Prague | Snapshots of a story book city

This blog post is well over a year late, but I have good reason. Also, what’s a young Thursday without a little throwback, right?

When sharing stories of my European summer with Topdeck around this time last year (over the course of 18 days, 22 of us were whirled by bus around nine European countries, including Italy, Switzerland, France and the Czech Republic and it was literally THE BEST almost-three-weeks of my life so far. In case you missed it, you can start reading about it here too), I skipped out writing about the Prague leg of the journey because I was REALLY ill when I was in that city.

I’d had minor cold/flu-symptoms throughout most of the trip (having left South Africa still slightly ill and refusing antibiotics – sorry mom). As is expected after weeks of non-stop travelling, my health quickly deteriorated and I had developed a nasty cough by the time we reached the Austrian Alps. In spite of this, I threw caution to the icy wind and still went on the mountain biking tour through the Austrian Alps that I’d already booked and paid for. Anyway. That was the worst idea ever. I couldn’t breathe afterwards and felt so weak, like someone was constantly sitting on my chest. That awful feeling continued for the next two days, by which time we’d crossed into the Czech Republic. I was really disappointed at the time because Prague was one of the cities I was most looking forward to experiencing. But, I kept getting so tired after walking just a short distance, felt constantly light headed and was generally a miserable-looking human being. This sounds sooo dramatic (because it is), but I was so sick and “out of it” for those 48-hours, in some kind of daze, that it almost felt like I wasn’t there.

But! On a recent scroll through some older photos, I came across the snaps I’d taken while there and it got me feeling so inspired. It also got me thinking – part of the reason I felt so “spacey” is that Prague is a city out of a fantastical dream (at least the small part of it that I was fortunate enough to experience, mostly the Old Town). Like a fairy tale, Prague is all Disney Princess-esque castles and gothic architecture and statues of Catholic saints that watch over you as you cross over Charles Bridge. I stood in the Old Town Square, the centre of “the City of a Hundred Spires” and watched as a horse-drawn carriage clattered past, while someone blew bubbles that floated through the open space and up into the crisp blue sky. The toasty smell of trdelnik pastries cooking over open fires constantly hangs in the air as you wonder through narrow roads, past marionettes and stores selling sweet treats and Bohemian glass.

Here’s the visual story.

Hope you enjoyed this visual journal and that you’re feeling inspired to put Old Town Prague on your travel bucket list.

On a side note, writing this post has got me SO excited for my upcoming month-long trip, including three full weeks in the Seychelles (can’t believe I’ll be there in just four weeks time!!). Follow A Bucketful of Sunshine to keep up with my shenanigans (I’ll be heading to Durban and the Southern Drakensberg while I’m away, too) and you can also find me on Instagram.

Until next time. xx