Prague: Lesser Town, the Castle, and Old Town

Prague is not just one city. Like New York City with its diverse five boroughs, each with its own flavor, Prague is similar. The Zizkov neighborhood, where our hotel was located, is one place worthy of a day or two's visit (click here for my updated post about Zizkov).

Another neighborhood is the "Lesser Town"; it sits down the hill from the Castle and citizens there had noble privileges. Vicki and I were "accidental tourists" in Lesser Town; we were looking for the alley that led to the Castle. Little did we realize that Lesser Town is worthy of a day's adventures.

 

We got lost on our way to the Castle, but what a wonderful place to get lost. This neighborhood has plenty of restaurants; see their menu's posted at the entrance door (photo below)? Most restaurants post their menu's outside because people want to know before they come inside and sit down at a table.

Not certain, but I think this was the Opera House (below) in the plaza area . . .

 

The details are everywhere.

Beethoven slept here February 1796 (photo below).

Known as the Beethoven Palace today, this place was frequented by artists and musicians back in the 1700s.

Many cute cafe's and restaurants with outdoor patio's on the cobblestone sidewalks.

Beautifully decorated shops galore in wonderful old buildings, selling chocolate and soap and coffee and ice cream . . .

It rained a bit so we dashed into a café for coffee and tea (below photo). That's Vicki sitting at the table. Funny thing about this place, while we were sipping our hot drinks, a group of about 30 tourists with umbrellas and a guide stopped in front of the entrance; while the guide talked, everyone was gawking at us and this restaurant. Vicki and I turned to each other quizzically like "is this place famous for something?" We still don't know!

We eventually find the alley up the hill to the Castle's gate.

Before we get to the Castle, we tour "Golden Lane" where palace guards and goldsmiths lived in small houses. In the early 1900s, many artists and writers lived here (photo below). One house is a museum of medieval armory. But today, the little houses are mostly souvenir shops.

Where shall I begin in describing the "Prague Castle" - it's a huge complex of four palaces, five churches, four towers, several gardens and much more. One day isn't enough to explore it all.

Another wedding (photo above)!

Dining hall (photo below) and also the place where a king was coronated.

Prague is known as "City of 1,000 Spirals".

Saint Vitus Cathedral below . . .

 This was another palace (below); we didn't go inside.

Photo below is St. George's Basilica which is the oldest surviving church building in the Palace's complex; today it houses Bohemian artwork and serves as a concert hall. 

As we walk down the hill, there's a gate entrance to the famous "Charles Bridge" finished in the 15th Century that crosses the Vltava River.

The view of this 16-arched bridge is more impressive far away than up close (photo below). See all the pedestrian tourists on the Charles Bridge? I wonder what percentage of them know the bridge's 30 Baroque-style statues are replicas of the original ones erected in the 1700s?

The eastern gate of the bridge . . . far left on photo above, and another view in photo below at a wharf-side restaurant.

Detail on the gate . . .

We were surprised while standing near this gate, a wedding was about to begin . . .

Eventually we made our way to Old Town. It's a favorite place in Europe for tourists, but oddly the crowds didn't bother me at all. Old Town and the nearby Jewish Quarter are great places to get lost.

Many details to gawk at . . . .

The only requirements to enjoy Prague, good walking shoes and a tolerance for smokers. Inside a restaurant is no-smoking, but outside was much more interesting. We'd try to sit upwind from smokers and remove ashtrays on empty tables next to us. Enjoyed a long meal at Fat Cat. Merlin (stout beer) is the best!

On our last morning at Prague, we boarded a bus for Vienna, Austria. When will you realize, Vienna waits for you?  You can get what you want or you can just get old . . . I've been wishfully singing Billy Joel's song for years!

Vienna is a four and one-half hour bus ride which leaves Prague's bus station fairly frequently.

And again, I don't recall a border check between The Czech Republic and Austria. Busses (Flix and RegioJet) are great and cheap ways to get around Europe. Bus stations are usually centrally located in cities and most busses include Wi-Fi and a bathroom onboard.

Prague: It's All in the Astonishing Details

Prague is a city to love, and for someone who hates cities, this is an amazing admission.



Everything about Prague . . .



. . . is in the astonishing details . . .



. . . astonishing details everywhere . . .



. . . one astonishing detail after another.



Three days of walking around Prague made me forget the world's problems. I was too awe-struck by this city.



I forgot technology.



I felt comfortably and happily cosmopolitan here.



I'm not sure why Praha (Czech spelling) is spelled Prague (English spelling). I asked two locals (second local verified the first local) how to pronounce Prague and they pronounce it "Pra Ha" and the R is rolled like a French word.



No need for annoying taxi's in the Czech Republic's capital city.



Plenty of quiet electric trams and a fantastic subway system.



We took the subway each day.



Very clean and modern subway, too.

My sister Vicki is fortunately a systematic organizer. From our hotel, we'd start our morning at the Farmers' Market for fruits and pretzels to bring with us for the day.

Then to the nearest subway station, explore all day and take the subway back to the hotel, and if the Farmers' Market was still open, stop there again. Very cheap produce, too, and deliciously ripe!



In just three days, we saw all the major attractions. But there's more to see than just the major attractions. Each morning and evening, on our walks to/from our hotel and the subway station, we strolled through several streets of old apartment buildings in the Zizkov neighborhood.



There's a lot of pride in this neighborhood; it's not a touristy neighborhood either. In fact, Wikipedia describes this neighborhood as a bit of a bad boy; residents calling their neighborhood the "Free Republic of Zizkov".



We saw local folks at the neighborhood pubs, and walking their dogs on the streets.



Vicki and I would walk down different streets to/from the subway station each day just to gawk at the many wonderful old buildings.



In fact, there's an unofficial claim that this Zizkov neighborhood has the highest number of pubs per capita of any city district in Europe, and looking back (after visiting another two dozen or so cities in Europe), this claim is probably true.



Click here for a thorough explanation of this neighborhood. I highly recommend a stay here rather than in the more pricey Old Town neighborhood.




In the early 1900s, the neighborhood was known as the "Bohemian" part of Prague because of its artists and writers and left-wing political supporters.



Our hotel is the green building (below); our room is on the top floor, open window.



I suspect, like our hotel, none of these buildings have air conditioning. Even though it was August 2018, the hottest month of the year, the heat wasn't unbearable although it did get a bit too warm on the top floor at night.



People in Europe seem to dislike air conditioning.

One place we visited was the Strahov Monastery. It sits high up on a hill on the other side of the Vltava River.

Inside is interesting . . . a center courtyard is 4-sided by magnificent hallways.



The huge dining hall has a view of the gardens in the courtyard.



The fresco painted on the dining hall's very long and wide ceiling is called "Heavenly Banquet of the Just with Christ as the Host" (symbolism for Heaven). Each person (perhaps two-hundred?) is depicted differently; there's no repetition of any figure or human. Below photo is just a tiny portion of the whole.



The best part of the monastery is the restaurant on the patio.



It overlooks Old Town, the Castle, and Lesser Town.



Merlin time for me, their premium black stout beer. Vicki agrees it's an acquired taste.



We had a great long lunch. No one hurried us, so we enjoyed that moment, knowing this view and sisterly company would be a wonderful memory for the rest of our lives.

Coming up next, major attractions of Praha.