Day 10: Prague/Vienna

And so the day had come, time to leave Prague (which is certainly now among our favourite European capitals), and move onto Vienna. Of course, we still had some time in Prague to start the day, and so this is where we shall begin (I realise my writing is becoming more and more storybook like, and for this I apologise).

In Prague, we felt like we had hit most of the major sights and shops, the Charles Bridge, Prague Castle, Letna Park, just to name a few, and so we were unsure of what to do. Soon, Mollie came to a great conclusion, we should visit the Museum of Communism. Now if you don't know me, I like facts and history and am a bit of a nerd like that, and so this was perfect. We packed up, and then headed out.

Situated near the Wenceslas Square, the Museum of Communism is based on a busy shopping street, more of which we shall come to later, and after you head upstairs, you're greeted by the museum staff, who probably lived through Stalins rule (or at least Dubčeks short tenured one). Next up is the museum itself, where it starts with the origins of communism, both as a theory and in Mother Russia, with Marx and Lenin (Mollie liked Marx's beard). It then moves on to the war, and the growth of the Czech Communist Party, and it's ascension to power under Gottwald. So as not to spoil the rest of the museum for anyone, I'll just outline what was there, there were comments on sport, policing, industry and much more, all to mine and Mollies joy. It was actually well worth it, and the cherry on top was the free postcards (mum and dad, I hope you've got them/will get them).

After the museum, we started to head home, but not before a stop in Tezenis, a Czech clothing shop, where Mollie picked up a few essentials (her words not mine). Soon we were back at the apartment, where we finished packing, packed our train snacks, and headed to the station. Now if you didn't know already, Prague Station has a Sephora (omg), and so with the little money we had left, Mollie popped in, while I supervised bags, and soon enough, she had another item to add to her holiday haul, coming soon to a computer screen near you. 

With that completed we jumped on the train, and we were off to Vienna (or Wien as it is called in Austria).

The train was uneventful, but filled with beautiful wifi, and so it flew by, and before we knew it we were at the Hauptbahnhof. We bought our train tickets, and headed to the apartment, where we were greeted by a mildly grumpy Stephan, who quickly let us in, gave us a tour and left. We were bushed, and so we had an earlier night, ready for a day of exploring.

Day 9: Prague

Again we've gotten behind on the posts, so anyone who's still reading this, we apologise, please don't hurt us.

Day 9 started in the usual fashion, Mollie woke up first and I slept in till 10. By the time I had been roused, Mollie had been up for 3 hours, and of course this meant the hunger was starting to rear its head, and through previous experience, we knew this was not a good sign. The initial plan was to get a bite to eat then head to the Letna park, which hosts amazing views of Prague, and in particular its bridges, as well as being the former home of the Stalin monument. However all did not go to plan...

It all started off quite well when we accidentally stumbled upon the Charles bridge on our way into the centre which we had been planning to visit later. There was loads of stalls and artists along the bridge, as well as statues and there were some pretty good views over the river too. 

After walking around Prague for what felt like 65 hours trying to find somewhere to eat (who knew locating a sandwich could be so difficult), we finally settled on a pretty average cafe where we had some very dry sandwiches. Nonetheless it gave us enough energy to start heading over towards the Letna park.

As we headed over to Letna park, we grabbed a drink and some fruit, before we entered. Mollie was not initially amused, after day 8, more hills were the last thing she wanted, and to be frank, I wanted none of it either. But we soldiered on, up and up, until we reached the top. Of course, as soon as this happened, we were punished for our complaints, and it absolutely tipped it down. We're not talking a light bit of Bournemouth rain, we're talking Welsh torrents drowning any small rodents in the vicinity. Soon we were wet, and a little peeved, and so decided to cut our losses, and head home, to dry out and consolidate.

However we were inevitably soon hungry again so we ventured out to a place we had researched prior, called U Kroka, which promised traditional Czech food, with cheap beer to wash it down with. Mollie ordered a chicken dish, and I ordered pork knuckle and dumplings, which is far tastier than it sounds. This hearty meal was definitely one of the best of our trip thus far, and we can definitely recommend it!

This was a late meal, and so we were soon kicking it in bed again, I'm not sure what it is, but travelling really does take it out of you!

Day 8: Prague

An uncharacteristic early start was the introduction to our day in Prague. I was woken to the smell of bacon and eggs and orange. Mollie had cooked us breakfast. Best. Girlfriend. Ever. Literally, I was so full and ready, we were out of the apartment by 9:15, and ready to hit the city big style. And so we did.

We started by heading to the Wallenstein Garden, part of the grounds of the Wallenstein palace, built by, guess who, Albrecht Von Wallenstein. Unfortunately, he only got to live in it a year, before he was assassinated in a place called Cheb. Poor Albrecht. Anyway, his gardens were very pretty, even though the statues had silly names, like the classics 'Man, Dog and Boy' and 'Centaur fights Hunter'. 

Next on the list, Prague Castle, or in Czech, the Prazsky Hrad (insert some accents above a few letters, the keyboard don't have 'em). It promised amazing views over the city, and after a long hill/stair climb, that's exactly what we got. The view was almost as stunning as the breakfast we'd had earlier, and to fully take it in, I decided to have my first beer of the day at a respectable 10:30. I'd earned it. We took in the views, the sun and the beer for an hour or so, before we headed across to the Petrin Hill, which was basically a huge park, and of course, as a hill, there were more steps. This was again lovely and romantic, if not tiring. At the top of the hill is a lookout, which some Czechs compare to the Eiffel Tower, although I wouldn't say they were synonymous. Anyway, we then walked down the other side of the hill and found a nice sunny spot to sunbathe for a bit 

After that, lunch, which was a happy affair at Joy Burger and Grill. Obviously we had burgers, and another beer to boot, two by 2 is brave by any standards! After that, it was home for a siesta, it was nearing 30 degrees, which is unreasonable temperature for some Brits. 

