Arriving into Prague

My initial take on Prague was not all too positive at the beginning. On my first day there as I landed very early and still had time before I could check in to my hostel, I dropped off my luggage at the hostel reception where they had some free lockers and started my itinerary stops which I recorded down on Google Maps. 

From getting off of the bus to finding the hostel, it was a bit difficult and confusing managing the directions. I think my phone signal was a little poor at first so it kind of assumed I was in a place where I really wasn’t. 

After shutting down the app and restarting the location a few times, it gave me proper directions but I was still confused slightly, more so with the layouts of streets which don’t really have a left and right in Prague. But they’re more curves and bends in the place where I stopped off at. This is quite annoying with Google Maps so you kind of just have to figure out which direction in terms of clock handles the destination is and walk as best as you can towards that area.

It was lovely weather, something like 25 Degrees on the first day. I was told later at the hostel that this was actually the first hot day of the year so this is not normal weather. 

I was staying at the Charles Bridge Economic Hostel which is just beside the famous Charles Bridge overlooking the Vltava river in the centre of Prague. It was a lovely area but it is quite busy with every single tourist in Prague coming by at some point. 

The hostel itself was initially quite difficult to find because it wasn’t a big building. Instead you had to find a door with a WC sign on top and walk into the main reception area. And there were very limited signs to say that this was a hostel but instead there was a tourist information sign so I hedged my bets by going inside after walking around frustratingly trying to find the hostel. This happened quite a few times during my first day. My memory and sense of direction is quite poor so finding the hostel when there weren’t any big signs was very frustrating. 

The woman and guy at the reception were very nice and very friendly. They reminded me that check in is at 2 which was fine. They offered to store my luggage which I accepted and asked if I would like a coffee. 

At this point, as I hadn’t used the loo since leaving my house, this was the greater priority right at that time. They do have a paid toilet in the floor below which is actually paid for but the guy escorted me down to make the receptionist downstairs managing access know that I was a hostel guest.

Honesty System

Public transport generally across Europe (aside from Britain) is generally quite reliable and much cheaper than in England. Many places use the ‘honesty’ ethics. This usually means that there are no barriers in being able to board trains or trams but they are relying on passengers boarding having purchased a ticket. 

I think this does work to be honest as people are generally very honest and sincere. I never boarded any form of public transport without checking that I had a valid ticket. And if I didn’t or I was unsure I would buy one at the local kiosk or terminal. 

There was no one to stop me from boarding the tram and ticket inspections did not exist. But it relies on a code of ethics from passengers which, you know what, it really works. Would it work in the UK? I have my doubts but that’s probably a different conversation. No offence intended by the way.

Next to my hostel in Prague there is a McDonalds. Now I don’t care what anyone says but McDonald’s coffee is delicious and I would generally choose this over Costa or Starbucks in all honesty. So having one next to any hostel I stay at is absolute heaven and I love this. I can grab a coffee in the morning and a croissant for less than 3 euros which you won’t get anywhere else. My hostel did have a coffee in the reception area and this was offered for free for any hostel guests. It was pretty decent and convenient but I still preferred McDonalds in truth.

Charles Bridge

Following this I walked over the Charles Bridge in the sunlight. It was beautiful and the river was beautiful. I didn’t know what all the statues on the bridge actually meant but I came to find out later that all of them were actually anti-semitic. 

They are not obvious in this but the history behind the bridge and the statues were grounded in anti-semitism. I guess this shouldn’t really be a surprise in Eastern Europe given the history over the last 100 years but to a general tourist the bridge just looks beautiful. 

It is very wide and it is only for pedestrians so no cars or transport. This wasn’t always the case and the bridge was used by vehicles up until the 21st century I think. I may be wrong on the exact date but the bridge has at some points been used by vehicles but now is just a lovely footbridge.

One issue that I did experience on my last Europe trip were insane levels of blisters on my feet having walked around too much. This was not all that big a problem this time round even though Prague roads are mostly cobblestone. I did buy some proper insoles before my holiday so preparation is definitely on point this time round I would say. 

Using Google Maps in Prague is a bit difficult. Google Maps will instruct you to go left and then right to get to a certain destination but in actuality you just need to cross the road and continue. I think because Google Maps recognises this as being two separate roads but in reality it is just a single road which is separated by a road in the middle. And the two ends may not strictly be aligned. So be careful with using Google Maps in Prague because it can get you very lost very quickly.

I visited the Prague Astronomical Clock. To be honest I was a bit disappointed as I thought it was going to be much larger with a panoramic view over Prague but in truth it was just a building with a few clocks on. Maybe I didn’t really understand the history behind it, which is true but it didn’t at the outset look very interesting. However, it was such a busy area with so many people taking photos and the shops and pubs around the area were like Leicester Square in London. So a very upmarket and I assume a historic area. 

