Europe Travel Blog: 21 December (Prague)

21 December 2019

Breakfast in this hotel offered a vast selection of meats, cheeses, fruits, yoghurts, hots foods, and coffees. The breakfast service and food were both excellent.

Since this was my mom’s first trip to Prague, I elected to ask a local guide I know and love to provide us with a tour. I first met Karolina back in May of 2016 when the MSU State Singers held a concert tour through Austria and Czech Republic. Karolina was our guide on that tour, and it was obvious she is extremely knowledgeable about Europe and had a passion for her job. Karolina lives and is based out of Prague, where she grew up. I always enjoy Karolina’s tours because she always includes little bits of her life growing up and she can relate to traditions and has lived through Prague’s recent history.

Karolina met us in our hotel’s lobby to start our tour. From the hotel we began walking to the Municipal House. Karolina shed more light on this landmark. From the balcony overlooking the street was where a free and separate Czechoslovakia was announced in 1918. For the prior 200 years or so, this portion of Eastern Europe has been under control of the Austro-Hungarian Empire ruled by the Hapsburg family of Austria.

Next to the Municipal House is the Powder Tower. This is one of the last remaining fortifications of Prague’s fortification wall built in the Middle Ages. When the city grew and the fortifications were demolished, this tower took on a role of storing gunpowder and was never demolished.

Continuing down the street, we were walking on what would have originally been a mote. With the expansion of from the Old Town, the mote was filled in and became part of the New City. Even today, this sidewalk marks the division of Old Town and New Town. This street is now the second most famous shopping street in Prague but has the highest rent!

This street intersects with St. Wenceslaus Square. Karolina explained this square is important to citizens of her generation because this is where they protested for three weeks in 1989 and eventually the communist government would give way to Czech Republic’s current democratic government.

From S.t Wenceslaus Square we wound our way to the tram stop. To save time and get to the castle complex before many of the large tour busses we were planning on taking the tram. Public transport in Prague is extremely easy to use. There is a system of trams and subways that crisscross the city.

After arriving at the Castle complex, we went through the security checkpoint. Security at the Prague Castle complex is rigorous as the President of the Czech Republic’s office is located within the complex. The historic castle area is listed as one of the largest castles in the world. The oldest part of the castle are the ruins of a church dating from around 900 AD.

A large portion of the Prague Castle was built by Empress Maria Terisa of Austria. If you don’t know her name then you most likely know one of her daughters, Marie Antionette.

During the Hapsburg’s rule in Prague, Maria Terisa expanded the castle to house the offices of state on her official visits. Her additions are all in the baroque style and are yellow.

Included within the complex is St. Vitus Cathedral (Katedrála Sv. Víta). This cathedra is the Czech national church. St. Vitus Cathedral is where the Czech rulers have been crowned, the crown jewels are kept, and royalty are entombed. The church took 600 years to complete. Construction began in 1344 but was stalled through the years for various wars, plagues, and church reforms. Completed in 1929 for the 1,000th Jubilee anniversary of St. Wenceslas, this church is a landmark.

The church is huge in stature, more than 400 feet long and 100 feet tall. All the stained glass in the Nave is only around 100 years old and designed and created by Czech artists.

In the cathedral is the tomb of St. John of Nepomuk. It claimed to have more than a ton of silver on it. St. John is the national saint of the Czech People and is believed to have been tossed off the Charles Bridge. He was a 14th-century priest to whom the queen confessed all her sins. The king was angered St. John would not tell him the queen’s sing, so the King arranged for St. John to be tortured and thrown off the Charles bridge. According to legend, when St. John hit the water, five stars appeared above his head signifying his purity.

For hundreds of years, the Czech kings were crowned in St. Vitus. It is fitting the crown jewels are kept here in a safe with seven locks and seven keys. The keys are split between government and church officials. All seven keys must be used for the safe to be opened. The crown jewels are now only taken out for display every few years. According to Karolina, the Czech government has approached many insurance agencies on insuring the jewels, but they are always declined. There are now exact reproductions of the jewels as well.

Upon exiting the cathedral, you will find yourself in the Third Courtyard of the castle. This is the inner most courtyard. Form the courtyard, you get great views of St. Vitus’ “golden gate.” For centuries, this was the main entrance of the Cathedral. Charles IV commissioned the mosaic above this entrance in the Italian style. Showing the judgement, this mosaic shows that everyone is susceptible to the judgement, even kings and queens. On the left side, you can see the heaven bound while on the right you see the dammed being taken to hell by daemons. All the overloaded by Jesus and disciples.

