Unmissable Prague Experiences
A friend from Honduras told me that during Christmas, one of the most worthwhile cities to visit in Europe is Prague. As a traditional historic city in Europe, it also offers a variety of Christmas markets to see during the holiday season. Without any hesitation, I decided to spend Christmas 2019 in Prague. Here, I hope to share what I saw, heard, and felt. All views are purely personal.
1. First Impressions of Prague: Although Prague is a city that attracts tourists from all over the world, ranking among the top six in Europe annually, before I arrived, my main impressions of Prague were the 'Bohemian' style, Jolin Tsai's song 'Prague Square' (with the line 'That scene is too beautiful to dare to look'), and the 'Prague Spring'. When I landed at Prague airport, the first thing that impressed me was the Korean language on the airport signs. Many signs were in English, Czech, and Korean together. A quick search revealed that Koreans are one of the main tourist groups in Prague. By the way, living in Europe for a while, I often notice that many young Westerners love Japanese and Korean culture. They see Japanese culture as representative of Asian culture and follow Korean culture as a trend. However, a considerable number of young people lack understanding of Chinese culture and keep their distance. In fact, a country's strength is not just about showing military muscle in parades. It's about making one's cultural charm understood and accepted, showcasing cultural soft power, nurturing cultural identity in young people, allowing those who truly love culture and are willing to promote it to develop with dignity, and giving people the right to express themselves. For those who disagree, please forgive my naivety.
2. The City: Prague is called the 'Golden City.' When you walk through its streets and alleys, you feel like you've stepped back into medieval Europe. Sunlight spills over the red-roofed, yellow-walled buildings, creating a truly fairy-tale world. Friends interested in European history and geography will know that Prague is located at the 'center of Europe,' a strategic crossroads and a place of contention. Its geographical importance would be like 'Luoyang, the Eastern Capital' in China. It was once the capital of the Holy Roman Empire and the Habsburg dynasty. No wonder that in the 20th century, two great dictators guilty of crimes against humanity, Hitler and Stalin, both coveted this place and wanted to possess it as soon as possible.
However, heaven had mercy. The city was not severely damaged by war, and now many films depicting the prosperous European scene before World War II are shot here. Let me share some photos I took casually. The scenery is everywhere: golden walls, red bricks, the blue Vltava River, and flocks of white swans.
3. Prices: Compared to Western and Northern Europe, the prices in Prague are surprisingly low. Even compared to Eastern European countries like Hungary, although Prague's GDP per capita is much higher than Budapest's, my impression is that prices here are slightly lower than in Budapest. Whether it's food, clothing, transport, or accommodation, the prices are very affordable for Europe. It's not hard to understand why so many tourists, especially the budget-conscious Koreans, love this place. Because it's located between Berlin and Vienna, two German-speaking capitals, there are also many German tourists here. I visited the famous网红 café Cafe Louvre, where Einstein and the literary master Kafka once visited. A superb cup of coffee cost only a little over 3 euros, and the environment and quality were excellent. A reminder: Czechs often add a service charge, so don't be surprised. Since the service fee is included, tipping is unnecessary.
4. Transportation: Prague's transportation mainly consists of trams, the metro, and buses, and the prices are very cheap. A 24-hour pass for one person costs just over 4 euros, and a 3-day pass costs about 4 euros per person per day, which is very cost-effective! The most beautiful parts of Prague are concentrated in the city center: the Old Town, Lesser Town, and Castle District. Of course, the New Town also has many worthwhile places, such as the National Museum. In fact, if you're willing to walk, you can explore these areas on foot in about three days. So I recommend staying in the city center. Trams are not very fast; they run east-west and north-south, constantly passing by. There are many of them, both old and new, forming a unique scenery of the city.
I highly recommend buying a 24-hour pass and taking the tram to freely roam between districts. I even took the tram to the end station to see the surrounding community environment. The ordinary communities in Prague looked similar to those in northern China, though generally with fewer floors. Some tram lines run through hilly areas, crossing mountain tunnels and bridges, which was a fantastic experience!
