Prague: The Best Place On Earth

Shea had a lot of time off during Christmas.  He started to get kind of annoying around the flat. So, to save my sanity, we booked a last minute holiday to Prague. Prague is my new favourite destination.  From the moment we found our hotel, I was in love with this place.  It is a very easy city to navigate, the people are wonderful, and the beer was a-plenty!

The Christmas Market was still packed with people and booths. The tree was beautiful among the old buildings. 

Shea with his one liter of beer, making my wine look tiny. 

The Astronomical Clock in Old Town.  We never did see it's glockenspiel-style show of marching apostles and dancing creatures.  

While in Prague, it snowed and it was cold.  Like really cold!  I think Shea and I have lost a bit of our "Canadian-ness" because -7 Degrees Celsius was basically unbearable for us.  We also don't own winter clothes in London so we had to make a few purchases in Prague.

Shea in his new toque. He had not seen snow since early 2013.

Equipped with some winter wool, we were now ready to really explore Prague!

The Charles Bridge was an especially beautiful sight!

One of the towers of the Charles Bridge.

Our next stop was to the Jewish Museum (which should be named the Jewish Museums as it is comprised of six different buildings).  Here we learnt about the horrific history of the Jewish people of Prague from being confined to this small area of the city in the 13th century to the loss 88,000 Jewish residents during WWII.  Interestingly, Hitler had planned to use this centre as a "museum to a vanished race."

This is the Old Jewish Cemetery which dates back to the 15 century when Jews couldn't bury their dead outside the ghetto.  There are 20,000 - 80,000 deceased people in this one block cemetery (I know, that's a pretty poor estimate).  In some places, the dead are stacked 12 bodies deep.  

Another part of the Museum (the Pinkas Synagogue) displays the painted names of 77,297 Czech Jews who died under the Nazi regime.  There is also a display of artwork by Jewish children who were interned at Terezin Nazi camp. Pictures are not permitted in these areas so I "borrowed" some.

From: https://www.wmf.org/project/pinkas-synagogue
Every wall is covered with names.

From: https://aoxford.wordpress.com/2011/06/14/tour-de-jewish-quarter/

From: http://www.tripadvisor.com/LocationPhotoDirectLink-g274707-d4096675-i145633854-Pinkas_Synagogue-Prague_Bohemia.html

The next attraction on the list was Prague Castle. It's more of tiny city that overlooks Prague then the castle of Prague.  Inside the walls are churches, palaces, buildings, shops and alleys.

St. Vitus Cathedral inside Prague Castle on a cold, snowy day.

One of the many stained glass windows of the Cathedral.  Building began in 1344 and was not completed until the 20th century.  As a result, some windows look very modern in comparison to others. 

Prague is down there somewhere...

Another church on Castle grounds.  This is St. George's Basilica and it was about as cold inside the church as it was outside. 

After seeing the big sights, we spent some time wondering the small alleyways and various parks.  Also, we drank beer.

Our hotel had told us about a Lennon Wall. It became a must-see no matter what the temperature and how far it took to get there!

We assume this sign says that bicyclists love to hit pedestrians...

This is why I love Prague! The buildings are so unique and the river banks are wonderful to stroll along. Even in the cold.

Shea posing with Charles Bridge. 

Beer time! Also, my hair was in a toque all day and was still straight. Prague is an amazing city!

We are already planning to visit Prague again in the summer. For anyone planning to visit this amazing city, I recommend staying at Hotel Residence Agnes.  No hotel that we have ever stayed at has come close to the level of service we received while being their guests.  We cannot wait to be back!