Tom`s travels: Prague & Brno (13-15/03/2018)

From Krakow, we left in the afternoon and reached Prague 6 hours later with the bus. We reached the city late at night and decided to head to our hostel on foot as it was not too far and it would enable us to see a bit of the center already. We then reached Hostel Emma, our accommodation for the next couple of days. After checking in and unpacking our luggage we went to sleep as we were quite tired from the long ride and planned to get up early the next morning. After waking up, in fact, we headed out to explore the city, starting out with the Dancing House, which was right by our hostel; a modernist building built in 1996 that stands out from the rest of the buildings of the city which are mostly Gothic, Baroque or Art Nouveau in style. From there we walked along the main Avenue lining the eastern side of the Vltava river, the main waterway cutting through Prague. We then reached a viewpoint which granted an incredible view of the famous Charles bridge and the castle in the background. Nearby we entered the Křižovnické náměstí, a small yet popular square which marks the beginning of the bridge and is surrounded by impressive buildings such as the Church of St Francis of Assisi and the St Salvator church. Passing next to the latter we walked along Karlova street and wandered through the old town. We then decided to change some money as I had read online that most places in the city either charged a high commission or had a bad exchange rate. I had saved a trustworthy place on the map and we headed there to change some euros into korunas. Nearby we then entered the church of St Nicholas, built during the 18th century of a previous Gothic church. It contained a really nicely decorated Baroque interior and a large cupola at its center. We had now reached the large and famous Old Town Square, one of the main attraction points of the city. All around it are impressive buildings including the Clock Tower, which was being renovated at that time, several burgher houses, and the Gothic church of Our Lady of Tyn which looms over the eastern side. At the center of the square is the Jan Hus Memorial, erected in 1915 to celebrate the 500th anniversary of the burning at the stake of Jan Hus an early church reformer who inspired Hussitism. Around the memorial, stalls were being set up for the upcoming Easter celebrations, making the view of the square a little less pretty in my opinion. Some stalls were already open and we decided to grab a Trdelnik, which might seem a traditional Czech pastry, but it actually has nothing to do with the country and probably originated in Slovakia or Hungary and was brought here quite recently with huge masses of tourists making it now seems as if it always originated here. It was nonetheless tasty and a nice hunger quencher. Walking further on we then reached the Convent of St Agnes which holds one of the collections of the National Gallery focusing mainly on medieval art. The entrance, like for all other National Gallery buildings, was free for under 26. As the name suggests, the exhibition is hosted inside the former convent of St Agnes, one of the most important Gothic buildings in Prague. It was founded in 1231 by St Agnes of Bohemia and is composed of several buildings. After admiring the medieval altarpieces and paintings hosted in the main rooms, we walked through the cloister with the typical gothic arches and the large refectory where the monks use to eat; is a small side room we even had the opportunity to write our names in old characters using quill and ink. We then ended the tour of the convent by visiting the Oratory of St Agnes, the presbytery of the church of St Salvator and the church of St Francis where the remains of King Wenceslaus I are buried. All the buildings were connected to each other and build in the Gothic style. After exiting the museum we headed back towers the main square and entered a side street to go eat at the restaurant called Maitrea under the suggestion of Ania who had been there before. We were served some tasty vegetarian food in a nice setting and with reasonable prices, as being so close to the main square. After lunch, we headed on and decided to cross the famous Charles Bridge. Its construction, started in 1357 under the auspices of Charles IV, hence its name, and was then completed the following century. After passing under the impressive Gothic Old Town Bridge Tower, built during the 14th century, we then walked along the bridge and took several photos even though the bridge is famous also for being packed with tourists, which we easily observed ourselves. Along the side of the medieval bridge are 30 Baroque statues which were added during the 18th century giving it a regal touch. After walking the entire span of the bridge we reached the opposite and passed under the Mala Strana Bridge Tower, dating to the same period of the other one we had previously crossed. We passed by the Church of Virgin Mary under Chain, featuring the flag of the Knights of St John as it is still kept by that order and features a nice medieval towered facade. Right by the church, we crossed through a nice little square called Maltézské náměstí, or Maltese Square, due to its close proximity to the church. We walked further admiring the beautiful baroque, neoclassical and liberty buildings and houses, passing by the large church of St Nicholas and continuing uphill. After a tough climb, we finally reached the top of a lookout which granted us an impressive view over the mala strana, river and the old town in the background. Right behind us stood the Strahov Monastery, an abbey founded in the 12th century but largely modified during the subsequent centuries. We decided to visit its interior, as I had heard it was worth it. After paying the ticket price and entering the premises, we discovered to our surprise that photos were not allowed inside and that the library halls, which were the main attraction, could only be seen from a room which was closed off by cords. It was a big disappointment for me, but I