This weekend was definitely one for the books. On Thursday afternoon, I made my way to Rome alone in order to catch my flight to Prague, Czech Republic. I was supposed to meet up with my friend, Erin, when we both got to Prague but life decided to throw us a curve ball. Before I even got to the Rome airport, I got a text from Erin saying that her flight was changed without her knowledge and had left four hours before she got to the airport and the next flight that she could get on wouldn't arrive in Prague until Saturday afternoon… Now, most people I know would probably have freaked out at that point and turned around and just gave up on the trip. However, for some reason, Erin's text didn't even phase me. I kept on track and made my way over to Prague by myself, ready to see what was in store for my weekend alone. Sorry Mom and Dad…
After finally making it to the hostel and getting a few hours of sleep, I woke up at eight and made my way into Old Town Square to go on a free walking tour. Now, anyone who travels by themselves knows that this is the first thing that you should do. Besides being a free way to get an idea of where you are and what all the city has to offer, these tours are also a great way to meet people without having to go up to random people in restaurants or on the streets begging them to befriend you.
Anyways, on this walking tour, I managed to make myself not one, not two, but three new friends (one being the tour guide, but hey that counts too). Turns out two of the girls who were actually staying in my room at the hostel were on the same tour so we got to hang out and get to know each other. Turns out these two Russian girls were best friends when they were younger but moved apart. They hadn't talked for ten years but met up in Prague and were just as close as they were when they were younger. They reminded me a lot of me and some of my friends. I think the best kind of friends are the ones where you don't necessarily need to talk everyday, but when you are together, it's like no time has passed.
After the tour, I parted ways with my new friends and spent the afternoon frolicking around the city on my own. My favorite thing that I saw was the Jubilee Synagogue. This synagogue was jaw-droppingly beautiful. It reminded me a lot of Disneyland's It's a Small World ride. Prague itself is a very vibrant, colorful city, but this building took that to the extreme. I honestly spent at least half an hour just standing on the sidewalk staring at the building in awe. If you ever go to Prague, this place is absolutely a must see.
Later that night, I met up with my friends from the hostel to go out to dinner for some typical Prague food. I wanted to go to a local, hole in the wall restaurant, but one of the girls that I was with was set on going to one of the restaurants that she had gotten a flyer from - aka a tourist trap. I wasn't about to argue with these people that I hardly knew, so we ended up at her restaurant against my will. When we got there, I ordered some schnitzel while everyone else got dumplings. After picking off each others' plates, we all agreed that the restaurant was no great shakes and I had to bite my tongue and hold myself back from saying, "I told you so".
After dinner, we meandered around town trying to find somewhere to get a drink and go dancing. After getting the input of some locals, we found ourselves at James Dean Bar & Club. This place was a local favorite - partially because there was no cover charge to get in but also because of its cool 60s like diner atmosphere. The drinks were a little overpriced, but it was fun dancing to the old music, while simultaneously avoiding the creepy older men preying on the young drunk girls.
The next morning, I went out with the intention of making my way to Prague Castle. However, somehow I winded up getting a little off the beaten path and ended up in the middle of some grassy hills with a beautiful view of the city. After about an hour of frolicking around the grassy fields and reflecting on the humor of my situation, I realized that I was closer to Petrin Tower than I was to the castle, so I changed my plans and made my way to the tower. I ran up the hill, climbed up the tower, and finally got to take in the view of Prague that everyone had been raving about. Seeing the whole town from that perspective was really cool and I'm glad that my path led me there.
After getting my exercise for the day, Erin and I were finally reunited! Once she landed in Prague, we had less than 36 hours to make sure that she saw everything that Prague had to offer. We spent the day running around town from the Old Town Square to the John Lennon Wall and everywhere in between. On our way across the Charles Bridge, Erin and I asked these guys to take a picture of us and we ended up befriending them. At one point in the conversation, one of the guys whips out a bag with a bottle of some type of typical Prague alcohol in it from inside his jacket and asked if we wanted some. Now, study abroad lesson number one states that you should never take alcohol from a stranger - especially in a foreign country when there is a language barrier. So, realistically, we should have said no immediately, but these guys seemed harmless and we wanted to see what Prague had to offer so we said to hell with our intuitions and took a swig. As my mom would say, yolo - right?
After about eight hours of running around like chickens with our heads cut off, Erin and I passed by a little Thai spa that was offering massages and fish pedicures for a fairly decent price. After a minute or two of deliberation, the two of us decided that we deserved to treat ourselves to something relaxing and fun. I had always wanted to try the famous fish pedicure but never found anywhere that offered the service, so that is how I ended up with my feet in a tank full of flesh eating fish. It was quite an experience - to say the least - especially considering they put me in a display case in the front of the shop where passerby's would stop and stare at me - and take pictures! - as I sat on a bench with little fish attacking my feet. I guess now I know what it's like to live in the public eye?
The next day, Erin and I hit up some of the last major tourist attractions including the Dancing Building, the National Museum, and Jubilee Synagogue before ending our trip with some typical Prague food and drink of brats and brews. Just kidding, I got a hot dog and some cider, but close enough, right? However, since Prague is accredited to inventing beer and beer is legitimately cheaper than water, I did try their Pilsner beer. Now, usually I can manage to choke down a beer, but this beer was absolutely vile. I was quite disappointed that the place that invented beer didn't have anything better to offer.
All in all, this trip was definitely one of my favorites. First of all, I learned that if I were to pick up and move to a random country, Prague would probably be that country. The vibrant colors and friendly people made it impossible not to be happy - and I mean, the sunshine helped a bit too. It would be really easy to get immersed in the culture and feel at home even in the foreign place. Maybe later in life I will end up wandering off the beaten path into Prague's beauty again…
I also learned that traveling by yourself is really something. I don't think that it is for everyone, but it is a really cool experience if you can handle it. I really liked the freedom of being able to do whatever I want at whatever pace I wanted, but it was also a bit lonely at times. There is something about being able to turn to someone and share in admiring the beauty of something or laugh through the inevitable miscommunications that come with language barriers that you just don't get when you are by yourself. I am glad that I got to experience traveling all by myself, but I think I prefer traveling with someone else better.
With that being said, I have one last trip (where I will be on my own for a few days again) before it's back to the states for me! Here's to one last adventure in Amsterdam!
Ciao for now!
Sincerely yours,
Just Another Original
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