I should have been born in Prague

Ah at last, a keyboard where I can find all the keys I need. The ones in Prague were so multilingual you couldn't figure out where anything was. Hence the lack of Prague updates.

I absoluely loved Prague. In fact, it was the first place where I really felt comfortable with this whole travelling thing. Funny since I was propositioned twice within ten minutes of getting off the train. Ah, just like Vancouver.

So I sadly had to spend a good chunk of my first Prague day doing laundry but at least I have clean clothes! You have no idea how happy that made me. Then I wandered around a little in the area of the hostel.

On day two I spent most of my time in the Stare Mesto (Old Town), just getting lost among all the buildings. Prague I think is best explored without paying too much attention to where you're going. There are so many little nooks and crannies to explore. In the afternoon I visited Prague Castle. I mostly explored the grounds and the cathedral. It was very nice but very very crowded. In the evening I met Phil's friend Jiri in Wenceslas Square and I got another walking tour of Prague, this time at night which was really beautiful. We crossed the river over to this little island thing. I wish I had some good pictures but I didn't bring a tripod with me.

Yesterday I woke up early so I could check out of my hostel and do some more wandering. This time I walked through Wenceslas Square back to Stare Mesto, visited St Nicholas Church and then went into the Jewish Quarter a bit. I eventually found my way to the National Gallery. It has a great exhibit of religious paintings from the Czech Republic and elsewhere, mostly from around the middle ages. It's interesting to see works that have no author. Makes you wonder if that painter or sculptor knows that their work is still being admired. After the gallery I spent some more time wandering through the Jewish Quarter, looking at some of the synagogues. After that I walked back to the Nove Mesto (new town that was founded in the 14th century) and explored some more before going to the National Museum. It is very science oriented which is different for me. They have a great minerology exhibit which I really enjoyed. Especially the diamond display. It's neat to realize you're looking at billions of dollars under that class. I also checked out the paleontology and prehistory exhibits but skipped the room of stuffed birds.

After the museum I walked across Charles Bridge into Mala Strana (little quarter) and back to the castle. This was really great because there was harly anyone there and I got to really enjoy the grounds. A whole castle mostly to myself! Then I walked back down into Stare Mesto and took the Metro to the train station because my feet really could not take anymore walking. (After 9 hours I don't blame them).

I had a near mishap with the train when half an hour before it was supposed to depart I realized I'd gotten the station wrong. Luckily the stations aren't very far apart by metro and I reached the proper station right when the train was beginning to board. I had to purchase a couchette for this train because it didn't have any cars with seats. That was kind of nice. I probably won't indulge in that luxury much though, it cost more than two nights at a hostel in Prague!

Anyway, I'm in Vienna now trying to make sense of trains and trams and such. I'll post pictures in the next few days when I am able to upload again.