Prague Day 3, Franz Kafka Day

Monday, May 19th

Just like that, I’m packing my stuff back up, even though there was barely enough time to unpack it. After my Asia trip, I dread packing and unpacking, having done it so many times there. But I know this time I will only have to do it a handful of times, and I should be grateful for being in the position to do so. I was sad to be leaving this amazing city, but at the same time, I feel like I saw all I wanted to see. I still had a lot of time today before my train, and I wanted to make the most of the time I had left with Amelia.

We went to a breakfast place near our first stop of the day. We both had mixed feelings about the place because we loved the natural light pouring through the large windows, but our meals were quite mid. I had muesli cereal, and she had a grilled cheese haha. Not exactly what either of us was thinking for breakfast today, but the coffee was amazing, and that compensated for the food.

The weather was very gloomy, and our tempo matched it. I bundled my coat tighter, pushing my hands deeper into the pockets in hopes that these tactics would keep away the sting of the cold. We left breakfast, and in no hurry, we set off to begin our day.

Today was our Franz Kafka Day. Franz Kafka was an influential writer from Prague who lived in the early 1900s and is known for his dark, unusual stories. His most famous work is The Metamorphosis, which I read in high school, a short story that displayed the feeling of being trapped or powerless. The city took great pride in his work and decorated the city in his honor.

The most obvious of the adorations was the Franz Kafka Rotating Head, our first stop. We stared at the optical illusion of the Kafka head as silver bars moved from left to right, at various points coming together to form the image of his face; otherwise, it was a scramble of different shapes. I really thought it was going to be a stainless bust that went around in a circle, but it was much more complex, impressed with the wizard coding and coordination it took to create this. We, as spectators, got to enjoy the different images that it built, in addition to it swinging to the clear image of Kafka’s face; this city really loves the guy. 

It didn’t take us long to see what it was all about, so after maybe ten minutes of standing and staring, we made our way to the Kafka Museum. To my shock, right outside the museum, for one, was a beautiful courtyard, and two, a statue of two men facing each other, with the water making it appear as they were peeing. Apparently, designed by the same Czech artist as the Rotating Head, this sculpture is referred to as "Piss". This statue doesn't just stand still; the stream of water moves with intent, writing out quotations from Czech literature or politics. Essentially, serving as a humorous, rebellious jab at Czech bureaucracy and displaying the local wit.

I was not ready for the somber and darkness that was the Franz Kafka Museum. It paired perfectly with the gloomy day we were having, as the entire museum was lit only with the backdrop of the items and excerpts on display. Did he really have such a sad life? He did live during WW1 and always struggled with the internal conflict of wanting to spend all of his time writing but having to cave to societal standards of earning a wage. As I read about his pull both to his writing and his job, it made me reflect on how I think about my time and my hopes to one day follow my dream of starting a business. For that reason, I felt for Franz, wishing that he could've quit his job and fully pursued his passion and talent.

It took about 1-2 hours to make our way through the museum. Reading all the excerpts from his Diaries was the time-consuming portion of the museum, but also the most interesting. Again, I felt a strong desire to pick up journaling again, as who knows if you or I will one day become famous, and our early lives will be sought to be heard. But in all seriousness, journal to ponder my feelings, experiences, and find a way to navigate and grow from all that comes my way in this crazy life of mine.

It felt good to leave the Museum, readjust my eyes to the light, and stroll around the quaint courtyard. There was an adorable gingerbread place across from the Museum. I saw a sign that there were vegan options and immediately walked around in search. This store was the cutest and would be absolutely perfect if it was December and not May, but we still enjoyed the sweetness it was radiating. I didn't end up getting anything, but Amelia bought a dessert with her leftover Czech Koruna coins. 

There was just one more thing I wanted to make sure I saw before leaving the city, and that was the book tunnel at the local library. We got there a couple of minutes before it opened, and I saw what looked like a line forming, but there were enough people just surrounding the front doors that I didn't think to find the end of this line. And thankfully, we didn't, and when the doors opened at noon, we just merged into the group walking in. Little did we know how long the line actually was, and we found our way to the front. It still took us 20 minutes to get to see the book tunnel, and it was worth the wait for sure. It looked simple from the outside, but when you peered your head in, it was an incredible optical illusion. As a book lover, I greatly enjoyed seeing this and, of course, was again motivated to read, read, read.

The Museum and Library were our two items on the agenda, feeling content we knocked those out, we had a couple more hours to kill before I had to head to the train station. Deciding what to do next, we walked past the cutest cafe, one I noticed my first day in the city, and Amelia asked if I wanted to go in, perfect timing. I was going for an afternoon coffee, and Amelia ended up getting a massive piece of quiche. And, not too long after arriving, it was time to leave and make my way to the train.

We stayed at the cafe as long as possible, and by doing so, I was pushing my luck with the timing and started getting nervous that I would miss my train, so we beelined for the hostel to grab my bag and head to the station. I wasn’t sure how long Amelia would stay with me, but she was a trooper and spent time with me up to the last moment. We struggled finding the train station and the access to the platforms. But once we followed the right people and asked the right questions, we navigated ourselves to the station.

Amelia was still by my side, and I appreciated having her with me for as long as we could be together. I still had like 25 minutes until my train, and there was no platform called yet, so I browsed the food options, and there was this “healthy” restaurant that had some great options with vegan proteins that became my dinner. I had a feeling that this would be my only meal for the rest of the night (it was 4 pm), and I wanted to fuel up properly.

They called my platform with about 10 minutes left before departing, and yes, Amelia walked up with me, even helping me with my luggage, the sweet soul. So, standing next to the train, I choked up a bit as I finally had to say goodbye, promising each other to not wait another two years before reconnecting again. I feel so lucky to have her as a cousin, and this short but amazing trip made us so much closer. I cannot believe how well we traveled together, and I really hope that is not the last time we do it. I wiped my tear as I stepped onto the train and gave one last wave to Amelia as I was going onward to Germany.

Sitting on my 4-hour train ride to Berlin, sad to leave my cousin, but excited for the next adventure, seeing Natalia! It was an easy train ride, filled with mostly writing and reading, and I got into Berlin at 8:30 pm. I got to my hostel, chatted with my hostel mate, and stayed in for the night to catch up on some sleep. It felt strange being in a new place, alone, resetting in a new city. I know I can travel alone just fine, and I like it, but I was really missing Amelia’s company and the familiarity of having a companion for the entirety of my stay. But I was not letting the fear of being alone stop me from going to the places I wanted to. So here I am, in Berlin, Germany, finally seeing the Motherland.