Adventure in Olomouc and Prague

6th post on the Europe's trip 'series' - Olomouc and Prague.
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Czech Republic is a young country formed in 1993, when Czechoslovakia peacefully dissolved into its constituent states, the Czech Republic and Slovakia. Although it is a young nation, it has a very rich history.



We were at Olomouc for a stop-over. It was like a dead town. Shops were closed, nobody was on the streets. Very Scary. Haha.. And later I found out that it was a public holiday - Master John Mus Day.



Right in the centre of the main square of Olomouc, the 35 m tall Holy Trinity Column is something you will not miss. This Baroque monument was built in 1716 to 1754, and it is said to be the biggest Baroque sculpture in Central Europe.

The column is dominated by gilded copper sculptures of the Holy Trinity accompanied by the Archangel Gabriel on the top and the Assumption of the Virgin beneath it.



There are six Baroque fountains in Olomouc, five of them depict the Roman gods Jupiter, Mercury, Triton, Neptune, and Hercules, and one depicts Julius Caesar, the legendary founder of the city.



Built in 1724, the Caesar fountain is the biggest fountain in Olomouc. The group was led to believe that if a coin is tossed over the shoulders and lands into the fountain, a wish would be granted. It makes me wonder if our 'tour guide' came out with the story, or if it's really true.



Prague is very different from Olomouc. Being the capital and the largest city of Czech Republic, it's very cosmopolitan. A lot of the infrastructure of the city is also very similar to any other city.



It's not difficult to understand the map of the Metro railways. Doesn't it look like our own East-West Line and North-South Line? :)



Sad to say, the railway stations are not as clean as ours, or those in Hong Kong. Vandalism and litter are a common sight. Some stations look relatively new, while some look quite in the 90s. Haha..

I thought I have entered into some Stars Wars spaceship when I got into the Muzeum metro station. Haha..



Then again, Prague has developed into a popular tourist destination, that even the historic centre has become very commercialised. Shops selling souvenirs are everywhere in the Old Town. Some are interesting, displaying the unique and beautiful crafts of Prague.



Such hanging toys can be seen everywhere, they are like a characteristic of the city. :)



When visiting Prague, one should not give the Charles Bridge a miss. The bridge stretches across the Vltava River, linking the Old Town and the Little Quarter.



The bridge is 516 m long, almost 10 m wide, and is built of sandstone blocks, rumoured to be strengthened by mixing mortar with eggs. Its construction began in 1357 under the auspices of King Charles IV, and was completed in the beginning of 15th century.

The 30 Baroque sculptures on the Gothic bridge form a unique piece of art. These sculptures depict various saints and patron saints venerated in the 1700s.

The statue of St John of Nepomuk is the oldest on the bridge, it was added onto the bridge in 1683. At the base of the statue, the death of the saint was portrayed. In 1393, St. John of Nepomuk was thrown from the bridge into the river where he drowned. The relief has been polished bright, because people believe that touching the saint will bring good luck and to ensure that the visitors will return to the city of Prague.



Sadly, I didn't touch it. :(

Many of the sculptures on the bridge are replicas, the originals are kept in the Lapidarium of the National Museum.

During the day, the bridge is a small marketplace. There are little stalls selling fashion accessories, souvenirs and pieces of art.



There are many artists on the bridge as well, creating beautiful artwork with their talented hands.



The bridge was so crowded with tourists, that it was difficult to maneuver my way from one end of the bridge to the other.



At night, however, it wasn't as bad. Tourists still flocked to the bridge, but it was much spacious. If not for the restoration work that was going on, I could have been able to take a nice picture of the bridge itself.



Nevertheless, the bridge offers a picturesque scenic view of the Prague Castle. The chill wind at night makes it even more.. romantic. Hahah!



The moon was shining bright that night. Beautiful!



The Old Town Square is supposedly one of the finest public spaces, but I was unable to witness that. The time spent in Prague was way too short, the tour guide did not even bring us to the square! Luckily we ventured out at night, to catch a glimpse of the Old Town Square, in the dark.



The Gothic tower of the Old Town Hall is 70 m high, and there's a viewing gallery, which I suppose the view it provides would be very spectacular.

The Astronomical Clock is pretty interesting, while the dial tells the time, it also shows the movement of the sun and moon about the Earth, and hence telling the zodiac cycle with its zodiacal ring. Legend has it saying that when the clock was rebuilt in 1490, the town councillers were anxious to prevent the clockmaker from recreating his masterpiece elsewhere, that they blinded the poor man.

Ouch.

The Calendar, with pictures of Bohemian peasant life symbolise the 12 months of a year, was added to the Clock Tower in 1866, beneath the Astronomical Clock.

When the clock strikes at every hour, there is a procession of 12 Apostles' figures and other sculptures.

