One way or another Prague has already definitely played an important role in my life - longer in years I've so far only lived in Kaluga.
During this time the city managed to both please and piss me off, so further - by years. Photos in the process, naturally, there were more than a thousand, but I decided to keep only what caught the eye.
The article is mainly written from the perspective of the author in 2022.
2013
First impression - dirty, many people
Tourists and everything only for them
Shitheads on the square (the theme changed, shitheads remained and as of 2022 - they'll let you ride horses, or take photos with life-size figures, or like I'M A YOGI SITTING IN THE AIR)
I especially remember being proud of myself when everyone was photographing the clock, and I was photographing everyone
I remember spitting from Charles Bridge
I remember I calmed down only right here
I remember not liking the road to the station, because noisy and lots of various bums (well here everything's stable too). I lived then in Podebrady and remember how much I wanted to go home
Same year visited the zoo too
I'm still not a zoo fan, but you'll end up there anyway: a Czech who wants to fuck you will take you there, it's - tradition
From the zoo I first saw panel Prague
2014
In 2014 I was already kind of moving to Prague, so looked at crowds of tourists like "well OK, at least trams are good"
First walked through parks with a teacher (saw drunks during the day)
Views from the park hinted that living here will still be enjoyable
Hate for suckers who entertain themselves expensively will never leave
Then I still laughed at Czech signs
Didn't laugh at bridges yet, wasn't grown up enough
2015
This year was a year of observation and trying to understand what I like about the city. Liked seagulls, for example.
Liked visual spam
Liked views
Liked that I don't walk tourist trails
Liked pretending I'm learning to photograph
Liked hearing about where all Czechs want to go at least once (for example, cafe in the photo, which I never went to)
In other words, by 2015 I started to like it here
I don't know who this is and why, I was photographing from the tram.
Liked public transport
Trams - still one love
Which, it would seem, generally foreboded trouble :)
2016
In 2016 first doubts settled in me. Not about the city, but about the life I lived in it.
For example, these 2 photos were taken near the university. Beautiful, but I was sad there.
New bridge was built, I bought a new lens, Prague in the evening is beautiful, and I'm sad.
In other words I remember all these photos have a bad mood
Therefore many photos of objects, not the city
Why?
In 2016 right around my birthday I got sick for a couple months, which changed my life dramatically
I basically didn't leave home until the end of the year
And when I came out, turned out no one particularly missed me :)
I didn't like that either.
Also I finally went to the technical library
It's beautiful there
I remember going to the library in summer and having a phone interview there for Philips company
And also in 2016 fell almost the first snow in a couple years
How to recognize a hipster cafe? In Prague they found the perfect recipe: find a foreign word and add a Czech suffix. Brunchovna? No fucking problem
New bridge was visible (and heard from the dorm window). Somewhere in these years, by the way, some student decided to exit through the dorm window, right from the 20th floor, and I heard him flying
Bridge from the park, also flew away from the wind in a couple years
That year we visited Grebovka park, it's still beautiful there
Trams
Spider webs in Prague - separate story
Graffiti were starting
These stickers everywhere
Near the stadium there was still a McDonald's
That year we went to view an apartment for the first time. At that time what you see in the photo (Stodulky district) was considered rock bottom
Last time in my life went to RF elections, some asshole parked on the sidewalk
Peculiar experience
Museum wasn't yet restored, full square was covered with Unicredit advertising
Went to renew at the "new" department of MVČR specially for students
Went to interviews in "business" district Brumlovka, which was also considered rock bottom
2016 design
Unknown bullshit
Tower still stood
Went to my first hangout with Czech classmates - beer party in an apartment with cheap beer and extremely hipster audience, already disappeared
Living in the dorm was getting boring - waited for the bus about 15 minutes (then this was considered rock bottom)
2017
That year went to the freshly opened Boryslavka station
To get to "Divoka Sarka" park
Park's normal
They'll take you there to fuck you too :)
Holy Grail of three Prague dates: zoo => Letna or Petrin => Divoka Sarka => your ass
In 2017 life made its adjustments finally, from nerves (or not) my knee swelled up and again I didn't leave home for a couple months.
2018
In 2018 and onwards there weren't really photos - I found work and stopped leaving home, broke up with the girlfriend I came to Czechia with and walked alone
On the waterfront in the evening in summer people still hung out
Saw how the organ works in church
By this year in Prague everyone looked like hipsters
I started going to "trhy" (fairs)
And went karting, steadily improving results, though drove worse than everyone
2019
This is what a pigeon and inner courtyard of a Prague house look like
And bells in Prague churches are almost always automatic, i.e. Prague Quasimodos are forced to do drugs, there's no work for them
But then came videos about Prague districts - in them and further I'm already happy, because Prague and I fell in love with each other:
Very center:
Naplavka:
Mala Strana:
Smichov:
Wenceslas Square:
2020
Corona came, making Prague literally the most beautiful (and lonely) place on earth. Without people it became noticeably prettier, and I didn't lose heart.
Dejvice:
Prague during corona:
2021-2022
I'm living so well that entertaining myself with photography got boring.
Just kidding, just decided to travel all around Czechia again