Today was a very special day because Czechia is my 31st country visited in 31 years! So after a beautiful train ride from Venice to Prague mom and I celebrated with a rafaello mini cake! I wish I could say that I internationally planned my outfit to match my dessert but I didn’t lol, it was a happy coincidence!
Every princess moment needs a little reality check lol, and mine came right after dinner. We arrived too late for any coin laundry machines to be open, and I wasn’t about to pay $27 to have my socks dry cleaned, so I had to do a bit of tub laundry. I will say that even though I’m pouting in this picture I actually had a great time! I put on some old Bollywood music and danced my way through the washing. Mom and I even staged an entire video and laughed so hard we were sure that the front desk would call up with a noise complaint.
The next morning we headed into town to see the Prague Castle, since it was on the other side of the river we tried to call an Uber and we couldn't get one to pick us up! They also have no taxi's in the city so mom and I decided to start walking there and see if we could pick up a ride later along with way. It was a great decision since we walked right through the Old Town Center.
First we saw Powder Gate Tower, which was originally representational fortification. Then it was supposed to host Royal audiences, however it was never completed. Due to Prussian shelling in 1757, there was extensive damage and it was alleged to hold gunpowder (hence the name). The Tower was reconstructed in the 1800s which is what we see here today.
I loved the gothic architecture interspersed with the city.
Old Town Hall was established in 1133, the oldest part being the Gothic Tower and astronomical clock. Every hour it rings and 12 apostles appear. The town hall actually served as an underground Prague Uprising against the Nazis and was almost completely destroyed by shelling. Thankfully not all was lost and after repairs we get to enjoy the clock tower again today!
Mom and I crossed the bridge and actually walked all the way to the bottom of the hill before we realized that unless we wanted to spend most of the day climbing we needed to find a better way to transport ourselves there. Apparently Prague is one of the most walkable and leading city in public transportation. That's why they don't have any taxis, and why we couldn't find someone to pick us up in an Uber. So I put my travelers hat on and figured out the bus, tram, metro lines and got us all the way to the top of the hill! I'm quite proud of myself, especially since they don't speak any English here. Which is totally fine, but also meant that all the signage and maps were only in Czech too. Thankfully everyone I've come across has been incredibly patient, one girl even pulled out google translate to help me figure out if I could validate my ticket on the tram. It was quite hilarious with us passing our phones back and forth using the translate app to have a conversation. Thank God for modern technology.
Once we reached the top of the hill we strolled into the Royal Gardens. The sun was rather strong this day so we decided to take refuge in the churches.
This was St. Vitus Cathedral, one of Prague's largest and most important churches as many coronations and famous funerals happened here. It was actually quite interesting to see how many fantastical creatures were included in the cathedral decorations. Mom and I thought this door looked like an Ent from the Lord of the Rings and they had some gnarly looking gargoyles as rain gutters too. But our favorite pieces were the stained glass windows. By far they are some of the best I've ever seen with all the fine detailed work.
After seeing the opulent palaces of Vienna it was hard not to compare them to the Old Royal Palace which in its own right is steeped with over 1,000 years of history and is considered to be a UNESCO monument. When we arrived in Prague our front desk person said, Vienna has lots of museums, but Prague is the museum. He wasn't wrong, everywhere you step is like stepping into history. The Old Royal Palace in particular was quite plain because so much had either been destroyed through the various wars (the 30 year war and World War I and II seeming to do the most damage) or a lot of people in power try to redo what was done before them, for instance the president had all the walls stripped when turning it into his office, erasing years of art and history.
I do have a fun story about this particular building. Defenestration was a popular punishment at the time, aka throwing people out the window. During the Bohemian Revolt, three of the leaders were defenestrated, but somehow managed to survive with minor injuries. So they were exiled from the empire rather than killed, which probably was for the best since the 30 year war began shortly after.
Mom and I stopped for a much needed coffee and cake break. We had to try their local vetrnik, which was absolutely decadent. Think of it like a boston cream donut but instead make it a choux puff pastry filled with caramel whipped cream and custard, and topped with caramel icing.
Fueled to conquer the rest of the castle mom and I strolled down Golden Lane which was a series of houses created in the 15th century. Now it's mostly shops but they have a few exhibits like the one below where they staged the residence of the famous people who lived there. This was the home of J. Kazda who was an amateur historian. He singlehandedly saved Czech films and documentaries as they where were ordered to be destroyed during WWII by hiding them in various warehouses and discreet places. He also documented who and what they were so that information wasn't lost. How spectacular is it that years of names and faces in history were saved because of one history nerd.
It was a great day and we had an uneventful ride home. I felt like a total pro navigating the tram lines and stations. Anyways, I'm off to bed. I'll be sure to update you all tomorrow!
Sending Lots of Love,
Carolyn
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