I left thursday night on a flight to Barcelona. I arrived close to midnight where I then spent the night in the airport because my next flight wasn't until 8am the next morning. This was the really sucky part, but it surprisingly went by pretty quickly! I parked it in a waiting area where I was able to write in my journal, which I've been very behind on writing in. It just sucked when I wanted to sleep and couldn't because there were armrests in my way, lights beaming on me, and workers going around cleaning the airport. Actually, the janitors were the only people there. I found this sort of strange because I knew that there had to be other people who had really early flights/overnight layovers.
So around 5:30am, I went to an information desk to ask the lady where I go to check in for my flight. She looked it up and said "Oh! This is over in terminal 1." I said "Where is that?" and she said "Not here. It is very far. You need to go. Now!!" So she really freaked me out with this. She told me I had to take a shuttle bus that *should* be running at that time (I was like uhhh it better be running!). I started to panic a little bit so I ran down the steps to get outside to the bus. I ended up down in the baggage claim which was creepily vacant. Every door had a red mark on it that said I couldn't exit, so I was running around trying to find a way out. When I couldn't, I ran back upstairs to ask the information lady, but the doors were locked to get back into the main area of the airport! And no one was in sight to let me in since it was so early. So I went back down to the baggage claim and started to seriously panic. I was almost in tears because I was trapped down there and the lady already made me freak out that I was late and would miss my flight. I didn't know what else to do, so I opened one of the red-marked doors and of course the alarm went off. I was like shit, but then thought it might be a good thing because that would mean someone would come. But I ran, and then saw a woman coming down the escalator so I was like THANK GOD. She spoke English and showed me a way to get out of there! She was literally my savior. So I darted to the bus, took it to terminal 1, and got through security with plenty of time to spare before my flight. The information lady freaked me out for nothing! There were tons of people- so that's where they all were!
I got on my plane at 7:30am, just as the sun was rising. Then it was about a 2 1/2 hour flight to Prague. I arrived at about 10:30am and I had a 12 hour layover! I actually chose this flight on purpose, not just because it was cheap, but because I really wanted to see Prague this semester but couldn't fit it in so I thought 12 hours was a sufficient amount of time to take a cab into the city and explore a little bit! So that is what I did. I first had to find the luggage drop off area- it was only about 5 euros to store my suitcase at the airport for the day. Then I had to exchange my money. I hate the Czech currency. The Koruna screwed me over several times because the way they put their commas, something looked like it was 1,20 korunas (when it was 120) which made it look like it was only 1.20 euros. But in reality it was more like 6 euros which converts into 9 dollars!
The sunrise in Barcelona on my flight to Prague
The cab I booked was really late and I didn't think it was coming so I took a different cab into the city which ended up being twice as much as the one I booked. As I was in the cab I got a call from the cab company saying my cab that I booked was waiting for me so I told them I took a different cab. That was annoying.
The cab I took dropped me off at the Prague castle. There were guards outside that I really wanted to try to make laugh since I didn't get to do that at Buckingham Palace in London, but I was by myself during this trip so I thought that would be a little weird haha. I walked around the castle area for a long time just exploring. I walked up to the monestary and I saw stunning views of the city. I'm in love with Prague. It was such an enchanting city- it felt like I was in a fairytale...or at least a disney movie of some sort lol. It felt like a true european city.
Prague Castle
Prague = beautiful
The castle and the city behind me
Next I stopped to have lunch. This is when I truly felt like a solo traveller. I've never gone out to eat by myself before at a restaurant, I usually just stop at a cafe or something. It wasn't bad though, there were a couple other people eating alone there. I got a huge fruity iced-tea with goulash and dumplings! I figured since I was in eastern europe, I should have some goulash! It was yummy, but a bit of a ripoff once I figured out what it converted as into euros.
