Or: A Prague-matic approach to Czech-ing out the city. More tarnished than Munich but certainly no Havel. Stop stop stop!
Prague really does deserve to be described as Magnificent. Certainly central Prague is beautiful and imposing, consisting of score upon score of huge, baroque buildings usually in celebration of the arts. Where Munich was grand, picturesque, conservative and the epitomy of cosmopolitan civility, Prague is much closer to my own spirit: still grand but more decayed, seamy and full-on. Mostly sumptuous and utterly wonderful, there are a few streets around Wenceslas Square whose only function is to fleece the masses of tourists that come here from Spain, England and Germany for stag and hen parties, and the only time I've felt even slightly intimidated was as Saturday turned to dusk and the English boys started doing what English boys do: rove in brainless too-drunk gangs with scant regard for where they are. Even the Americans put us to shame abroad, and that's saying something!
Prague is a city that bulges with music and art, and we hope to catch some this week (including seeing New Model Army on Monday night - woo-hoo!). Everywhere you turn there is a small gallery here, a concert hall there. We are staying with a wonderful lady called Petra and hope today to visit the west-bank castle and maybe the Jewish quarter that has a famous cemetary. We have booked into a hostel for Monday night after the gig and its an interesting place, having been both a convent and a prison in former times - even Vaclav Havel did time here. I knew we'd be in stir at some point on the trip!
We're slowly getting the hand of travelling, knowing what we need to do when and how to maximise our time. Its just brilliant!