Halloween in Prague (Czech Republic)

Posted on: 8th November 2016 :: Photo Credits: Silva, Prayaag, Alap, Pabitra, Sagar, Manish, Kavitha ::

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Preface

Prague, one of the 5 most visited cities in Europe (and definitely the cheapest among them), was on top of our list of places to visit this year. Again ‘Studifahrten’ came to our rescue. They had organized a 3 day Prague trip on the halloween weekend, which promised to host the craziest parties ever seen. So 7 of us DAAD exchange students registered for the trip.

He was so drunk that he was unable to stand on his feet. It was already half past midnight and I was dragging him on the streets of Prague while trying keep him awake. People were laughing at this scene of a skinny guy carrying a drunk ‘chubby’ dude. But he was not in his senses to feel the embarrassment and was mumbling some incoherent words in that half-asleep state. After walking for a couple of kilometers we finally reached the central tram station. With the help of other people, we managed to board the tram and got down at the station near our hotel. Again the ‘dragging’ routine continued till we reached our hotel. I dropped him off in the room and returned back to the tram station to carry other friends who were in a similar state. Truly this was ‘the’ party night of my life!
Let us begin from the beginning..

Day : 1

We arrived at the Prague Castle on Saturday morning. Prague Castle is the largest ancient castle in the world (according to Guinness Book of Records) and the most visited place in Prague. Prague Castle complex had several courtyards and squares. We toured the entire castle for about 2hrs with a very enthusiastic tour guide.

Watching the spectacular views of Prague city from top of the castle was the best part of our tour.

After the castle, we walked down to the John Lennon Wall. The Lennon wall was once a normal wall, but since the 1980s it has been filled with graffiti which art enthusiasts keep changing continuously. Along the way, we walked over the Charles bridge, the historic bridge across the Vltava river. Since both these places were worth revisiting, we decided to come back there later in our tour.
We exchanged our Euros with Czech koruna (CZK) in the market and had our lunch at a local pizza shop. Then we gathered at the old town square for a short guided city tour. This square was surrounded by Gothic style buildings (including the place where Einstein had stayed in 1911-12).

Just beside the old town square, stood the Prague astronomical clock or Prague orloj. This medieval astronomical clock was first installed in 1410, making it the third-oldest astronomical clock in the world and the oldest one still working. The clock mechanism is composed of three main components: the astronomical dial, representing the position of the Sun and Moon in the sky and displaying various astronomical details. As the clock struck an hour, the skeleton rang the bell and all the animated figures on the clock started to move. All the 12 statues of Apostles were displayed on the top of the clock. Every hour this amazing display gathers a lot of crowd around the clock tower.

After roaming around the old town area for a couple of hours, we took a tram to our hostel. This awesome hostel had an indoor swimming pool and dry sauna. So we straightaway went to the pool area after checking in. The sauna was very relaxing and it re-energized us for the Halloween Party!
We left from our hostel at 10 PM and walked to the club. The atmosphere inside was electric! We danced to the beats of the DJ for more than 2hrs. As the clock struck midnight, four scantily clad dancers put the stage on fire. The party went on till 3 AM.

Day : 2

After the eat-all-you-can breakfast at the hotel, we had free time until evening to explore the city. So we took a tram to the old-town square. The square was bursting at the seams with tourists on this Sunday morning. Some artists had covered themselves in silver body paint and stood stationary like statues. When we clicked pictures with them, they started to ask for money. We initially refused to pay anything but they became aggressive and asked us to delete the pictures. To stop the embarrassment, we paid them a few euros and rushed away towards the Wenceslas Square.

Wenceslas Square is one of the main city squares and the center of business and cultural communities in the New Town of Prague. Many historical events have occurred there and it is a traditional setting for demonstrations, celebrations and other public gatherings. The square is named after Saint Wenceslas, the patron saint of Bohemia. It is part of the historic center of Prague, a World Heritage Site.

At the other end of the Wenceslas Square, stood the 'Národní muzeum' (National Museum). This is the location where Mission Impossible’s ‘embassy’ was filmed. Unfortunately, the museum was under renovation and we couldn’t enter inside. So we just took a walk around the building.
It was already past 2 PM and all of us were getting hungry. In search of a vegetarian food joint, we walked across the city towards Vltava river. Along the way, we stumbled across a street artist who was playing soulful music and that too using only glasses filled with water.

Just before the riverfront, we saw the most non-traditional building in Prague: 'Dancing House' or 'Ginger and Fred'. This Nationale-Nederlanden building in downtown Prague was designed by Canadian-American architect Frank Gehry in co-operation with Croatian-Czech architect Vlado Milunic on a vacant riverfront plot. The very non-traditional design was controversial when it was built in the 1990s. Czech president Vaclav Havel who lived for decades next to the site had supported it hoping that the building would become a center of cultural activity.

We walked along the riverfront bathing in the pleasant sunlight. Then after having lunch at a kebab shop, we returned to our hostel. At the hotel, we once again relaxed in the swimming pool and dry sauna. Around 7 PM everyone gathered in front of the hostel and our guide took us to the pub-crawl.
A pub crawl is an act of drinking in multiple pubs or bars in a single night, normally traveling by foot or public transport to each destination and occasionally by cycle (Source: Wikipedia).
The ticket included entry and 1hr unlimited drinks at the first club. Then entry to the second club and welcome shot, entry to the third club and welcome shot, entry to 'Karlovy Lazne':the 5-story club. All 7 of us (including teetotallers like me), bought the tickets to see what a pub crawl is about.
The first club was a shady underground place. Since the drinks were free for 1 hour, the ‘drinkers’ of our group went berserk and had infinite beer, wine, vodka and what not (even though the tour guide had warned against it!). Ultimately, they were unable to stand on their feet. Looking at their condition, the bouncers of the 2nd club didn’t even allow us to get in. The tour guide told us to get back to the hostel asap. As the drunk guys were almost on the verge of puking, we didn’t call a cab. Instead, we dragged them one-by-one towards the central station and reached the hostel by the late-night tram. Hell of a night!

Day : 3

Again, our day started with the awesome all-you-can-eat breakfast at our hostel. Then we boarded the tram towards the city center. We walked from the powder tower (remodeled medieval gothic city gate) towards the Charles bridge. It was a pleasant day with bright sunshine and cool breeze. The Charles bridge was flooded with people as usual.

The picturesque views of Prague spread across the Vltava river were truly mesmerizing.

After having lunch at an Indian restaurant, we went to the Lenon wall for a long photo-session. Then we climbed up the Prague castle to watch the city soaking in the evening sunlight.

We spent some time around the cathedral and then climbed down the castle to try some street-food. The most prominent item was Trdelník made from dough wrapped around a stick.

That night Studifahrten had organized a boat-party. So we left our hostel at 10 PM and boarded the tram with our tour-guide towards the riverfront. A small cozy boat was parked there which toured us for the next 2hours up-and-down the Vltava river. The basement of the boat consisted of a dance-floor with foot-tapping music, while the deck offered serene landscapes of the city at night.

The boat party was followed by an after-party in a dance club.

It was the last event of our Prague-trip. This trip provided us the taste of Europe's ultimate Party City! Apart from the nightlife, Prague was also the most beautiful European city we had visited so far. Highly recommended and worth multiple visits!