Post siesta we headed back into town, where we visited Wenceslas Square, named after the Saint. This is in Prague's 'new town', founded in the 14th century by King Charles of Bohemia, so it's not really very new. Discrepancy of age aside, it was a lovely boulevard, with yet another sephora, and lots of restaurants too, Mollie was in fantasy land. We strolled for a bit, before heading back, where we picked up a snack dinner, and ate secret crisps and chocolate, netflixed and crashed.

Fin.

Day 7: Prague

Waking up on the train is an interesting experience. Waking up on the train with a flashlight in your eyes is even more interesting. I hear you ask, why is there a flashlight in your eyes? Well, while I was sleeping, Mollie went to the toilet and got locked out, and when I didn't hear her knocking, she felt like showing her dissatisfaction (I'm a deep sleeper okay!). Anyway, the train journey in the morning was beautiful, through rolling hills, along a river and quaint little towns, it almost felt like a shame to be pulling into a city. But then we got off the train, and boy did our opinion change.

The first thing Mollie spotted was a sephora, tucked in a corner of the station, and Prague had already earned Browne-ie points. Then we went outside, and the first buildings we saw were all pastel coloured. Prague was ticking the boxes so far. So we left the station, and got the tram to our apartment, which was about 15 minutes away. Here we met Eva, our host, who was all set up for us. A few tips later and we were off again, for lunch, at a little place called Cafe Lounge, where very tasty brunch was served. Next up was Republic Square, and the Palladium. Although there was a short Sephora distraction, we had a nice stroll around, bought some goodies from lush, and bought ourselves some dinner ingredients.

Heading home, we decided we'd have a chilled evening, Prague was a step up in temperature and we were both feeling rather exhausted. So we cooked spaghetti carbonara and carrots together, and had a relaxing evening, ready for more sightseeing!

Day 6: Amsterdam/Köln

The last day in Amsterdam, it went so fast and so furiously, but that's just the nature of this holiday! We had a little lie in, before packing up and heading to the station to drop off our luggage. Luggage dropped off, we headed out for brunch/lunch/11sies at a cool place called Mook Pancakes, where we had their 'Mancake', Bacon, Cheese, Onions and Maple syrup, with peach juice and a beer. A 3 word summary - 'bloody brilliant pancakes'.

Next we headed to the shops again, this time at the other end of town, where Brandy Melville and Abercrombie are situated, as well as MAC, which of course is a must visit. Somehow we managed to get away from here with no purchases, and strolled over to the Vondelpark, with a short stop on the way for a drink. We laid in the sun for a couple of hours , enjoying our last hours in Holland. But it was over too soon, and we headed back to the station, to convert currency and head off to Prague.

Our first train was to Köln, from which we were going to get our overnight sleeper to Prague. This journey was again uneventful, a little slow going, but we were soon there. A mcflurry and a milkshake and then we were on the next train, Köln to Prague, 12 hours, crammed in a little double bunk cabin. Soon we were asleep, ready to wake up, only an hour or two from Prague...

Day 5: Amsterdam

Rain was the main focus of today, or rather, avoiding it was, given that it topped down most of the day! Our first order of business was to visit the Kopjes Cat Cafe, where we enjoyed a few soft drinks, croissants and cakes in the company of some very adorable little cats. After this we headed back to the centre, for a short shopping adventure into Urban Outfitters and other little stores, with a small Charlotte Tilbury purchase occurring (just a little one).

Next we headed to the Friteshuis, and for the non Dutch speakers here, that's a chip shop. The chips were sublime, so crispy and coated in frite sauce, which was extra delicious. After this we decided to head back, as tiredness had started to catch up with us, and had a chilled evening with some Lidl purchased snacks and pastries for dinner, and a nap in the huge Indonesian bed in the AirBnb for dessert!

Day 4: Paris/Amsterdam

Our last day in Paris, or our first day in Amsterdam, I don't really know what to call it, so we'll just call it a multi city day! We woke up, tidied and packed, before going shopping for our train picnic. We returned with a feast: apples, crisps, baguette, cheese, sweets, just deliciousness really. After prepping some sandwiches we headed for the station, to leave our bags in left luggage.

Luggage disposed of we headed to the Eiffel Tower. Synonymous with Paris, the big metal spike that is le Tour Eiffel was as impressive as ever, especially when photoed by thousands of posing Chinese tourists! We spotted about 10 wedding invitation photo shoots, before heading north to Montmartre. Eating in a traditional French restaurant, featuring Beef Bourginon and Creme Brûlée, we discussed how much we were going to miss Paris, before heading up the big hill. Eventually we reached the summit, and we were treated to some amazing views over the city. We laid in the secret garden, before heading to the station once more.

The train to Amsterdam was fairly uneventful, some Blackjack and reading, as well as our picnic being the highlights, but after 3 hours, we had arrived, and boy was it worth it. We headed straight to our AirBnb, where we met Jeroen, who gave us a few tips, before we headed out for our first real Red Light Disrtrict experience. You may have heard the stories and we can now confirm they are true, it was bustling, the lights were on, and it's all rather surreal. Having had our fill of semi naked women, we headed back again at midnight, before we had a minor key issue (Jeroen is as liberal as the city of Amsterdam when it comes to use of locks!) and jumped into bed, eager for the next day.