With my stomach growling, I passed by the restaurant a
second time, to see if a larger crowd may have gathered. When it comes to eating sushi in an
unfamiliar city, unless the place is recommended by a friend, I typically gauge
the quality of the food of unfamiliar restaurants based on the number of people
inside, and in this case, it was pretty empty while next door, TGI Friday’s was
hopping. In this instance, I decided to
go with something I was more familiar with, and selected Potrefena Husa for
dinner, a traditional Czech establishment with locations throughout Prague and Bratislava.
Beginning my 8th month here in Europe,
I have become more accustom to local foods vs the traditional American chains
which I would originally gravitate towards.
After an easy 4 hour train ride from Bratislava,
I arrived in the Czech Republic capital city of Prague.
Embracing the challenge of exploring an unfamiliar city (I did travel to
Prague 5 years
ago), I decided to navigate the city and find my hotel without the benefit of a
taxi. While there might be a shortage of
city maps during the critical time you need one, there was no shortage of signs
directing you to the nearest McDonald’s every 500 meters. I eventually found my hotel, although it took
a little more than an hour, but I was able to get a nice layout of the city. While I was in town for three days of
classes, I decided to arrive early and enjoy the sights and sounds of one of Europe’s gems.
Situated in the north-west of the country on the Vltava River,
Prague is home
to about 1.3 million people. Prague is a political, cultural, and economic mecca of
central Europe with waxing and waning fortunes
during its 1,100 year existence. Founded during the Romanesque and flourishing
by the Gothic and Renaissance eras, Prague was
the seat of two Holy Roman Emperors and thus then also the capital of the Holy Roman Empire.
It was an important city to the Habsburg Monarchy and its
Austro-Hungarian Empire and after World War I became the capital of Czechoslovakia. On 1 January 1993, Czechoslovakia
peacefully split into the Czech Republic and Slovakia,
with Prague remaining the capital of the Czech Republic,
and my current residence Bratislava becoming the
capital of Slovakia. While the split was peaceful, the countries
still remain rivals in sports, and I was cheering on Slovakia’s win over the Czechs in
the ice hockey championships to head into the finals the night before
arriving.
Prague is home to a number of
famous cultural attractions, many of which survived the violence and
destruction of twentieth century Europe. My
favorite attractions, as well as most visitors, are Prague
Castle, the Charles Bridge,
Old Town Square,
and the Astronomical Clock. I also took
time to find the different locations of where the beginning scenes of Mission
Impossible were filmed. My favorite view
was looking down on the Charles Bridge from Prague Castle
after climbing the circular staircase up St. Vitus Cathedral. With so many stairs, I actually had to stop
half way to catch my breath. Also, while
dinning in the outdoor restaurants in the Old Town Square, you can observe sounds
and motions of the Astronomical Clock, which was built in 1410 is oldest one
still working. And any trip to Prague would not be complete without sampling Czech beer
brewed at some of the oldest and finest establishments in Europe. While the intent of the trip was for work, I
did get a chance to network with colleagues from around Europe
and experience some of the finer things of the city.
With all the history and beautiful buildings, Prague is definitely one
of my favorite cities in the world, however, I would not recommend walking the
streets with a rolling luggage bag while searching for your hotel, as the
cobblestone sidewalks are not convenient for wheels.
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| Mission Impossible Building |
