Tips on Prague

helpful tipsThings to be weary of in Prague:
• If you are studying in the spring, the weather is rainy and cold until the end of march
• Avoid getting into tiffs with Czech bouncers (I have witnessed numerous fights ending in black eyes and bloody noses)
• Try not to venture in Wenslecas Square at night (unless its for sausage). Hookers will follow you and shady old men will try and usher you into strip joints.
• Yoga is awful here. The one Bykram class I took was more about survival than exercise.
• Don’t try and ride the subway for free. Both times I attempted this, I was fined 700crowns (35USD). Not worth it.
• Though I have made an effort, Czechs are rather stand-offish
Things to be excited about:
• The nightlife is great
• The classes are…a joke. Literally. One of my finals is a two paged double spaced essay on the subject of “arrest” (it’s a Kafka thing).
• The city is beautiful, especially when the weather is great
• Try and live in Slezka—it’s definitely the nicest dorm
Things to Czech out:
• Marksmen island—here there is a great Italian/French restaurant and during the day, you can rent paddle boats
• The local beer garden, Riegrovy sady is next to Slezka and you can enjoy a 25Kr (1.25USD) famous Czech Gambrinus and challenge some local Czechs to a game of foosball. On a night with nice weather, you may just want to stay here as the open half-acre of benches and beer make for a very social, friendly setting.
• Definitely go to the quieter, more intimate setting at café Sudicka, a wine bar/restaurant that has quasi-quality glasses of Moravian Czech wine for 20Kr (1USD).
• Lavka, a smaller, less ear-blasting nightclub than its five-story neighbor, Karlovy Lazne is my favorite club. Stride into Lavka like you own the place; be sure not to speak English and the bouncers will most likely not charge you the 100Kr (5USD) entrance fee. Once inside, either go downstairs to get a 30 Kr (1.50USD) beer and dance to the retro hip-hop remixes with a packed room of Czechs and foreigners alike, or talk it up outside where a more chill, less packed atmosphere of the same crowd views the Vltava river and Charles bridge while sitting at circular wooden tables and chairs on the large, narrow patio.