13-22 deg C, a fine but cool start, to rain, to cloudy and dry’ish in the afternoon
Walk G: 11km; total: 233km
Walk W: 9km; total: 223km
The breakfast room is crammed full of all sorts of goodies and it would be very easy to overindulge. However, we stuck to our usual cereal and eggs/bacon/mushies/etc, washed down with really nice coffee.
After consulting the tourist map and the weather forecast, we decided to do the Prague Castle precinct. First though, we had to buy a 72hr unlimited transport ticket for Wendy at a very reasonable cost of AUD25. Greg goes for free as long as he has his passport with him! That job done we caught the next tram heading for the Castle, hopped off and began the trek up to the top. Thankfully it was a cool day. We had a good wander through the streets that make up the precinct and just as we got to the St Vitus Cathedral, it started to rain and everyone took cover wherever they could. Greg used the time to get an awesome picture of the cathedral with hardly anyone in the foreground. The amount of people in and around every ‘must see’ place was phenomenal, and the majority come from the river cruise boats and bus tours. Of course these people need to see the world, but when you have groups of up to 50pax all crowded in the one spot, often blocking a walkway, that is silly. And don’t get Wendy started on those prima Donna’s who all want thirty-seven thousand pics in all different poses, on their own, and block the view for everyone else. Rant over!
After all the excitement of the castle precinct, we left via the other end and stumbled on a tram line so hopped on. We had no idea where it was going and when we got to the end of the line, we got off and found a park and had mornos. The dark clouds started rolling in again, so we hopped on the tram and went in the opposite direction eventually ending up where we wanted to be - near Charles Bridge, another hugely popular attraction, so much so it was almost hard to walk. The attractions are the towers at each end of the bridge that you could climb if you wanted to. These towers are not much to write home about, in our opinion, and neither is the bridge, however there must have been 5,000 people on it. There is a statue mid-bridge that if you rub a certain part of it, something will happen, presumably good, as there were heaps of people trying to get near enough to touch that certain part (unsure of which part).
Off the bridge we walked the narrow cobbled streets to the Old Town Square. Here we were just in time to witness the Old Town Astronomical Clock strike 12noon. There were some other buildings, sculptures and statues to be seen. After all that excitement it was time to go home for a rest!
After our rest, Greg went out for another wander to the local synagogue, but there were so many people in and around it, he ended up walking on. He found that if you walk one street away from an attraction there’s no one else there so you can take your time and enjoy the moment. Prague gets 10 million visitors per and it’s actually spoiling the place. We pity the locals during the peak of the summer everything is jammed packed with tourists.
Dinner was had a Mex Dan, a mixture of Mexican and Asian. We waddled home the long way to settle the tummies.
Stairs up and down from the Castle precinct
Views of Prague from the precinct
Tower tunnel
One of the only streets in the precinct we didn’t walk down, but got this pic of a pic to see what it looks like
St. Vitus Cathedral
Gothic resting place of saints including Vitus, Wenceslas, and Adalbert as well as the state treasury
Changing of the Guards at the Castle
The New Royal Palace
Archbishop Palace, a landmark 18th century palace known for its Baroque and Rococo-style architectural details
National Gallery Prague - Schwarzenberg Palace
Marian Plague Column
Tuscan Palace
Castle Guard, military base
A very large government building near the military base
What the Duck?
Some colorful macarons
One end of Charles Bridge, a landmark stone bridge linking Prague’s Old and New Towns with street artists and entertainers
What we dubbed Little Venice, a view from Charles Bridge
The other end of Charles Bridge
The underside of the arch on the tower of the bridge
View of Prague Castle precinct from the end of Charles Bridge
Old Town Hall
Prague Astronomical Clock
A medieval timepiece on the facade of city hall displaying the twelve apostles as the clock strikes
Marian Column
National Gallery Prague - Kinsky Palace
Jan Hus monument, a large stone and bronze memorial sculpture depicting a famous martyr, completed in 1915
St. Nicholas Church, a Hussite place of worship built in the 12 century featuring a vaulted dome ceiling with chandeliers
Walk and tram ride
Kings Court Hotel
Concert Hall
The Powder Tower, a City gate built in the 15 century and restored after being damaged in the Battle of Prague
River scenery
Private university
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