Sights and Activities
Below are the places we saw and activities completed while visiting Czech Republic:
Prague
- Prague Castle: we roamed around the grounds of the largest ancient castle in the world admiring all the different type of buildings, our favorite was St. Wenceslas Chapel in St. Vitus Cathedral. The castle has been the seat of power for kings of Bohemia, Holy Roman emperors, presidents of Czechoslovakia, and now the president of the Czech Republic.
Staromestske nam (Old Town Square): dominated by the Gothic steeples of Týn Church (built in 1365), Saint Nicholas Church (built in the 1730s), and the clock tower of the Old Town Hall (built in 1410). At the square’s center is the Jan Hus Monument, erected in 1915 on the 500th anniversary of the religious reformer’s execution. Hus was an early critic of the doctrines of the Catholic Church and an inspiration for the later development of the Protestant movement.
St. Nicholas Church: built in 1704 to 1755, it is one of the city’s greatest baroque buildings.
Charles Bridge: built in 1357 and graced by 30 statues dating from the 18th century.
Old-New Synagogue: this is one of Europe’s oldest active synagogues. It was one of Prague’s first gothic buildings and was completed in 1270.
- Municipal House: this art nouveau style building is located in the center of the city. From 1383 to 1485 it housed the King of Bohemia and after abandoned. It is now used as a concert hall, ballroom, civic building, and other public uses.
- Wenceslas Square: a wide, sloping avenue is lined with shops, banks, restaurants, and dominated by a statue of St Wenceslas on horseback.
- New Town Hall: it is the administrative center of Prague’s New Town Quarter. In 1419, it was the site of the first of the three defenestrations of Prague, in which a group of protestors stormed the town hall and threw out a judge and 13 member of town council. This was a result of discontent at the direction the Church was headed.
- National Theater: known as the alma mater of Czech opera, today it consists of three artistic ensembles: opera, ballet, and drama.
- Church of Our Lady of Victorious: home to the famous Child Jesus statue called the Infant Jesus of Prague.