From this spot you also have great views of the prickled spires and the gargoyles. The gargoyles on St. Vitus are part of the original drainage system of the cathedral, all in working order. From this vantage point you can also see the differences in construction with this cathedral being built in two phases.

From here we walked down a passageway. To our right stood the Old Royal Palace. This highlight of the palace is the large Vladislav Hall, an impressive 200 feet long. The Vladislav hall has had many uses through its history. With the large open space, it could be filled shopping stalls, thus allowing the nobility to shop without going into town. The hall has also found use as an indoor jousting arena. The staircase leading into the hall was designed specifically for this purpose- it was designed so a fully mounted soldier to gallop into the hall. Beginning in the 16th Century, it was where the nobles met to elect the king. In 1990, after the fall of the communist regime, the Czech Parliament met here to elect the first President of Czech Republic.

Continuing down the cobble stone pathway our glance met the Basilica of St. George, one of the oldest structures in Prague Castle. The Basilica of St. George is best preserved example of the Romanesque style in Prague and is the burial place of the earliest Czech Royalty, predating St. Vitus. The church was founded in 920, with the present structure being built in the 11th century. The Baroque façade would come later.

After the Basilica of St. George, we walked by the Golden Lane. Although we did not go into the Golden Lane, I have memories of the Golden Lane from my time in 2016. This tiny, colorful picturesque street was home to goldsmiths during the reign of Rudolph II. Today it is home to exhibits about the Medieval era and gift shops.

Leaving the castle, we walked back through the third and second court yards to the entrance of the main courtyard. Although no longer used as an entrance except for affairs of state, the Presidential guards are on duty and perform a changing of the guard ceremony every day on the hour.

Here we began the descent from the Castle to the Old Town Square. The streets are filled with multiple shops and the buildings are relatively untouched from their days as palaces surrounding the castle. Some of the houses still carried their animal distinctions. Due to the low literacy rate before the Hapsburg rule, houses were labeled with animals instead of numbers. During the reign of Maria Terisa public education became common place and children were expected to be able to read and write.

The architecture of Prague is varied by the rulers and years the city has progress through. Each ruling party has their own contributions. This is one thing to me that makes Prague magical. Each stamp left on the city is another bit of history to absorb.

The walk to the Charles bridge is easy and downhill from the castle. Upon reaching the bridge you see the various street merchants selling their wares ranging from handmade jewelry to watercolors of the city to musicians crooning a tune. Also located on the bridge is a statue of St. John of Nepomuk. Legend has it if you rub the belly of St. John with you right hand and make a wish, it will be granted.

After crossing the Charles Bridge and a few other stops, we bid farewell to Karolina. Karolina once again surpassed my expectations. Not only is she extremely knowledgeable about sights in Prague, but she is extremely accommodating on her tours, even the strangest requests she is able to work with.

Lunch today was a restaurant suggested by Karolina. Located just a few blocks off the Old Town Square, Jídelní Lístek is a delightful eatery with a menu that includes local Czech Dishes. I rather enjoyed the food here. The potato dumplings seemed a bit dry, but the gravy served with the dish offered just the touch.

After the late lunch we then took time for a bit more shopping. My mom wanted to purchase a few boxes of Prague Chocolates. These are simply just chocolate covered almonds that are dusted with chocolate powder and various other things. Prague Chocolates makes other items as well. You can browse their website to see more information about the company. https://www.prazskacokolada.cz/prague-chocolate

While my mom was taking her time going through various stores, I decided to take up a chance to explore an offshoot Christmas market. I had tried the mulled wine in Munich and absolutely loved it. I thought I would try one of the drinks sold as hot honey wine. Upon first taste I thought it was an interesting drink. After taking more time to enjoy the hot honey wine, it was obvious I did not like it. To me the taste was akin to a hot honey water with a stick. (It tasted like honey and a stick.) After this, I just stuck to the mulled wine. After this experience, we decided we were going to watch the production Swan Lake presented by member of the Czech National Ballet. After purchasing tickets for the 9:30 showing we headed back to the hotel to rest.

Before the ballet we stopped at the market just outside the theater for street food. Both times I have been to Prague, I have always loved the street food for than anything else I eat. This time I had a grilled sausage served on a baguette with mustard.

For more information about Karolina check out her company’s website: http://benjamintours.webdemo.triwial.cz/en/benjamintours-tour-operator.html