A very huge pity that I didn't have a chance to see that.

From the Old Town Square one could also see the Church of Our Lady before Týn, with the solid gold effigy of the Virgin Mary glowing on the central tower.



The Prague Castle is one of the biggest castles in the world. How exactly big, I have no idea. But within the castle walls, there is a palace, 3 churches and a monastery among other buildings. Big? yeah.. :)



The most distinctive landmark in the castle has to be the St Vitus's Cathedral. It is the biggest and most important church in the country, and it houses the tombs of many Bohemian kings.



The front view of the cathedral was breathtaking. The twin west spires and the rose window adds to the grandeur of the Gothic architecture.



And honestly speaking, it was hard to take a full front shot of the cathedral. The building is just too tall, and the open space in front of the cathedral isn't big enough. :(



The chancel within the cathedral is equally magnificent. The soaring height of the vaults, coupled with the net-like crossing pairs of ribs on the ceiling, created a dynamic zigzag pattern down the length of the cathedral.



It was a very beautiful sight to behold, when the sun shines into the cathedral through the intricate stained glass.



I simply love how the sunlight shines into the cathedral. Very holy. Hahah..







Gorgeous, aren't they? :D

There are many statues and side chapels inside the cathedral. It is highly recommended to take a good look at the St Wenceslas Chapel, because it is decorated with over 1300 semi-precious stones and paintings about the life of the Passion of Christ and St Wenceslas. Unfortunately, the chapel was undergoing restoration, so no chance of seeing it either.



The tower on the south of the cathedral used to be the main cathedral entrance, and it is through this portal that the kings entered the cathedral for coronation ceremonies. In present day, it is still being used on special occasions.



It is called the Golden Portal, perhaps because of the golden mosaic of The Last Judgment depicted on it.



The Old Royal Palace, disappointingly, isn't interesting, I felt. The main attraction is the Vladislav Hall, which served royal state purposes, mainly the coronation festivities and banquets, knights' tournaments and markets with artistic and luxurious goods.



Although the halls' rib vaulting is magnificent, it has lost its lustre.

The Golden Lane is a short and narrow street with tiny, brightly painted houses built right into the arches of the castle walls. The little cottages were inhabited by the castle servants, and perhaps goldsmiths, hence the name 'Golden Lane'.

The houses have been converted into shops selling books, Bohemian glass and other interesting souvenirs. I bought my snow ball and my wooden cube puzzle from there. :)



Beyond the castle walls, there is a very beautiful backyard - the St Wenceslas Vineyard.



The vineyard is not just pretty on its own, it offers superb panoramic view of the Old Town.



Blue sky with fluffy white clouds! :)

When one is in the Prague Castle, be sure to catch the ceremony of changing of guards at the castle gates. It will take place every hour. If you plan your time well, you can even catch the fanfare and the flag ceremnoy in the First Courtyard at noon! :)



As for the rest of the city of Prague, I only managed to catch glimpses of it. I suppose I've missed out quite a lot of interesting things.



The Czech cuisine is mainly meat dishes, and their favourite is pork. Their speciality is the knedliky (sliced dumplings). And these dumplings sure look very different from the Chinese dumplings. Haha..



The splendour of the architecture in Prague has left an impression on me, but not the culture. It is a beautiful city, no doubt, but it's complicated as well. People are not as friendly, and everything is very commercialised. Perhaps it was due to the fact that I didn't have enough time to explore the city well enough to understand the culture. Next time, maybe. Shucks, I didn't touch the relief of St John of Nepomuk. :(

Adventure in Krakow

5th post on the Europe trip 'series' - Krakow.
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Krakow was the capital city of Poland prior to Warsaw, a historic town rich in heritage. The city did not suffer as badly as the other Polish cities during World War II, hence many of its buildings escaped from destruction. Despite so, they were in a state of neglect for many years, before being restored to their former splendour.



The Wawel Hill is one of the major attractions in Krakow. It used to be a royal residence, also housing a cathedral within the compound.



The entire Wawel Hill is surrounded by fortifications and towers, constructed from the 15th to the 19th centuries. The three towers are the dominant features of the architectural silhouette of Wawel.



Even with such complex defence system, the Wawel castle fell into dilapidation in the 18th century, only to be restored in the 20th century.



But it still ends up getting vandalised by people's declaration of love.



There's a story to the Wawel Hill. According to an old legend, the people of Krakow were terrorised by a dragon until one day, a brave shoemaker cheated the monster with a sheep stuffed with sulphur. The dragon swallowed the bait, and when the fire heated its gut, the dragon drank so much water from the Vistula River that its body burst.

There is a sculpture of the fire-belching dragon in the Dragon's Den, but unfortunately we didn't have the time to climb down the spiral steps leading down to the cave. But it is regarded as a popular attraction to visitors, especially the young ones.



