Prague, Fairytale City

My wife and I didn’t know what we expected, but our visit to Prague was better! Our taxi was pre-booked, and we found our driver without a problem – maybe the large sign she held up with our name on it helped. The driver was a young mother, who was trying to keep herself and small daughter afloat, in a city with high unemployment.

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She chatted to us in broken English and gave a few tips about going around the city, as we progressed from the airport, through the flat countryside, and into the suburban industrial outskirts. I had a mental picture of a large village built on two riverbanks. Often, historic towns and cities have an ‘old town’ occupying no more than a small central area, so interest stops as soon as you have wandered a few streets. But Prague is different – the entire city around the two banks is crammed with delightful architecture and sites. We drove from the airport on a cloudy but crisp, dry Tuesday afternoon. It seems that every Praguean driver has his foot glued to the pedal… throughout our stay we did not dare cross a road until the green light flashed – even police drove at breakneck speed through the city! Thankfully, the older narrow streets are natural speed restrictors. The streets in the whole of the central part (Centrum) and every road radiating from it for miles, are made up of cobbles. Some fairly large and oblong, and the others smaller and square, each section with its own pattern… I must have found at least 20 different patterns. When we later visited the palace across the river, we saw a man carrying a peculiar metal bar with an end that resembled a square trowel, and a large hammer. He was scrutinising the pavements (which were also made up of cobbles), digging out loose cobble stones, repacking their base with sand, and banging them back in again. As we travelled over the bridge and up the hill, we saw magnificent buildings everywhere with enough statues to cover the moon! Then, to my left, I recognised a church I had seen a number of times in war films, the orthodox cathedral of Saints Cyril and Methodius. Sure enough – there were the bullet marks around a narrow slit window in the lower wall, like the ones in bunkers, that gave a weak light to the basement. Since the war, a small jar containing flowers has been kept on one of the window sills, to commemorate what happened. Czech resistance fighters, then with the RAF, had killed the ‘butcher of Prague’, Richard Heydrich, who developed the idea of death camps as a solution to Prague’s ‘storage problem’. They were finally chased down and cornered in this church. They ran into the basement and a battle began. The Germans finally hosed-in hundreds of gallons of water through the slit windows, to flush out their enemy, but the brave Czechs shot themselves rather than get caught for killing the Nazi leader. It was a very strange and disturbing feeling, to stand outside the slit window, knowing that these brave men gave their lives to be rid of the same abominable fascism that modern leaders are using against their own people throughout the western world, to form the same kind of totalitarian regime dreamt of by Hitler and his disgusting cronies. I literally shivered, especially as my own commando father had fought the same evil men, was shot twice, and was then bombed back out of the war. Very soon we were at our hotel, a modern building. As soon as we unpacked we went out, muffled up in thick jackets, several layers of clothing, and hats. We missed heavy snowfalls by a few days, and the snow piles still stood high and pristine white on street corners. The whole place looked as if it had been preserved in time as an old film set. It was about 4 degrees Celsius all through our stay, but stayed mainly bright and crisp. Well, it was late January! When we travel, in Britain or abroad, we are in the habit of always looking upwards. The lower parts of buildings are often ruined by modern fronts; what is on top is usually priceless and wonderful. But, in Prague, the entire building is lovely. Most are Baroque, with varying degrees of ornamentation. Many are pastel-coloured, and all are magnificent. I have never seen so many amazing architectural marvels in one place… street after street is equally marvellous, with a huge variety of buildings, all monumental. The city reflects its former wealth and, unlike many conurbations, doesn’t destroy its own heritage by erecting modern atrocities. Even doorways are adorned with statues. And massive carved wooden doors lead to mysterious passages and hidden courtyards, secrets within secrets. We didn’t go far on the first day because it was getting dark. We managed not to get knocked down by the trams ding-dinging a warning. Just as well – they hurtled along as fast as the cars! That night we decided to eat dinner at the hotel, and settled for local cuisine and a local Bohemian wine (Bohemia is the old name for Czechoslovakia). Both were superb and, like all the other meals we had after that in the city, it was very cheap. (We returned home having spent only half of our travel money). Tired, we watched TV for a while: French, Czech, or Italian, we just watched the pictures! The only other channels were news – CNN and Sky. Next morning we had a buffet breakfast and started out, complete with all my cameras. My family know me as the one who slows everything down because I keep stopping to take photos, even when I’m not writing a travel article. So, I promised my long-suffering wife, Diane, I would restrict my intake! (Well, I did try). We retraced our route back down the hill, until we came to the river. I was using a map given to me by the taxi driver. It was not until much later that we discovered it was not quite accurate. And, no name on it was recognisable! At the river we turned upwards (north on