So, part two actually occurs chronologically first, and humorously second, but I still think it is a good story.
Prague was insane on New Year's Eve. I mean crazy. If It would've been twenty years ago during the Cold War, I would've thought that the Russians were attacking all day, because the minute it looked somewhat dark outside the fireworks came out! It was crazy. There were explosion after explosion all night. It was definitely sweet. So, obviously, fireworks are readily available and one of my friends bought a ton of awesome ones. Our plan for the evening was to kick it, play some games, talk, then go outside for our personal firework show, and then head downtown to watch the fireworks from one of the Bridges. So, we went outside around 10:30 for what we thought would be about a 30 minute firework display. Well, Chris had bought a ton of fireworks and one of our other friends did as well, so we proceeded to go nuts. We were rigging these "artillery shells" so that we could launch them at a 30 degree angle down this path. Then we would go down the path and try to stop where we thought the fireworks would explode so that we could be showered in sparks! (Side note, we were all sober...) So our firework insanity ended up lasting an hour and before we knew it, it was 11:30. We had about a (normally) 20 minute trip by tram and metro to the bridge, so we got our stuff together and hustled to the tram.
The tram ride went easy and we got to the metro about 20 minutes before the New Year. The trip is about a six minute trip by metro and in the metro stations there is a clock that shows how long has passed since the last metro left. Ours said 5 minutes, so we knew we didn't have long to wait...
As the metro station filled with awaiting (mostly drunk) passengers the clock rolled on, 6 minutes, 8 minutes, 12 minutes and still no metro. We knew there was still one metro coming, because the metro doesn't stop running until midnight, but we had never waited so long for one. We thought about going back at least to be above ground before midnight, but we decided to press on to the bridge. We joked about how "fun" it would be to celebrate the New Year's on the metro. Then at 11:54 the metro pulled up. We crammed in with the thousands of others on their way to the bridge. 11:55, 11:56, 11:57, 11:58, 11:59. We were one stop away and time was clicking away...as we pulled up to our metro stop my watch hit midnight...yes, New Year's on the metro! Marisa and I shared a kiss and then prepared for the mad rush out of the metro.
We were in one of the first cars and close to the escalator, so when the doors open we made our run for it...and so did everyone else! Luckily we were in front of the pack, but people were closing in. As we neared the escalator we glanced up to the digital clock hanging above it...the glowing red numbers showed 12:00:21. Yep, we had surely spent New Year's in the metro. Others saw the clock as well and began yelling and cheering celebrating the beginning of newness. As Marisa and I held hands running up the escalator (probably 50 meters long), she panted, "I'm dying". I was too, but we had to keep running or fear the trampling of two thousand feet. I pulled her along as we reached the peak of the escalator. With the chill air of winter surrounding us and the sound of explosion and cheers all around, we rushed the final few meters to the bridge to meet thousands of other onlookers watching fireworks explode over the Vltava River.
When I pictured celebrating New Year's with Marisa I imagined a romantic night on the Charles Bridge holding each other and counting down to midnight and sharing a romantic kiss together. The last thing I expected was to be holding on to her with hundreds of bodies pressing against both of us, the smell of cheap beer and cheaper champagne wafting through the already stale air of a metro, counting down to midnight on my watch, and almost getting trampled.
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