Praha

So I have always had an, what I feel is well justified, aversion to Eastern Europe (anything west of Germany really). But when Neil (on the right) said that he was going to be teaching in Prague for six weeks, I thought this was my opportunity to see if my preconceived, unfounded prejudices had merit or not.

And sadly to my ego, so far it does not.

Prague is actually a quaint town. Extremely picturesque and wonderfully walkeable.

Granted after having concentrated my travels in pointedly NOT aryan regions of the world, Prague does exude a certain "whiteness" that I am not accustomed to.

But for being my first day here, I am quite pleasantly surprised. Being able to catch-up with Neil, which I had not seen in 3 years, has been great; and Prague's charm has won me over. But we shall see there are still 3 more days to go :-)

About Prague:

Following the First World War, the closely related Czechs and Slovaks of the former Austro-Hungarian Empire merged to form Czechoslovakia. During the interwar years, the new country's leaders were frequently preoccupied with meeting the demands of other ethnic minorities within the republic, most notably the Sudeten Germans and the Ruthenians (Ukrainians). After World War II, a truncated Czechoslovakia fell within the Soviet sphere of influence. In 1968, an invasion by Warsaw Pact troops ended the efforts of the country's leaders to liberalize Communist party rule and create "socialism with a human face." Anti-Soviet demonstrations the following year ushered in a period of harsh repression. With the collapse of Soviet authority in 1989, Czechoslovakia regained its freedom through a peaceful "Velvet Revolution." On 1 January 1993, the country underwent a "velvet divorce" into its two national components, the Czech Republic and Slovakia. The Czech Republic joined NATO in 1999 and the European Union in 2004.

The Charles Bridge has some great religious motif sculptures.

Cute little brook with a mill

View of Charles Bridge, along the Vltava river

Beautiful architecture