In August, I got the chance to go to the Czech Republic with my family. We went to a town called Karlovy Vary, and it was so beautiful. It’s known for being a spa town, there are spas everywhere. But I didn’t try a single one, because I was enjoying just walking around the place with my sisters. We walked everywhere and I loved it (for those who don’t know, the UAE isn’t very pedestrian friendly and it’s way too hot to walk outside).

The last image – that’s called a Trdelnik. It’s a Slovakian sweet/pastry that’s made from rolled dough that is wrapped around a stick, then grilled and topped with sugar and walnut mix. Mmm just looking at this picture makes me crave it. I always got mine with chocolate, but you can get whatever filing you want (fruits, white chocolate, caramel, etc).

This guy makes AMAZING coffee. If you ever find yourself in Karlovy Vary, you have to go to Republica Coffee. So. Damn. Good.

I honestly lost track of how many Italian restaurants we ate at. We tried local food, and only my dad and sister enjoyed it. Lots of duck and liver and yeahh.. nothing I’m too thrilled about.

Two days before we were leaving to Prague, I had the itch. You know the one.
I NEEDED to photograph someone, so I looked at Model Mayhem and connected with a model. She was so lovely. She brought a bunch of different props with her, drove me and my sister to a park to shoot and we just had fun with it. I did a few portraits and some fine art pieces.

It’s been a while since I attempted to create a fine art piece without conceptualizing and planning first, but this is what we ended up with:

We left Karlovy Vary to spend a couple of days in Prague, and I fell in love with it.

We went to the Lego Museum, the Museum of Communism, and a cute little bookstore called Shakespeare. We also went to see the Astronomical Clock, Charles Bridge, and the rotating sculpture of Franz Kafka’s head. All *highly* recommended.

I don’t know if Karlovy Vary is a place I would want to go to again. It’s beautiful, but besides walking, good food, and coffee.. there’s not much to do. Prague on the other hand.. PLEASE TAKE ME BACK!

2014-2017 travel amani alshaali art blogger conceptual conceptual art conceptual photography czech republic dubai artist dubai photographer fine art photographer fine art photography karlovy vary photography prague travel travel blog uae artist uae blogger UAE photographer