Prague
Tuesday was a busy day for me, and it was a beautiful one. The goal? To walk and explore (as always). So where did I head? Well one of the most touristy places in Prague of course! The St. Charles Bridge.
Can you see why it's a popular destination? Wonderful views of the city!
Statues, vendors, people, colors, water. A lovely place to stroll.
Upon crossing the bridge, I went in search of the famous John Lennon Wall.
Which was much smaller than expected, but still thrilling to look at.
And very colorful, I might add!
I finally braved up and asked someone to take a picture for me.
Then I walked towards Prague Castle, where I would spend most of my day walking through and learning about the large span of historic buildings located on this huge plot of land, a top a hill, nonetheless. (According to the Guinness Book of World Records, Prague Castle is the biggest castle in the world!)
So yes, that meant gorgeous views!
I got there just in time for the large changing of the guard ceremony around noon. There were trumpets and everything.
St. Vitus Cathedral
Golden Lane, which was comprised of a series of little houses and workshops dating back as far as the 16th century. They look like doll houses as opposed to normal houses, as they only hold the essentials of what one person (possibly two people if they squeeze) might need to live and work and nothing more.
A room with all of the old torture devices. Quite the scary room if I do say so myself.
A workshop in the basement.
Marionettes
A bride and groom here to take pictures!
Then I found a place for lunch just outside the castle walls. The restaurants in Prague are very picturesque as they are all set in medieval style buildings.
Walking through an alleyway to get to the restaurant's entrance.
Then I had to go down some stairs to get to the actual restaurant, which was decorated as such:
And the food was delicious! A salmon pesto pasta with homemade Prague gnocchi. And a cappuccino of course :)
The main castle entrance at night.
Their mini-eiffel tower. I would be up on top of this hill later on that evening.
The city started to light up.
They were prepared for the cold weather.
I then decided to take a ride on the funicular (cable car) up that hill mentioned earlier in order to access Petrin Park, and therefore some spectacular views of the city at night.
This was closed so I could not go to the top, but I got to take some pictures of it :)
As you can see, I was certainly not disappointed by the views.
Nope. Not one bit.
The cable car took me to the top of the hill where I proceeded to walk down the paths along the side of the hill looking at the city through some brush. Every once in a while I would come to a landing clear of trees and my view was unobstructed, which allowed me to take the photo above - the entire property of Prague castle (where I was just a few hours prior).
The park itself. Quiet and serene, with the occasional runner or dog walker or couple strolling through.
Thanks to my self-timer I got a shot with the castle!
Then I walked back over the river, but on a different bridge this time.
And had a wonderful view looking towards St. Charles Bridge.
And the castle :)
This is Wenceslas Square, similar to Times Square in a way. It was buzzing with people, places to shop, and foods to eat.
I then went back to where I was staying (at an NYU Prague dorm with a sorority sister) to rest up before heading out again in order to celebrate ELECTION DAY!
My sister Alana and her wonderful friend Norris, all dressed up for the first party we went to at an American bar in the city center (Praha 1).
New friends I met! All studying at NYU Prague for the semester.
Happy to be here!
I thought this girl looked quite all-American, so I snapped a shot.
Fun times waiting for some results.
We ate lots and lots of nachos. This may or may not have been our third or fourth plate... :D
Lots of people!
Some great decorations to make us feel at home!
THEN we traveled over the St. Charles Bridge towards our second party of the evening at...the American Embassy!!!! I mean...no big deal.
This bridge looks quite different at night. It was so calm. We were the only ones walking it now. I mean, it was around 3 a.m. by now so I guess that makes a bit of sense.
Horrah!
Oh hey boys!
Their 'political' faces.
Yes, this party had quite a different vibe. But it was still lots of fun!
And they also had free food!
And candidate cut outs.
And coffee, which was very necessary when it rounded about 6:30 in the morning. But we were waiting for those results!
And once we got them we headed home - very tired, but very happy. And certainly feeling very American, even if we were currently in a foreign country. It was a great night and a great day. I saw a lot (mission accomplished), but, needless to say, I was incredibly EXHAUSTED! So I went back to the dorm, fell asleep as the sun was coming up and the birds were chirping, got some rest, and then woke up the next morning...afternoon, to explore some more. Because I was in Prague!
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