Visiting Prague: Mucha Museum

The Mucha Museum wasn't in my original itinerary. In fact, I have never heard of Alphonse Mucha until a friend suggested I go to the museum when I get to Prague.

So after visiting Kafka and hanging out and eating lunch at the Old Town Square, I decided to walk around and try to find the museum. After a couple of hours of getting lost (even for a map enthusiast like me, Prague's inner streets could be a bit confusing), I was ready to give up my search. But as I turned the corner, I found myself right outside its door. I guess I was meant to be there hehe.

Alphonse Mucha was an acclaimed Czech Art Nouveau painter and decorative artist, and was most famous for the theatre posters he created for French stage and early film actress Sarah Bernhardt.

 Some of Mucha's works. All images from Wikipedia

Mucha created paintings, posters, advertisements, and book illustrations, as well as designs for jewelry, carpets, wallpaper, and theatre sets. His works frequently featured beautiful women in flowing robes, surrounded by flowers. Although he gained fame for his commercial art, Mucha wanted to concentrate more on his artistic and nationalistic projects.

The Mucha Museum houses over 100 exhibits comprising his paintings, photographs, charcoal drawings, pastels, lithographs and personal memorabilia. It was beautifully curated that you're guided through his artistic evolution. Too bad I got to the museum about 45 minutes to closing, which was not enough time for me to study each piece closely, and I also didn't get to finish his video biography. :(


How much is the museum fee:
The ticket costs CZK240. And if you buy Mucha tickets at the Kafka Museum (and vice versa) you can get it at half the cost. I didn't buy ahead because I wasn't sure I was gonna be able to find it.

How to get there:
The museum is along Panska street, just a block away from Wenceslas Square, which I didn't realize until after I left the museum hehehe. You can take the metro (green line A) and get off Mustek station, walk towards Jindrisska street and then turn on Panska street.

So if you have time and money to spare, why not drop by the Mucha Museum and learn more about the man and his art.

Public Commute: Going Around Prague

Prague is such a quaint little city that you could easily get around just by walking. But to cover long distances, you still need to take public transportation. Good thing Prague has an integrated transport system.

Since we stayed for 3 days in the city, we got the 3-day pass which costs CZK310, and allowed us to ride the metro, trams and buses. We bought the tickets at the tourist center, and needs to be validated before use.

Like in most European cities, navigating through their transport system is pretty easy with the help of easily available city maps.

 

I just love the design of their metro

Staromestska metro station

Their subways are pretty much like any other European city's but probably with escalators that are a whole lot steeper! I think they are as steep, if not steeper, than those in HK's Ocean Park. They're so scary that I always feel the need to lean back when going down, just to make sure I don't fall forward.

Scariest elevator ride. So steep!

I liked riding in their trams, because you still get a view of the city. I'm also always amazed at how well they navigate those tight corners and very narrow streets.

Some cars are newer and more modern than this

They also have taxi cabs, but like our own Manila taxi cab drivers, they have the notorious reputation of being scammers and ripping off tourists. We didn't have any need for a cab but we were warned to only use AAA Taxis.

Unfortunately this is not part of Prague's public transpo

But again, being a pedestrian-friendly city, you could cover a lot of ground just by walking. I promise you would be mesmerized by Prague's charm and history that you wouldn't mind wandering (and getting lost) in its streets for hours.

(P.S. Prague is a 4-1/2hr bus ride from Berlin. I booked our Eurolines tickets online, and a roundtrip fare costs 48 Euros. Nice surprise: you get free crackers and bottled water onboard.)

Where to Stay in Prague: Arpacay Backpackers Hostel

A friend who's been to Prague the previous year recommended Arpacay to us. He said that the place is clean and quite near to Charles Bridge. I'm so glad we followed his recommendation, except for the long uphill climb to get there, I quite enjoyed my stay there.

That's my bed! It had a quite cozy nook, too. (Photo from Arpacay website)

I booked us to their 6 Bed Mixed Dorm with private bathroom, and got us a 20% early bird discount for booking at least 3 months in advance.
So instead of paying CZK1000 each for 2 nights (around Php1740), we only paid CZK736 each saving us around Php400. (On a sidenote: when I made the booking, we didn't have our visas yet. I thought I could afford to lose the 5% deposit of around Php150 more than the early bird discount hehe.)

Breakfast area (Photo from Arpacay website)

The entire place was clean - common areas, our dorm and bathrooms. Our dorm was quite roomy, and since no else stayed in our room, we still had some kind of privacy. The bathroom was quite big and kept clean.

