Adventures in Southern California: Czech

Prague is one of my favorite cities in Europe. It's an incredibly beautiful city with medieval architecture, cobblestone streets, enormous churches, castles, and some of the best bars and restaurants I've visited anywhere. One of the great things about living in Southern California is that you can frequently find roundtrip flights from LAX to Prague for around 500–600$, especially if you book several months in advance and you’re flexible on travel dates. Prague is also relatively inexpensive compared to cities like Paris, London or Amsterdam. Prague is also safer. I would recommend visiting in September or October when the weather is cooler and the summer crowds have thinned out. It's also noticeably less crowded during the week. Spend your days wandering through Old Town Square, crossing the famous Charles Bridge, and exploring the enormous Prague Castle complex. Definitely walk around the castle grounds and check out St. Vitus Cathedral, but I would save your money and skip the roughly $20 sightseeing ticket unless you're really interested in seeing the interior. Prague is an awesome city to explore on foot, and you can spend hours wandering through the historic neighborhoods exploring pubs without spending much money.

One of my favorite things about Prague is the food and beer. Czechia has an incredible beer culture, and there are great little pubs and restaurants everywhere. U Kunštátů is one of the best craft beer bars I've ever visited. It's tucked away inside a beautiful historic building with an intimate atmosphere and a quiet courtyard where you can sit outside and enjoy a beer. The craft beer selection is incredible, especially the sour beer menu, which was absolutely insane. I could have spent every evening there. Another favorite was Restaurace Mincovna, located right on Old Town Square. The food was amazing, the Czech draft beer was excellent, and the soups were some of the best I've ever had. You also have to order a traditional Czech pork knuckle at least once while you're in Prague. They're enormous, usually served with mustard, horseradish and bread, and they're fantastic with a cold Czech beer. For breakfast, I became completely addicted to Oh Deer Bakery, which makes these incredible cream-filled pastries called cronuts. I ate them practically every morning while I was in Prague and even bought a box to take home on the plane.

Another restaurant I would highly recommend is Klášterní šenk, a traditional Czech restaurant located on the grounds of the historic Břevnov Monastery, which is still an active monastery. It's outside the main tourist areas, so you'll probably want to take an Uber to get there, but it's absolutely worth the trip. You can even stop there on your way into the city from the airport. The food and beer were flawless, and the atmosphere inside the restaurant was incredible. It feels like you're eating in a centuries-old tavern, with rustic wooden furniture and a beautiful historic interior. It's the kind of place you probably wouldn't discover just wandering around Old Town. Prague has plenty of tourist restaurants, but I would highly recommend getting away from the busiest streets and trying some of the more traditional places around the city. The food is generally affordable, the portions are enormous, and it's hard to beat the combination of great Czech food and locally brewed beer.

Prague also has some of the best nightlife I've experienced in Europe. One of the coolest things to do is simply wander around the city in the evening and check out the local pubs, cocktail bars and little underground drinking spots. You really don't need much of a plan. Just walk around and see what looks interesting. Prague has some amazing absinthe bars, including Green Devil's Absinth Bar, which is a fun place to try the famous green spirit. Hemingway Bar is another favorite if you're looking for a more relaxed cocktail bar with excellent drinks. If you want to get away from the tourist crowds, head a little farther out to the Žižkov neighborhood. This area has tons of great local bars and a completely different atmosphere from Old Town. Bukowski's Bar and Tiki Taky are two places worth checking out. There are plenty of other bars within walking distance, and the neighborhood is a great place to hang out with locals. Prague really comes alive at night, and I think some of my favorite memories were just wandering around the illuminated streets, finding little pubs, and enjoying the city without any particular destination.

One of the other great things about visiting Prague is that you can easily turn the vacation into a multi-city European trip using the train system. The classic route is Prague, Vienna and Budapest, with several interesting places worth stopping along the way. One city I regret skipping is Brno, Czechia's second-largest city, which has a beautiful historic center, great restaurants and the impressive Cathedral of St. Peter and Paul, which you can visit for free. Bratislava, Slovakia, is another excellent stop between Vienna and Budapest. The old town is beautiful, with pedestrian streets, historic buildings, a castle overlooking the Danube, and some surprisingly good nightlife, especially on weekends. You can easily explore the center in an afternoon, although spending a night would give you more time to enjoy the bars. If you're staying in Prague for several days, another great excursion is Kutná Hora, about an hour away by train. This historic medieval town was once one of the wealthiest cities in Europe because of its silver mines. It's famous for St. Barbara's Cathedral and the bizarre Sedlec Ossuary, better known as the Bone Church. The chapel is decorated with the actual bones of tens of thousands of people, arranged into chandeliers, pyramids, crosses and other elaborate designs. It's a great excursion for an October trip to get you in the Halloween spirit. The ticket for the Sedlec Ossurary is the best $10 you'll spend on your trip. Between the amazing architecture, affordable food, incredible beer and easy train connections to other European cities, Prague is a destination I would happily return to again and again.