Prague is like a heathen dream and a gothic nightmare, molded to form the black jewel in the crown of European capitals. Its horizon is pierced by dozens of dark, jutting spires. Its main bridge, the Karluv Most, is lined on both sides with hunched ghoulish figures that glare at passersby. And at night, its cobblestone streets are jammed with hundreds of green-eyed, half-drunken teens searching feverishly to quench their fix for absinthe. If the devil threw a party, he’d do it in Prague.
Accommodations
Those looking for a quiet little getaway to relax and kick back should go waste their trip somewhere else. Prague’s hostels are solely for dumping off bags, getting trashed off hallucinogenic liquor before heading to the clubs, and crashing at 7 a.m. in a drunken stupor. The ideal spots for this are Travelers’ Hostel Dlouha (Roxy; 24 82 66 62, [email protected], Dlouha 33) and Clown and Bard Hostel (22 71 64 53, Borivojova 102, Prague 3; metro: Jiriho z Podebrad). Dorm beds at both hostels are available for $9 per night, while a bed in a double room runs $11 to $12 dollars.
Activities
Prague’s nightlife is bangin’, plain and simple. Its nightclubs are packed thick with gangs of ravenous backpackers and crazy Czechs guzzling alcohol and blowing up the dance floor. The No. 1 nightclub, bar none, is Karlovy Lazane, the biggest club in Middle Europe (Novotneho lavka, Stare Mesto). Entrance costs 6$, but it’s well worth it. This club is four solid floors of thumping techno and electric light shows. Aside from the dance area, each floor also has its own lounge and bar with numerous sofas that are made to provoke a little sex and sin. If enough people order absinthe, the bartender will take a shot himself, grab a Zippo and blow fire across the bar. This gets the juices flowing after a few shots of the “green fairy.”
The debauchery continues at the upscale Club Radost FX (Belehradska 120, Prague 2; metro: IP Pavlova). Radost was voted one of the top 20 clubs in the world by British Club magazine, and it doesn’t take a logician to figure out why. The club boasts an extensive dance floor, world-famous European DJs, a bar that serves 390 different drinks and a velvet, Asian-style lounge with golden-mirrored alcoves for those looking for a little more privacy. Entrance is also about six bucks.
Prague isn’t just about its nightlife, though; the sights seen during the day make Paris look like Bakersfield, Calif.
Dominating the city from atop a hill in central Hradcany (the castle district) is Prague’s greatest testament to gothic architecture, the Prague Castle. It was founded in the ninth century and has gone through many successive add-ons and remodelings since then, making it an absolutely enormous structure.
As it stands, there are two main sections of the castle: the Old Royal Palace and the Vitus Cathedral. Inside the palace, the main hall (Vladislav Hall) is so massive that it holds an extensive wooden ramp where armored knights on horseback would conduct live jousting tournaments to the death. The Old Royal Palace was also the site where, on May 23, 1618, the Thirty Years’ War began after two belligerent Protestant nobles chucked a pair of Catholic councillors from a top-story window.
Directly behind the Old Royal Palace is Vitus Cathedral. Its pair of rigid steeples can be seen towering behind the palace like horns, and its entrance is riddled with ornate carvings and decadent glasswork. The interior is composed of a grand hallway, whose arches stretch to the heavens and cradle dozens of vibrantly colored stained-glass windows. The cathedral houses the tomb of King Wenceslas, among other famous Czechs, as well as the country’s beautiful crown jewels. Tickets good for three days of visiting are sold in the front of the castle at the Chapel of the Holy Cross for 120 Czech crowns ($3).
On the opposite side of Karluv Most is Stare Mesto, the old quarter. In its center is Prague’s oldest and grandest medieval square, Staromestske Nam, whose biggest attractions are definitely the Tyn Church and the Astrological Clock. Legend has it that the eyes of the man who designed the clock were plucked from his skull by the king of Bohemia to ensure he could never replicate his masterpiece for any other city. Also worth visiting near the square is the Klementinum, or state library, which houses more than 3 million books from around the world.
Food
Tightwads should head to Prague’s Zizov and Smichov neighborhoods for cheap eats. But those gluttons willing to shell out a few extra bucks to gorge themselves on real Czech fare must eat at Staromestske. At Staromestske Restaurace, guests are served liters of premium beer and plates piled high with tender, grease-dripping meat. Dining can be done either inside or al fresco in the middle of the square beneath the stars. A plate of food and a beer here run from about $3 to $8. For something a bit more exotic, Fakhreldine (Stepanska 32) serves fantastic Lebanese cuisine for $5 to $10 a plate.
Transportation
The best way to get to Prague is by train, arriving from Berlin (5 hours); Nuremberg (6 1/2 hours); Linz, Austria (5 1/4 hours); or Budapest (10 hours).
Just outside of Prague is the quiet, unassuming town of Kutna Hora. Nestled in its center is the Sedlec Ossuary, the town’s main attraction. From the outside it’s nothing more than a weathered, gray church with tombstones scattered around it. But the inside hosts a ghastly secret. Decorating the walls and the ceiling are the bones of some 40,000 corpses. In the center of the room is a sight straight from a Dahmer dinner party: A chandelier, made almost entirely of human skulls, hangs in front of a statue of Christ pinned to a crucifix made of bones. Around it, stacks of bleached femurs and skulls are piled as if just gnawed on and licked clean.
Getting to Kutna Hora is quick and painless. Seven trains run daily from Prague’s Praha-hlvani Nadrazi. The whole trip takes about 45 minutes to an hour.
