Our couch surfer host Frantisek.
We woke up well rested and hit the town. Our first stop was the tourism office (which took quite a while to find) where we got a map and some info on a free tour that was starting in 15 minutes. We hurried outside, met our guide and stopped to see the magnificent (or not so magnificent) automated astronomical clock. The clock was the thing back then (1338) because of its moving figures that would come alive every hour.
They recently added a trumpeter because the crowds were a little dissapointed with the show.
We started our tour shortly after and it was a pretty awesome next 2.5 hours. The tour took us through old town and the old jewish quarter with tons of information from our very knowledgable Australian (Czeck born) guide.
Church of our lady before tyn.
The old town square.
The old new synagogue (oldest operating synogogue in the Europe).
Clock with hebrew letters (numbers?) that runs backwards
Statue based on a dream of Franz Kafka
One of three remaining powder towers, there used to be thirteen!
The tour was very interesting. Prague is a unique city because it saw almost no damage at all in WWII, our guide told us that this was because it was Hitler's favorite city. She also explained that the Old Jewish quarter also sustained no damage because Hitler wanted it to become the "Museum of an Extinct Race", scary. After the tour ended we wandered off to see the Charles Bridge, the only part of old town that the tour didn't cover.
Built in 1357, finished in 1402.
The statues weren't added until the 18th century.
Tons of people and artists on the bridge, we bought two prints of the city.
St. Jakob's Church, we visited this on our tour but we had to return to it later in the day to go inside because they were holding mass. The main reason that we wanted to return was because of a certain mummified body part that was supposedly hanging from the ceiing. Here is the story we were told:
There was a thief that came into the church disguised as a traveling monk, he sat down in the pews and pretended to pray. He sat there for hours until eventually he was unsupervised at which point he hid himself somewhere in the church until after closing time. Then he emerged from the shadows with intentions to steal a valuable necklace that hung around the neck of the statue of the Madonna. He climbed up the statue and just as he was reaching for the necklace, the statue came to life and grabbed him by the wrist. There he hung until morning when the clergy members found him. They tried to pry the statue's hand, but it was no use, they were forced to call in the executioner. The thief's arm was severed from his body at which point the statue finally resumed its prior position. The thief was sentenced to death, but the church was left with his arm, so they decided that as a warning to all people considering stealing from the church, they would hand his arm from the ceiling of the church to show what happens to those who steal.
AND SO...
There is the arm!
The next day, we walked down to the Jewish Quarter again (it was Saturday when we went on the tour so everything was closed for shabbat) and got a pretty good look at the old Jewish Cemetary.
100,000 people burried in less than a square block.
Then we hiked up yet another hill to Prague castle.
The huge gothic church at the castle.
As if climbing the hill wasn't enough, then we climbed the tower too!
View from the top.
View of the church before we could go in because they were holding sunday mass.
Possibly the closest we will ever get to wearing Lederhosen!
Birds of prey, up close.
Finally got into the church!
Us and every other tourist in Prague!
We had a great (and very exhausting weekend) in Prague. We probably walked 15 miles around the city in two days. Our ride back was squished and kind of terrible, but totally worth it!
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