Czech's Jewel - PRAGUE

Why do tourists love Prague? Why everybody is dreaming of visiting it one day?

It is a mystery to me too why so many people rave about Prague, so out of curiosity we decided to visit the capital of Bohemian region and find it for ourselves. 

Formerly part of Czechoslovakia, the Czech’s got their independence last January 01, 1993.  Its capital Prague became a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The city has a history more than a thousand years back and one of the major city that was left undamaged during the WW II and retain much of its ancient character.  Way back 1989, Prague was free of tourists but gone are those days, the city became popular with budget travelers, expatriates and students from all over the world. Nowadays, Prague is the sixth most visited city in Europe with more than three millions visitors yearly.  


There's no better way to explore the city than by foot so we get up early and stroll its maze of cobbled stone streets. Our first stop is the Old Town Square, considered as the heart of Prague. It is situated with wall to wall shops, a busy place packed with tourist (well I think majority of the people walking along the square are tourists), tour groups, cafes/restaurants, horse drawn carriage, people selling different stuff, historic monuments and police, yes  police visibility in every corner.

behind me is the statue of Jan Hus  and the Our Lady before Tyn. 

Adding to the charm of the the Old Town Square is the Astronomical clock. Just like in Bern, the crowds are gathered in center to watch the 12 apostles dancing around while the skeleton turns  the sands timetable which reminds us to just "seize the day".
Walking further you'll find the shopping center of Prague, the Parizska Street all the way to the Jewish Quarter. We did a walking tour of the Jewish Quarter with a guide. We visited several locations and we're very pleased that we've spent some of our limited time there. The old synagogue that contains the record of the Jewish that were killed during the Holocaust were very touching. I took off my gloves and started to take notes all the important   info's that our tour guide has mentioned. 

Right after our emotional tour in the Jewish Quarter, we headed to our next activity, the Vltava River Cruise.

We boarded in a dark tunnel beneath Charles Bridge and proceed right away to the open water. We were served a glass of beer and coffee, then ice cream and cookies (free flow for beer only). 

The boat stopped for a while, we were given some old photos of the same area for us to see the big differences over time. 

The boat also made its way into the narrow waterways under some small bridges and pathways. 

We enjoyed a one hour cruise along Vltava River. I was totally in awe with the scenic views of the most important landmarks of Prague, the Charles Bridge and the Prague's Castle to name a few. It was a relaxing experience after all the walkings we did (almost five hours). The river cruise allows you to see the city in different angle. 

After the cruise, we walked again back to the city for our lunch. Prague is known for its countless and inexpensive restaurants. We have searched some extra ordinary restaurant for a different experience and we have found Pavouka, the Medieval Tavern Restaurant.

 At first, I thought we have made a wrong choice. It was dark going down and seems nobody is inside but wait, there's more....

I was speechless. WOW! 

The atmosphere was amazing, some kind of medieval feeling under the cave that brings back to the old times due to its decorations and lightings. I can say now that we've made a perfect choice. It is certainly a hidden gem that I almost believe to some hearsay that it was a former brothel during the medieval times haha. We had  our first taste of their  traditional food, a five course meal but the taste is not up to what I expected (sgd 120.00 for 2 pax). Well, the write-ups were all true, we're paying for the ambiance, entertainment and experience and not for the food itself.  It is located very close to the old town square, around 3-5 minutes walk. 
We still have a lot of things in our list so we wasted no time and proceed to our next destination, the Prague Castle and Little Quarter.

We're off to climb the hill to Prague Castle. We make it to the top just in time to catch the changing of the guards. 

What makes Prague unique among the other cities of Europe is that you'll find almost all types of architectures here - baroque, medieval, gothic, art nouveau and renaissance. Prague castle is an example of gothic architecture and is the biggest castle complex in the world. We posed for a few pictures and continue to explore the castle where my jaw dropped. Most of the time, that term is only used as a form of speech but my jaw actually dropped and my mouth opened when I saw the tall stone with its interiors and detailed stained glass windows.  Wow, Its truly a real work of art!

While walking, we have come across this "cute padlocks" locked in a fence. According to my research, they call it the Love Locks. There is no concrete explanation about this. Well I guess, it is to express their love together, locked in a promise made together in Prague haha, does it make sense?

The Lennon Wall - simply amazing!. Full of graffiti's, mostly love notes written on the wall.

After exploring the area of the castle, we walk past the street going to the Golden Lane. It is a street full of little house and shops. This time the weather is getting colder and I am not feeling comfortable anymore. Jonathan noticed that my nose is bleeding so we take some rest and find a place to keep me warm for a while.  

We're making our way down to the city. The view  from above  is stunning, almost all covered with orange colour roofs. We're heading to our last stop,  the romantic Charles Bridge.

Due to its extreme popularity, we put it on our last-thing-to-do in Prague but I was wrong. I thought there were less crowd in the late afternoon to evening but it was the other way around. It's almost crowded, full of tourist taking their chance to have a good sight of the Vltava River catching the sunset. Maybe the best time to go and stroll here is when the city is still sleeping, wink.

