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Czech Republic: Exploring Prague

Our vacation in Czech Republic continued. Our plan for today was to spend it without bicycles, so we did a few walks in the capital, Prague, enjoy in the food and beer.

Previous days of our Czech cycling trip: Day 2, Day 1.

Over the longest river within the Czech Republic.

 

Through the Staroměstská mostecká věž / Old Town Bridge Tower.

 

We visited Klementinum and Terezka, the fountain with allegoric statue of Vltava.

 

Pražský orloj - Prague astronomical clock is a medieval astronomical clock. The clock was first installed in 1410, making it the third-oldest astronomical clock in the world and the oldest clock still operating.

 

Jan Hus Memorial and Prague Meridian at E14°25'17".

Kostel Matky Boží před Týnem - Church of Our Lady before Týn has been the main church of this part of the city since the 14th century.

House of the Black Madonna is a cubist building in the "Old Town".

 

Prašná brána - Powder Tower is one of the original 13 city gates in Old Town along with the The New Mill Water Tower.

The coat of arms of Prague was first introduced in the 15th century (when the city of Prague corresponded to what is now the Old Town district). It consisted of three silver towers on a red shield.

 

Church of St. Salvator and Convent of Saint Agnes, founded in 1231 by Agnes of Bohemia.

 

Entering Josefov, Jewish quarter in Prague. Jews are believed to have settled in Prague as early as the 10th century.

 

Old New Synagogue is Europe's oldest active synagogue and Trdelník for a snack.

 

The Old Jewish Cemetery is one of the largest of its kind in Europe. It served its purpose from the first half of 15th century till 1786.

 

Although the cemetery was expanded several times over the centuries, it was still not big enough to meet the needs of the Jewish Town. As space was scarce, bodies were buried on top of each other, with graves layered up to 10 deep. There are about 12000 tombstones in the cemetery, many decorated with animal and plant motifs.

The Rudolfinum, the neo-renaissance style building, has been the home of the Czech Philharmonic Orchestra since 1946.

Between the confluence with the Elbe at Mělník and Prague, the Vltava river is navigable by vessels of up to 1,000 tonnes.

 

The Straka Academy - Strakova akademie is the seat of the Government of the Czech Republic. It was designed by the architect Václav Roštlapil and built between 1891 and 1896. The building originally served as a dormitory for impoverished children of the Czech nobility.

 

Monument to fallen soldiers during World War II and Winged Lion Memorial.

 

Vojanovy sady is a public park in Prague's Lesser Town - Malá Strana. The history of the garden dates back to the Middle Ages, when the area belonged to the court of Prague bishops.

 

View from our apartment.

Searching for a Whereigo cache.

Čertovka (Devil's Canal) with Kabourek, the beer-loving water sprite.

 

Exploring Kampa, an island in the Vltava river. The area was named in the 17th century as the campus ("field") by Spanish soldiers who tented here during the Battle of White Mountain, an important battle in the early stages of the Thirty Years' War.

 

Views to Vltava, it's islands and channels.

 

The Čertovka takes its water from the Vltava and after 740 m it flows back into that river. There are several medieval mills along its course.

Cars on the river.

   

Pečené vepřové koleno - Roast pork knee.

 

Pomník obětem komunismu - Memorial to the Victims of Communism, where we can find the following information: Victims of Communism 1948-1989: 205486 convicted, 248 executed, 4500 died in prison,  327 died during illegal crossing the boundaries and 170.938 people emigrated.

 

Although trdelník is usually presented as "a traditional Czech cake" or "the old Bohemian pastry", and mentions of "český trdelník" can be found in 20th century literature, trdelník is mostly mentioned in literature as a Slovak or Moravian, not Bohemian dish, and the mass spread of this dessert in Prague is recognised to have started more recently. Czech cinematographer and reporter Janek Rubeš argues that trdelník is only made for tourists, and that even the hamburger is more traditional in the Czech Republic.

Tools for baking of trdelník.

We crossed Vltava many times today.

 

Vyšehrad (upper castle) is a historic fort probably built in the 10th century. Inside the fort are the Basilica of St. Peter and St. Paul and the Vyšehrad Cemetery, containing the remains of many famous Czechs, such as Antonín Dvořák, Bedřich Smetana, Karel Čapek, and Alphonse Mucha.

 

Inside the fort, there is also a beer garden.

  

Prague in the evening from Vyšehrad.

Sunset.

Tourist map of Prague.

Photographers in action.

Petr.

Statue of Saint Wenceslas.

Stop making photos. I have something better for you.

Dinner for 2.

View over Vltava to Prague Castle, that was built in the 9th century.

The Šitkovská Water-tower.

 

Evening in Prague.

 

Traffic on Vltava.

 

Photographer Tuši.

 

Public transport.

Karlův most and Pražský hrad.

 

Photographer Nada.

 

One more before bed time.

Photographing with the beer.

The bridge is empty in the morning and crowded in the evening.

Over the Charles Bridge into our apartment.

Walking in Prague - Yellow.

Prague with INXS.

Geocaches found (all received a visit by trackable items "remotesearchers GLOBALBUG", TB2R0H6 and "OceantagZ", TB5NYN3):
- Terezka, GC14WV8
- Prague, Staroměstské náměstí, Virtual Cache, GC6F37
- Postovni muzeum, GC6DA2A
- 👻👻PraGeo - Jewish cache D1/T1, Mystery, GCV17D
- Rudolfinum, Multi, GC7J2ZF
- Tourist Guide round Prague I, Wherigo™ Cache, GC371Z1
- Vojanovy sady, Mystery, GC7Y77T
- antiflood Kampa, Multi, GCZAZ7
- Za prazskymi vodniky (Water Sprites in Prague), Wherigo™ Cache, GC1CXR3
- Trnkova, Multi, GC10886
- Obetem komunismu, Multi, GC7EN1W
- Praha - Vysehrad, Virtual Cache, GC7B7HB