Just when we thought all European cities were the same, we came across Prague. We had heard it to be very pretty, and it well exceeded our expectations. The castle was distinctly beautiful, especially after dark when it was brightly lit, all the more accentuated by it’s sparkling reflection in the river Vltava. Then there was the Charles bridge…felt very Parisian, in the sense numerous artists drawing portraits and caricatures, a few musicians performing, handmade crafts – all along the bridge while you enjoy the sunset and see the city roof tops bathed in golden twilight.
We chose to stay a bit differently this time. We had heard that vegetarian food was difficult to find in Prague and so had decided to cook on our own. Ms. Sophie’s was a hostel but had self-catering apartments as well. The word ‘Hostel’ doesn’t do justice to the standards this place offers. The apartments were very spacious with a well-equipped kitchen. Chic fittings and stylish interiors…we were pleasantly surprised at the quality. The upma mix that I had prepared came in handy and so did the pasta sauce, maggi and some home made snacks…definitely recommended for anyone visiting Prague. The apartment was centrally located in the new town. A 3 day pass allowed us to use all public transport including the brightly coloured trams which are a must experience.
We indulged in getting our portrait made – over a year after we had first thought of getting one made…we had thought of it when visiting Paris in March 2008. On the first day, we had walked through Charles Bridge looking at the various artists drawing portraits. We had liked one in particular and came in early the next day to get one done for us. It was a bit awkward having people walking past look at you while you sat with a smile on the face…very supportive though; as was evident with the thumbs up sign from many of them. Our efforts (the artist also did put in lots of efforts J) showed well in the end output though.
We were there for 2 nights and 3 days and felt Prague was an ideal getaway for such a trip. It is said, ‘Good girls go to heaven and bad girls go to Prague…’ – still wanna go? :)
