Prague, Czech Republic

On Friday I made the long journey from Salzburg, Austria, to Prague, Czech Republic. It was an 8 hour trip that involved a bus, 3 trains, another bus, until I finally arrived at the train station in Prague. While waiting for my friends, all traveling from different places to get here, I sat at a cafe that looked like it came out of 1920s or 30s America. Flapper music playing, old tables and chairs, and a waitress that fit the bill, except that she liked to talk on her cell phone and ignore customers.

I felt like I stepped into an old painting. I ordered an iced chocolate and was asked to pay as soon as the drink was brought to me. Thanks to travel expert Rick Steves, I knew to watch out for people trying to give you back less changed then you were sup. to get. Sure enough, the woman short-changed me. I called her on it, she gave me more back and walked off in a huff. Damn saavy tourists-haha.

My friends arrived and we all headed to our youth hostel. For Americans that have never been to one, I suppose I should describe it like this: the accommodations are like at summer camp: 8 people to a room, bunk beds, and shared bathrooms. This particular hostel is just fine, and I actually have found the experience to be quite enjoyable. There is a common room here where you can watch movies or just hang out, and I enjoyed talking with a group of Canadians studying abroad in England. It's really a great way to meet like-minded students and save money.

Prague itself is beautiful-I'm not necessarily a big fan of gothic architecture, but somehow in Prague it just feels right. The churches are absolutely gorgeous- and I'm not just saying that. Having been in Europe for 10 months, I have been in more churches than I can count. And honestly, all of them start to look the same after a while. We walked around the city, looked at the castle here from the outside, and today, we did a walking tour. It was very interesting and I enjoyed learning more about the city. I went off on my own this afternoon and visited the communist museum, which was really interesting for me since I am interested in the Berlin Wall and all that jazz.

I am enjoying this, but I am exhausted. Traveling is exhausting. But I love it. I love visiting countries for the first time. It's really magical. The different sites and sounds. The people. I will be dead-ass broke when I get home, but I don't give a damn. I am young, unattached, and enjoying life. Where to next? Paris next week, and hopefully Budapest sometime in the near future. But for now I think I'm going to take a nap :-)

Love, Molly