Well the rain held off today (must have been that prayer I said in the monastery before heading out in the morning!). So I took a guided tour thru both the Old Town and the Jewish Quarter. The rest of the day I walked thru the other sections via my handy Rick Steves guide book. Like Budapest and Vienna, Prague too is a photographer’s dream. Around every corner is a grand building and wow moment!
The tour guide was actually from Colorado but had been in Prague for 6 years. He was really knowledgeable and shared lots of history at all the sights. Here was some general history I thought was interesting.
The Czechs are actually obsessed with the Native American Indians. Most kids spend summers at “tee pee” camps, where they learn about the Native Americans’ respect for nature, survival skills in the wilderness, courage, and idealized noble spirit. One of the most popular songs sung around Czech campfires is one about the Sioux victory at Little Big Horn. And one of Prague’s museums has attire worn by Sitting Bull on display. Who knew!
So I’ll share some info about all the pics. The first was the crossing of the pedestrian only Charles Bridge. It’s Prague’s landmark icon connecting the two halves of the city. It’s lined with Czech saints and always bustles with tourists, buskers, street vendors and impromptu concerts.
The next is the famous astronomical clock. Hundreds of tourists flock here each hour to watch it put on a show. The top circle tells the time via the Roman numerals I – XII on there twice. The inner part of the top circle show the signs of the zodiac telling both today’s zodiac sign as well as the one the moon is currently in. The bottom circle shows scenes from the seasons of a rural peasant’s life as well as a ring of saint’s names. Pretty complex for a clock that was installed in the 1400’s!
Next is the twin, multi-turreted, fairy tale like Gothic Towers (with the polar bear in front!) of the Church of Our Lady Before Tyn. This church was first Catholic, then Protestant, and now Catholic again. It was built around 1360 by the same architect that did St Vitus Cathedral (the massive one from yesterday).
The next large church with the three green spires is the Church of St Nicholas. It too was originally Catholic and changed to Protestant but stayed that way!
The next with the tall black tower is called the Powder Tower. It’s over 500 years old and was the main gate of the Old Town wall. It also housed all the city’s gunpowder back in the day. The Powder Tower was the city’s formal front door – the road from Vienna entered here.
Next is the Prague branch campus for the University of North Carolina. Go Heels! Lol. It’s actually Charles University (named after Charles IV) but Charles is written in Latin!
The next is the interior of what I thought was a beautiful church which is the Church of St James. In the back of the church, hanging from the ceiling is a black shriveled up arm with clenched fingers. According to legend, a thief tried to rob the gilded Pieta (Mary holding the dead body of Jesus) from the altar, but his hand was frozen the moment he touched the statue. The monks had to cut off his arm to get his hand to let go. The desiccated arm now hangs here as a warning. I took a picture of it but chose not to show it! Lol
And lastly this grand building, the National Museum, sits at the end of Wenceslas Square (the statue in front is “Good King Wenceslas” from the Christmas carol fame) which is considered the beginning of the New Town section of Prague.
Well that’s all for today. Happy Tuesday to all!
Jeff
The Wandering Italian 