Ceska Republica

Ahoj!

I love travelling. Travelling is my name. I just couldn't abstained myself from travelling. Be it a short journey home or fourteen or fifteen hours flight, I just love travelling. I'm so grateful and thankful to God that myself for once had a chance to travel to places of which I have never dreamed of. To tell you guys the truth, I have never thought that I would be given chance in a lifetime to study abroad for 4 years and travel around Europe with my beloved sisters and friends. Although it all happened almost 10 years ago, I still have this feeling that I've just coming back from that place. I'm also thankful to my friends who advised me to travel as much as I can whilst studying over there. At first I decided to ignore their advice completely but after I saw and found out that travelling by using your student card will give so much advantageous and benefits to you, finally I changed my mind saying "Hey, why not?". Luckily I took my friends' advices and visited so many places of which I may not get the opportunity to do it now.

The first place that I visited was in the year 2000, and out of all places, I paid a visit to Prague & Plzen. Why Prague & Plzen? More important question, where is Plzen?

Prague or Praha (they way they called it) located in the heart of Czech Republic or the local referred their place as Ceska Republica. Have you ever heard of "Swarovski" before? Swarovski is not just name belongs to Daniel Swarovski, He was an apparentice, skilled in the art of glass cutting, making Bohemian crystal glass popular all over the world. Anyway, Bohemia is another name of Czech Republic. So, this country is well-known with their Bohemian Crystal. You can easily find such crystals sold everywhere in Prague. I even managed to buy few of them as a souvenirs! Prague is the capital city of Czech Republic.

Plzen as told by Mr. Know-It-All, Mr. Wiki - is a city in Western Bohemia in the Czech Republic. It is the fourth most popoulous city in Czech Republic and the city is known worldwide for Pilsener beer. Wait a minute (background sound : Car's tyre screeching) - Pilsener Beer? yup, you read it write. I went there not because of it's beer, ohkay. Nauzubillah...it's all because I happened to have a friend staying over there (okay guys, you can deeply exhale now). So, since I've got a golden chance to visit this country, why not paid a visit to his place as well, right?

If you decided to go to Prague in your next destination, there are few places that I have been that you cannot be missed :-

Prague Castle

The castle is the largest functioning castle in the world and it's the seat of the Czech government. You can reach there by foot, strolling cobbled and hilly street to reach there. There are so many small craft shops along the street, making your journey to reach the castle less tiresome. If you got lucky ( which I did that time :)), you will have an opportunity to watch the changing of guards ceremony.

Next to the castle is the most visible being Prague Cathedral - St. Vitus Cathedral. As the castle was located on top of the hill, you can watch a beautiful scenic view from there.

Charles Bridge

Charles Bridge in Prague is unforgettable as it is the bridge that connect the Little Quarter where Prague Castle is and Old Town. It was constructed in the 14th century after the destruction of the original Judith Bridge and is lined by 30 statues. There is one interesting plaque on the bridge with statue called the statue of John of Nepomuk which believed to bring you luck and ensure your return to Prague (I have been to Prague twice fyi) by touching the falling priest on the plaque. Another scenic and suitable place to take your pic.

Taken at Charles Bridge. Far right is the Prague Castle

Old Town Prague

Old Town (Staré Město) is considered by many to be the very heart of Prague. It has lots of tiny streets and is chock full of sights and sounds. Walking here is like walking in fairy-tale land. Lots of shops selling cute string puppets and crystals. My friend even bought one string pinocchio puppet there and I myself managed to buy small cute toy of dancing wooden ladybirds. Too cute too resist!

Most streets seem to lead to Old Town Square - one of the largest and most impressive open public spaces in Europe.

Old Town seemingly has its own Prague attractions too. It's highlighted by Old Town Square, Church of Our Lady Before Tyn, the amazing astronomical clock.

Astronomical Clock

One of the most mesmerizing sights in Prague might be this legendary astronomical timepiece. You didn't want to miss a chance to watch the clock's show everytime the hour strikes.

Wenceslas Square

Besides of the historical monument there, It's also a huge boulevard and is essentially the shopping and business center of Prague. Here you'll find the plenty of shops, restaurants, cafe and big hotels. The people there are extremely helpful, so asking directions here is as easy as A B C. We bought a pizza which can serve for 8 people for only about 1USD ! No kidding. The food here is extremely cheap (and not forgetting yummy too!). And don't forget to try their turkish coffee....pekat sepekat pekat yang tidak boleh dipekat pekatkan lagi. Kinda double shot espresso.

Okay, enough of Prague. Do you want me to tell you about Plzen too? there's nothing much there. Like what I have been telling you guys before, I went there to visit my friend. We took a train there and it was 1 hour journey from Prague. The only interesting place there he said was the beer museum. Hmm. But he did take initiative by bringing us to the tower situated right in the centre of Plzen. We had to take about 300 stairs to reach the top of the tower. From the tower you can take a 360 degrees view of Plzen. So, if you don't have any friends there and you don't drink beer, it's advisable for you to skip this place.

By the way, Bata Shoes (kasut lagi...) was originated from Czech Republic. They called it as Bah-kee-yaa, no Bah-taa. Thanks for the info, Tomas :)