Page 10 - MARCH 2 , 2017 - martensville messenger
Where in the World - Perfect Prague
Submitted : Dean Johnston
There are plenty of cool European cities to choose from ; Majestic Paris , London ’ s melting pot , mix ‘ n match Amsterdam , elegant Barcelona , filthy Rome , just to name a few , and to each their own when it comes to picking a favourite . For us , though , so far at least , old Prague , the capital of the Czech Republic , takes top honours . While there are other cities of even greater historical interest , those with more churches , some with a slightly more awe-inspiring river , more famous landmarks , maybe more Greek statues with tiny stone penises , Prague just has something about it . Variety , for one thing . It has more than its fair share of all of the above ( although I must admit , the penises we did see were disappointingly regular-sized ), enough to keep us busy throughout our extra-long stay , even leaving a few remaining items we failed to check off our list ( i . e . try all 300 Czech beers - stalled at eleven ).
With some friends living in Prague and the expectation that we ’ d be looking to slow down after three months of travel around Europe , we took to AirBnB to secure an apartment for two full weeksroughly four times our usual allotment for a single city . For Prague ( also referred to as “ Praha ” if you happen to speak Czech , or at least speak more Czech than my basic staples of “ dekuji ” - thank you , or “ na zdravi ” - cheers , drink up lightweight ), we quickly settled into a relaxed routine of choosing a different location each day , piecing together the best route for arriving there by public transport , visiting , wandering aimlessly , and eventually working our way back to the apartment after lunch for a few hours of rest , reflection and surfing the internet .
Top Highlights
Charles Bridge . Famous for good reason , its stately beauty easily withstands the excessive crowds and caricaturist buskers alike . Views from the Charles Bridge Tower at the north end are particularly outstanding .
Old Town Square . This grand plaza provides crowds and scenery in equal measures at any time of night or day . If it is clearly the heart and soul of Prague , then Prague Castle across the river , would represent a gaudy military shoulder epaulet .
The David Cerny art collection . Scattered throughout the city , hunting down all of these irreverent politically-themed pieces can be a satisfying project to work on during your stay . The two men actively urinating on a map of the Czech Republic comprise one of his more popular creations , along with Sigmund Freud hanging by one hand from a pole high above downtown , but you best get your story straight before trying to trick your way into the German embassy to see the little car with hilariously long legs .
Vltava River . You can ’ t go wrong spending time anywhere along the river , crisscrossed by picturesque bridges , lined with stunning historic buildings and recently married couples having professional photos taken with geese . The “ Bone Church ” in nearby Kutna Hora isn ’ t so much scary as morbidly fascinating , and a great place to practice up for your next med school quiz .
Christmas Markets . At the appropriate time of year every open square fills with wooden stalls offering food , drinks and trinkets , almost always in exactly that order .
In the end , however , our great and somewhat surprising love of Prague stemmed not so much from the individual highlights or specific sights - every European city has a bevy of those - but more from the overall ambience and atmosphere . Friendly , festive , easy to get around and a joy for walking , it is simply one of those places that just feels right . Undoubtedly a city we will return to more than once .
Five Things
1 . Trams are the best way around the city , unless you end up awkwardly sharing a seat with that unhygienic man wearing three hats and face paint . Then they can feel
ABOVE : Old Town Square ( Dean Johnston )
ABOVE : Charles Bridge ( Dean Johnston ) like the longest way around the city .
2 . The Czechs may not be big on English football , but Jaromir Jagr has earned them a certain level of sports snobbishness .
3 . Prague is full of epic beer halls , long on large beer and drunk men , short on salads and trendy art .
4 . If you happen to be hiking past a guy standing next to seven steaming wild boar corpses don ’ t bother offering a wet-wipe , he ’ s probably already made plans .
5 . Just because the Bone Church is made up mostly of bones , don ’ t bother asking if the Lennon Wall is made up mostly of John Lennon . It ’ s not , apparently .
Dean Johnston is the author of Random Acts of Travel : Featuring Trepidation , Hammocks and Spitting and Behind the Albergue Door : Inspiration Agony Adventure on the Camino de Santiago . He is currently spending 3 months at Lago de Atitlán , Guatemala working on his next book , but while you wait you can read about all his travels at http :// routinelynomadic . com .
ABOVE : Vinohrady neighbourhood ( Dean Johnston )