Iron Curtain & Ironman: Prague (Day 4)

Hola todos,

Today was my last day in Prague. Overall, I’ve really enjoyed this amazing city!

The weather has been warm, but not unreasonably so for summer. The first day was super hot and sunny, and our walking tour guide said that this was cooler than usual. No wonder there is such a beer culture here! A cold, refreshing drink in a hot afternoon is perfection [insert chef's kiss]. (And while you'll see signs all over the advertising aperol spritzes to-go, apparently it’s only tourists that make the aperol spritz culture here huge! Real Prague-ians (?) drink beer.)

Today we had much cooler weather, though, which was much needed after yesterday’s sweat fest. And I spent more time indoors. And I stayed better hydrated. But, I was able to do and see so much of the city and check more things off my list! Today was certainly a busy one. Let’s dive in:

I started off early, heading over toward the Prague Castle again. This time, though, I took the second route from yesterday. That bridge and walk took me through Mala Strana, the neighborhood across the river from the main parts of Prague. Yesterday (while sprinting up the hill to the Castle), I thought to myself: “Self, these are great vibes! I'd love to come back and take it a bit slower!”

So this morning, I did.

And the vibes are, in fact, great. Mala Strana kind of feels like Brooklyn, NYC: a little hipster, a little more residential, a little less tourist-heavy. There were families on their way to school this morning. And there are a lot of embassies in that area: I saw Sweden, Ireland, and... another that I’m forgetting.

I stopped at a cafe for breakfast and espresso. I had another kolach (which might just mean a generic cake pastry?). I’d like to thank European sugar, carbs, and caffeine for fueling this adventure.

This poppyseed kolach was very different from yesterday's.

 

I was waiting for the Church of Our Lady of Victories (also the Shrine of the Infant Jesus of Prague) to open, so I walked around a bit. And stumbled across this huge church! I literally walked through a tunnel and rounded a corner and this was just... there. It is the St. Nicholas church, and it was just around the corner from where I was walking yesterday. I totally missed it in my rush to get to the Castle. So it’s great I was able to stumble across it today!

 

I returned to Our Lady Victorious, since it was now open. A few things about this church:

1. The Infant Jesus of Prague is housed here. It was made in Spain and gifted to royalty in, like, the 1500s. Remember the Lobkowicz family from yesterday? It was given to them!

2. I was there while the organ was playing. Whoa. The room was shaking and you could hear the pressure of the pipes. Beautiful!

3. The Church is run by priests from the order of the Discalced Carmelites, as well as Carmelite Sisters. 

3. Tina's touring tip: If I think I might be touring churches on my travels, I like to bring a scarf to cover my shoulders if they’re exposed! Some churches require it, but even if they don't, most are active churches and not just museums. It’s a simple sign of respect and reverence, and it adds almost no weight to your backpack.

 

Left: The Church's exterior. You can't see it well, but the street name is called "Karmelitska" (named after the Carmelite order, I would presume!). Right: A photo of the church's interior. There is a lot of sacred art, especially paintings and gold-covered sculptures. 

Seeing the sacred art and the Infant took maybe 30 minutes total, and then it was off the Prague Castle to attempt Castle tour round 2!

The fountain in the middle of the Castle. A nice stranger offered to take my picture and dealt with my craziness!

So while I was connected to my hostel's Wi-Fi yesterday night, I downloaded and played the unofficial app guided tour while grabbing a screen recording. That way, I could “follow along” during the tour at the complex today without Wi-Fi. That plan totally worked and was a great plan B. That being said, if I could go back, I would pay for the official audio tour. It’s about $15 (compared to the $3-5 I paid for the unofficial app tour) but it covers waaay more material. While it makes the total Castle visit a bit expensive (for both the ticket and the tour), I think it would be worth it if you find that kind of stuff interesting.

Before I even got started, I saw a sign for a cafe in a garden. And while I didn't have time to get totally detoured in yet another greenery- and caffeine-induced reverie, I did walk through it for some beautiful views!

So here’s what I saw and learned on my tour:

The Prague castle has been around since at least the 9th century. It is strategically located at the highest point in the area and is near the river, which was used for trading salt and spices.

(Part of) the Palace portion of the Castle.

 

Left: St. Vitus Cathedral (again) from the back. Right: St. Vitus Cathedral from the front (yet another attempt to show it's size!)

The stained glass in the Cathedral is stunning. They just don't make art like that anymore!

There is a Changing of the Guard that happens every hour, on the hour, at the Palace's front gate. They also have a big Changing of the Guard at noon everyday. I made sure to get to the front of the complex to see the noon one today. I didn't get great pictures (I got some video, but can't upload it here) but it was definitely worth taking a few minutes to see.

