Old Town Square, Prague #WanderfulWednesday

Four years back my friend K, came back from Europe and described Prague as “land of fairytales”. Immediately, a small desire silently crawled into a corner of my heart to visit Prague one day. At that point, I was not sure ‘how or when’, but the desire silently just stayed. In 2017 when I got an opportunity to visit Budapest, I immediately grabbed it and added Prague to my itinerary. Glad that I did!

On a cold windy dawn, I disembarked from Eurorail and got ‘lost in translation’ in Prague station. Everything was written in Czech and not a single soul nearby understood English. It took us more than 45 minutes just to figure out the exit from the railway platform to the bus stop. The First Morning in Prague was a memorable experience.

I stayed near the Náměstí Republiky subway station, bang opposite to the Palladium Mall (yes, Like Mumbai, Prague also has Palladium Mall). My hostel was quite near to the main attractions of Prague. I could walk down to the Old Town Square or Staroměstské náměstí, Charles Bridge and Wenceslas Square. Even the Prague castle was not very far.

Old Town Square in Prague is a place full of life. I used to spend a long time observing people and the amazing gothic architecture that adorn the Old Town Square. If you are also fond of medieval history and architecture then Prague’s Old Town Square is the place to be.

Church of Our Lady before Tyn

This is the Church of Our Lady before Tyn. This Gothic structure is the most prominent structure of Old Town Square. It is popularly believed that the logo of Disney was inspired by this structure.

The Old Town Square is a place throbbing with people and energy. It is usually crowded throughout the day and night. Numerous street performances can be seen here. The periphery of the square is full of nice and cosy cafeterias where you can sit for long hours and just chill.

 

Prague astronomical clock or Prague orloj  is a medieval astronomical clock

During my visit, Prague Orloj was undergoing renovation and was thus deactivated. It was unfortunate that I couldn’t see it in its full glory.

 

Legend has it that the clockmaker Hanuš was blinded on the order of the Prague Councillors so that he could not repeat his work; in turn, he disabled the clock, and no one was able to repair it for the next hundred years.

The Church of Saint Nicholas (Czech: Kostel svatého Mikuláše) is a Late-Gothic and Baroque church in the Old Town of Prague

Each time I look at the images of St. Nicholas Church I am tempted to compare it with the castle where Cinderella went dancing. The horse carriage outside the church is as if waiting for her to come out of the castle. I realised why my friend K had compared Prague to fairyland.What do you think??

Martyr’s Memorial

The square’s centre is home to a statue of religious reformer Jan Hus, who for his beliefs was burned at the stake in Constance. This led to the Hussite Wars. The statue known as the Jan Hus Memorial was erected on July 6, 1915, to mark the 500th anniversary of his death. In front of the Old Town Hall is also a memorial to martyrs beheaded on that spot during the Old Town Square execution.

My hostel overlooked a beautiful flea market selling all kinds of local stuff. We tasted local wine and candies in that market. Czech people are not as friendly as the Hungarians yet they are cordial.

Local Candies

Museum

Here are few more photos from the periphery of Old Town Square

The Powder Tower or Powder Gate (Czech: Prašná brána) is a Gothic tower in Prague, It is one of the original city gates. It separates the Old Town from the New Town.

The gate was used to store gunpowder in the 17th century, hence the name Powder Tower or Powder Gate.

 

 

 

This hotel in Náměstí Republiky is right next to the Powder Tower. This is also the meeting point for the walking tour of Old Town Square

Narrow Lanes leading to the Old Town Square. The lanes of Prague are similar to Benaras and there is a high possibility of getting lost.

Modern architecture amidst the Gothic ones.

 

Old Town Square Skyline

This post is part of ‘Wanderful Wednesday Travelogues’. If you have a travel story to share do link up. Link your post to this post and just leave a comment with your post link and I will get back to you.

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