Prague Castle and the Mala Strana (Lesser Town)

St Vitus Cathedral, Prague, Czech Republic

On our first full day in Prague, we were up early to get to the Prague castle. We took the tram 22 from Malostranka and got off at the castle stop. There was a bit of a line up to get tickets but it moved along quickly enough. We got the shorter tour which included St. Vitus Cathedral, Old Royal Palace, St. George's Basilica, Golden Lane with Daliborka Tower and got an audio guide.

I cannot even begin to describe St Vitus Cathedral. There are simply no words for its grandeur. In my opinion, this cathedral is as grand as St. Peter’s. It was just SO BEAUTIFUL. But then again, I am partial to Gothic architecture (inside, though, you will see other styles such as Baroque and Renaissance). This church immediately confirmed to me why Prague should be called the city of a hundred spires. Built over 600 years it was where religious services and coronations took place. It also houses the Baroque silver tomb of St John of Nepomuk, the Chapel of St Wenceslas, and the Art Nouveau stained glass by Alfons Mucha, among many treasures. This was one cathedral among the many beautiful ones we saw in our trip that we really explored.

We then breezed through the Old Royal Palace and St. George’s Basilica to spend more time at the Golden Lane. I loved walking along the tiny houses lining the walls of the castle, giving us a glimpse of living during the medieval times. Famous writer Franz Kafka once lived on house 22. 

Golden lane, Prague castle area, Prague, Czech Republic

We then checked out the various armors and torture devices on display above the houses before looking at the prisons of the Daliborka Tower.

Daliborka tower, Prague castle, Prague, Czech Republic

The rest of the day, we took a hop on hop off ride using the Tram 22 with our day pass. We went first to the Strahov Monastery to catch some nice views and get some beer at the Klášterní pivovar Strahov (a 17^th century brewery which was now a craft-brewery, Sv Norbert).

view from Strahov Monastery grounds, Prague, Czech Republic

Strahov Brewery, Prague, Czech Republic

 Taking the tram again, we went to the Lesser Town to the Church of our Lady Victorious, the home of the statue of the Infant Jesus of Prague. After saying our prayers, we went to the exhibit upstairs to view the various robes from all over the world. We also went to the store selling religious articles just beside the church.

Church of our Lady Victorious, Prague, Czech Republic

We had a couple of other stops—one for trdelnik (like the Hungarian 

kürtőskalács) which was pretty much like the Hungarian version and yummily clad in cinnamon and sugar! With all that walking, we justified a second dessert and had another stop for ice cream. We hopped off at Újezd for some Angelato ice cream. We had a scoop of coffee gelato and it was delicious. I can see why it would be one of the best ice cream places in Prague.

The last stop we did for the day was at the base of Petřín Park where we saw the Memorial to the Victims of Communism. We walked further along to take the funicular to the top of Petřín Hill. 

funicular at Petrin, Prague, Czech Republic

At the summit, there are gardens, an observatory and the tower. A short walk from there and it was the Strahov monastery. We had made it around. So we went back down via the funicular and just walked through Josefov (Jewish Quarter), on to Charles Bridge to Old Town. As if we had not yet been overwhelmed with the amazing structures we saw this day, we encounter yet another beauty. The Charles bridge was the most beautiful we have seen. It crosses the Vlatava river and its construction began in the 1300s. I didn’t count but there are supposedly 30 statues along the bridge. It was not as crowded as it would have been in the morning so we took a nice stroll.

Charles bridge, Prague, Czech Republic

It was a lot to do in a day and it would be great to take things at a slower pace, but it can be done—10,000 steps target—checked and almost tripled!