The arcaded courtyard of the Wawel Royal Castle is of a beautiful Renaissance architecture. I love the fact that it's so spacious and airy, you could even hold a concert to hundreds of people there. :)



The castle is huge, and it displays a mixture of various architectural styles, that I couldn't identify which is which. haha.. But they are still as beautiful anyway. :)



Even if they got covered by the climbing greens. :)



The Krakow Cathedral is very strongly associated with the history of the city and the whole country. It served as the coronation site of nearly all Polish monarchs.



A monument of Pope John Paul II stands right outside of the Cathedral.



The exterior of the Cathedral seems.. towering. :) Although dating from different periods, the distinct parts of the Cathedral make a very unique ensemble.



The bones of an 'ancient creature' hang above the entrance of the Cathedral. According to legend, the end of the world will come when they fall. Hmm.. then how do they got hang up in the first place, if they weren't on the ground?



Our poor tour guide had to double up as the group's photographer when he himself suggested that we took a group photo near the Cathedral, because it was picturesque. Haha..



The Clock Tower is the tallest tower, with four statues of the patron saints of Poland and the Cathedral at each of the four corners. At the side of the tower stands the statue of Tadeusz Kościuszko, the general who lead the Insurrection of 1794 against the Russian army. His ashes rest in the crypt of the Cathedral.



When we were there at the Wawel Hill, there was a crowd, but it was still tolerable. Sometimes I do enjoy having a small crowd around, because there would be interesting observations.



But of course, without the crowd, it would be so much easier to capture the serenity of the place into photos. :)



Out of the Wawel Hill and into the Old Quarter of Krakow, I felt that the streets in the Old Quarter aren't as interesting as those in Warsaw.



Horse carriages are everywhere in the Old Quarter, very similar to the Old Town of Warsaw, and later I realised that horse carriages are a common sight in almost every Old Town of every city.



There are many churches in Krakow, and according to my guide book, there are some 40 churches within the historic centre alone. Wow. The larger churches have impressive interiors in various artistic styles.



The Franciscan Church presents a mix of Neo-Romanesque and Neo-Gothic style, after it has been rebuilt twice. The murals and the stained-glass windows add colours to the interior, something not commonly seen in many churches.



The Church of St Mary is situated in the Market Square. This Gothic basilica was the main parish church of Krakow's burghers. The Bugle-call Tower tips the church at 80 m tall, and on every hour a trumpeter plays the bugle call (hejnał) from this tower.



The hejnał used to serve as a warning against attacks by the Tartars. In the 13th century, a trumpeter was shot in the throat while sounding the alarm before the Mongol attack on the city. The plaintive tune breaks off in mid-stream, to commemorate him. The hejnał now acts as a greeting for visitors. Interesting.

And I was lucky to be able to hear it twice. :)

The church is renowned for its Gothic high altar, the largest in the world, carved by Veit Stoss between 1477 and 1489. The wooden altarpiece is 11 m long and 13 m high, and it's dedicated to the Assumption of the Virgin Mary.



We were lucky to be able to see the alterpiece with the shutters open. When it's closed, the panels show 12 scenes of the life of Jesus and Mary. Magnificent.

St Mary's Square, which is right beside the church, was once a graveyard but has been converted into a common walkway. A fountain with a figure of a student of medieval Karkow as the centrepiece stands in the middle of the walkway.



The most prominent buildings in the Market Square would be the Town Hall Tower and the Cloth Hall.



The Cloth Hall is an interesting building. Old as it may seem from the outside, which the side arcades echo the medieval architecture of Venice, it is lively inside. Originally a market hall, the Cloth Hall houses many stalls selling souvenirs, mostly wooden-carved figurines and other items. Many interesting finds in there. :)

The Market Square is vibrant and active. There was a crowd enjoying a puppet show, and a parade of old cars and interesting characters.



Even as the Market Square quietens down for a few moments, people get to enjoy their time spent at the square.



Dogs know how to enjoy their lazy afternoons too. :)



By the evening, the Market Square oozes a different kind of energy. As shops tend to close by then, pubs and cafes remain open, and a different kind of liveliness begins at the square.



One way of experiencing the different culture, is to eat in McDonald's. :) We all know that McDonald's is everywhere. It's a symbol of globalisation, but it's never really the same. They don't serve beef in Thailand, they don't serve pork in muslim countries.



In Krakow, they do serve prawn fritters. Never seen before in Singapore, or in Asia.



Salivating? Honestly, it was really yummy. :D

As the night falls, it marks the end of my stay in Poland. The country has left a good impression, and the people I've met there were simply great. Poland has never been any of my travel destination plans, but the rich heritage of the country and the beautiful sights have made it a place worth coming back again.