Finally getting the first good night’s sleep of the trip, I checked out of ‘The Wombat’ and headed to the train station. Vienna, I quickly learned, was large enough to have more than one major station, and my train to Prauge would depart from one across town from where I was.

I pulled out my map and found the nearest subway stop. A short time later, I was standing in front of another departures board, still unable to find my train. I made my way to an information desk, where I was told my train wasn't for another two and a half hours.

With time to kill, I went to find the large ferris wheel I kept seeing on postcards and souvenir shot glasses. Considering it was 110 years old and, until 1985, had been the tallest ferris wheel in the world, I should’ve been more impressed by it than I was and soon headed back to the station, where my train was already waiting.

Still not sure of how seating worked on trains, I was bumped from one seat to another, until eventually managing to get a seat of my own. A couple of rows ahead of me, a group of American girls entertained themselves by playing cards until eventually falling asleep and I wondered if they were as confused as me.

As the train approached the Czech border, a border patrol agent walked through the car, checking passports. There hadn’t been anyone when I crossed the border between Germany and Austria, so I was pleased to finally get a second stamp on my papers.

Arriving in Prague, I began to look for a tram. Instead, I found an ATM and a park. I decided to take out 1000Kč and began to walk around, shortly before one of the girls I had noticed on the train stopped me. She asked if I was lost and if I wanted to join them for a while. We walked towards their hostel, learning along the way that they were doing a study abroad program in France and were currently on winter break. One of them had even attended the same opera as me the night prior.

In the lobby of their hostel, I asked the receptionist for help. The best he could was to provide a map. I said my farewells to the girls and left to retrace my steps. Sometime later, I managed to get to my hostel, The Boathouse. Every review I had read of its isolated location was right, but I received a warm reception and couple of free post cards. I settled to the dorm and began to prepare for the New Year’s celebrations ahead.

Grabbing just my small point & shoot camera, I took the tram back into the city. Charles Bridge lay ahead, and I imagined it would be the ideal spot to ring in the New Year's. I exited the tram one stop earlier than I needed, but quickly fell into a mass of people heading towards the bridge. The air was filled with enough energy in the air to make it feel like it was already midnight.

I half walked, was half carried onto the bridge, unable to believe how densely people had packed themselves onto the bridge. Despite the crowd, there was a small clearing where a group of people were setting off fireworks. Although that was the closest launch point, everywhere I looked, for a full 360° around me, fireworks were bursting into the air.

Everyone was excited and happy, joking and jumping up and down. Even with my camera set to video, there was no way to capture the overwhelming experience. By 1am, the fireworks began slowing and I squeezed myself onto one of the overpacked trams, ready to go back to the hostel.

I woke up the next morning and grabbed a cup of orange juice before heading out into the city. I ached, in my feet, my back, and my shoulders. Still, I wanted to see Prague and only had the day to do it.

Crossing back over Charles Bridge, I made my way towards the Castle Quarter. Taking my time, I wandered about, photographing the cathedral and a few other buildings in the area, before returning back to the hostel again.