Rick Steves Europe: Prague & Budapest
Our first day staying in Prague began with a leisurely breakfast at our hotel and an easy walk around the surrounding Little Quarter district. The night before, we had flown into the city and taken a previously-booked cab from praguetransport.com straight to the charming and historic Hotel Julian. Waking the next morning for our first real experience of the city, we set off after breakfast for PetÅ™Ãn Hill - a short walk and a funicular ride away, just past the Memorial to the Victims of Communism. The hill overlooks the city of Prague, and we enjoyed wandering through the vast public gardens, orchards, and park spaces connected by a network of stairs and paths. It was amazing to look out at the city we hadn’t explored yet, imagining that in the next few days we would come to know that place well. Finding our way down the hill, we headed for the Vltava river, admiring the gorgeous architecture as we walked and stopping to get some gelato just before we walked across the busy and ornate 15th-century Charles bridge.
We returned to the hotel to plan and rest before walking to dinner at the Café Savoy - a beautiful restaurant with delicious food. From there, we headed to the State Opera, to see a performance of Rusalka, a Czech opera by AntonÃn Dvořák, and after a brave attempt to quickly master the tram system, we were thankful to take a taxi the rest of the way! The opera house was breathtaking, the music was transfixing, and the opera was a wonderful introduction to Czech art. We took advantage of the intermission to explore the building, champagne in hand, and to enjoy the balcony view over the city at sunset. What a satisfying and full day,with a hatful of perfect experiences!
For Day 2:
Travel Tip from Today
We laughed at ourselves in the restaurant, obviously eating dinner far earlier than anyone else. We learned through multiple subtle attempts to get our bill that you must ask for it directly!
Elizabeth's Favorite Moment of the Day
"Walking down Petrin Hill through the orchards was wonderul. It was so quiet and peaceful, with beautiful views of the city. It was a great way to start out as we recovered from jet lag and a full day of traveling."