Petrin Park

The first biggest physical challenge I faced in Prague was Petrin Park. This is an incredibly steep climb and I think God created it for people he/she doesn’t like. It was so steep and at many times I felt like giving up and returning back to the base. But once I looked at my google maps and it showed I still had just 4 minutes to my destination it seemed like a bit of a shame to quit now. 

This was not considering the effort as well as the safety considerations going down. I could just imagine people accidentally rolling down the hill because it was so steep so I did wonder if it would be safe to do so. 

Going up was really difficult not to mention that my sugar levels became incredibly low because of the climb. I had prepared for this and carried a rucksack with glucose tabs and some Ryvita biscuits. But it wasn’t really helping as I was dehydrated and with a lack of energy all along the way. 

I took frequent breaks on available benches. But this became frustrating as the benches in any shade were normally taken and the only ones out there were in the sun which was not really going to help me recuperate. So this became so frustrating. 

This is always unintentional but when my sugar levels go really low, I can become very short tempered and increasingly aggressive and annoyed. I think it’s because of the lack of energy that anything which causes you some discomfort, it just spikes a reaction. 

So this is certainly not helpful, and in most cases I vent frustration when I’m alone by silently screaming into the room with an angry face. But for anyone who happens to witness this by chance, I could imagine it being a little concerning and uncomfortable. 

Anyway once I got to the top, luckily there is a kind of a tram which can take you all the way back down. The views from the top are amazing. I wish I had taken more pictures but I was just so exhausted I only took a few as I just wanted to go back to my hostel and get some rest. But it was so lovely just to sit back and be taken all the way down relatively quickly whilst taking in the sights of Prague around you.

Would I do it again? Yes I would but without Google Maps this time because this really irritated me going up and actually made things more difficult trying to follow its directions. Just follow the crowds and or signs on which way to go. And be prepared. Make sure you eat something beforehand and you have a lot of water and some sugary drinks too. So yes I would go up but should have done my research this time to have been more prepared.

Meals and meeting others

For that evening once I had formally checked in to my hostel I decided to eat dinner. Luckily because of the location of my hostel it was pretty much on a strip full of restaurants and bars so it wasn’t too difficult finding meal options. This was the difficult part. 

Czech cuisine is very meat driven and very pork based. Now, being a vegetarian and more a secular Muslim, it was rather difficult finding someplace with even a few veggie meals. Most places would only serve one or two veg meals if anything and most typically they were veggie burgers or wraps with Fries. 

Be careful saying Chips in Europe because outside Britain, most countries use American English, and chips means crisps for us Brits who use the proper version of English! 

After a bit of wandering around and looking at menus I settled for OG Glenns which was a pub but they served a veggie tex mex burrito with rice which I settled for. The wrap was decent but it was so hot that I actually slightly burnt my finger. But it was pretty decent. 

I was still having low sugar levels even after eating. I did not initially understand why this was happening and it became increasingly frustrating managing my sugar levels throughout my holiday. I reduced my insulin daily but still suffered from consistent and persistent low sugars. 

It got to the point later on in Bucharest where I had had enough and said ok you know what I’m not going to take any insulin anymore, it’s just causing so many problems. As it turned out this was actually okay. 

My sugar levels stabilised and I was able to eat normally without the worry about my sugar levels dropping whilst out. I think it was just because I was so active throughout my holiday, my insulin became less required, I’m not sure. 

By the way this is in no way medical advice so please don’t try this. But what I have found since being back is that I’ve had to slowly increase my insulin again to manage my sugar levels. I think there is a clear correlation between the general activeness of your daily life and the medication that your body really requires to assist in managing your body. 

But I seriously felt so much better on holiday not having to take this stuff and trusting my body to take care of it. It just felt so much easier to get by and do normal stuff without having to worry all the time.

That evening I met some fellow travellers in the room we shared in the hostel. The hostel was pretty decent and had all the essentials that you really needed. The one thing which I probably wasn’t too fond of was the communal shower. 

As my room wasn’t full, a single shower was fine for my stay. However, the one thing which I wouldn’t normally expect was a lock on the shower room so that you were able to lock the room and essentially prevent anyone else from being able to use the additional shower or use the sinks for example. 

I understand some people may want privacy but I think if you’re going to stay in a hostel, some of that is going to have to be sacrificed as we are all using the same bathrooms and showers.

There was one young woman in my room who I came to find out after a conversation later on her name was Kerry. She was a solo traveller travelling for the first time. If I heard and understood her correctly, she will be starting her first graduate role in September in Procurement. 

She was really sweet and asked for my number, if we wanted to meet for a coffee back in London. We also came to find out that the dates in our travelling plans to Vienna and Bratislava would cross over for a day or two around the 23rd of June. So i did mention if she would like to meet up when we were there, then by all means just give me a call. However, I never really heard from her again so it’s really down to her once she’s back.

The other two guys in my room were using and travelling by train across Europe to visit different cities which I found so interesting. It’s something I’ve always thought about but given the time required I haven’t been able to fit it in just yet. Sleeper trains across Europe are actually quite impressive and comfortable so this is definitely on my to do list.