Prague

We arrived in Prague on a train from Dresden at midnight, and we were met with an immediate display of Czech hospitality. A grungy disheveled man with a 5 o'clock shadow and slightly fewer than the normal allotment of teeth offered in broken english to take us to his hostel. While I'm sure he offers nothing but the most comfortable of rooms and model service, we had to decline his offer due to the fact that we had already booked a hotel.
With no money and no inkling as to the exchange rate, we knew our chances of buying a metro ticket were slim. We eventually found the ticket machine and who was there to help us? None other than the friendly hostel owner. We found a foreign exchange shop, and though it was closed, the prices were still published on the sign. As we haggled with the hostel owner over how many koruna we were to buy and at what price, a second helpful Prague resident shuffled over. He proferred metro tickets and offered to sell them at half the normal price. We just can't go anywhere in this country without somebody offering to help us out! The first scammer started yelling something in Czech, and the two began to argue over whose Americans these were to scam. We obtained just enough money to buy our tickets (from the machine) and get out of the station as quickly as possible. Koruna bought: 400. Scammers averted: 2. Lost travellers: 2.
After getting off at our metro stop, we still had no clue how to reach our hotel. Czech city planners didn't see fit to put street signs on each corner. Instead, they have street signs every few blocks pointing in the direction one would go to REACH a street instead of the direction the street travels.

Helpful street sign

Needless to say, we were a little frustrated at this point and felt like sitting ducks wearing backpacks on the outskirts of Prague at 12:30 in the morning. We eventually found the hotel which was Swiss and way nicer than necessary.
We woke up to one of the most charming, beautiful cities I've ever seen. Every street is narrow, crooked, and made of cobblestones. The shops and apartments are painted brightly. The whole place seems to be from a different epoch (probably because it is).

Just charming

I wanted to send some flowers home to Mom, but they told me that was going to be too expensive. Instead of mailing them home, I'm just going to blog them home.

Hi, Mom!

Without trying, we stumbled upon an exquisite gold adorned church. This was an experience we would have many times before leaving the city. Every corner is a candidate for a beautiful bell tower, an old church, or a work of sculpture.

Notice the man in the foreground telling me not to take pictures... oops

We hiked up a small hill and came to the Prague castle--the number one attraction in Prague. The castle is an enormous complex of buildings, but by far the most impressive one was the cathedral. American cathedrals simply cannot compare to their European counterparts (I'm no expert, but I've seen a cathedral or two in my 22 years).

Step up your game, America

We walked around the city for quite some time because the whole thing seems to be one gigantic work of art. We eventually wandered across Karluv Most which is a bridge across the main river running through the city. Along the bridge on each side are gigantic Christian sculptures along with countless street vendors.
We headed for a nice dinner on a riverboat which cost us a fraction what it would have in the US. On our way, we witnessed the remnants of the once powerful Occupy Czech movement.

Fight the good fight

After dinner we headed for the Euro 2012 fan park in the Old Town Square. In addition to continuing our streak of the home team winning their soccer game in every city we visit, we got to see the square lit up at night.

Old Town Square

We woke up the next morning and enjoyed some fresh local cuisine.

Eat fresh

Turns out McDonald's in other countries have different menus. In addition to the Big Mac, this one offered the McSmazjek (don't know how to spell OR pronounce this one). The McSmazjek is a beautiful creation of which any cook would be proud. It consists of a thick slice of cheese shaped like a hamburger patty breaded and deep fried and served on a bun with a mayonnaise based sauce. In the name of trying local delicacies, I ate one. Mistake.
We walked around the middle of the city and checked out the National Museum. Being a little museumed out, we opted for the external tour only. For dinner we visited one of the top 5 microbreweries in Prague (according to God knows who on the Internet). We ate our pork knuckles, sausage, and saurkraut as workers brewed the next batch in gigantic cisterns 10ft from our table. Despite passing on several restaurants linterally named "Typical Czech Restaurant," I think we found some traditional Czech food where we went.

The brewery might have been micro, but the mugs were not

The next morning, we walked around the center of the city, ate a little bit of food, and waited for our afternoon flight. In our ample wanderings of Prague, we found that there are no shortage of three things--money exchange shops, souveneir shops, and American fast food restaurants. One can never be more than an arm's length away from all three at the same time.

It's great to have choices

With a half hour to kill before our train, we decided to try our luck at blackjack. We chose what seemed to be a reputable establishment and bought in.

Andy had a Happy Day

We made our way to the airport and through minimal security to our flight. We landed in Rome with bright eyes and bushy tails--ready to carpe the diem.