Wow, Prague is expensive!

The hotel prices certainly are anyway!

For a start, it's confusing, because you have to divide by 16 to get to USD, so it's hard to think off the top of your head to work out prices.

So the prices of some of the things in the mini bar:

Small (50g) Pringles - 150 CzK (USD$9.30)
Red Bull Energy Drink - 200 CzK ($12.45!!!)
Can of Coke - 130CzK ($8)

And for a cup of tea downstairs in the cafe is 105CzK - $6.50

Crazy.

Glad you arrived safely!!!

Those prices are outrageous. Most countries have a "black market" for buying and selling currency. My friends take advantage of it when they go to Guyana and other places. You could probably sell American Dollars at a good price, so that your exchange for things works out to be less than what you are paying right now.

How is the weather? Is the hotel nice? What is the area like where you are staying? How is the food? Have you tried any of the "native' foods? What about pictures?

stay out of the tourist spots, those will make you go broke fast.
have fun!!

You're in a tourist area, but even if you go local they are going to make money off you because you dont really know the difference.

Wow. I think few locals could afford those prices. In 1999 my measly student allowance was more than a nurses paycheck in Prague, though wages there must have gone up since then

Originally Posted by Natalie_ca

How is the weather? Is the hotel nice? What is the area like where you are staying? How is the food? Have you tried any of the "native' foods? What about pictures?

Click to expand...

It's raining and a little cool. Tomorrow should be nice, Wednesday it's supposed to rain again, and Thursday should be ok. I'm doing an assignment at the moment, so the weather makes me feel a little better about being inside

The hotel isn't too bad. Breakfast is included which is yummy, and there's a really nice pool at the top of the hotel. The area the hotel is in is just old as opposed to "historic".

As for the food, we've only eaten in the hotel so far. We may try to get out for dinner tonight depending on how tired we are. We didn't see any restaurants close by when we went for a walk yesterday.

We went up to Prague Castle yesterday kind of on a whim, so didn't have the camera. I'll go back during the week and takes lots of pics when DH is in his conference

Originally Posted by theimp98

stay out of the tourist spots,

those will make you go broke fast.
have fun!!

Click to expand...

Right, I'll just go to the boring suburbian parts! There's a reason the touristy spots are what they are!

Ooh and I also just met Mark Shuttleworth just before - the guy who finances and started the Linux Distribution Ubuntu, and also the second space tourist! He saw DH, and came over to us to say hi since they've met a number of times - I felt very cool

When I was in college in France, we had a couple of Czech students at the school. They were the most capitalistic, entrepreneurial communists I've ever seen. One is the regional head of significant protestant denomination, now, but like most non-Catholic churches, it has to operate "under the radar."

While I've been living in the US, I have met some of the most capitalistic, entrepreneurial non-communists - one is now the President I have also met some of the most sweet, caring, fabulous people - lucky I don't judge an entire country on a couple of people

Originally Posted by sarahp

Right, I'll just go to the boring suburbian parts! There's a reason the touristy spots are what they are!

Ooh and I also just met Mark Shuttleworth just before - the guy who finances and started the Linux Distribution Ubuntu, and also the second space tourist! He saw DH, and came over to us to say hi since they've met a number of times - I felt very cool

Click to expand...

just means you do not eat and shop in those areas

Originally Posted by sarahp

While I've been living in the US, I have met some of the most capitalistic, entrepreneurial non-communists - one is now the President

I have also met some of the most sweet, caring, fabulous people - lucky I don't judge an entire country on a couple of people

Click to expand...

These guys were the nicest guys you could know. Worked all kinds of part-time jobs, would help anyone with anything, just great guys. It gave me faith in the country, when I knew the government of Czechoslovakia was just hopeless. This was in 1971, by the way.

That country is probably the Switzerland of Eastern Europe, since that is where the Russians had a lot of their high-tech stuff made.

Good news - we went our exploring for dinner, and found a gorgeous little cafe near another nearby castle, which had a stunning cemetary - so ornate. And another church which was also gorgeous. And beers were only $2, and dinner was cheap and fabulous as well!

Oh and we saw Antonin Dvorak's (the composer) "grave". It was beautiful - we need to go back and get photos. We haven't managed to take a camera anywhere yet...