part 2: bohemian rhapsody

It's not hard to love Prague and its numerous pedestrian squares, street-side cafes, and cathedrals. And from the number of tourists visiting in mid-June, our sentiments of the Czech capital are equivocal. We spent 72-hour in Prague exploring the beautiful city on foot and wearing out our running shoes in the process (and spending kornuas on yummy cakes, pastries, and gelatos).




The River Vtlava cuts the city into two and you can take your pick from the number of bridges to cross. The pedestrian-only Charles Bridge is the most famous. Lined with statues and street vendors on either side and with postcard-worthy views of the Castle, it is also the most crowded; we spent time dogding the infinite camera rays.




Another tourist attraction is the Astronomical Clock. It is not hard to miss the gaggle of people hovered by the clock tower for its hourly show. On the hour, like clockwork (sorry, I just had to), a skeleton figure rang the bell while marionettes moved their wooden heads and spun around.


Many parks dot the capital. We spent an afternoon in the largest one to hide under shady trees from the intense sun. We did go up a tower in the park for panoramic views of the city. It was very neat to see the terracotta-coloured roof tops with dramatic church spires poking out to the sky.



We spent a good part of another day at the Prague Castle visiting the different castle wings, cathedrals, galleries, and gardens.



We wanted to go to one of the many concerts advertised daily. I had only one specific criterion - the concert had to consist of Czech composers. So we got tickets to the National Symphony to hear works by Smetana and Dvorak on the Sunday night we were there -spectacular!




More pictures here and a strong recommendation to others to visit Prague!