Life in the capital city, especially when that city is in Europe is
grant. Before I had Sarajevo, and now I have Prague. Three weeks ago,
I became a legitimate resident of Prague, capital of the Czech
Republic. Like Bosnia, Czech identifies by its Slavic root. However,
while Bosnia in later time was greatly influenced by the Muslim Turks,
Czech continued with its traditions and idealism brought by its
Germanic neighbors.
Berlin and Vienna, the historical and
modern capitals of Czech’s two Germanic neighbors, Germany and Austria
are only 5 to 6 hours drive and 2-hour fly from Prague. When you
connect Berlin, Prague and Vienna, you will end up with a straight line
with Prague as the midpoint. (See [pix])
I visited Vienna three times but never really “saw” the city since in
all three occasions I ended up wandering about at Sud Banhoff where I
got hit on by an Egyptian masseur and an Austrian station employee who
offered me free massage and beer followed by an “indecent proposal.”
I’ve
never set foot in Berlin but soon I will for I have a strange
fascination by historical Eastern European events and sites. The
collapse of the symbolic Berlin Wall inspired world-famous German rock
band Scorpions to write their classic hit “Winds of Change,” a song I
I used to play non-stop during my childhood.
Traveling among
Vienna, Berlin and Prague are easy. International and domestic buses,
trains and flights are affordable–sometime very cheap. Budget Airlines
covering these three countries are Germanwings, SkyEurope and Air
Berlin. Lufthansa and Austrian airlines are worth a check; they are
major airlines and cost more than smaller air carriers, but if you book
in advance, you might find decent deals.
You can sweat over
many thing but don’t burden yourself with the thought of being a
homeless in these three major capitals. If you book ahead, you can find
a hostel bed for as low as 10 EUR. Visit hotels in Berlin for more detail. Vienna hostels charge about the same prices; however, if you desire the comfort in a 3-star hotels in Vienna, you can get one for as low as 39 EUR.
German versions of this website: hotels in Berlin and hotels in Vienna.
