Wander Prague

Current Listening: Dinka-Fairy
Current Location: My apartment, Zizkov

Earlier this week I ventured to to quite possibly one of the most beautiful places I have ever been. Prague Castle. This Bohemian gem was built in 890. Prague Castle is the largest castle complex in the world. Its houses the Czech Crown Jewels and has provided offices for the Kings of Bohemia, Holy Roman Emperors, and the presidenta of Czechoslovakia. The castle was originally built in a Romanesque style but later (14th c.) it was rebuilt in a Gothic style. 

 

Snow covered moat

The trip here started as a class outing for my Prague Art & Architecture course. After the class, I threw on my iPod and spent 2 hours wandering the castle grounds by myself. Completely amazed. The detail and flamboyance expressed in the Basilica of St. Vitus and the Basilica of St. George blew away many of the gems that I have seen through the rest of Europe (Notre Dame, etc). Although the Pyramids of Giza and the Colosseum in Rome were incredible, I felt a different connection here. Maybe it was the fact that I was alone or it was the music that I was listening (Shingo Nakamura). It could have been the 1000 year old history that I was standing on. I don't know. 

Underneath the castle grounds, there is the Old Royal Palace museum. The subterranean galley was filled with relics found throughout the centuries. They had found human remains, pottery, clothing, crowns, jewelry, weapons, etc. I was unable to take any pictures inside. 

Current Listening: Jaytech-Headcase

Current Location: My Prague flat

A week in and it still blows my mind that I'm in Prague. This city is incredible. It's the perfect mixture of gothic, romanesque, baroque and communist styles. Prague has been virtually preserved 1000 years of history. I could not have asked for a better apartment or a better set of roommates. We live in the quiet and very beautiful neighborhood of Zizkov, which is in Prague 2. On our street, Manesova, we have a potraviny (convenience store), salon, multiple pubs, etc. At the end of the street, there is a square with a large church. A farmers market is also held here multilple times per week. Here is a mini tour through our apartment and neighborhood:

Our living area is extremely spacious. Since we are on the top floor of our building, we have skylights that provide natural light and a great view of the rest of our neighborhood. A couple of things that differ from a typical apartment in the US: 

• Our shower and toliet are in sperate rooms.
• The clothes washer is the bathroom.
• There is no clothes dryer, we have to hang dry everything.
• No central AC ( Don't need it anyways, it's freezing.)