continuing through the kitchen and into the bedroom we were even more pleased when we were greeted with a perfect view of the Prague Castle through the large window. We started thinking that for $40/night this place really wasn't so bad. We were hungry so we walked down the street and got our first, of many, Czech beer and a snack and called it a day after a long day of traveling.



In spite of being a big city with a lot of tourists, Prague felt surprisingly relaxed. You could wander the cobblestone streets of the old town for hours (and we did), drink liters and liters of great beer for a fraction of what it would cost in the states (which we did...well, maybe not liters and liters), take in the stunning Gothic architecture as you sit in any of the countless squares and parks, see one of the oldest and largest castles in the world up close and from any point in the city, walk along the river or along any of the old bridges, and just generally feel like you were walking around in a dream, stuck in a time gone by.