Prague. Beautiful Prague. One of my favorite cities so far. The people were nice, the city was clean, and the food was amazing. They even have a TGI Fridays, a treat I have certainly missed. We stayed in a really clean apartment just outside of town and rode the trolly in to see the sights. One of the main attractions was Prague’s oldest bridge, and one of its most iconic structures, is Charles Bridge, which connects Old Town with Malá Strana. Dating to 1357, it was originally called the Stone Bridge, or Prague Bridge, before being named Charles Bridge in 1870, after its founder King Charles IV. Just off the side of the bridge was a little medieval setup where they made some of the Czechs finest dishes. We chose to get the cabbage, bacon, and potato dish. It was amazing!
Charles Bridge
Flanking the entrance to Charles Bridge on the Vltava’s left bank, the Malá Strana Bridge Towers form an important part of the Lesser Town’s landscape. The towers were built about 200 years apart, and they served quite different purposes. Today, both are accessible to the public, and their uppermost levels offer good views of Charles Bridge and Malá Strana.
Statues on the Charles Bridge. There were so many different ones all down each side of the bridge. Amazing detail.
Popular Czech dish.
Then came the most gorgeous Church I have ever seen. It was called "Knights of the Cross". Inside had the most beautiful detailed sculptures and paintings.
Right around the corner from that was the iconic John Lennon wall. "After his murder on 8 December 1980 John Lennon became a pacifist hero for many young Czechs. An image of Lennon was painted on a wall in a secluded square opposite the French Embassy (there is a niche on the wall that looks like a tombstone), along with political graffiti and Beatles lyrics.Despite repeated coats of whitewash, the secret police never managed to keep it clean for long, and the Lennon Wall became a political focus for Prague youth (most Western pop music was banned by the communists, and some Czech musicians were even jailed for playing it).Post-1989 weathering and lightweight graffiti ate away at the political messages and images, until little remained of Lennon but his eyes, but visiting tourists began making their own contributions. The wall is the property of the Knights of Malta, and they have repainted it several times, but it soon gets covered with more Lennon images, peace messages and inconsequential tourist graffiti. In recent years the Knights have bowed to the inevitable and now don’t bother to whitewash it any more."
After sightseeing, we went to eat dinner at TGI and then hopped on the trolly back to the apartment. The view at night was even more gorgeous with everything lit up. It truly was one of the best trips we have had here. Adding this to the list of places I'd like to see again!
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