5. Food: Objectively speaking, I'm not interested in the cuisine of all German-speaking peoples and regions heavily influenced by them. Being sandwiched between German-speaking nations, Czech food isn't very tasty. I tried some of the most famous local dishes, mainly roast pork knuckle and beef with bread dumplings. Overall, the meat tasted quite authentic, and one meal was satisfying, but I couldn't eat it for days on end. The locals' love for desserts astonished me. Everywhere you see their specialty: chocolate ice cream stuffed into something like a donut bread, along with various candy shops and chocolate stores. Strangely, Czechs are not fat.
6. Markets: There are many markets here, especially lively during Christmas. Two things interested me most: one is the traditional music performed by local artists, and the other is a blacksmith demonstrating medieval smithing on the street—maybe there are hidden masters like Gan Jiang and Mo Ye among them. Honestly, the snacks at the markets were unremarkable. No matter the size of the market, I guarantee that if you're only going for food, one market is enough because there's only so much variety.
7. Architecture: As a historic and cultural city in Central and Eastern Europe, Prague has experienced ups and downs. It has produced many heroes, naturally matched by magnificent architecture. Prague Castle, Charles Bridge, and St. Vitus Cathedral are truly essences of human architectural history. Charles Bridge is arguably the best place to enjoy the night view. Among them, St. Vitus Cathedral, in my personal experience traveling to nearly 10 countries in Europe, is the most beautiful and distinctive in terms of architectural style, shape, and interior decoration. It's like a hybrid of various architectural arts: Roman, Bohemian, Habsburg, Renaissance, and so on.
A particularly noteworthy place is the Jewish Quarter, hidden not far from Old Town Square. Friends interested in Jewish history should take some time to explore this area. As someone fascinated by Jewish culture, I stopped for the first time to truly observe a synagogue in this quarter. The Jewish people, one of the most tragic in human history, have wandered for over a thousand years without perishing, relying on this faith rooted in cultural genes. If you pay attention, you'll notice that synagogues have no statues of God or other deities, in stark contrast to Christian churches filled with images of Jesus. Of course, Jews never recognize the divinity of Jesus. I don't want to discuss religious content here, but I am amazed at the power of faith that can sustain a nation's inheritance for millennia without relying on external objects to display or embellish divine power, relying only on inner belief. As a Chinese person who has historically lacked religious faith, it's even harder to understand. I've always believed that only the sea and the desert can bring true faith to their people; the high mountains and great rivers of China only bring submission to autocratic power. The synagogue is so simple and plain, in stark contrast to the magnificent Catholic churches a kilometer away, making one wonder: Is Jesus so fond of money? I suppose it's human greed that is insatiable.
8. People: Let me first talk about Czechs. The ancestors of Czechs are a branch of the Slavs, but of course, there were also footprints of Germans, Celts, and Jews here. Prague was once a great, prosperous multi-ethnic melting pot, but after repeated wars and purges, it has become a largely homogeneous Czech region. Personally, I think Slavs produce the most beautiful women in the world. Prague is full of beauties—male compatriots, don't get too excited.
Secondly, Prague has given birth to many masters who influenced humanity and historical events that changed the world: Kepler, Mozart, Kafka, Einstein. It also saw the signing of the Treaty of Westphalia, which gave birth to the concept of the modern nation-state, which later became the genetic cause of various European wars. Of course, Prague also experienced the 'Prague Spring' and the relatively gentle 'Velvet Revolution' during the Eastern European upheavals, ending the rule of the Soviet Communist gang. Although today's Czech Republic is not as powerful as the Czechoslovakia that was once the seventh-largest capitalist economy in the world, you can feel that the people here are free. They dare to express their own opinions and values—things we may never obtain.
Finally, I attended a Christmas opera performance. I've never been to Vienna, but my first real opera was in Prague. What impressed me most was that the opera singers performed without microphones. I once heard that any opera sung with a microphone is not authentic, and this was confirmed here. The interior of the hall was antique, with oval and circular designs, truly creating a lingering resonance. (Of course, I couldn't understand a word because it was in Czech, so the last half hour was a bit painful.)
Overall, Prague is a perfect tourist city. Everything about it makes you fall in love. Although politically and ideologically, Prague and China have some conflicts now, I believe these factors will eventually be replaced by friendship. Prague will remain one of the most charming cities worth experiencing.