My bed was cozy, plus the sheets were soft and smelled fresh, too. There's free personal lockers (you can rent a lock if you didn't bring one), and free wi-fi in the room. Yay!

You can access the kitchen anytime, if you prefer to cook your own food. I enjoyed their buffet breakfast, though, which you could get for 3 euros, I think.

The TV area (Photo from Arpacay website)

Their staff were friendly and helpful, I even asked them to mail a postcard for me (for a fee). You can ask for a free city map and walk your way to the city's famous landmarks which are pretty accessible from the hostel - Prague Castle, St. Nicholas Church, Infant Jesus of Prague, Kafka Museum, Charles Bridge and Old Town Square.

All of these gave us such a huge relief since it was our first time staying in a hostel, and in a shared dorm at that!

The downhill trek from the hostel

How to get there:

Photo from Arpacay website

From the bus station, take the subway and get off Malostranska station. Go out of the station and walk a few feet (no need to cross the street!) to take tram No. 12, 20 or 22. Get off the next stop, Malostranske namesti. Walk up the hill along Nerudova street, and after about a 5min-walk you will find the hostel on the right side.

So if you're headed to Prague, I highly recommend you stay at Arpacay Backpackers Hostel. You can visit their site here for more information.

Visiting Prague: Of Kafka Museum

Prague is home to Franz Kafka, one of the literary world's most influential writers.

The term Kafkaesque has entered into the English language to describe situations that seem senseless and where one can't seem to get out of, which are common themes of his works. Throughout his life, he dealt with feelings of angst towards his relationship with his dominant father, his work at the insurance company (which he felt was taking too much of this time, leaving little for his writing), government bureaucracy, his identity as a German-speaking Jew in Prague and his relations with women.

I'm definitely no expert on Kafka, in fact, I don't think I have read even one of his writings entirely (I know, shame on me!). But I did enjoy learning about his life though his letters, diaries and photographs.

Tickets cost CZK200

How to get there:

Just before getting on Charles Bridge (with the Prague Castle behind you), turn left to Cihelná street. Franz Kafka's face will greet you right outside the gate.

Before entering the museum though, be entertained at the courtyard by the Peeing Statues by David Cerny. The base is formed in the shape of Cezch Republic and the two statues are pissing on the country. Didn't try it, but they said you could send an SMS and the statues will 'pee' your message into the water.

How much is the museum fee:

Entrance fee is at CZK200, roughly Php350 or USD8, which I think was worth it. In my opinion, the museum was well-curated (complete with AVPs and soundtrack), giving me that sense of anguish and helplessness which Kafka could've felt at that time.

After visiting the museum, you could then go around the building and enjoy the view of the Charles Bridge away from the crowd.

A view of the Charles Bridge from the museum yard.

My European Dream

So I'm back from our 3-week trip to Europe. Boo! :-( We visited mainly 3 cities: Berlin, Amsterdam and Prague. Almost everyone kept asking me why not Paris, Rome, London or Barcelona as they are the most common places to be visited by first time travelers to Europe? Well for one, the friend we're visiting lives in Berlin so we had to choose places that are geographically closer to the city. Secondly, I didn't want to go to these places (yet) because they are the most common choice by almost everyone I know. In short, para maiba hehe. Thirdly (and most importantly), these cities are considered to be romantic destinations, so being a single lady, these are the last places I want to be in right now. Will save those for another visit ;-)

I'll write more detailed posts on each city we visited, but for now, here are my highlights for this trip:

1. Famous landmarks
Of course, the trip wouldn't be complete without visiting these tourist sites.

East Side Gallery, Berlin

Brandenburg Gate, Berlin

Charles Bridge, Prague

Old Astronomical Clock, Prague

Amsterdam Canals

The 'I amsterdam' sign

2. Art
I love hanging out in museums so I was lucky I got to visit several. Here's just a few of them:

Van Gogh Museum, Amsterdam

Pergamon Museum, Berlin

Kafka Museum, Prague

3. Visit to a concentration camp
I have always been engrossed with holocaust-related history, so this was a must-do for me.

Sachsenhausen Concentration Camp, Germany

4. Justin Timberlake concert
Hello?! It's Justin! And we were very lucky to be standing really close to the stage!

5. Walking and commuting
I ate ice cream almost every day while in Europe. Seriously! But thankfully I didn't really gain weight because of all the walking I did. I love walking especially when you have a gorgeous view (both nature and people, hehe) so I enjoyed Europe immensely. And, their public transport is very reliable and convenient that I wish I could do it everyday hehe.

Walking around Berlin