It takes just around 5 hours to get to Prague from Celle so we left at about 10. We stopped at a rest stop along the way to eat lunch, got stuck in a traffic jam, and had to drive slower because of snow and sleet so we didn't actually get there until around 4. We got checked into the hotel and put the car in a secure parking garage (I guess Prague is well known for it's car theft problem) and went out to walk around a bit. The first place we wanted to check out was an information center. We didn't really plan too much on what we wanted to see so we needed to get a map and find out the top sites. When we left the hotel it was already dark and was starting to snow, which made everything look even more beautiful.
The tourist information center was located in one of the most famous areas in Prague, Old Town Square. This is one of the most beautiful places in the city so you'll see double pictures, some from Friday night and some from Saturday during the day. We got to the information center shortly before it was closing, just enough time to get a map, but mostly everything else in the area was closed so we only got outside pictures.
Wenceslas Square. This was the street we stayed on. This is also a really important street in Czech history. There were lots of demonstrations here throughout the years and this was where over 300,000 people gathered in 1989 to claim their freedom.
The Clock Tower and Astronomical Clock in Old Town Square.
Old Town Square. The beautiful church in the background is Church of Our Lady Before Tyn.
Another church in Old Town Square. This one is called Church of St. Nicholas. We didn't go in this one. There is actually another Church of St. Nicholas near Prague Castle. We took pictures but didn't go in that one either.
Kind of blurry but this is more of Old Town Square. The statue on the left is the Jan Hus Memorial.
Wenceslas Square. The name of the street is Vaclavske Namesti. The Czech language has so many consonants.
Our hotel. It was in the perfect location. Right next to a metro stop and only 5 minutes away from Old Town Square.
As we were headed to the tourist information center we passed a Sex Machines Museum. When we mentioned we were going to Prague in Leeds, some of the Brits told us about this museum. Since the information center was about to close we went there first but we figured nothing else was open and it was something to do, so we came back here. We hadn't gone very far into the museum before we were kind of weirded out by everything but we had already paid and it wasn't very big. Basically the museum has devices used for sex throughout history and into modern times. Some of the stuff was pretty funny, like chastity belts and machines that would warn parents or give a shock if guys tried to masturbate, but the rest was just plain weird, lol.
Sign at the entrance to the museum.
Probably the most "normal" thing inside the museum. We didn't take any more pictures after this, lol.
After leaving the museum we walked around a little bit more. The city was so pretty lit up at night. We saw a Casino and tried to go in and look around but they wanted us to check our coats and everything. We didn't really want to stay that long so we decided against it. Here are some of the photos from walking up and down Wenceslas Square at night.
The National Museum. We didn't go inside but it was really pretty all lit up. It was on the steps of this museum that Jan Palach set fire to himself as a way to fight for Independence. It was on the 20th anniversary of this event, in 1989 when the communist government was finally overthrown.
St. Wenceslas Statue. This statue is to King Wenceslas I who ruled in the 10th Century. He was canonized as a saint after being murdered. He represents Czech nationalism and statehood
There were tons of candles and flowers laid around the base of the statue. I think it was in memory of Vaclav Havel. He was a vital figure in fighting for Czech independence. He was the last president of Czechoslovakia and the first president of Czech Republic. He died in December.
It was starting to get really cold and, since we only had one full day in Prague, we would be waking up really early the next morning so we headed back to the hotel. First up on the agenda for Saturday was the Prague Castle or Prazsky Hrad. We decided to start with the sight that was farthest from our hotel and walk back seeing as much as possible along the way. To help save time we took the metro to the Palace and got there at about 9:15, just after it opened. On the way to the palace we saw the other Church of St. Nicholas and walked up this really cool street called Nerudova with lots of old buildings.
A narrow, windy road lined with really tall old buildings.
A view at some of the palace walls.
The front of the Church of St. Nicholas.
Nerudova is now lined with embassies and offices of Czech Parliament.
The bottom of Nerudova Street.
Nearing the top of Nerudova Street. It's actually easier to tell how steep it is from the other picture.
After turning a corner at the top of Nerudova Street, we had another short climb and then we were at the Palace gates. The first buildings at this site were churches in the first half of the 10th century. During the 12th century a Romanesque palace was built and in the 14th century it was rebuilt in the Gothic Style under Charles IV. As with all other castles and palaces it wasn't completed all at once and changed drastically throughout history. It was also destroyed by a fire in the 1500s. From the entrance to the palace there were great city views.
The rays from the sun in this one are really pretty.
