Czechia: Prancing Through Prague
Prague is a beautiful city. The river flows through the heart of it with the Disney-looking castle perched atop a hillside in the background. Its baroque and romanesque architecture give it an air of elegance that is incredibly unique.


The Old Town Square is the main area boasting beautiful buildings and the famous Orloj, an astronomical clock that sings at the top of every hour. It was teeming with tourists, so we didn’t stay too long in that area. And, unfortunately similar to Amsterdam, many of the streets were overflowing with trash and graffitied walls, which degraded the beauty of the city. In addition, overwhelming crowds and poor weather influenced our perception of Prague. It was obscenely hot the first few days, which gave us limited time to prance about before the sun scorched down on us and we had to take refuge inside shady cafes. But, the last few days cooled off and it even started raining out of the blue so we had to take cover again.
Despite an abundance of tourists and hot weather, we found that the best way to enjoy ourselves was by venturing out of the main town squares and finding solace along the side streets. Wandering along Old Town’s cobblestone streets was a great way to spend our time because we felt like this was more of an ideal way to experience this archetypal European city. I also had a chance to discover a specialty of Czech desserts: the trdelník chimney. It’s a funnel-cake filled with soft-serve ice cream and smells like a cinnamon roll. You can often find bakers on the streets baking the dough on a rotating spit then rolling it in cinnamon and sugar before filling it up with soft-serve. It was delicious confection for any sweet-tooth to enjoy!
In Vrtba garden, I got to see a photoshoot with a fashion model walking throughout the grounds. And I followed in her footsteps popping some poses myself.

We also got a great view walking up the steps of the Italian-style gardens and seeing the city beyond them. But, the best sights (and sounds) were yet to come…


The walk to Prague Castle was one of our favorite parts of the city. First, we started the walk from the Powder Tower, then up and over Charles Bridge. Charles Bridge is an attraction all by itself. Built in the 14th century, it’s lined with: sculptures of religious images and prolific Czech figures, street performers, artists and peddlers. It provides some of the most scenic views of the city over the Vltava River.

After crossing the bridge, we wound through cobblestone lanes and then climbed 200+ steps up to the castle entrance. Though the hike up to the castle is a bit of a workout, it’s worth it to get a spectacular view of Prague. In particular, the view at the top from the Starbucks (yep, you read that correctly; they pick the best locations!) situated in an outdoor patio setting overlooking the city was incomparable.


Once we arrived at Prague Castle, there’s no shortage of things to do. The compound includes a pretty expansive collection of eclectic buildings with museums, cafes, and archways connected by the internal castle roads. It’s a self-sufficient city unto itself similar to Windsor Castle. And, after the trek uphill we found a nice little offshoot area next to a cafe where we could sit, listen to a fountain, and cool off.
One of the best things we did was attend an organ concert in St. Vitus Cathedral, in the heart of the castle complex. St. Vitus is a 14th century Gothic church housing the tombs of many Bohemian kings and Holy Roman Emperors. It’s also the home to a great organ that’s about 3 stories tall! We got to hear the prodigious instrument in all of its glory at a special evening concert. The booming sound of the pipes reverberated through the gothic arches making the church come alive! I can only imagine how awesome it must have been to the Bohemians back in the day when this baby was first installed. The event was unbelievably special, and I savored the moment listening to the sweet tempo and the rich tones of the organ. It has inspired me to start tickling the ivories once again!