the map) and walked slowly on the lower promenade. To our right were magnificent buildings, with gleaming gold domes and intricate roofs. To our left were barges and water birds. Under our feet, the Prague cobbles. It was relaxing and a great way to ease ourselves into the city. We did this until just before we reached the famed Charles Bridge, with its plethora of religious statues, and climbed back up to street level. We watched boatmen cleaning the riverside and went on to a corner where we took photos. Then, onwards to the bridge itself. It was guarded by an old gatehouse covered with brilliant colour, statues and decorated pieces. That was when we struck the flow of tourists. We started our walk over the bridge, so that we could reach the huge palace at the top of the hill. Trams go there, but we always walk around a destination, because it is the only way to get the ‘feel’ of a place and to hear the language. It seemed that almost every person would walk up to one or other of the statues and touch them. The statues were all of saints, except for one with a group of three, with Christ in the centre on a cross. One saint’s statue near it had two copper plaques with medieval scenes. Each plaque had a very shiny part where thousands of religious hands have kept them polished. Street vendors were on either side of the bridge walkway, selling paintings, trinkets and tourist items, but none of them harassed visitors. And there were none of those pesky time-share agents. There were literally only one or two beggars, but these adopted a very servile posture – on their knees, with head down to the floor and hands outstretched. Though this servility was a disturbing sight, the saddest part is that we have been conditioned to seeing too many fraudulent immigrant and other ‘beggars’ in UK streets. Over on the palace side and we were immediately into a very old part of the city. It seems that Prague, like so many other cities, comprises several smaller, former independent towns, all joined together over time. On the immediate left just before coming off the bridge, is a beautiful old square, with multi-coloured houses in fairly plain Baroque style. There was a short tree-lined avenue in the middle. To the right of the bridge was a similar sight, but instead of a road there was a canal leading from the river. We carried on through the gate-house to more cobbled streets and differently sized houses and shops, smaller than in the Cenrum, all lovely. Eating places abound and most sell typical Czech fare. Up the hill, and a wide turning right led to the palace… or, as we discovered, several palaces forming one huge palace site. Only we did not realise it led to the palaces until later. We continued up the steep hill, and, as is my quirk, I took photos of the cobbles on street and pavement. We continued upwards and could see all of Prague to our left, and some woodland. On top, we found more old squares. To the left was the ‘aristocratic quarter’. More Baroque buildings vied for eye attention and we moved back down the hill again on a parallel road. A large group of soldiers walked past, their boots clattering loudly on the cobbles, and we eventually realised they came from a huge barracks, housed in another old building with amazing stonework, carved to catch sunlight and show shadows. In front is a red coloured church with intricate bits and pieces. Everything so far was like a scene from Disney! Back to the hill-road again and we found another square, this time lined with buildings that seemed to have been transferred from a panoramic painting of Venice by Canaletto! Our jaws dropped and could only say ‘Wow!’ The spacious square has several old palaces under repair, other fine buildings, a central monument on the green, and a wonderful chandelier-style street lamp with green patina. At the other end we saw the pristine palace used by the President, partly open to the public. Outside the palace were soldiers on ceremonial guard duty. They looked frozen, even though the guard is changed every hour in such cold weather. At least they wore furry hats! By this time we were hungry, so we tried to find a suitable eatery. A visit to the palace would have to wait until next day. A very wide street curved downwards, back to the hill we climbed up earlier. On the corner was a typical Prague building with a pre-war pub-restaurant. Diane was frozen so we needed to warm up. We had hot wine as we waited for our lunch (we wanted to eat out mid-day rather than eat heavily in the evening). Diane had a Czech chicken dish with far too much food on it, and I had a Czech goulash with potatoes and a deliciously rich gravy. Followed by latte, and we were fed and warmed! We returned to Charles Bridge by following the hill back down again. Along Charles Bridge, and then we crossed the road in front of the gate-house. We were immediately in the ‘Old Town’, with narrow streets and ancient buildings. There are many jewelry shops selling the national stones, garnets. Others sell Bohemian glass, which must be some of the most spectacular we have ever seen. We then came to the old-town square, with a monumental statue of the reformer, Huss, ancient church tower with amazing clock, and wonderfully-spired church opposite. It all looked like something made of pastel cake icing, or a Disney scene, with a double ‘wow’ factor! From here we went a short way into the ‘Jewish quarter’. Not too far because light was fading already. At the end of the street leading from the Old Square, we found a synagogue on the left. Next to it was a fine old building glistening with gold decorations, a ‘Jewish restaurant’. It was the back wall of the synagogue that drew our attention. The building had a small arch-topped wooden door half-way up the wall. Leading to it was a metal ladder, made up of individual steel rungs set into the stone-work, but not