Daniel and I with Prague behind us.
The main gates to the Palace.
A large courtyard.
There are four main things to see at the Palace; St. Vitus Cathedral, the Old Royal Palace, Basilica of St. George, and the Golden Lane.
St. Vitus Cathedral is a Catholic cathedral. It was started in 1344 and finally finished in 1929. The cathedral is the resting place for many local saints and Habsburg kings.
The bottom half of the front of the Cathedral. It was so close to the wall of the courtyard in front of it that we couldn't get far enough away to take a single picture of the front.
The top half of the front. Very detailed and ornate.
The ceiling on the inside. It was so tall.
This was either a painting or a mosaic. It's hard to tell in the picture and I can't remember.
Lots of stained glass. It's actually really light inside though because only the bottom windows are stained glass. The top windows are clear and let in lots of light.
Spiral staircase up to the organ.
The high altar and pulpit.
Booths for Confessions.
There were lots of separate tombs and chapels off to the side of the main area.
This one was very pretty with all the gold.
A very elaborate tomb. I can't remember who this was for.
The organ.
A really pretty and ornate chapel near the back of the church.
A beautiful mosaic.
The outside of the church. It's hard to see because of the sun but there is a mosaic above the arches.
More of the outside of the Cathedral. I love these old buildings.
Next we went and looked around inside the Old Royal Palace. This part of the Palace has a great hall where they could have jousts, banquets, and market stalls so the nobility didn't have to go into town. There are also lots of record keeping areas. Unfortunately most of the records were destroyed in the fire. We weren't allowed to take pictures in here (weird that you could take them in the cathedral but not in here) but we were rebels and took a couple anyways.
Inside the Great Hall. The ceiling is really cool. There aren't any center supports.
A throne room.
This area had these family crests painted all over the walls. It was pretty neat. Sorry this picture is blurry, we had to take it on the sly because someone was monitoring the area.
After looking around in the Old Royal Palace we headed to the Basilica of St. George. This was another church on the Palace grounds. I'm not sure why they had two, but I think this one was older.
The front of the Basilica of St. George. It was added on much later.
The inside of the church. This one just has a wooden roof. It was made before they started doing all the arches.
An altar in a small chapel called St. John of Nepomuk chapel.
These bones were really cool looking but, while checking facts, I found out that they aren't real. Now it's just cool instead of really cool, hehe.
Our last stop in the Palace grounds was the Golden Lane. This is a street of old buildings where people like goldsmiths, seamstresses, etc. used to live. I thought it was pretty neat. These were houses for working people so they were really tiny and simple.
Looking down Golden Lane
Some sort of workroom. It looks like they made candles and pottery and stuff like that in here.
Daniel posing with a suit of armor
An old fashioned toilet. Yuck!
This would have been the seamstresses house. You can see the old sewing machine on the left. The beds were really tiny and did not look comfortable at all.
This room had lots of dried herbs.
There was also a little dungeon/torture chamber area you could go into.
Stairs down into the dungeon.
I don't think it would be very fun to be put in that.
We were about to leave the Palace when we came across a Old Toy and Barbie Museum. My grandma has collected Barbies for a long time and I can always remember her letting us play with some of them when I was little.
Old cowboys and indians toys. We watched Benjamin Button before we went to Prague and this reminded me of him playing with the little toys when he looked like an old man.
Lots of dolls. This would be kind of creepy if they were in your house.
Old Fashioned kitchen set. I remember the little kitchen I had in the basement when we lived in Lincoln. I think it was made of cardboard. I remember having little plastic cans of greens beans and stuff.
One of the very first Barbies.
Early Ken dolls.
Barbie at her wedding. The little girl is named is Skipper. She was my favorite of my Grandma's dolls to play with.
Zach Morris!!!
A doll like the lady in the movie "Birds."
These dolls had real fur coats. I don't think PETA would approve.
They had a whole bunch of sports dolls. I'm pretty sure my parents have this exact doll in the gameroom upstairs.
These two Barbies match some Christmas ornaments my Grandma Stalder got for us. Every year we got a Barbie Christmas Ornament. Emily and I would always play with them when we were little.
It was getting close to lunch time by the time we left the Prague Palace so we decided to walk across Charles Bridge, or Karluv Most in Czech. It's a historical bridge built in the mid 1300s by Emperor Charles IV. There are tons of statues lining both sides of the bridge, most of them from the 1600 and 1700s. Apparently half of them are replicas, with the originals in museums to protect them from pollution.
A tower on the west side of the bridge.
