Prague Castle

Our final tour was also a walking tour, over at the Prague Castle. The Castle is a complex, almost a town within a town. There are churches and a monastery, courtyards and streets, the Presidential Palace, and the Cathedral. We went early because getting in to the Cathedral can be a long wait. We still had a wait, but it was better than negotiating the internal space with all the (other) tour groups. That was actually too much for me. Since I have photos.....

The Czech Republic has about 10.5 million citizens. About 4 million of them live in Prague. And the city is very tourist friendly. 

Pretty streetlights. We were in Loreta Square, near the Castle. 

Yes, doors. Of course! 

I really loved these stones, with the dark and light scraped finish. This is the Schwarzenburg Palace, now the National Gallery. 

 One of the municipal buildings, I believe.

 The guards outside the Castle entrance are the most frequently photographed people in the Czech Republic. I was amazed (and appalled) by the behavior of the Chinese tourists.

 Ah, St. Vitus's Cathedral! It is grand.

 And inside is a stained glass window by Alfons Mucha.

The Cathedral has old and new parts. 

Mostly I liked the old. 

This crazy altar is comprised of 2000 kg of silver. 

More really pretty doors, this one with a door within the door. 

This is the old part from the outside. Off to the right are the gargoyles and grotesques and flying buttresses. 

Then there's Golden Lane, a narrow street of tiny houses. These were mostly artist and specialty studios. Now they are museum-like spaces and shops. This is the herbalist's. 

 The view back to Prague center.

 Just a fun painting we passed for a restaurant. Made me think of my earlier studies and life.

These statues were interesting, as the hips rotated.

 We then ascended to Charles Bridge, the oldest bridge in the city. The views were lovely.

And the statues were grand. I wish we'd learned more about them, but the guide kept losing people, including, at the end, the tour director and me. Not so good. 

Some folks went off on their own on the bridge. Others, after we crossed the bridge. A few wanted the bus back to the hotel. I went back to drop off the voice systems I'd been collecting as people departed on free time. I then went off for a bit on my own.

 The order of priority on the streets of Prague? Trams, people, cars.

This was a street food day, yum! First I had a sausage on a roll, with onions and kraut. Unbelievably good, especially when I don't really like sausage. Then, this fabulous potato on a stick. And finally, a trdelník with melted chocolate smeared on the inside. Oh my.  

I did a little shopping, for Czech glass and crystal. And I just wandered, trying to get myself lost and finding new places. Eventually I headed back to the hotel because even though I had more range of motion, my foot and leg were pretty sore. And, we had the final reception that evening, which was lovely. I had plans for breakfast the next morning with the two tour directors who had my group, before their flights. I had invitations to visit several of the participants. And I had promises from many of them to visit me in DC. In fact, the next evening, I was having dinner with participants from the Japan trip two years earlier who were on their own tour, arriving in Prague the next afternoon.