3 days in Prague: the Prague castle

Outside of the castles there are the guards that make every day the ceremony of the change at 12. Anyway, since I do not like this kind of things – I did something a bit crazy and funny – my personal psychological support to to the guard.

The castle is a huge complex and once crossed the gate dedicated to the empress Mary Theresa, you find the monument arch dedicated to the emperor Matthew, built in 1614.

Crossed also this gate you enter into the second courtyard where you find the Prague Castle Picture Gallery (Obrazarna Prazskeho hradu) on your left side and a Baroque fountain in the middle.

There is a second door that takes to the royal garden and to the Belvedere but we will explore later. Here you can see the stunning St. Vitus Cathedral.

Going back to the main route, you must bend up to admire the stunning St Vitus Cathedral (Katedraly Svaty Vita).

As any other part of the castle, also the cathedral was built in different moments and not during a unique period. The construction started in the 10th Century and the last modifications were realized in the 20th Century. The definitive Gothic structure substituted the previous Romanesque one in 1344, thanks to the design of Mathieu d\’Arras.

The authentic gem of this cathedral, besides the two towers and the central tower – 99 meters high – is the chorus with its glass windows.

The impressive archs give the entire structure an incredible lightness sensation and the stained glass windows make the interior absolutely stunning. This was realized by Mathieu d\’Arras and also the Bohemian Parler later.

Do not miss also the St. Wenceslaus chapel. Unfortunately, when I visited this stunning cathedral, there was no portable battery, so my camera was completely gone and therefore I must add pics from internet to complete this travel along the Prague castle.

Immediately close to the Cathedral, there is also another important building: the Old Royal Palace ( Stary kralovsky palac). 

Source: http://www.wikipedia.com

Even rhe old royal palace followed the destiny of the other buildings: a construction started in an epoque and modified in the later centuries. It became the headquarters of the Bohemian dukes and its main attraction is for sure the big hall of Vladislav II, 62 meters long and 16 meters wide.

Source: http://www.panoramio.com

Once you leave the Old Royal Palace another interesting place is for sure the Powder Tower (Prazna vez). It is also called Miluka: it is approximately 20 meters high and it was the place of the chemical lab of Ruldolph II, re-created now for touristic purposes. It was also a powder warehouse and also an artillery production site.

Source: http://www.praguecityline.com

Behind St. Vitus Cathedral and the Powder Tower, you find the St. George complex, in particular St. George Basilica (Bazilika Svaty Jiri). It was the oldest Bohemian monastery, built in 975 and as the other buildings renovated, modified and enlarged during the 17th Century. 

Source: http://www.wikipedia.org

One of the best attractions of the Prague Castle is for sure the Golden Lane (Zlata Ulicka). If you have seen so far monumental buildings and stunning monumentals and masterpieces, you cannot be not impressed by this little lane on the southern corner of the large Prague Castle. It seems to be a sort of fairytale place, created by a series of little houses.

Source: http://www.grandhotelpraha.cz

The legend tells that Rudolph II of Ausburg built these houses for his alchemists in order to find the philosopher’s stone and produce gold. The story told instead that some merchants and gold smiths opened their laboratory and then some houses were opened to host the soldiers of the castle.

Source: http://www.cindyknoke.com

They seem to be the Smurfs’ houses, even inside 🙂 At the number 22, it was told that the writer Franz Kafka lived here in 1917 to write here one of his works.

Source: http://www.wikipedia.org

At the end of the castle you find the Bastion Daliborka, built at the end of the 15th Century as prison until 1781. It takes the name from its first prisoner, Dalibor from Kozojedy, whose legend tells that he was used to play his violin and the inhabitants were enchanted to listen to it. When he stopped playing his music, it was clear he was executed.

Source: http://www.panoramio.com

There is still a part to explore: do you remember that on the northern side there was a small door that took to some gardens? You need to cross this door first and then the Powder Bridge (Prasny most).

Here you access to the Royal Gardens, developed in parallel to the Prague Castle. They were built as entertainment, relaxation and to keep rare vegetation species. In particular, besides a light walk along these gardens, you should not miss the Belvedere of Queen Anna ( Letohradek kravovny Anny). It is considered the best Renaissance building in Prague and it was a gift from the emperor to his wife and built by the Italian architect Paolo della Stella.

Of course there is a nice panorama of Prague.

Map: you find the map in the post 3 days in Prague: the itinerary and travel guide

Travel tips:

• Take into accout you could spend an entire afternoon or even a day if you decide to visit all the attractions.