This is one of the guards standing at attention during the changing ceremony.

The main Palace in the Castle complex was initially built in the 1100s, and there have been continual additions and renovations throughout its use, especially during the 15th and 16th centuries.

 

Left: This was the original receiving hall for the royals who lived in the Palace. Right: This crown contains the world's largest pearl and some of the world's largest sapphires and rubies. Sounds pretty heavy to me!

Okay, these stairs were just too cool for me to not include in this post. They were made so that riders on horses could safely descend! Apparently, this has only happened once.

Next in the Castle complex was St. George's Basilica. You'll notice that the two white towers are difference sizes--that isn't my amateur photography skills! The larger one represents man/Adam and the smaller one represents woman/Eve. This church is super old and holds the remains of one of the patron saints of the Czech Republic, St. Ludmina.

While not a part of my initial plan, I decided to stop by the Strahov Monastery just up the street (yes, literally up. More hills…) after finishing my tour of the Castle.

And while I didn’t do an interior tour of the Monastery (apparently their library is amazing!), I did drop by their brewery! The restaurant attached to the monastery is also an active brewery, and you can smell the barley and hops when you walk by. The beer was the best I had in Prague by far.

 

I returned back toward the main part of town by walking back down the hill. The views of the city coming down the hill were, predictably, amazing. A small bakery caught my eye, and I saw they had buchty, a pastry I’d been wanting to try. It’s a relatively plain bread topped in powdered sugar, but the bottom layer is a sweet cream cheese filling. Delish!

Once down the hill, I crossed the bridge and headed south, the furthest south I’ve been in Prague thus far. The walk along the water was amazing. And the rows of beautiful old apartments added to the European feel. No modernized wharf here!

 

This was my destination: the Dancing House (also called Ginger and Fred).

I'm not sure when I learned about this building, but it was sometime in high school. Since then, I've thought it would be cool to see. I never envisioned being able to see it for myself, though! It's nickname, of course, is a play on the famous dancing couple Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers.

Across the street from the Dancing House were a bunch of art students sketching it.

I could have walked back to the downtown area, but my feet were so tired! So I grabbed the metro back. Clean, efficient, fast, and cheap. Way better than either DC or NYC's systems! (It was also easy to navigate even though I don't know any Czech.)

I was headed towards downtown again and came across the Charles Bridge. I know I said I crossed it yesterday; apparently, I hadn’t. Named after Charles IV, an influential Hapsburg ruler in the city, this bridge had far too many tourists for my comfort when I passed by it today. But it probably would have been lovely early in the morning!

I found some shade and a seat to just rest in for a bit. I enjoyed the beautiful weather and general *vibes*. Then I popped over to the hostel to make a quick dinner (hashtag babe on a budget!) and popped back out to mail some postcards.

I really thought that would be an uneventful portion of my day. But, as it turns out, the other store that sold me international stamps gave me ones that were completely different from the one the post office sold me today. When I dropped off my cards at the post office, the postal worker looked a bit confused. So if you don’t get a Prague post card, just know that I tried! I'm not really sure what I ended up buying at the first store.

And although I had already eaten dinner, I managed to get #influenced by a local food cart and bought some halusky. The sign translated the dish to "potatoes with cabbage and ham" but it was more accurately a potato gnocchi with sauerkraut and thick pancetta. (I'm rereading that and it sounds so obnoxious, but it's accurate, so we're going to stick with it.) It was really good!

Overall on Prague

This city has been such a delight! As a fan of history, it is a city with a wealth of history from every century. While I wish I had been able to finish a book about it before coming, I honestly think I might have been more confused or overwhelmed--just because there is so much of it!

There seems to be something for everyone: nightlife, daytime adventures, museums and history, modern culture, various architectural styles, great regional food, beer and wine, religion, and more.

I’ve also felt incredibly safe as a solo female traveler here. I’ve avoided putting myself in tricky situations, sure, but I’ve also never felt the need to move to different section of the metro, walk on the other side of the street, or extricate myself from an unwanted conversation. I can’t say that for everywhere I’ve traveled and lived!

Would I come back? Yes, yes, and yes! And if I had more time on this trip, I would add: going inside and touring the Strahov Monastery, touring the Baroque library at the Klementinum downtown, visiting the Charles Bridge Museum (which is included in the Prague Castle ticket but outside of the Castle's complex), and going to a neighborhood outside of the main city or a small town for a daytrip. (Which is kind of what I am doing tomorrow... Stay tuned!)

Besos,

Tina the ExploraDora