reaching the bottom. That remains a mystery! Back up the same street to the Old Square and we decided, given the growing cold and fading light, to return slowly to our hotel, to get warm and maybe have a small snack. That was where I made a big mistake. The taxi-driver-map was mostly not needed up to that point. But, foolishly, I used it to get back to the hotel. I used it because the lettering was bigger than on my own map. What a disaster. I didn’t realise the taxi-driver-map was not accurate, but was, in many parts, fantasised and schematic. And, as we found, smaller streets simply were not there! I chose a narrow street going off the Old Square, confident in the map. The next street, however, could not be found on the map. Okay – just carry on in the same direction and find the next street sign. Now, as anyone knows, to use a street map successfully, you need two things: the name of the street and the direction it is going in. But, my map often showed neither! And, artistic licence meant that streets that should be curved were shown straight, and vice versa. Other streets showed large squares, but in actuality there were none. And so we wandered along at least in the ‘right’ direction… so we thought. The English names on the map didn’t help, either, because they didn’t correspond to anything Czech we found on street signs! We kept going, but I just could not find any of the streets marked on my map! As we progressed it got dark and very cold. And the buildings were large but no longer Baroque. Lighting became sparse. We saw very few people, but thought that though we were lost, we were at least heading towards the correct area. Eventually, we simply had to stop and ask the way. Our taxi-driver told us that English was taught as a second language in all schools. Unfortunately, the only person we saw to stop, was a bit older and didn’t speak English. I showed him the map and asked “Where are we?” He answered in rapid-fire Czech. He obviously did not understand what I said, so I threw out my arms, turned, and then pointed down to the ground and shrugged. I said “Eh?” and then pointed to the map. It did the trick and he gazed at the map in the light of a shop window. He looked puzzled and then we found out why. The man suddenly smiled and said “Ah!” in triumph. He pointed to the map and said something like “You are here!” (I think). We were at a point off the map, and the man only just saw the name of the street we were in. He knew we had come the wrong way and said “Centrum”, pointing back the way we had come. I thanked him and he went on his way. I think he must have joined his fellows, watching two stupid foreigners on CCTV getting lost in Prague! I looked again at the map and saw we had been travelling north instead of south! We were out in the suburbs heading for countryside, and were extremely cold and lost! So we tried to retrace our steps, using a map that must have been drawn by kids in the local school! We came across all kinds of squares and streets, but nothing appeared on our map for a while. For warmth we went into a large store. After an hour I at last found a street name corresponding to one on the map. By trial and error, we went in zig-zags and round and round, until we reached the same Old Square we had left a long time ago. I decided our best bet was to find a main street leading to the river. But, the map took us along weird routes and we kept returning to the same points. This carried on for ages until we at last reached the area we were staying in. Following the map we went round in circles again and, finally, feeling like ice cubes on holiday in the Arctic wastes, we found the hotel! I realised that we had passed the street where the hotel was, several times! We both lay on the bed shivering, our bellies shaking with cold, until we warmed up. I must admit, that though we were freezing, the sights, even in the dark, were superb. We went to the hotel restaurant, which had a sitting area and large TV, and ordered a hot chicken sandwich and a coffee. Then, watching skiing, we finished with a pina colada. I think we slept well that night! Thursday Back out, this time with a genuine map! We found Wenceslas Square, with modern shops set into old buildings. At the top is an impressive and ornate museum. In front, a large statue. We walked down the centre, looking up to the older parts of buildings. As with most of the squares, this one seemed to buzz with activity and expectancy. At one point we were fascinated to see a telephone box rise up in the air. Puzzled, we got closer to see a luxurious car drive onto a vehicle-elevator, which took it under the street, returning the telephone box to its original position. Wonderful! At the bottom of the Square is a street market, selling some unusual and traditional goods. Another speciality in Prague is puppets. Many shops sell them, from small to human size, and they are marvellously crafted and colourful. There is even a ‘black light’ theatre putting on shows with puppets operated by operators wearing all-black, to blend with the black curtains. From there, more narrow cobbled streets, Baroque splendours and churches, artistic street lamps, all leading to the Old Square. This time we took the route straight to Charles Bridge, but decided to keep on going on the same side of the river rather than cross at the same point as yesterday. We went to a point two bridges away, passing the university. Trams ding-dinged past us as we swiftly crossed the bridge, a cold breeze behind us. Then we walked back to the Charles Bridge on the other side, eventually turning towards the hilly street we had climbed the day before. It was lunch-time so we went down one of those mysterious alleyways and found a very strange restaurant. It was a commercial tent erected inside a courtyard. Outside, it has a lot of stuffed animals – rabbits, birds, a