![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
elvendollprague...
i can't get over how much i want to be back there.
one of the reasons i love travelling alone is that it is very recentering - it's just me and a new city and the adventures that it holds; me and this freedom from chores, from the daily grind, from hawkeye watching how my interactions affect those i care about, freedom of knowing that any mistake i may make won't follow me home.
i also find being around art to be incredibly grounding, centering and inspiring and sad as the case may be, i see a lot more art when i travel then when i'm home.
i was surprised that in prague, their national gallery isn't a major attraction - it isn't listed in the lonely planet guide, it wasn't on the map i got, and there aren't big signs pointing to it anywhere - in fact, the building is one of the most nondescript ones in prague. there were four levels - 19th century (czech) art, modern art, foreign art and french art - and an exhibition floor. they were mean about not taking my student ID, and because of the price and it being 4pm, i chose 19th century art and modern art. the museum floored me. now, this isn't too uncommon, but damn. the 19th century art had designs submitted for some of the more well known prague buildings as well as models of them, there was furniture and some clothing and a lot of sculptures and painting. the older paintings were definitely not up to par with what you'd see at the MET, especially in terms of preservation, but it was amazing to see a floorfull of amazing czech art in all the different styles the 19th century had to offer. unfortunately, i spent so much time there i had to rush through the modern art floor - and still, while i there, i thought there is no place i would rather be - i only wish the museum shop had postcards of the paintings there.
the architecture in prague was mindblowing. the buildings were so intricate and elaborate - and have been there, preserving someone's vision, for hundreds of years. i wanted to take a picture of every one.
the cheapness was really damn nice, too - the beer really was cheaper then water - less then 50 cents at a supermarket and about a dollar at a bar. i splurged a bit and ate at 4 restaurants - two were czech places near the hostel, and both had great food, big portions and came to under $5 including a beer; i had a tuna pizza (yes, it was weird - apparently, it's normal in australia, too) when i couldn't find a cheap lunch place and a tourist-geared restaurant in kutna hora, which was also really good.
i met some amazing people - some of whom, i prolly wouldn't have talked to if i saw them under different circumstances, some of whom i will hopefully see locally and most of whom i hope to keep in touch with - there's something amazing about hostel culture - and while a part of me feels guilty about it, for me, part of the joy of hostelling is learning about the ways/cultures of the other travellers. of course, as usual, i'd feel pangs whenever someone would ask where i've been and where i'm off to next : (
in a lot of ways, i was apprehensive about this trip. time alone usually means digging down into myself, and right now, there's a rather black spot there. but, instead of lowering myself to the negativity, i stayed at a very medium, even keel and totally shook off the stresses that're here - and it was refreshing and great. the hostel life was also very reaffirming - i could see where my conversation skills were lacking, but i could see that where i am now isn't atrocious.
one odd thing is that aside from one drunk czech guy in a club that hit on everything that moved, noone flirted with me. i wonder if it's something about me being older, something i'm projecting, or my hair being entirely unsexy.
being the bad kid that i am, the first thing i did was make a prague icon.
the picture was taken in the mirror maze - on my last day, i went back to the castle to find the sternberg gallery and afterwards, wandered into petrin park... and just kept walking higher and higher up the hill until i got to the observation tower there - and the mirror maze just next to it - it was appropriate and neat, and the walking i did was a great way to say goodbye to prague.
i can't get over how much i want to be back there.
one of the reasons i love travelling alone is that it is very recentering - it's just me and a new city and the adventures that it holds; me and this freedom from chores, from the daily grind, from hawkeye watching how my interactions affect those i care about, freedom of knowing that any mistake i may make won't follow me home.
i also find being around art to be incredibly grounding, centering and inspiring and sad as the case may be, i see a lot more art when i travel then when i'm home.
i was surprised that in prague, their national gallery isn't a major attraction - it isn't listed in the lonely planet guide, it wasn't on the map i got, and there aren't big signs pointing to it anywhere - in fact, the building is one of the most nondescript ones in prague. there were four levels - 19th century (czech) art, modern art, foreign art and french art - and an exhibition floor. they were mean about not taking my student ID, and because of the price and it being 4pm, i chose 19th century art and modern art. the museum floored me. now, this isn't too uncommon, but damn. the 19th century art had designs submitted for some of the more well known prague buildings as well as models of them, there was furniture and some clothing and a lot of sculptures and painting. the older paintings were definitely not up to par with what you'd see at the MET, especially in terms of preservation, but it was amazing to see a floorfull of amazing czech art in all the different styles the 19th century had to offer. unfortunately, i spent so much time there i had to rush through the modern art floor - and still, while i there, i thought there is no place i would rather be - i only wish the museum shop had postcards of the paintings there.
the architecture in prague was mindblowing. the buildings were so intricate and elaborate - and have been there, preserving someone's vision, for hundreds of years. i wanted to take a picture of every one.
the cheapness was really damn nice, too - the beer really was cheaper then water - less then 50 cents at a supermarket and about a dollar at a bar. i splurged a bit and ate at 4 restaurants - two were czech places near the hostel, and both had great food, big portions and came to under $5 including a beer; i had a tuna pizza (yes, it was weird - apparently, it's normal in australia, too) when i couldn't find a cheap lunch place and a tourist-geared restaurant in kutna hora, which was also really good.
i met some amazing people - some of whom, i prolly wouldn't have talked to if i saw them under different circumstances, some of whom i will hopefully see locally and most of whom i hope to keep in touch with - there's something amazing about hostel culture - and while a part of me feels guilty about it, for me, part of the joy of hostelling is learning about the ways/cultures of the other travellers. of course, as usual, i'd feel pangs whenever someone would ask where i've been and where i'm off to next : (
in a lot of ways, i was apprehensive about this trip. time alone usually means digging down into myself, and right now, there's a rather black spot there. but, instead of lowering myself to the negativity, i stayed at a very medium, even keel and totally shook off the stresses that're here - and it was refreshing and great. the hostel life was also very reaffirming - i could see where my conversation skills were lacking, but i could see that where i am now isn't atrocious.
one odd thing is that aside from one drunk czech guy in a club that hit on everything that moved, noone flirted with me. i wonder if it's something about me being older, something i'm projecting, or my hair being entirely unsexy.
being the bad kid that i am, the first thing i did was make a prague icon.
the picture was taken in the mirror maze - on my last day, i went back to the castle to find the sternberg gallery and afterwards, wandered into petrin park... and just kept walking higher and higher up the hill until i got to the observation tower there - and the mirror maze just next to it - it was appropriate and neat, and the walking i did was a great way to say goodbye to prague.
![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
no subject
Date: 2004-04-05 06:24 pm (UTC)And, hey, it's not like there's any good art in Boston...
*duck*
no subject
Date: 2004-04-05 06:54 pm (UTC)