Day 48 - Prague: Castle, Folk Dance

Monday, July 1, 2013

Our last day in Bohemia.  Yes, that is what this area used to be called.  Someone said that an old person living here has lived in 9 countries without leaving his house.  Prague has changed countries that many times.

So, we shelled out the bucks (about $13 each) and toured the main paid-entry areas of the Royal Castle.  First was the St. Vitus Cathedral.  It is big and gothic and has a large sarcophagus standing between the altar and congregation.  There are several others scattered around.

St. Vitus Cathedral with Sarcophagus

St. Wenceslas Chapel & Tomb (in St. Vitus Cathedral)

Organ in St. Vitus Cathedral

Crown, Sceptre & Orb of St. Wenceslas

Next we visited St. George's Basilica and found a similar arrangement of tombs, except it had three in a row in the center plus some in a crypt under the choir loft.  It had a pile of bones with skull clearly visible in a glass case in the chapel of relics.  We couldn't get close enough to read the names.

 

Bones of a Saint on display

Golden Lane has been called "the most beautiful street in Prague."  It has a long upstairs museum and 20 or 30 tiny houses but they have been turned into museums or souvenir shops and beautifully painted.  Franz Kafka lived in #22 while writing one of his books.

Golden Lane

Weapons in Museum on Golden Lane

At the end of Golden Lane is Daliborka Tower, formerly the prison and dungeon.

Prisoner Cage at Daliborka Tower

When we left the castle we walked through the adjacent neighborhood of palaces and on down to the "Singing Fountain."  (It is said to sound musical underneath the brass bowl.)

The Singing Fountain

 Then took a tram to Charles Bridge and set off across town on foot.  Charles Bridge has guard towers, statues, and artists and is a big tourist attraction.  We continued on to Wenceslas Square, a long plaza with a statue of St. Wenceslas at the end.  Incidently, "good King Wenceslas" was never a king, he was a duke, and although he was one of the first Christians in Bohemia he didn't achieve popularity until he was stabbed to death by his brother.  Then the legends began.

Statue of St. Wenceslas in Wenceslas Square

This evening, we had dinner at the Folklore Gardens, with Czech folk dancers, an orchestra with a dulcimer virtuoso and an incredible violinist.  We danced and sang and had a great meal.

Mock Czech Village at Folklore Gardens

Trivia fact: Carlsbad, California is named after a beloved Czech King Charles.