The Captive Reader

Prague never lets you go…this dear little mother has sharp claws.
-Franz Kafka

I love the elegance of Paris, the energy of London, the jolliness of Munich, but Prague has a magic to it that I’ve never encountered anywhere else.  It is a city that is full of beauty and history but it is also a liveable, lived-in city.  Its pastel-coloured 18th and 19th century buildings sport loud, obnoxious 21st advertisements and I love it all the more for that.  I never tire of visiting, of walking up Petřín, wandering around the castle complex when you’re the only one about, before the buildings open for tourists (or, even better, at night, after the buildings have closed), or simply exploring the residential neighbourhoods.  That it is beautiful is a given but it is just so comfortable too.  It is a major city but, because all the major sights are within a small area, it feels comfortably small.

For the first time, I stayed in a hotel while visiting.  We stayed at the wonderful Hotel Julian in Malá Strana, which offered warm, friendly service, excellent rooms and a gorgeous rooftop terrace with a view to the castle, but, more importantly, the perfect location.  Malá Strana is the prettiest of the central bits of the city, an easy walk to the castle and across the river to the Old Town. 

Almost immediately after arriving and checking in, mom and I dashed back outside, eager to get the most out of our short time in our favourite city.  My mother gets giddy when she’s back in Prague.  It’s adorable.  She becomes once more the little girl who used to explore the city with her friends on weekends when they were ten or eleven, dashing around on streetcars, their favourite destination being the castle.  And, of course, we did wander through the castle that first afternoon but first we took advantage of the gorgeous weather and hiked up to Strahov Monastery to see, you guessed it, the famous library.

Most of the walk (at least the route we chose) is along cobbled streets with laughably narrow sidewalks that are only used when motorists come whipping round corners and pedestrians have to jump back and cling to the nearest building (note: all Czech drivers are crazy.  The ones I’m related to especially).  But then you emerge out into a park/orchard with the monastery hanging above you and the most gorgeous views the the city (castle included) when you look back.  The main problem with Prague is that every time you look around, there is a stunning view you want to photograph.  This is why I came home with 400 photos of the city taken over less than 72 hours.  Somehow, we tore ourselves away from the view (after pausing to sit on a bench and admire it – after all, it was our first day back after an absence of a few years and we must be allowed to indulge our obsession a little) and took those last few steps up to the monastery.

The library was stunning, as promised.  It was my first time visiting and my expectations were definitely surpassed.  The photos do neither room justice and my mother happily let me spend quite a long time gawking, trying to decide which room I like best.  Answer?  The small room, with only the one level and the more ornate ceiling.  It’s brighter and, despite its ceiling, less formal.  But, really, both rooms are gorgeous and very impressive. 

After visiting the monastery, we happily wandered about, stopping by Loreta to hear the lovely bells that chime on the hour:

From there, a quick dash through the castle grounds – just because – then back to the hotel to meet up with the paternal side of my mom’s family, all of whom live in Prague.  It was another great family evening with the 11 of us just about taking over the hotel’s small restaurant, which allowed my cousin’s 18 month old daughter to run about as much as she wished while her parents, uncles, grandparents and two great-grandmothers looked on.  It is always a bit of a shock to see how much my twin cousins, who are my age, resemble my brother.  I look nothing like this side of the family but my brother clearly does, though we often forget since we see them so rarely.

After all the family had left, my mother and I made our way upstairs to the hotel’s rooftop terrace and curled up on one of the comfortable outdoor sofas, happily reviewing about our truly wonderful first day in Prague and already plotting our next trip back, while gazing at the castle, illuminated against the night sky.