For those who have never been to Prague-Czech Republic, you are missing out on one of the jewels of Europe and I would say the "Paris of Central Europe".
Why so...? Prague, untouched from the bombings of World War II (unlike many other Central European cities) has an architecture landscape that would surprise many. You look at Prague Castle, over the Charles Bridge, and you see a castle that took 300 years to build.
The center of Prague has the brick/cobble stone roads for walking....not for cars. It's history is now on it's own path after being under communist rule into the late 1980's (under Russia after WW2). You have a new sense of freedom and self destiny in this country. And to me, one of the most beautiful as well.
How do I know? I lived/worked there for a few years :-)
There are many smaller cities in the Czech Republic that have a similar small town square and the orange tiled roofs. The people are very friendly, hard working, educated, smart and a joy to be around.
Old town square in Prague (the Czech's call it Praha) is a major gathering place for tourists as they traverse the city by foot and take in the various restaurants and Czech Beer (so good).
The Cathedrals and old churches still stand as a monument to the past. The beauty is in the design and truly unique.
The various archways and towers that were built 100's of years ago are part of everyone's must see list.
The buildings still stand and there is plenty of older photos that will show these buildings during Russian occupation and literally tanks going down these roads.
Prague is well known for their Beer, in fact it is said that Budweiser comes in name from the town of Budvar in east Czech Republic. The food is rich and heavy with gravy's and dumplings...don't forget the fried cheese :-)
The city is absolutely packed in the summers with tourists from all over the world. A common tourist trip is a few days in Prague, then onto Vienna (a few hours away) and then Budapest (Hungary)...that is the "trifecta" and well worth it.
As this flu season abates over the summer and people again travel, I would love to see Prague again. Love the people there. They appreciate you as a tourist and can't say enough about this beautiful country (which is about the size of the State of New York).
You might want to put Prague as one of those "must visits" on your bucket list.
Thank you for reading.