nonetheless decided to enjoy the beautiful Baroque stuccoes decorating the Philosophical and Theological halls, containing who knows which wonders of literature. Once we exited the monastery we then headed on and reached the large Hradcany square, a scenic opening leading to the immense city castle. All around it were impressive buildings from different periods and artistic styles, most of which we would visit right after as they contained several museums. We first headed to Sternberg Palace, a beautiful Baroque building featuring the collection of European art from antiquity to the end of the Baroque period. I really enjoyed the Gothic altarpieces, the Italian Renaissance portraits, and the baroque landscapes. Across the square, we headed to the Salm Palace first but found out it was closed for restoration, so we entered the Schwarzenberg Palace next door. A beautiful renaissance building, and considered as one of the best examples of that period in the city, it holds the collection of Baroque art from the area of Bohemia. The collection was quite large and I personally enjoyed the room with all the sketches of Venice. At the top floor was also a room with many weapons and armors which was an interesting addition to the rest of the Baroque art. Once back out of the museum, we then headed to a panoramic point right between the museum and the castle which was really great and thus popular among tourists, we took a few pictures and then descended down the large and long series of steps leading to the mala strana. We crossed yet again the Charles bridge and admired the view from there as the sun was setting. We gave a quick round of the old town square by night and then headed to our accommodation ready for sleep. The following day, we started out by crossing the Vltava river right by our hostel and encountered an interesting monument, called the Memorial to the Victims of Communism. It features statues of people with parts missing, such as arms, legs, part of the face etc, and it is very impactful. Further on, we encountered another set of sculptures this time of crawling babies which tourists seemed to enjoy but I failed to gather their meaning. From there we walked again uphill, like the previous day and reached the large castle on top of the hill. Entrance to the premises was free after a security scan, but we decided to visit the buildings and thus bought a combined ticket for a quite hefty price. I found out touring the area that the place was packed with tourists mostly comprised of Italian high school groups which were really annoying and mostly blocking up the ways inside the rooms. We started out with St Vitus Cathedral, a beautiful example of a Gothic building, it is considered the most important and larges in the country. Inside are several tombs of Bohemian kings and some Holy Roman Emperors. The interior holds also some Renaissance and Baroque additions such as altars, statues, decorations etc. Of particular note is the beautiful St Wenceslas Chapel, with impressive 14th-century frescoes. After the church we entered the Royal Palace, comprising several rooms mostly dating to the Gothic period. The Vladislav Hall, an impressive gothic vaulted room, was a particular highlight as well as the famous window where the Defenestration of Prague took place. There were actually two of these instances, both of which cause massive events which had repercussions all over. The first, in 1419, cause the Hussite Wars and the second, in 1618, the Thirty Years´ War. As we visited the interior we pushed, blocked and bother by the large groups touring inside which made the visit quite disappointing. Once out we then entered the next landmark, St George´s Basilica. One of the oldest buildings, in the castle complex, and probably in the city, it was founded in 920 and was modified in the following centuries. The facade, in fact, features a beautiful red Baroque style while the interior still features a plain Romanesque style with a Gothic chapel holding the remains of the saint to which the church is dedicated. The Romanesque style can also be appreciated from the outside when observing the apse and the twin bell towers. Next, to the church we then entered the Rosenberg Palace, containing mostly 18th and 19th century furniture and some Baroque paintings and landscapes. The rooms were nicely decorated including an impressive staircase with frescoes all over. Off then to the next part of the castle, we reached a small street set on the north side between the walls and the main area. It is known as Golden Lane, due to the fact that goldsmiths used to live there during the 17th century. The street is very popular as the writer Kafka used his sister´s house located here to write for a while between 1916 and 1917. Furthermore, all the buildings were colored during the 50s to give them an even more charming look ending up attracting plenty of tourists which now blocked our way through the tight street. After pushing our way through we crossed back through the castle complex and exited through the impressive Matthias Gate, a 17th-century triumphal arch built under the rule of the Holy Roman Emperor Matthias and serving as the main entrance gate to the castle. Once out we descended back towards the old town and river. We had then lunch at Namesti Republiky, or Republic Square, from the stands that were set up there in preparation for the upcoming Easter celebrations. Then Ania and Gina decided to visit the Museum of Communism while I instead headed north to visit another section of the National Gallery hosted inside the Veletržní palác, or Trade Fair Palace, and displaying mostly 19th, 20th, and 21st-century art. There weren´t many tourists as the building is a little far from the city center, and despite the period of the artwork not being my favorite, I still appreciated the pieces particularly those depicting landscapes from the 19th century. Finishing the tour of the museum I then rejoined the girls and after dinner in the city center, we headed back to our hostel feeling quite tired from the long day.
