Prague, Czech Republic

The first stop on my trip was Prague, the capital of the Czech Republic.  In order to get a literal overview of it I started my time there by climbing Petrin Hill.  Usually you can get a funicular railway, but unfortunately it was closed...  However, good exercise, and a chance to explore the “hunger wall” – part of the old city fortifications, on the way up.  At the top is the observation tower – a mini-Eiffel Tower that you can climb (or pay extra to take the lift) to get a good view out over the   city.  This of course I did, and was rewarded by clear views across the city. 

This wasn’t the only tower I went up during my time in Prague.  I later went up the Zizkov TV Tower – planned under Communist times but only brought into service afterwards.  This higher tower gave views over the wider region and I was able to stay up there to watch the sun go down.

Going away at this time of year tends to mean that things are quiet.  For the most part in Prague they were.  The place that was not though was Prague Castle.  Both the castle and the St Vitus’s Cathedral at the site were absolutely packed with visitors – tours from China and Japan in the cathedral and school parties from France and Italy in the castle itself.  Both were impressive (particularly the cathedral) but would have been more so without all these people!  Fortunately there was also a museum about the Castle which was not on most people’s itinerates but gave a good opportunity to find out (a lot!) more and also see some more parts of the castle that weren’t on the main ticket.  The ticket also included access to other towers, churches and palaces situated nearby.

The cathedral wasn’t the only church that I visited.  There were many open, both in the city centre and the Loreto near the castle.  A particular highlight was the church at Vysehrad which had unusual spires and a great view from it and the surrounding area over the river and back over the city.  One of the most unusual churches was to be found on Petrin Hill – a Ukrainian church that was moved to Prague when the valley it was in was flooded.

Of course, being away I had to visit some art museums.  In Prague they don’t make this particularly easy for you – both the National Gallery and the City Gallery split their collections across several sites which makes it difficult to work out what and where to visit.  Therefore, when I went to the collection of modern and contemporary art I didn’t quite know what to expect (nor, it seems, quite how to find it!).  However, what was there was a vast museum with a great mix of big name artists (including a number of Picassos and local artists), local Czech artists (I am always pleased to see local artists as they give something different) and special exhibitions.  I say vast – I walked over 3.5km just going round it! 

Of the other art venues visited, the DOX Centre for Contemporary Art was noteworthy with an exhibition based on Aldus Huxley’s “A brave new world” and Museum Kampa had some good abstract pieces within its temporary displays.  I also looked round the displays at the “Dancing House” (where unfortunately the promised drink on the combined ticket was not available) and a display of Cubist Art in a building of the same background.  Bridging art and maths was a display at the Architecture Centre which brought statistics on Prague and the region to life through creative displays (at least I assume it did – most of it was in Czech!)

The fact that Czechoslovakia was for many years under Communist rule was also obvious from the city.  There were several monuments to its victims, and even a Museum of Communism (which almost seemed like it was a Communist idea of a museum!).  There are even a set of murals still showing at the former “Moscow” Metro station which shows the USSR flag and Cosmonauts!

One of the useful things about Prague is that it is a really compact city.  For the 4 days I was there I only used public transport on one of them.  On all other days I was able to get around the city on foot.  Whilst my appetite for walking may be a bit more than other people’s is, it does make things very practical. 

And it is a very pretty city to walk around.  There are lots of old buildings around, with the Old Town Square a particular highlight with its astronomical clock.  The Charles Bridge is also very popular with tourists, with lots of statues on it.  Some of these are meant to be touched for luck, meaning that they have particularly shiny patches on them.  There are lots of small streets to explore and impressive buildings such as the National Theatre.  A walk by the river in the evening was also very popular, when some of the key buildings get lit up and made even more beautiful.