After my not so perfect visit to Kraków, I felt a bit disappointed but still determined to go somewhere also in the following year. This time, the decision got into the hand of my brother, who had always been keen on visiting Prague. Personally - however incredible it may sound - I didn't really feel like going there at first. Based on a Google search one can immediately see that the city is breathtaking and boasts with plenty of amazing sights, but for me, there was something missing until I saw the city live. But then, my opinion took a 180 degree turn, and the capital of the Czech Republic became one of my favourite places, with a definite intention to return in the future.
Where is Prague? It is in the middle of the Czech Republic, having the perfect location to visit not only Czech destinations, but also cities from other countries, like Dresden in Germany (as if Prague itself wouldn't be enough for a week to enjoy without leaving it). With over one million residents, it serves as the capital city of the country.
How to get there? We went there by a bus runned by Eurolines. The journey took a bit more than 7 hours (I also have to add a delay of not more than 15 minutes), which makes me consider taking the train if I return to Prague in the future (which I - as mentioned above - plan to do). We left at 9.00, and arrived around 16.30. Backwards, we took the 13.00 bus and arrived home around 20.30 (as far as I remember, with no delay). From Budapest, there are a lot of organised tours to the city, or you can take a bus runned by RegioJet or Flixbus, but there are also trains quite regularly between the two capitals.
Our bus also stopped in Bratislava (nice memories) and Brno (to be discovered), and then it took us to the bus station called Florenc, which sounds pretty much like the Italian city Florence, but is far from its beauty. Nevertheless, once we found accommodation, we were ready for a short walk to find out what we were going to see the following day in more details.
 |
| I was already amazed by this church - and I had no idea how much more we were going to see! |
At first, we got lost and found districts which kind of made me feel like we were in Berlin or in any other industrial city. Not having given up, we found a street that led us straight to the railway station, from where reaching the downtown was only a matter of time.
 |
| Once we found the railway station, we knew we were on the right path |
As the city got darker, I fell only more and more enchanted by what I saw. The downtown streets were still full of people, and I don't like being in such great masses, but in Prague, even this didn't make me feel uncomfortable. The best part of the evening was definitely seeing Karlův most (Charles Bridge), which also provided a perfect view on the downtown sights we were ready to see the following day.
 |
| Not the highest quality photo ever seen, but this view still evokes great feelings in me |
Our second day began with a walk in the park called Vitkov, before we took the already known route to the downtown.
 |
| A monument in Vitkov |
 |
| We met a lot of breathtaking buildings even on the way to Karlův most |
The views were just as magical as in the darkness and didn't get boring for the second time, either. This time we also crossed Vltava to meet the other side of the city (the night before, we went only to the bridge, and then turned back to our hostel), and apart from the sometimes excessive amount of tourists, all our experiences were nothing but amazing.
 |
| The view from the bridge in the daytime |
This part of the city is also home to some ambessies for countries from all around the world, so one can bump into different flags while discovering the cobblestone streets.
 |
| The British Embassy in the centre of the city |
At the time we visited Prague, one had to ondergo a security check before entering some parts of the downtown, presumably due to the terrorist attacks that hit a lot of European cities prior to our visit (and unfortunately, also afterwards). But glimpsing St. Vitus Cathedral from just a few metres and being confronted with its dimensions compensated for everything. Also the other surrounding sights and the views over the other side, which we have more or less already seen made us feel like Prague has been one of the best decisions of our lives.
 |
| The views also made the centre worth visiting it |
On the way back to our hostel, we went on the same route as where we came, so we could focus on some sights that avoided our attention at first. I took some photos of these newly discovered details which may worth being seen:
 |
| The other side from Charles Bridge |
 |
| A Catholic church by the same bridge |
In the evening, having had dinner in a restaurant, we decided to go back into the city centre for another round, and the sunset gave everything a tranquil (and for me, with all the bikes, a bit Amsterdam-like) mood:
As it got darker, we visited one last sight that was on our imaginary list for this day (Tančící dům, or in English: Dancing house), and then decided to head back with the local underground:
 |
| Tančící dům is probably one of the most well-known modern buildings in the city |
 |
| There were some graffitis on the metro trains, but other than that, they were quick and comfortable |
On the day of our departure home, we wanted to visit Old Town Square, and probably this was the only situation where we didn't really come out as winners: a lot of sights were being renovated, and since we were tired from the past two days and the thought of the long journey ahead also didn't help us, we didn't spend much time in the city, but headed back to our beloved bus station to wait for our journey home, full of great memories.
 |
| We didn't have much luck with Old Times Square, but with so many good memories behind us, we didn't really mind |
Is Prague worth visiting? All in all, if I could suggest anyone to visit a city in Central Europe, it would be either Budapest (as the capital of my country :) ) or Prague, which I now totally believe to be one of the most beautiful cities not only of the region, but also of the whole continent. If you are in the neighbourhood, you must definitely visit this city, there is no way to stress it enough! I definitely have no regrets regarding visiting it, and I already look forward to returning - even though I have a lot of other plans for the future. The prices are not much different from what you would experience in Budapest, but be prepared for the fact that you will need at least two or three full days (from morning to evening) to actually explore the downtown at its fullest and even have time to see your favourites twice. Because you will definitely want to.