In the morning, after waking up, we checked out and headed to the bus station where we took our ride to the city of Brno, the second largest in the Czech Republic. After getting off the bus we felt quite hungry so decided to look for a place for lunch; Ania had already done her research and found a vegetarian place in the city center. So we headed to the Restaurace Rebio Orli, which served vegetarian and vegan food in a self-service style. The food was good yet a little expensive, but we nonetheless enjoyed it. After lunch we headed to explore the city, we first reached the large Zelny Trh, a nice square used for the weekly vegetable and fruit market. At its center stands the beautiful Baroque Parnas fountain built during the 17th century. It holds statues representing different areas of the world, including Persia, Greece, Babylonia, and Europe standing at its pinnacle. Close by in a more intimate setting, flanked by nice tenement houses and palaces is the Holy Trinity Column, a common feature in most Czech cities and a nice Baroque element from the 18th century. Not far up a slight hill called Petrov, we then reached the Cathedral of St Peter and Paul. This impressive Gothic building from the 14th century has an airy interior and some Baroque altars added centuries after its construction. We then climbed yet another hill, this time larger and steeper, where we eventually reached its top, where the large Spillberk Castle is set. Originally built during the 13th century, it was then turned into a huge Baroque fortress which served as a prison during the Austro-Hungarian rule, and dubbed as the harshest prison in the empire. A small memorial right outside also mentioned the several Carbonari, Italian patriots, who were captured and imprisoned here for years. The view from the hill over the city was worth the climb and we enjoyed it there for a while. We later descended down the hill on the opposite side from the one we came up and reached the Basilica of the Assumption of Our Lady. The Gothic church which dates to the 14th century is part of the larger complex of St Thomas´Abbey, and it is the location where the Abbot Gregor Mendel conducted his famous experiments on pea plants in the monastery garden. The church, as the abbey, was unfortunately closed and thus we reluctantly turned around and headed back towards the city center. After entering the old town again, we then gave a quick visit to the town hall, characterized by a late Gothic tower and an Italian styled courtyard. Below the under, under the arch, is the embalmed carcass of a crocodile. It is actually called the Brno dragon, because the legend says that once a terrible creature used to roam the area, eating the livestock and scaring the citizens until a butcher came up with the idea to fill an animal hide with caustic lime and tricked the beast into eating it and eventually perishing. Even though considered a legend, there is now the carcass of the animal, maybe a later gift by a visiting dignitary, to back up the story. Walking further through the town we then passed the large and central Freedom Square, lined by beautiful art nouveau buildings, and the impressive Plague Column from 1689. Not far on we reached the Church of St James, built around the 14th century in the Gothic style but later remade in the Baroque and then Gothic revival which gives it its present aspect. After we explored the interior with Baroque marble altars, we the descended a series of steps right next to the main portal and reached a small underground room which held the ticket office for the Brno Ossuary. This famous attraction was one of the main reasons for coming to the city; discovered in 2001, it is estimated it contains the remains of 50000 people making it thus the second largest in Europe after the Catacombs in Paris. After buying the ticket we entered the underground cemetery and gasped at the piled amounts of bones piled up to the ceiling. Though having been previously int the catacombs of Paris, Naples, and Rome, it was still impressive to look at but I nonetheless felt a little disappointed at its size as it only consisted of three small rooms, thus counteracting the feat of its size as second largest. This is probably due to the fact most of the bones are still under the church and thus not accessible. After the visit, we came out of the ground once again and then noticed it was time to head back to the bus station and take our final ride to Krakow.