Pretty in Prague

I have always dreamt of going to Prague, visiting the haunts of literary giants and seeing some of the world’s greatest art and architecture. Prague did not let me down, although the Lonely Planet summarised it pretty well when they said “so you’ve just arrived in Prague and you’re wondering why you bothered...” On first impression it looked like an amalgamation of every other central-eastern-European city that we’ve visited, only with higher prices. We were saying things like “sure the main square is lovely but it’s no Krakow...”

But after a couple of days Prague had weaselled its way into our hearts. It is just so gorgeous, and very well preserved due to the Czech’s apparent habit of surrendering to every army who passed by. We were entertained by the Czech’s bluntness and wry sense of humour, impressed by humankind’s ability to think of every detail at the museum of torture (sawing someone in half? Why not hang them upside down so that the blood rushes to their head and they are conscious for longer?), and bemused by an unusual Dali exhibition. I really, really wish that we could have smelt the Dali perfume. I’m going to spend the rest of my life wondering what a Surrealist meditation on the collapse of our notions of a fixed cosmic order smells like, argh! 

My favourite pastime of all was visiting Prague’s grand old cafe’s which are deeply entwined in the city’s literary history. They have been regularly frequented by people such as Franz Kafka and Allan Ginsberg and are spaces in which masterpieces have been written and new philosophies thrashed out. It is entirely possible that I have sat in the chair that Albert Einstein was occupying when he had a ‘Eureka!’ moment!



On our walking tour we discovered cute buildings, avant-garde fashion and a cool monument to the famous writer Kafka... inspired by a dream of his where a man wandered the streets of Prague on the shoulders of a headless man.

The astronomical clock in the centre of the old town, every hour the clock treats viewers to a magical display... but I'll leave that for you to discover.

A handsome guy, overlooking a pretty canal, next to some horrific torture... ouch.

The John Lennon wall, we were a bit surprised actually... we imagined a different Lenin for some reason.

We heard about a little chapel filled with thousands of human bones and couldn't resist a visit. Even from the outside Sedlec Ossuary was ominous...

Mmm coffee... and cake... we spent a lot of our time here...