Prague, Czech Republic- first stop for Spring Break 2011

We started our Spring Break trip in Prague, Czech Republic. All of my friends whom have recently studied abroad told me I had to visit Prague if I had the opportunity. I'm glad I did! It was unlike anything else I've seen before. Very different. It looks almost as if you're in a fairytale or a picture book. It's really weird too, how you'll be walking along these century old buildings and then there is a McDonald's next door. So different from America. Jamestown and Colonial Williamsburg have nothing on Ancient Europe. Good try, though.

Prague was awesome to see and had some great things to do. I learned a lot and it's definitely a place you should go to learn and experience the older architecture, but it was a tad cold. Not quite spring break weather :p haha. One of the coolest things I found from our visit, was seeing the balcony where the fall of the Soviet Union was announced, the creation of Czechoslovakia was announced, and where the separation between the two countries Czech Republic and Slovakia was announced. Pretttty cool.

Balcony where the 3 announcements have been made

Czech Republic is also the first former communist country I've been to. We learned a lot from a tour we took at how fresh the wounds are from the oppressions of communism. We tend to forget how recent the Soviet Union fall was. Twenty-one years ago. That isn't a long time. (However, on May 25th of this year I will feel as if 21 years is a long time, but I digress). The Czech Republic has made some astounding accomplishments and progress in 21 years. They went from 3 hour waits in line for a single banana to being a member of the European Union. I'll tip my hat to that.



Dinner in the Cave!

I wish we would have have gotten the chance to talk to someone older who had lived through the years of the communist regime, but English seemed to really only be spoken well for the younger people. Our last dinner in the city was in a cave which was built in the 1200s. The part we ate in was the younger part- only built in the 1400s. Young spring chicken, huh? On our last day in Prague, we also saw the "Dancing Building" modeled after Fred Astaire. Incredible how this is a real-life buliding!