We are dedicated Christmas market fans. Nothing beats sipping hot wine or munching on sugary treats in the winter chill of some exotic, fairy-tale destination. Yes, there are many Christmas markets around the globe competing for the attention of holiday revelers. But when it comes to fairy-tale atmospheres, Prague is unsurpassed. Continue…

The real thrill of Prague is simply getting lost in the city’s narrow lanes and side streets taking in the history. So for those of you who have never had the opportunity to explore Prague (and, of course, for Prague fans), we put together a little virtual tour using full-screen Google street views. We’ve chosen six popular starting points, but don’t be afraid to set out on your own and explore. Guide to Google street view controls

Just Click the Upper-Left Corner of a Starting Point Below

1. Old Town Square (Dlouhá) – This is the heart of Prague’s stunning old town. The striking Gothic Church of Our Lady before Týn rises up on the far side of the square when the street view first loads. Take off in any direction. If you want a challenge, walk to the clock tower at the 14th century Old Town Hall to check out the astronomical clock, and then head south by southwest and follow the crowds towards the Charles Bridge.
2. Charles Bridge – Prague’s most lively and photogenic bridge over the Vltava. When the street view loads, if you turn to your right, you can see the famous Continue…

Every time I come to Prague, I have to walk by Gehry’s Dancing House, a once controversial and now essential addition to the city’s architectural scene. Designed along with Vlado Milunić, the two halves of this unique building literally seem to dance along the banks of the Vltava, which is why the building is also known as Fred and Ginger.

As I mentioned when we visited the Disney Theater in Los Angeles, I’m a huge Gehry fan. I hope to visit all of his masterpieces one day. In the meantime, once again, fans can check out an amazing gallery of his creations at the Flicker group dedicated to his architecture.

As I mentioned in the last post, Prague has not lost its artistic soul; Bohemia still very much lives up to its name. True, the once plentiful galleries devoted to Eastern Europe’s cutting edge art scene are a little thin on the ground these days and Prague’s counter-culture edge has been a tad dulled by commercial interests.

But Bohemians continue to fight back with thought-provoking artistic statements meant to tear holes into that thin veneer of tourist kitsch. And those statements are not hard to find. Car-sized pistols suspended mid-air in a silent Baroque courtyard Continue…

And, with one small step off a plane, ContemporaryNomad.com returns to Europe. It’s a bitter-sweet return. Bitter because jungle-clad temples, isolated Himalayan monasteries, and bus-sized sharks seem so far away. Sweet because we’ve got a whole new set of adventures ahead of us here. And what better place to start than in one of my favorite cities on the planet, Prague.

Sure, many travelers put Prague on the short list of European tourist traps. And in many ways it is. But as is the case with Paris, Venice, or Dubrovnik, it draws in the hordes because it’s simply too good to pass up. Half of humanity is compressed into a river of people flowing through the old town because the old town is simply so stunning. Every trip I make to this city (and there have been a lot of them), I discover something new. Step off into a side street, and Prague’s artistic soul is still very much present.