While Prague has some down sides (language barrier, pick pockets, rude locals) they are not worth mentioning here. Also getting lost in a city that is new to you is just normal and a part of the real fun of travelling. Maybe the only regret I have now is not spending enough time to explore the city BUT it's also good because it gives you a reason to come back......oooppsss in my dreams haha.

The Enchanting Royal Castles of Neuschwanstein & Linderhof - Schwangau

"Travelling is all about stepping out of your comfort zone and surprising yourself!". 

And so we're back from our Europe adventure. Fifteen days mostly spent on the road. Struggled finding the way on their trains, trams, bus and airport. Have to adjust with a lot of walking, early mornings and late nights...Wow! can't believe how it has passed by and I can say we are not tired yet haha. But like any other story, there's an ending and I am proud to say that we have had a happy-ever-after ending.

I'll be writing and sharing our travel story in random, so here it is.

Like Switzerland, the beauty of the Bavarian countryside is so touching and captivating, even  became so special when it is surrounded by colorful autumn trees - where leaves turned red, yellow and orange. Our first adventure on our 8th day starts at Lindehof Castle.

Schloss Linderhof became King Ludwig II home where he spent the last years of his life.  He became King at the age of 18 and had seriously a troubled life - some believe he became insane while ruling, kicked off the throne and mysteriously found dead in a nearby lake. Up to date, the cause of his death is still unknown.

Despite it being small, it is the only castle that was fully finished and furnished by King Ludwig. It is beautiful inside and out and extremely ornate - a lot of gold decorations, unique chandeliers, paintings,  tapestries, big/small mirrors, sculptures, porcelain vase and fireplace. Our tour guide shared us fascinating stories about the imaginative King Ludwig and this amazing place.  It's just too unfortunate that taking photos are not allowed inside. 

The castle has wonderful grounds and an impressive man-made grotto out in the hill. The gardens are fantastic and you'll find yourself like walking in a wonderland.

Some of the stunning and picturesque landscapes along the way down to the castle....my camera just can't find what to focus on haha. This is one of my favorite shot, the deep green quiet lake surrounded by the Alps mountain. According to weather forecast, there is some rain showers so I can say we're just lucky that the sun is up, bright and smiling. Next, we go to the charming village of Oberammergau.

Oberammergau is famous for its Passion plays. We enjoyed sightseeing and a coffee break while waiting for our time going to the highlight of our day tour, The Neuschwanstein Castle. 

It was past twelve in the afternoon when we reach Schwangau.  This time, the weather is not in our favor (the weather forecast is reliable haha). At first it was cloudy  followed by heavy downpour but as you can see, even if it is raining, the beauty of the castle still stands out.

King Ludwig lived in the castle for only 172 days. He loves to build fantasy land around him but his dream didn't seem to make him fit to be the head of the state and eventually declared insane.  He was charged of using the public's money that's why he was kicked out of the throne.  On June 13, 1886 he was found dead in Lake Starnberg near castle Berg. After six weeks, the castle is open to the public.

We decided to walk going up to the castle. The hike was great but strenuous and I wouldn't recommend it to anyone who has young kids or to anyone who doesn't like walking . Actually, the are many ways on going up. You can take a bicycle, ride the horse-drawn carriage uphill or just take a bus. Riding in a horse carriage would be fun but it will not drop you on the exact location and it will take another 7-10 mins walk to reach the castle. Bus ride is the same, there is a time interval, you still need to walk and the queue is very very long. 

This is the last lap, the Marien Brucke bridge (Mary's bridge). This is the perfect place where you can see the whole facade of the castle, the view is spectacular and breathtaking.

Jonathan took almost half an hour to convince me to join him on the bridge and have a photo with the castle. Honestly, my knees were shaking because of its location. I still can't imagine how I got there haha. The best thing to do is just walk straight BUT don't look down!

Finally, we reached the castle wohooo! Walking up to the castle wearing my boots while raining and freezing cold is one big challenge. If you are willing to achieve something, you'll do it no matter what comes along your way. Be brave and take risks because nothing can beat experience. 
We took rest for a while. We went inside a cafe for a cup of coffee while waiting for our number to get inside the castle. Reading a short history of the castle on the back of a postcard makes me realize that King Ludwig was really insane haha. Imagine building a castle on a cliff overlooking Bavaria with the Alps behind it....amazing! 

So whatever you can imagine on what's inside this castle is all true, no more no less....all the superlative words, I guess. Again taking photographs are not allowed. 

The weather is not really good when we go out of the castle, this time its raining hard and its getting dark. But before we left this breathtaking castle, we had a chance to see the other castle of King Ludwig, the Hohenschwangau and lake Forgensee..

As the saying goes, "wherever you go, whatever the weather is, always bring your own sunshine" and yes we did. We're like kids walking and playing in the rain. Hays, if the weather was only cooperative.....but still we were fortunate to have this "fairy tale experience".