Goulash and Dumplings :)
After lunch, I did some souvenier shopping. One store owner was very intrigued that I was from the United States. He asked where I was from and I said Pennsylvania. He asked if I was close to Eerie because he has a friend there but I told him Philly was on the complete opposite side of the state. That was a good thing about Prague- everyone spoke english! Well, maybe not everyone. I heard a lot of czech which, by the way, seems like a very hard language to learn.
Next I made my way to the Charles Bridge! I loved this bridge. It was a pedestrian only bridge with religious statues along the sides, stands selling crafts, and a band playing. I stopped to enjoy this band, called "The Charles Bridge Band" for a while. It was a group of 6 older men who were actually very good! They were a lot of fun and kept the crowd entertained.
The Charles Bridge
The Charles Bridge Band!
I continued to walk around the city for a while. I was trying to find the Astronomical Clock for a long time but I couldn't find it. So I walked in all directions trying to cover as much of the city as possible (luckily I had a map). I came across a bunch of steps and realized it was a spot on my map that said the steps led to one of the best lookout points so I hiked what felt like millions of steps and the view was so worth it!
By the river
View of the city
Before I knew it, it was almost time to get picked up by my taxi so I headed to the Old City Center where I found the Astronomical Clock I had been searching for! This area was my favorite part of my day in Prague. There was an easter festival going on that I found out goes on for about a month. There were tons of people, stands full of crafts, different places to get some food, and musical and dance performances. It was so cultural! I got myself some hot wine and a huge hot dog that I loaded up with ketchup :). I was making a mess of myself and a lot of people were staring. Then I took a seat and enjoyed the performances that were going on on the stage in the center of the square. I really felt like Samantha Brown (my favorite travel channel host) during this moment, just taking in my surroundings and having a good time. There was a flute player who played phantom of the opera which I was drawn to. There were also 4 young girls who were singing a mix of songs from Mamma Mia but in Czech! At the end, there were women in traditional dress who did traditional dancing. Then they brought out little kids and they did the same- it was so cute!
The Astronomical Clock
My very large hot dog
The Old City Center
I didn't want to leave, but I got a call around 6:30 saying my cab was there to take me to the airport. On our way, he stopped at this apartment-looking building and he got out and went inside. I was freaking out a little. I hate taking cabs, especially by myself, because they can easily take you!! So I really thought he was going to come back, drag me out of the van, take me upstairs and kill me. Thankfully that didn't happen. Instead, a very tall blonde guy came out with his suitcase and got in. Apparently my cab was going around the city and picked up a bunch more people who were going to the airport. The blonde guy and I talked the entire time. He was from London and in his mid-20s I'm assuming because he was in Prague for his job. It was so nice talking to him because he said that travelling alone can be sort of lonely so whenever you meet someone and can converse with them, it's a really nice feeling. But we parted once we got to the airport.
My flight ended up being delayed an hour and a half which was annoying because I could have spent that time in Prague! My flight left around midnight and I landed in Athens at 3 in the morning. I was in GREECE! Unfortnately I was super sleep deprived so I didn't get to enjoy that moment of realization as I stepped outside because all I wanted to do was sleep in a comfy bed.
But overall, my day in Prague was amazing! I actually really enjoyed travelling alone. I much prefer travelling with others, though, so that I have someone to share things with. But just for the day, it was a lot of fun! By travelling alone, you can really take your time and do the things you want to do for however long you want to. I spent a long time everywhere I went, but I was allowed to because the day was mine and no one was pushing me along to the next site. It also made me very independent. And I might have just been paranoid, but I felt like people were staring at me the whole time. Is it that weird for a girl to be travelling by herself? Luckily I felt like I fit in a little better than I do in Spain. In Spain, it's obvious when someone is a foreigner because Spaniards have a bit of a homogenous look to them: dark hair/skin/eyes. But in Prague, everyone was pale like me! And there was a much more variety of looks.
I was able to see a lot within the 7 hours I got to spend in the city. I ate good food, saw a beautiful city and culture, and met nice people. I would love to go back to spend some true time there, but this was a nice glimpse of what the city is like!
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