Prague, Czech Republic

Thank you to everyone who prayed for us! Your prayers have truly helped us indeed.

Prague is one of those cities that people rant and rave about but that you truly dont understand how special it is until you experience it's magnificence. Unfortuantely it was very cold and overcast during our stay in Prague but I loved it nonetheless.

We stayed at this quaint little hostel called Miss Sophie's that was delightful. It was recommended to us by my parents missionary friends in Prague, the Olsens. The rooms were clean and spacious, and the bathroom was AMAZING. I'm talking about a quality shower, sink, and toilet (not very prevalent in Europe). The staff was so kind and helpful and we definitely took advantage of the FREE internet. (Nothing is ever free in Europe, not even the public restrooms.) The hostel location was perfect walking distance into Wescelas Square and to the Old Town, which we definitely enjoyed.

When we got back to our room on our first night in Prague we walked into our room and found a ''Twilight'' book and a purse from Target on one of the beds. We immediately knew that we would be joined by fellow Americans, and boy were we thrilled. Ironically, we've barely met any Americans throughout our travels, mostly Australians or Canadians, so we were pretty excited. Later on we met our roomates and let me just say how much of a blessing they were to us! They were Jen, Jess and Dan, three American college students from Minnesota studying in Salzburg, Vienna but on fall break and traveling all over. It was so nice chatting with them and getting to know them. Since we were heading to Vienna and Salzburg they gave us many helpful tips and ideas on what to do to maximize our time in Austria, and the girls even gave us their October bus passes so we could use them in Salzburg!

On our second day in Prague we woke up early and did some much needed laundry and I was able to send some souvenirs back home to the U.S. After our errands we took a FREE walking tour of Prague in the afternoon and were able to visit the largest castle in the world there! Yeah, it was pretty amazing. The 264 steps getting up to the castle were also amazing, to say the least.

We did some shopping in Prague because everything was a lot cheaper there than in other parts of Europe, but Jessica and I made sure to reevaluate everything we wanted to get. We have quickly begun to see that our budgets are dwindling much faster than we had anticipated, or even hoped. Our latest excuse has been: ''I guess we won't be getting any Christmas presents...''. We laugh it off, but we know it's more serious Mom and Dad.

Prague was definitely a success. Now we are looking forward to what Austria will bring.