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On one of our days out on the trams, we visited Prague's "other" Castle - Vyšehrad.
Vyšehrad is a historical fort in Prague. It was probably built in the 10th century, on a hill over the Vltava River. It was probably built later than the Prague Castle and was a seat of Premyslid rulers and there was also a Royal Mint. The most important period of Vyšehrad´s history was in the 11 th century, when Vratislav II., the first Bohemian King, resided there. His successors reigned from Vyšehrad till 1140.
The
main entrance to Vyšehrad is at the seventeenth century Tábor Gate
Vyšehrad also contains Prague's oldest surviving building, the Rotunda of St Martin from
the 11th century
The
most visible remnant of the once large castle is the ruin of the Gothic Bath of
Libuše, once the defensive bastion of the medieval castle
St.
Peter and Paul Church was founded in the eleventh century by Vratislav II, the
first king of Bohemia. After the church was destroyed by fire in the thirteenth
century it was rebuilt in Gothic style. Its current look dates mainly from
around 1902, when the two towers were added
There's even a tennis court - I wonder whether Martina Navratilova ever played here?
With more views over the Vltava
From the Lesser Quarter we continued our walk up to the Castle and its views over the Vltava
On our way to the Castle we came across this - it reminded me of one of Dr Who's Cybermen - but I think it was a parking meter!
Prague
Castle is the official residence and office of the President of the Czech
Republic. Located in the Hradčany district of Prague and dating back to the
ninth century, the castle has been a seat of power for kings of Bohemia, Holy
Roman emperors, and presidents of Czechoslovakia. The Bohemian Crown Jewels are
kept within a hidden room inside it
The
Guinness Book of Records lists Prague Castle as the largest ancient castle in
the world. Its three courtyards and a number of magnificent buildings cover
over 7 hectares (18 acres)
Off to the changing of the Guards
St
Vitus Cathedral
Views from the Castle
Continuing our walk over Charles Bridge we entered The Lesser Quarter - Mala Strana
After
his murder on 8 December 1980 John Lennon became a pacifist hero for many young
Czechs. An image of Lennon was painted on a wall in a secluded square opposite
the French Embassy, along with political graffiti and Beatles lyrics
Despite
repeated coats of whitewash, the secret police never managed to keep it clean
for long, and the Lennon Wall became a political focus for Prague youth (most
Western pop music was banned by the communists, and some Czech musicians were
even jailed for playing it).
Post-1989
weathering and lightweight graffiti ate away at the political messages and
images, until little remained of Lennon but his eyes, but visiting tourists
began making their own contributions
The
wall is the property of the Knights of Malta, and they have repainted it
several times, but it soon gets covered with more Lennon images, peace messages
and inconsequential tourist graffiti. In recent years the Knights have bowed to
the inevitable and now don’t bother to whitewash it any more
It
is a growing trend in European cities for couples to secure a padlock onto a
bridge as a token of love. Some locks feature handwritten or engraved initials
or messages on them
The
local legend is that two star-crossed lovers - just like
Shakespeare’s “Romeo and Juliet,” - came from two prominent Czech
families caught in a feud. They planned to meet at the bridge for a kiss and
when the families discovered their secret, the unfortunate pair were killed
The
legend inspired many locals and tourists to visit the bridge and add their own
love lock to the collection to represent their eternal adoration. There are
also locks on Charles Bridge
With
a height of 318m the Petřín Hill is a network of eight parks offering
magnificent panoramas of Prague.
We reached the top by the funicular railway
Most
of the vineyards from the 12th century were transformed into gardens and
orchards by the 18th century and today it is a great place for quiet walks
With views over the Vltava
Continuing our exploration of Prague. We went on a guided walking tour which took us to the Jewish Quarter
The
Jewish Quarter, known as Josefov, is located between Old Town Square and the
Vltava River. Its torrid history dates from the 13th century, when Jewish
people were ordered to vacate their disparate homes and settle in this one area
Over
the centuries, with Jews banned from living anywhere else in Prague, and with
new arrivals expelled from Moravia, Germany, Austria and Spain joining them,
more and more people were crowded in
To
add to this, inhabitants of the Jewish Quarter, or the Prague Jewish Ghetto as
it also became known, were forced to endure structural changes. The latest took
place between 1893-1913, when most houses were flattened and the layout of many
of the streets remodelled
Fortunately,
most of the significant historical buildings were saved from destruction, and
today they remain a testimony to the history of the Jews in Prague
The
Franz Kafka Monument is in the area where the Dušní Street and the Vězeňská
Street connect, between the Spanish Synagogue and the church of St. Spirit. It
is a symbolic place because the Kafka family lived at Dušní Street No. 27. The
statue is within the spiritual zone of three Churches – Jewish, Catholic and
Protestant. Franz Kafka practically lived his entire short life in this part of
the old Prague.
The
monument was inspired by an important short story written by Kafka called
"Popis Jednoho Zápasu" (Description of a Match). The
"split" design of the statue refers back to the spiritual split of
the writer mentioned in the novel. The novel describes a situation in which a
character defeats his opponent who is supposedly dominant
Built
in 1586, the town hall is no longer in use and is closed to the public, and its
architecture is quaint and well-preserved. But its clocks are by far its most
striking characteristic. It has a traditional clock tower, with ordinary clocks
on four sides, each bearing Roman numerals. On one side of the roof, however,
there's a clock with Hebrew letters, and the clock's hands move
counterclockwise because Hebrew is written from right to left
