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My experience of Prague was very different this time around. During my semester in Venice three years ago I had more friends than I knew what to do with, so when I took a week off I relished in the opportunity to be alone and independent.I came in the autum and was one of thirty tourists in the city, so I spent my time exploring the silent streets of the old town, disovering all the modern art galleries that are hidden away, and paying next to nothing for great jazz shows. This year Scott and I came at the time of year when Prague is bustling with foreigners, and we came at a time in our trip when we were desperately craving a social life. So we stayed at a great hostel just outside the craziness of the center where we got to know the neighborhood really well, and where we could not help but make tons of friends.
Something about the vibe at Sir Toby's hostel, and the people it attracts, made me so comfortable, like I was already friends with everyone who lived there. We spent most of our nights just hanging out in the common room taking advantage of all the board games. One night we even went out to a club decorated by futuristic mechical sculptures. All this socializing meant that we were pretty tired each day, so we did the tourist thing at our own pace.We explored the old castle complex with its exquisit St. Vitus cathedral, the Old Town Square with its bizarre Astronomical Clock, we strolled across the Charles Bridge a couple times, and had fun at the Mucha Museum and the outdoor Prague Market.
One really great thing about Prague is how affordable entertainment is. Other than in Marrakesh, where live music is often free, Scott and I have been avoiding shows like the plague. But in Prague we actually went to a few. The only flop was the black light show: it started out really fascinating (orbs floating in the air, giant snakes swimming through a black forest) but it was all ruined by the attempts at modern dance (men in tank tops and short shorts gyrating and doing the macarena does not count as entertainment in my book, even if their clothes are glowing).Other than that, we got to see a bluegrass band, a techno DJ, and a great puppet show!
Our last night we made a discovery.Hidden away, north of the Vlatva River, we found the ?ajovna ve v?i Tea Room in the Tower, where we sat on Indian cushions and were read off from a menu of 20 different teas. After about an hour we were surprised by a sitar band, and we stayed for another hour to be serenaded by a Czech George Harrison.
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