So I came to Prague yesterday, although kinda late, so this is for all means and purposes my first day here. I have to say: Compared to Oslo, it is a rather pimp place. Lots of buildings with historical charm, covered in gold, and all in all, it makes Oslo look kinda like a shithole.
Last night was mostly trying to get acquainted around the hotel, Art Hotel Embassy. Art Hotel Embassy is kinda west off in Prague 1, which is where it seems most (but ofcourse not all) of the interesting things can be found. Sitting down at a local café, I skimmed trough Lonely planet and some other travel guides I had, tried to get an impression about how things were located and what would be the best way to explore the city.
Long story short: I now have lots of sites, spread all trough the city, which I would love to see. I have a week though, so I think I should be able to catch quite a few of these.
So last night, while trying to get acquainted here in Prague, I must admit I failed pretty badly. I do claim to have a decent sense of direction and urban navigation skills, but here in Prague there seems not to be a single square block. Just lots of small streets, all curved one way or the other, and you end up losing your sense of direction pretty quickly.
Failing last night, I decided this might be easier to get done proper after a decent breakfast and some coffee. And I was right. Now I have a proper feel for the city, and if I am to go see some of the major tourist attractions, daytime seems to be a good time to do it. Prague is literally filled with tourists this time of year, and you can pretty much follow Douglas Adam's Zen navigation principle and you should end up someplace which is in your list.
The main pitfall with this technique is that with lots of tourists, there are lots of tourist traps, and they are always located where the tourists are. And while Prague may no longer be super-cheap as it used to be, staying in the main tourist districts will get you ripped. I need to get off "the main path" and find some more obscure places, but given the chaotic nature of Prague's streets, that shouldn't take too much effort. In fact it shouldn't take any effort at all.
As for me, I'm trying to go somewhat incognito. That is, not as the typical tourist. I've dressed up casually and so far it seems to work. I have locals, volunteers, waiters, you name it, coming to me wiith pamphlets, menus and whatever, talking to me in Czech. Ofcourse as soon as Czech is spoken my cover is blown, but I can live with that. I've picked up a Czech phrasebook & dictionary, and maybe, just maybe, I'll end up being able to blend in even more.
So far I've been able to locate Old town square, although by a massive detour. This is where most of the stuff which seems interesting, but definitely not all of it, seems to be in the vicinity of. I spotted the Jan Hus monument, and from there on made my way to Charles Bridge, one of the oldest stone-bridges in Europe, according to my taxi-driver into town.
I'd love to say that walking this bridge filled me with a sense of historical significance, but frankly, with the brdge currently being rehabilitated, half of the walkway being sealed off, and the construction workers playing Dr. Alban's "What is love" and 2 Unlimited's "I got the power", that wasn't really the case.
Another place I visited was Grand Cafe Orient, which is supposed to be Prague's only "cubist café". After having been there, I'm still not sure what that means, but at least they had decent, although coffee. What I ordered was Turecká káva, which I assumed would mean French press coffee. I was almost right. I got a glass, with coffee and hot water and no press. So basically I had to wait until all the coffee had settled in the bottom. Interesting approach, but not very practical.
I've also located the pub where Czechs former prime-minister took Bill Clinton for a beer and had him play saxophone, U Zlatého tygra, not to mention some jazz and industrial clubs. Besides this a think a brewery tour would be in order, and I've found arrangements for this as well. All in all a pretty productive first half day in Prague.
I'd love to post some pictures, but right now I'm in the mood for getting out and getting something to eat, not to mention getting out while I still feel fresh from the spa, so I'll take care of that later.