velvet revolution
hitchhiker's travels
I left in the afternoon by myself and my ride share was with two very opposite kinds of people. One was a total energy feeling hippie, and the other was a straight cut white collared cardigan and dress pants man. Actually, while waiting for our ride, we (the hippie and I) started a conversation and he told me that was going to a rainbow gathering in the mountains of Slovakia. I nodded politely like I understood, but I really had no idea what a rainbow gathering entailed. Well, a rainbow gathering is this event that lasts about a month in the mountains where people live without money. All sorts of people gather from around the world and hang out, set up their tents and I'm not sure what sort of activities they would have. But he explained it as, "a place of good energy." The other guy in the rideshare, stood 8 meters away and didn't talk to either of us and when the car arrived, he darted for the front seat.
1. Arrival time, gets dark fast. 2. The damnned ticket machine that takes coins only.
It didn't occur to me that the rideshare was not going to drop us off at the city center. I obviously did not do my research. I also didn't think that I wouldn't be able to find a transit map/tourist information. Instead, he dropped us off at the edge of the underground metro map -which typically means in the middle of nowhere. This is when I realised that, a. I was not at a central station, and b. I had no idea where I was in Prague. When I headed towards the station, there was (luckily) a lady at the info desk, and she gave me general (and confusing) instructions on how to get to the hostel. But! the info desk does not sell tickets, so I had to buy them from the machine, which only accepted coins, and when I exchanged Euros to Czeck Korona, they only gave me bills. And since it was late evening and in the boonies, of course, everything was closed. So I stood around debating my options and whether or not I should make a run for it onto the train or not. Then someone who spoke English came by and told me that I could text the bus company, and get a train ticket through SMS on my phone. "Hooray!" I thought, "this is so convenient!" So I tried that, and got a German response on my phone which I couldn't read but I'm pretty sure it said something along the lines of "Welcome to Prague, your cheapy phone plan does not work here. see-ya"
bubble wrap building
So, I can tell you it was a very long and tiring night in Prague. I walked around the inside of the deserted station and the outside of it. I considered bumming a ride, but didn't want to risk not knowing where I would end up. Then after a long while of walking in circles and figuring out how to get into the city, and getting hungry, I noticed a gas station across the highway and went there and bought a bag of chips with a large bill so I can have lots of change and never be in this situation again.I switched trains, and when I got into the city that familiar feeling of holding a map but not having a single clue about where you are fell over me. So I sort of disregarded the map and walked and asked around until I got to the hostel. At one point I found a guy who google mapped it on his cellphone for me and I snapped a picture. Perhaps next time I should keep an eye out for people with iphones and data plans.
My cable lock was too thin for the lockers, so I locked it to my bed . Take that thieves!
I thought going to Prague one night early would be a good idea since I could see more of the city. But who knew it would just be exhausting. And next time, I'll arrive during the day. My friend is joining me tomorrow, and I'm really glad that I'm not going to go about this city, entirely lost and frustrated alone. She'll keep me on track!
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