Locomotion

We arrived at Frankfurt at 1:30 AM, completely blasted from the train excursion although curious about what would happen next. We departed the train, along with the handy Prague guidebook and our things, and went to the Frankfurt station information centre. Within moments the teacher was off to her destination via taxi and we were in front of the desk with these options so as to continue our journey to Prague:

1. Wait around and attempt to sleep in the station for four hours and get on the next train to Prague or
2. Sleep in a good hotel a mere 50 metres away from the station, get a buffet breakfast at the hotel in the morning at our leisure and then choose which of five trains departing from Frankfurt to Prague we'd like to hop on to next day.

All of these lovely options at no cost to us, which was meant to make up for the first class sleeper, seriously... was there a choice? We'll take option #2 please and thank you.

The sleep was solid, the shower was delectable, the buffet was scrumptious and the 9:30 am departure with Starbucks coffee in hand was... well, ideal. Oh, and the day was bright and glorious (like all of the other days in this tour)... so we got to see our way from Frankfurt to Prague. And what a lavish landscape it was.

And Prague, otherwise known as Praha, welcomed us warmly at 5 pm. We departed the train, hopped on the Metro, went two stops and then ascended to the cobbled street a mere 3 minutes from our hotel. The scene was mellow while bustling at a low hum.

U Tri Bubnu is a sliver of an old hotel that corners Old Town Square (Staromestske), which is the heart of the city of Praha. The Old Town Square is marvelous in the morning, in the afternoon, at dusk, during sunset and at night. Yeah, it's a place that when you close your eyes and just listen to the horses clip-clop along the cobbles you can put yourself in any other historical era. The square is for foot traffic only and is just really big. The fronts of each building is coloured and bordered with green or pink or yellow or cream. One lavish, 2-dimensional dollhouse stands at attention and is attached to another with no space in between. Then, the astronomical clock takes one corner up with it's hourly show which is neat, but a tad overrated considering the crowd that huddles around it and chokes the pathway completely. Our favourite building in Staromestske is the Church of our Lady Before Tyn. This building caused me to question if fairy tales are actually fictional. I swear that Rapunzel was about to let her hair down at any given moment for Prince Charming to come up the tower to save her. The glowy lights on these towers came on when dusk was just past and the sky enveloped the blackened exterior of the church. It was a yummy and unbelievable experience we anticipated each evening.

Praha is easy to navigate, accessible, a city with small town vibes, engaging at every turn and very old. We took our pace to a very mellow dawdle in Praha and as a result, drank in all of the gorgeous subtleties of the city. The Czech people are warm while reserved, embracing tourism with a fresh approach of grateful while prideful of their dreamy city.

Our first day took us to the Prague Castle - simply magnificent. I enjoyed this highly touristed spot immensely. The stature and spirit St. Vitus Cathedral encroached on my Notre Dame idealism, challenging me to consider it the most glorious church I've ever encountered. Seriously though, St. Vitus Cathedral is in a castle fortress with a moat around it, which is in pristine condition, and has the best view of the city. Mind you, that view was work though - not just for preggy, but each and every person to climbed the 235+ shallow steps up the tower - it was literally like climbing a ladder in a counter-clockwise,circlular motion until you got to the top. Huffing and puffing, we reached the top and drank in the city views.


St. Vitus Cathedral view down from the tower. These spires are black, old and have seen a heck of a lot of rain and snow and yet are pristine somehow.
Praha from one of point of view at the top of the St. Vitus tower. The St. Charles Bridge is in the far left corner. The red rooves are the landscape from every angle atop the tower.


St. Vitus Cathedral sanctuary. One view of many impressive views. The light is terrific in this place.


One of many diverse windows at St. Vitus. What I love about these windows is that the theme changes from each one to the other and with that, the art and style changed too. Not every window is a crucifixion, rather a spiritual story peppered with interpretive nuances that, I believe, reflect Czech history somehow. We've never been able to capture stained glass pictures like these on any prior trip. But, again, the light was just magical.


Moving from the St. Vitus Cathedral into the Prague Castle ballroom. The room is massive. That's me, resting along the back wall, drinking in the mad balls that likely raged on into the night with lavish dresses and silly traditions and gossip.... oh the gossip.

This is not a fabricated picture! The astronomical clock is on the left side facing left. The moon is winking at our luck to get the picture. I just get giddy about the pink building sidled up against the stone clock tower.


Here we are in Old Town Square just after sunset. Seriously, can't you tell we've become experts at relaxing and day-dreaming about fairy tales? Praha does that to you, it entices you to take it easy and just be. Yes, that's the point.