Prague has been my favorite city so far. I had never been to Eastern Europe before, and it had a different feel than Western European cities. It was interesting to hear about how the communism of the Soviet Union affected the city and its history. On Friday night, we left Vienna and went straight to Prague, getting in pretty late. The first thing we did was exchange some Euros for Czech Crowns - which are worth almost nothing (About 11 US dollars gets you 300 crowns). We had two full days in Prague, and both were completely packed full so that we could see as much as possible.
The first day, Claire and I did a three hour walking tour to get our bearings and see the city. The astronomical clock, Jewish quarter, and Charles Bridge were some highlights. Unfortunately, our first day in Prague was extremely foggy, so our pictures did not turn out well. Prague did not seem as big as Vienna (although they are about the same size), so we found our way around rather easily. Later, we toured the Prague castle and St. Vitus Cathedral, which had the most beautiful stained glass I've ever seen. (My picture below does not do it justice.) For dinner, Maggie, Kanci, Claire, and I walked up to a restaurant by the monastery. Right after we ordered, a guy came up to us and asked us to join him and his friends at his table. We said sure and found out they were all from Vienna, visiting Prague for the weekend. As we had just come from Vienna and we were all university students, we had a lot to talk about. It was a fun time talking about the cultural differences between us and them. And dinner was delicious (more goulash and potato dumplings). All around, a good time!
Day two, Claire and I went to mass at a small church around the corner from our hostel. It was unexpectedly ornate on the inside, and Czech mass has actually been my favorite so far! Afterward, the weather finally cleared up! We went to the top of the astronomical clock tower to see an aerial view of the city, which was breathtaking. Then, I tried a life-changing Czech specialty - Trdelnik. It is dough wrapped around a spit and grilled, rolled in sugar, and brushed with chocolate on the inside. After some souvenir shopping, we went back to the Jewish quarter to see the museum, cemetery, and a couple of synagogues. Inside the museum were dozens of drawings done by children in a Jewish ghetto. One woman created a program in the school that allowed the kids to express their feelings through art and try to work through the depression and chaos going on around them. I have attached a picture of my favorite drawing below. Each picture was labeled with the child's name, dates of birth and death, and if he or she survived. Most children were taken from the ghetto to be killed in concentration camps. Only a few survived. Outside the museum was a cemetery that was twelve layers deep of bodies. It was a somber experience walking through the cemetery and reading about what the Jewish and Czech people went through during World War II. It is an experience I believe is important, and I highly recommend.
We finished up the trip by walking around the beautiful city some more and finding our public transportation to the airport. When we finally got back to Bonn very late (or early depending on your perspective), I was relieved. A week of traveling was physically and mentally exhausting. I got to see so much and try so many new things. It was incredible.
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