Czeched Out
I'm back from my visit to the Czech Republic! After a few weeks of devouring Czech literature, film, history, and culture to prepare for the trip, I spent an enjoyable week in the country, centered around Prague.
As often happens on such trips, time seemed to stand still and race by at the same time. The week was over far too fast — we could easily have remained in Prague for another week or two. Ideally, I’d love to spend a few months there and really soak in the city and nation. But we saw a lot of things and had many experiences there, so that made it seem like it was more than just a week.
Outside of Prague, we ventured to the village of Chodovar Plana, near Marianski Lazne, and soaked in the beer spa of a 14th century brewery. We explored the silver mines of Kunta Hora and visited the church where human skeletons become art. And we made the steep climb to Karlsteijn Castle.
Inside Prague, we most enjoyed Old Town Square with the Astronomical Clock Tower and the Church of Our Lady Before Tyn, the Castle area with St. Vitus’s Cathedral and Golden Lane, and we enjoyed crossing Charles Bridge and veering off to Kampa Island.
The Czech food and beer was great; so was the Becherovka and Slivovice.
Of course, I’m only touching on a few of the highlights. There was so much to see and do. And, as I mentioned, we were only there a short time, so we barely scratched the surface. I could easily spend months exploring and enjoying Prague and the Czech Republic.
It interested me to see some of the places mentioned in the Czech literature I read before visiting. Even the mentions of some of the metro stops in books came back to me as I got off on those very same stops or saw the very same streets, buildings, and sights as mentioned by novelists.
I've settled back into the dialy grind, and I've begun to work on some travel writing about Prague and the Czech Republic. I may have checked out of my hotel in Prague, but I’m by no means Czeched out.
As often happens on such trips, time seemed to stand still and race by at the same time. The week was over far too fast — we could easily have remained in Prague for another week or two. Ideally, I’d love to spend a few months there and really soak in the city and nation. But we saw a lot of things and had many experiences there, so that made it seem like it was more than just a week.
Outside of Prague, we ventured to the village of Chodovar Plana, near Marianski Lazne, and soaked in the beer spa of a 14th century brewery. We explored the silver mines of Kunta Hora and visited the church where human skeletons become art. And we made the steep climb to Karlsteijn Castle.
Inside Prague, we most enjoyed Old Town Square with the Astronomical Clock Tower and the Church of Our Lady Before Tyn, the Castle area with St. Vitus’s Cathedral and Golden Lane, and we enjoyed crossing Charles Bridge and veering off to Kampa Island.
The Czech food and beer was great; so was the Becherovka and Slivovice.
Of course, I’m only touching on a few of the highlights. There was so much to see and do. And, as I mentioned, we were only there a short time, so we barely scratched the surface. I could easily spend months exploring and enjoying Prague and the Czech Republic.
It interested me to see some of the places mentioned in the Czech literature I read before visiting. Even the mentions of some of the metro stops in books came back to me as I got off on those very same stops or saw the very same streets, buildings, and sights as mentioned by novelists.
I've settled back into the dialy grind, and I've begun to work on some travel writing about Prague and the Czech Republic. I may have checked out of my hotel in Prague, but I’m by no means Czeched out.
posted by Eric D. Goodman | Friday, June 29, 2007
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