Prague Day 1

OK - so here's our first round of pictures from Prague. I must say I was really impressed with the city. Architecturally, it was so well preserved (Or re-built after the war, as the case may be...) that there are just fabulous buildings everywhere you look. Many of them are very old (Gothic, Romanesque) but most of them are from the Art Nouveau period, typical of the Viennese style. It really makes for a beautiful old town. (I should mention that we kept to the old town for all of our stay - it is certainly big enough, alone to keep you busy, and the rest of the city is newer, a bit dismal and rather sprawling!





The tower below is the Prašná brána, or Powder Tower. It was once used as a storage space for gunpowder, and is rather dark and imposing! Construction was started on it in 1475 to replace one of the city's original 13 gates. But soon after it was started the King moved his court across the river, and work on it was abandoned. It remained a half finished structure, as a repository for gunpowder, until the 17th century, when it was finally completed.







This photo is rather dark, but it's a great example of a typical building along the streets of Prague. The art nouveau stucco work, the colorful mosaics, and the statuary all along the roof are all very common.







These two also aren't great photos, but they're one of only a few from Václavské náměsti (Wenceslas Square) which I took. The long "square" is really more of a grand avenue, and the National Museum is the large domed building you can see off in the distance. It was first laid out by Charles IV in 1348, and began it's existence as a horse market. It has long been a focal point for popular discontent - most recently in November 1989 when hundreds of thousands of demonstrators gathered here. After a week of demonstrations, and without a shot fired the government capitulated and democracy returned for the first time in 40 years. This event became known as the "Velvet Revolution" because it was such a peaceful revolution.







The building below is the Stavovské divadlo (States Theater). It was a beacon of Czech language culture, in a city long dominated by German. It's best known for hosting the world premiere of Don Giovanni, Mozart's first opera, in October 1787. (All over Prague you see little puppet theaters and tourist traps luring you in for a re-creation of Don Giovanni!)





Just another good example of the art nouveau buildings everywhere!





I found this building really interesting, because it is actually from the Cubist school! Prague is rather unique, because cubism actually ventured into the field of architecture here, moreso than anywhere else. In most other cities it remained mostly a school of painting and sculpture. The building below is known as the House of the Black Madonna (note the sculpture in the niche on the corner, aka the black madonna) and is the first example of Cubist architecture in Europe. It was built with "Baroque elements" developed into a "Cubist context" so that it remained harmonious with the surrounding architecture (it's in a prominent location, right in the heart of old town - near the Gunpowder Tower.)









This is the impressive Kostel Matky Boží před Týnem (Church of Our Lady Before Tyn) soaring above a row of patrician houses along the Staroměstské náměstí (Old Town Square.)






This is the Dům U Kamenného zvonu (House at the Stone Bell), which is a baroque townhouse that has been stripped down to its original Gothic elements. It stands out for its relative simplicity.


Another church on the square...



The monument on the square to Jan Hus. Jan Hus was a Catholic reformer, who was most well known for his ability to transform doctrinal disagreements into the language of the common man, preaching in Czech and, later, for being burned at the stake for his heresy. The people who followed him became known as the Hussites, and later formed the Bohemian church. He also had a strong influence on Martin Luther.



Below is a shot of the tower on the Old Town Hall, and it's 200 foot tower. This building itself, is actually quite small, consisting mostly of the tower. Over the years the conjoining buildings were purchased and slowly added to the structure to form a larger building. At one point, to the right of the structure as you see it here, there was a massive neo-gothic structure attached, but now only jagged stonework hints at its existence. It was destroyed by the fleeing Nazis at the end of the war.



This is the famous astronomical clock. It is 15th century, and not only keeps the time, but also the season, the zodiac sign, and the positions of the sun and moon. It also has a famous show performed every hour, on the hour - where the figures to the left and right of the clock begin moving... The skeleton begins by tolling a death knell with his bell and turning an hour glass upside down. To the right of the skeleton, the dreaded Turk nods his head, almost hinting at another invasion, like those of the 16th and 17th centuries. Then up above the clock the little doors open and a parade of the 12 apostles goes by, before the golden cockerel above them flaps his wings and screeches as the hour finally strikes.



A window on one of the buildings adjoining town hall.


Another impressive building, although there was nothing in my book about it!



Just off Old Town Square, another square, known as Malé náměsti (Small Square!) has an iron fountain from the 16th century, and the colorfully painted house pictured now contains the Hard Rock Cafe. It was a fun place to come and sit after dinner, before heading back to the hotel. Pictured here is one of the old-fashioned tourist cars that will take you around town and show you the sights!



This was a funny little piece of art, that I just happened to notice while looking up (it's very important to always look up!) It's a man hanging by his right arm from a flag pole on the side of one of the buildings at the roof line, I love it!



Typical shop window - full of the enameled eggs and Matrushka dolls.



Lots of marionettes and marionette theaters...



The shot below is of the ceiling of the Staromětská mostecká věž (Old Town Bridge Tower) on the super famous Karlův most (Charles Bridge.) (again - make sure to look up!)



Our first shot of Prague Castle, on the other side of the river...



The magnificent building below is known as the Rudolfinum. It was originally built as a concert hall at the end of the 19th century, but was converted to house the Czech parliament in 1918. The Germans converted back to a concert hall in 1939 when they invaded, and now the Czech Philharmonic is based there. It was recently sand-blasted and cleaned, and is now quite impressive...



A roof top near by...



Then we moved on to the Jewish Quarter of the city, which used to be a grotto, ofcourse. Because the Jews were so persecuted, for so many years, they were forced to use the same small area for a cemetery for centuries. Consequently the cemetery is just spilling over with gravestones, and there aren't even as many gravestones as there are people buried here, because they had to bury people over each other. So in this tiny little space, there are literally thousands of people buried. We didn't go in because it was the Sabbath, and even if it hadn't been - they charge an entrance fee of 20 Euros!



The synagogue pictured below is known as the Old-New Synagogue, and dates from the mid 13th century. It is also the oldest functioning synagogue in Europe and has managed to survive fires, the razing of the ghetto and the Nazi occupation intact.


And finally, some shots of some of the things you've already seen, but at night. Much prettier pictures - I was glad I took them!