In the End, It's the BEER!

Everyone who's been there loves it and raves about it. So I went...to Prague.
Maybe I'm weird - well, I did give up my job to travel alone for a year, even stopping in Zimbabwe along the way right before their elections! Which may help explain why I, for one, did not fall in love with Prague.

The old town is nice, don't get me wrong. But I didn't think it was anything spectacular. Was I expecting too much from the city?! Maybe it was just too many tourists in one place, combined with the crappy hostel where I had to spend my nights.

12 beds (bunks) in one tiny room, one occupied by this crazy, drunk, depressed Canadian guy. When I first checked in, he seemed like a nice, normal person (although it was around 2pm and he was still in bed). We even went out to a late lunch that day and manage to have a decent conversation. Or so I thought.
I got a bit suspicious about him when the front desk asked me if I was his friend, because he owed the hostel money...not a good sign. Then, while chatting with my other dorm-mates, I discovered that he's been telling everyone different stories. Like he was an English teacher (so he told me), but failed his exam to become an English teacher (to another girl). He also had an empty bottle of vodka under his bed, went out drinking every afternoon, slept on any bed at any time, and even jumped into an occupied bed in the middle of the night!!!
But then again, having him as a roomie might not have been such a bad thing. Because the other dorm had a guy who threw up on his bed (drunk, not sick) and another who brought in girls every night to do "stuff" on the top bunk. Gross...
I ended up staying there for 3 nights strictly out of laziness on my part. Only to sleep, though; I tried to spend most of my time out of that place!

Wander, wander, wander I did, through the old town and the new.
Read, read, read I did, in several small cafes serving decent coffee (very important!).

One night, I went to a strings concert in one of the churches, with a performance of Pachelbel's Canon and Vivaldi's The Four Seasons. I love the music itself, but to be honest, prefer the sound of piano.

And of course, I had to check out Prague Castle, probably the most visited sight in Prague. Who goes to Prague without going to the castle???!!!
I took the long way there (basically a pleasant walk through the large park behind it). Once again, beautiful foliage :)
The castle itself did not hit the spot for me. But the cathedral certainly did. The stained glasses in there were some of the most beautiful I've ever seen! There was quite a long line to get in, but definitely worth the wait.
Out of all the "to-see" attractions in the entire castle complex, the cathedral was free. I sort of regretted paying the 250CZK to gain entrance to other, far less superior sights. Oh well...
Although this statue was kinda cool:

Oh, I ran into this bizarre street parade one day. Full of what I consider as hippies and junkies. Didn't get it...was just blocking my way.

You know I don't drink that much, but I will confess to having a beer every single night during my stay in Prague. This place must be home to some of the yummiest, cheapest beers in the world! (Incidentally, did you know that the true, original Budweiser is Czech?!)
Anyways, you can get a bottle of beer cheaper than soda or water at the supermarket. Seriously.
But the best beer is obviously at the bars/restaurants. I don't remember the name, but I went to this tiny restaurant one night with a Japanese guy I met in the hostel. They had a small, private brewery serving some creative beer - like chocolate and cherry. My friend decided to try the cherry (yuck!), while I stuck with the traditional wheat beer. Mmmmmmm, delicious!!! I even managed to finish TWO whole glasses, very impressive for my standards. Needless to say, I had to pee every 15 minutes after the 2nd glass...