The Czech Republic

A new country, a new currency and some sterling experiences were waiting for Mel and I in the Czech Republic. We arrived in Prague on Friday afternoon and hit the drink right away.

We started off at a traditional beer hall not far from our hostel; Lokal. There was an abundance of beer, and it was cheap! We then made our was to the 'Beer Museum' which had hundreds of beers on tap. I sampled one of the local pilsners, needless to say it was exceptional. Later, much to Mel's delight we went to a cocktail bar where I tried the spirit of choice in Prague; absinthe. After drinking half a glass of the stuff I was feeling pretty good!

On Saturday we went on a walking tour and got all our 'sight-seeing' out of the way. We went to the Astronomic Clock, the Jewish quarter, a few churches and a cemetery. Later that day Mel and I visited Prague Castle, it really was like something out of a fairy tale; built in the Roman style, but with a Gothic twist. We were also rewarded with a stunning view of the city from the top of the Castle.

That night we visited the famous 5 story club, apparently the biggest club in Europe. Unfortunately like many popular clubs it was full of tourists and dickheads. It resembled something of a sauna, a real sweat-box and the smell was unbearable. When I looked up and saw condensation dripping from the ceiling I knew it was time to get out of there.

The next day Mel and I ventured out of the city to Staropramen Brewery where they served beer and traditional meals. We treated ourselves to some very hearty goulash. That night we went on a 'beer tour', where we taught the rules of drinking in the Czech Republic.

1. Always say cheers (nostrovia)

2. Look people in the eye when saying cheers

3. You must cheers everyone

4. You must put the glass on the table after saying cheers before you can drink

5. Never cross arms when saying cheers

6. Never leave beer behind

7. Don't sip, only big gulps

We also learnt that having a lot of head on a beer is a good thing, contradictory to what I previously thought; apparently a beer with a lot of head is a fresh one.

Our next stop was the beautiful Cesky Krumlov, a town south of Prague, still in the Czech Republic. The highlight was a pub crawl along the river that runs through town; Vltava. Everyone from our hostel was divided up onto rafts about midday. Each raft was given a bottle of traditional Czech moonshine before paddling down the river, stopping at various bars along the way. After 10 hours of solid drinking and falling into the river we made it to the final bar, greeted by some very unfriendly locals who weren't happy to see us walk in drunk and soaking wet.

On our last day we braved the rain and walked up the tower in the centre for town for some magnificent views.

The Czech Republic is certainly up there with my favourite countries in Europe. Prague is an exciting and beautiful city and still has a very traditional culture. Furthermore Cesky Krumlov was a small town, and we didn't know what to expect but with a quaint little village, a river running through town and a messy pub crawl it was nothing short of brilliant.