Praha aka Prague, the capital of Czech Republic was a brief stop in our summer vacation this year. It was a tumultuous year to say the least with some family emergencies and such but we made the most of it during our stay in the wonderful Bohemian environs.
Situated on the banks of the Vltava River it is a scenic and historic center of Europe.
It sits squarely in the cross road of western and eastern part of the continent. It was our gateway for some more travels east.
National Pilsner brand welcomes international travelers at the Vaclav Havel Airport on the outskirts of the city.
Underground Metro easily gets people from A to B. Sometimes the time spent traveling underground on fast moving escalators to the deep seated platforms and back is the same as the actual train travel time.
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A local pastry in the form of a tube called Trdelnik. IMHO a scam designed for tourists to shell out a few bucks, it is somewhat tasteless and flavored with toppings like Nutella and cream.
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Below are the sights of this gothic inspired city. Ruled by variety of kings and emperors it provides a visual treat to the traveler from its deep underground to the top of its castle hill and the sprawling squares in between dotted with churches and museums and gilded buildings like the ones seen below.
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| Impressive tower seen from old town square |
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| Steeples of many churches found in old town square |
Prague metro is a sprawling network of 40 miles of underground track the shuttles passengers from east to the west under the river.
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| Escalator to the deep underground (deepest station on Line A) |
Deepest point in the network is over 50 m below surface and the station is called Namesti Miru (almost sounds like a prayer for an Indian god).
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| Church of St. Ludmilla |
Indeed it has an ancient church right above the station devoted to a lady Saint called Ludmila. Amazingly serene with no indication of the fast moving trains underneath or the trams outside this among other large places to worship all over the city, is intricately designed and restored not showing its age of over 100 years.
From Prague Castle to the old town square in the heart of town there is a lot to take in. Gothic, Baroque architecture with tall spires and giant mechanical clocks dominate the city skyline.
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| en route to the Castle |
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| St. Vitus Cathedral |
Trams and buses of the public transport network help take travelers to any corner of the city in minutes.
The people are generally mild mannered but are not in my opinion used to the influx of foreign travelers especially in the outer corners of the city. Years of communist rule has given them a hardened look and language barrier tends to make them appear rude at times.
Food on the whole is relatively cheap and hearty. Sausages and potatoes tends to be popular while the local pilsner is cheap and plentiful.
National Pilsner brand welcomes international travelers at the Vaclav Havel Airport on the outskirts of the city.
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