Prague - I am glad that I went

I heard several great stories about Prague - a well preserved city and the capital of the Czech Republic. It wasn't a city on my "list" of places to go, but after hearing several great stories from friends and fellow travelers, I decided to take a visit. But it wasn't a city that I wanted to visit on my own, given that it is not on the euro and being new to travel and tourism, several stories indicate that some devious townspeople would try to take advantage of you, so when I heard my friends Lisa and Matt were going there for the weekend, I asked to join them. They were delighted to have the company. It is hard for me to describe what is so great about Prague and the pictures don't do the city much justice. It really is the buildings and old time charm that the city has maintained given that very little of it was destroyed in WW2. Everything is big (so taking pictures is hard) and is colorful and looks really neat. So, we toured the city, shopped, when to a classical concert, a great underground jazz club and to a black light theatre show. I took a tour on a Segway (which was neat) and we had several meals - including mexican and something from the street vendor. The city is on the "crown" and is considered by many to be "cheap". It was - a bottle of Coke on the street was usually less than 30 crown which would be about 1 euro. Even though the math was hard, the prices were good (especially for a city which is the capital of the country). I wasn't able to collect any good euro coins here, but I did have a really good time. Derek tried to join me for a day of the trip, but that plan was shot down (literally) when the plane in route to New York was hit by lightening and delayed. So, he wasn't able to make it, but his attempt at making an international 5,500 mile journey for a 24 hr visit was extremely thoughtful and appreciated. He will be home this week and I am seriously counting the hours until he is able to make it. Mom Marilyn will be here this week as well and we are looking forward to the chance to show her a great trip around Europe!