Prague, the new Pai

On my RTW trip, I wondered where the hippies of Pai Thailand had decamped to and now I know.  Following the fall of communism, they went to Prague, rediscovered capitalism and went upscale- 

They now favor one stop shopping- 

Prague has a reputation as one of the world’s most beautiful cities and I think it is well deserved.  The medieval to 19th century architecture is as well preserved and as beautiful as anywhere I have been, including Paris. It might not have the grandeur of Paris, but the streets are   full of beautiful classic buildings, particularly from the Renaissance and early modern period (1500 - 1800).  A big reason is that It was mostly spared during WWII-

peace

It also has every boutique store you could want- 

It is a joy just to walk around the place as the millions of annual tourists attest. Most of them seem to spend most of their time walking back and forth across the famous Charles Bridge (which I only crossed maybe 7-8 times)- 

W

While impossible to capture in pictures, it has churches- Romanesque, Gothic and Baroque - that again can rival any city in Europe- 

It has perhaps the world’s largest castle (a bureaucrat’s dream)- 

A unique statue of Sigmumd Freud (who might not have enjoyed this portrayal)- 

A Dancing House amidst its splendid architecture- 

A car that can drive on water- 

The city has also determined that you can’t have enough red roofs-

Prague also has a new take on the 60s peace movement-

I find it so cliche and gauche when tourists have their photos taken in front of overdone sites- 

If only I could have done the Freud thing.