goat! Inside was similar, the whole scene looking like a stage set from Hansel and Gretel. The folks next to us, Americans, were eating a kind of potato soup from a scooped-out loaf of bread. Again, we opted for a local speciality. Diane stuck to a chicken dish and I had trout and potatoes, and Bohemian wine. Refreshed and warm we set out again. We went back up the hill we had walked the day before, turning left at the top, entering a very old area with churches and restaurants, the blue sky above starkly contrasting with the gold-topped spires and towers. Beyond that is the ‘aristocrat quarters’. Then, back down the hill to the palaces. This time I had my video camera; I wanted to take shots of the changing of the guard. We got there in time and I took the shots, taking up position directly in front of the guards. They marched slowly and ceremonially, very much in the same fashion as Russian soldiers do. We went into the palace precinct and entered an inner courtyard surrounded by high buildings, all very regal and beautifully finished, even down to slightly rounded corners to every window. We decided that as we only had one more full day to go, we would not waste time on inside tours. That would have to wait for another visit. Through another archway and we were faced with a massive cathedral, right in the middle of the palace grounds. Marvellous old coloured mosaics adorned the wall, and one huge window was filled with gold trellis-work. We walked all around it and came to more buildings, all varied and colourful. On past these and we left the square to enter narrower streets, all within the palace grounds. There are a number of museum-type buildings and places to eat here. Downwards again and we came to the nether gate with a lone, but friendly, smiling soldier on guard. From here we could again see a vista of Prague; a stepped walkway, lined on one side with vendors, led down the hill the other side of the palace. But, none pestered us to buy. We reached the wide road leading up to the top of the hill, with frequent trams speeding both ways. We crossed easily enough. Crossings are all indicated by white stripes on the road. Some have crossing lights that turn green when it is safe to cross. Others have no lights and you take your chance. But watch out… we came across this kind of crossing for the first time in Berlin, and were startled out of our skins, because traffic is allowed to continue moving even when the crossing light is at green! The first time we thought our end was nigh. But, it seems the idea is, they can keep driving if the crossing is clear. Once people start to cross the cars must stop. (But, I’m not too sure about the much heavier trams!). We continued down ever-narrowing streets and came across countless squares, until we reached yet another square with a large church and gold-topped ornaments. Amazing buildings seem to be piled one on top of the other. On one side was a line of old shops under cover of an arched walkway. There was almost sensory overload, as delightful buildings and wonderful sights continually appeared around every corner. And we loved it! Then, Charles Bridge beckoned and we returned to the other side. A jolly looking gent dressed in red jacket and a straw hat was in the middle playing a hurdy-gurdy, a tiny monkey sitting on top, which was great fun. Then we noticed people leaning over the bridge next to the central statue of Christ on the cross. We looked over the side and saw police boats and divers. Someone had climbed to the top of the statue and jumped into the river. Was he drunk, or suicidal? No-one knows. He was not found. Once more we went to the Old Square, and, by that time, though it was cold, the sun broke through and we had an hour or two of blue skies. The light playing on the gold and yellow of the buildings was spectacular, and all the pastel coloured buildings gave us their best gleam. At the start of the Jewish quarter was an old man, dressed in top hat and tails, busking. He played jazz saxophone extremely well and a few young female tourists danced around him. It was a heart-warming scene to see teenage girls and a musician of about 90 simply enjoying life. From his posters he seems to have once been a famed jazz player. From there we traced our steps back to Wenceslas square and so to the hotel, passing the huge brightly lit museum on the way. We again had a rest, then went down to the hotel restaurant, for another sandwich and wine, this time watching billiards. I explained the rules to Diane and even she enjoyed it! Then, to bed, and a good sleep. Friday This was our last day, but we were not being picked up until mid-day, so we went back to Wenceslas Square and the local shops, then again walked around the colourful market stalls, and bought some Czech gingerbread. These are large and round with pictures embossed on them of Wenceslas or king Charles. Great presents for the family (but, so hard they were inedible, we found out later). Back to the hotel, a short wait, and the taxi came to whisk us back to the airport, where the security checks were even more strict than anywhere else in Europe. As usual I had to remove my shoes – they always caused the sensor gate to bleep, because they had special steel plates in the soles (I have damage to both Achilles tendons)! Departure-side we found a place to eat and a café selling a ‘flight pack’. It was very cheap, containing an orange, a large sandwich, and a small bottle of water. This was fine to fill empty stomachs. The flight back was uneventful and pleasant… the short break was wonderful, Prague exceeding all expectations. Try it. Barry Napier runs christiandoctrine.com. The Global Green Agenda’, Barry Napier. Published, Petra Press, 2009. For other anti-green books by Barry Napier contact the author: barry.napier@ntlworld.com

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