As warned in my previous blog, any abrupt endings were to be attributed to the rebellion going on in my gut. There was a minor war waged, but the peasant have subsided and all is calming down in gastro-land.
As mentioned previously, I had skipped the Art Museum to go to Castle Hill, so armed with a breakfast of two bananas, I had go check that out on my final day. The Art Museum is listed as being one of the top art museums in Eastern Europe. I'm no art connoisseur, but it seemed relatively impressive to me.
I got to see originals by Picasso, Degas, Rousseau, etc. I also saw some sculptures by Rodin. I don't know how or why some of these names mean anything to me - I blame my Arts 301 course in university. It was essentially only the one temporary exhibition (with Picasso, etc.) that was interesting. The rest of the museum was full of religious and/or medieval art. It was pretty, but to wax on about it would be to indicate that I cared more than I did. It was art. It was famous. I went so I could say that I've seen it.
By the time I left I was ravenous and wanted to try the well-known restaurant called Paprika. I literally cannot go into detail on what I ate because literally the mere thought of my meal incites nausea now, but at the time was amazingly delicious.
Fast forward an hour later and I was feeling overly full. I decided to return to my hostel to lay down. I crashed for two hours and then the real trauma started. I don't think you need a detailed description of my last night in Budapest. Let's just say that I became intimately acquainted with the hostel's bathrooms. The staff were also kind enough to check in on me once in awhile. I ended up sleeping like shit since I had to wake up once every hour to return to the facilities.
However, by 7:30 the next morning I had no choice but to get up and get to the train bound for Prague. Due to the night's intestinal antics, I was running on empty, so I also had to stop by the grocery store or risk starving. Mau on an empty stomach tends not to function too well. I grabbed some provisions and got to the station with no problem.
On the train I was seated in yet another 6 person car with 4 other people. And of course I was on the seat furthest from the windows and hence the air conditioner. And the sun was shining in. I had a yogurt drink to help assuage the rumblings in my tummy, but the heat was making me feel ill even more. I ended up taking one of my apples and venturing out into the passage between trains in hopes of finding some fresh air.
About five minutes later I lost the yogurt drink and the quarter apple I had consumed. Even more unfortunately an old lady had gone into the bathroom right before the urge to spew came on. I almost wanted to laugh at her face when she emerged and sees me huddling on the floor. You could tell she felt bad. Oh well. I admit that I made a half assed attempt to find an attendant to clean things up, but couldn't, so I fled the scene of the crime and found my own compartment.
The rest of the trip passed better, but that's probably because I was in a semi-comatose state. I honestly slept probably about 70% of the ride. I only woke up to hand over my train ticket as necessary, or when other dared to venture into my den of pestilence. It's a shame really, because the scenery, when I did wake up, was very pretty.
Upon arrival in Prague, I discovered that the instructions and map for getting to my hostel were horribly vague. I was so tired and miserable and frustrated that I just wanted to curl up and die in the middle of the street. After feeling sorry for myself for about 10 minutes (and wistfully thinking of invoking my medical insurance so I could be sent home early), I trudged my way downtown, through the heat and crowds, and eventually found my hostel.
By this time it was about 5:00 PM. I immediately crawled into bed and slept until 9:00 when one of my roommates came in. We talked a bit and then I ventured outside for some fresh air. I swear, I wasn't even out for 15 minutes when I had to return and go to bed again. I blame my weakness on dehydration and lack of food - I was feeling so fragile that even walking up a flight of stairs left me winded.
As for today, I wish I could report more exciting happenings, but it's not meant to be. I woke up, prepped to face the day, but by the time I had gone downstairs to check my email, I couldn't do it. Instead I crawled by into my bed and slept until nearly 1:00 PM. At that point I knew I had to go out for sustance if only to ensure I didn't die from starvation.
I am ashamed to admit that my first meal (or at least the half that I consumed) in Prague was at TGI Friday's. I just could not stomach the idea of eating anything unfamiliar at this point. Or even familiar things. E.g. I couldn't eat my french fries because they were too reminiscent of the mashed potatoes I ate in Budapest.
After forcefully gnawing down my food I found a grocery store and stocked up on some provisions (aka bananas, oranges, and some rye crackers - the latter being wonderfully bland and filling) and returned to my hostel. I slept again until 6ish and then I spent the rest of my evening reading my book. (Dad, I finished reading Oath of Fealty!) Now I'm just wasting time until I can go to sleep again.
Luckily it seems like I'll have an empty hostel room again tonight - a 5 bed place to myself. Too bad the beds aren't comfier. I can actually hear (and feel) each individual spring shift whenever I move. I feel like I must have woken up my roomies last night whenever I got up to go to the washroom. Whoops!
Anyways, for most of my trip I've been doing my planning on the fly - e.g. I read my guidebook a day or two before I head to my destination. Due to my illness, I was unable to do this for Prague. Therefore I have no idea what I'm supposed to do or see in this city. I shall now retire to my bedroom and commence my plan of attack for tomorrow's adventure.
Cheers!
No comments:
Post a Comment