Looking down the bridge. There were so many people. There were also lots of vendors along both sides of the bridge selling knick-knacks and caricatures.
A view of the Vltava River.
This is a statue of John of Nepomuk (a saint for Czechs). He was a priest who received the Queen's confessions. The King wanted to know her secrets and when John wouldn't tell he was tortured and then thrown off the bridge. According the legend, 5 stars appeared after he hit the water.
This is on the base of the statue in the above picture. It's depicting the scene of him being thrown off the bridge. It took awhile to get this picture because so many people were going up to touch the guy and say a prayer.
The Hebrew inscription in gold was paid for by a fine given to a Jew who mocked the cross.
Another tower at the other end of the bridge. This one looks a lot older. Either that or it was just made of darker stone.
We found a restaurant for lunch and then kept walking back towards Old Town Square where we had been last night. You can go up in the clock tower and see a panoramic view of the city. We also watched the "show" from the Astronomical Clock when the hour strikes. Here are the views from the top of the tower and some closer ups of the Astronomical Clock.
Church of St. Nicholas
Jan Hus Memorial
Tyn Church. One of the prettiest buildings I've ever seen.
When the hour strikes the windows by the angel at the top open and the 12 apostles go by.
The top of clock tower. This clock is much easier to read than the Astronomical Clock.
A beautiful building in the Old Town Square.
Another decorated building.
Tyn Church. Daniel got this picture at the right moment, when the sun is shining on it.
We went into the Tyn Church, pictured above, but we weren't allowed to take any pictures. It was really ornate and beautiful with gold EVERYWHERE! It was so pretty but the sheer amount of it made me wonder how much it was worth and what use that money could have gone to. I mean the church would have been just as beautiful with half as much gilding. Here's a picture I found online of the inside.
Not the best quality but you can see some of the gold. It looked like there was even more gold than this when we went through.
Prague has a really famous Jewish quarter with lots of great Jewish history that survived despite the war. Unfortunately, Saturday is the Sabbath so everything was closed. We did look around outside a little bit.
Based on maps I've seen, I think this is Ceremonial Hall. Inside is an explanation Jewish burial traditions.
This is the Old Jewish Cemetary. You can see the headstones and crammed they are. From 1439 until 1787 this was the only place Jews were allowed to bury their dead.
If I'm looking at the map right and remembering the way we walked, this should be the Old-New Synagogue. I'm not sure why it's called the Old-NEW Synagogue since it was built in 1270.
A really pretty building in the Jewish Quarter. This area had lots of high end shops. We saw some watches that were 340,000 Czech Koruna. The exchange rate is 1 Kc to $0.05 US dollars.
Our last stop for the day was the Communism Museum. It wasn't as good as I thought it would be but it did give a good insight into what life was like during the Communist Era.
A statue of Lenin.
A mock-up of what a workman's shop might have looked like.
There were massive food shortages during that time.
I can't remember everything that this sign said but I think the people were told that Democratic countries would try to bomb them with chemicals so they all had these suits.
Communist Propaganda depicting the United States as an awful place.
An interrogation room for people who were suspected as spies or of wrong doing. Pretty much everyone was paranoid that someone was out to get them.
A photo of Jan Palach. The guy who demonstrated by setting fire to himself. I was watching Euronews the other day and five people used that method to protest in Morocco. I don't really understand why this is used as a form of protest. If you die, you can't continue to fight for the freedoms your country needs. I suppose it would give others a reason to rally and join the fight, but still, wouldn't it be better to stay alive and make a difference? I'm not trying to belittle the sacrifice anyone makes for their people, I'm just saying I don't really understand the reasoning behind it.
Vaclav Havel is the Hero of the Czech Republic. The overthrow of the Communist government was relatively nonviolent.
We were really cold and exhausted at this point so we grabbed dinner and headed back to the hotel. We had gotten up so early and walked around so much that we were in bed by like 9 o'clock, lol. Luckily we got to sleep in a tiny bit the next morning. We checked out, walked to the car and headed to Dresden to meet my friend Nettie. We still had to drive all the way back to Celle so we were limited on time in Dresden, but we were able to walk around and have her show us the main sights. I'll have another post about that tomorrow. This one has gone on long enough :) I probably wouldn't have uploaded as many pictures if Prague hadn't been my favorite city. Check back tomorrow for a separate post about Dresden. I'm also hoping to have all my European posts (Dresden, Hamburg, and Celle) finished before we leave Friday morning, so I'll try for a post a day through Thursday. I hope everyone is doing well!!!
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