Prague seems bigger than either Vienna or Budapest, although its population is significantly smaller than both. Perhaps this is because our accommodation at the Hotel Loreta is high, above the castle in Hradcany, so we get views across the whole city as we walk about the area. Perhaps it's because the interesting things are not all clumped together, although it would seem that many tourists just go from the main square in the old town through a fairly standard route to Charles Bridge, then across that to the square in Mala Strana. Certainly those areas and streets are awash with the rubber chicken brigade.
We were warned that Prague had too many tourists to be enjoyable, but we manage to avoid the worst of the crowds. We go to less-frequented museums like the Technical Museum, the Museum of Communism, and the Apple Museum, all of which are extremely interesting. Apple we enjoy together, going round saying things like "I had one of those, it cost me $5,000" and "Do you remember that one had 64Kb of memory?" It is one of the few museums that doesn't have seniors discount, but the woman at the ticket office gives us a discount price and tickets that say CHILD. About right.
At the Technical Museum Peter looks at cars, planes and trains while I look at domestic appliances that go back to the very beginning of automation - hand-cranked washing machines and sewing machines. I discover that there were electric hand-held hairdryers in 1910, and that some of the earliest electrified kitchen gadgets were coffee-makers, not mixers. Some people had their priorities right. The other point of interest is the ugliness of the things made during the Communist era. It would seem that any attempt to make objects look other than strictly utilitarian was decadent. Just like the architecture.
At the beginning of the exposition in the Museum of Communism are the words, "Dream ... Reality ... Nightmare" and that about sums it up. Not a cheering experience, especially if you feel that a number of countries today are teetering on the edge of dictatorship, or have already fallen over the line. But very well done.
We do do the touristy things, but try to do them out of synch. We go to the Old Town Hall at midday and have no trouble getting a place on a tour in English with a young girl who is an informative and amusing guide. We return later in the evening to watch the famous clock strike and to go up the tower for the view. As a 30-something traveller I prided myself on climbing everything there was to climb and not using the lift (it was cheaper). Nowadays Peter and I only go up towers that have lifts, as this one does.
We cross Charles Bridge twice, in the late afternoon and evening when you can easily get a bit of parapet to yourself to lean over and watch the cruise boats passing underneath, turning, or heading up into the lock. We go on one of these cruises at lunchtime, but without booking lunch. As it is showery and quite chilly, we have the upper deck to ourselves to watch the manoeuvring, tying up and untying from close range as we pass through the lock. We are very taken with a device that looks like a double toasting fork, used to drop a line over a cleat or bollard.
We were warned that Prague had too many tourists to be enjoyable, but we manage to avoid the worst of the crowds. We go to less-frequented museums like the Technical Museum, the Museum of Communism, and the Apple Museum, all of which are extremely interesting. Apple we enjoy together, going round saying things like "I had one of those, it cost me $5,000" and "Do you remember that one had 64Kb of memory?" It is one of the few museums that doesn't have seniors discount, but the woman at the ticket office gives us a discount price and tickets that say CHILD. About right.
At the Technical Museum Peter looks at cars, planes and trains while I look at domestic appliances that go back to the very beginning of automation - hand-cranked washing machines and sewing machines. I discover that there were electric hand-held hairdryers in 1910, and that some of the earliest electrified kitchen gadgets were coffee-makers, not mixers. Some people had their priorities right. The other point of interest is the ugliness of the things made during the Communist era. It would seem that any attempt to make objects look other than strictly utilitarian was decadent. Just like the architecture.
At the beginning of the exposition in the Museum of Communism are the words, "Dream ... Reality ... Nightmare" and that about sums it up. Not a cheering experience, especially if you feel that a number of countries today are teetering on the edge of dictatorship, or have already fallen over the line. But very well done.
We do do the touristy things, but try to do them out of synch. We go to the Old Town Hall at midday and have no trouble getting a place on a tour in English with a young girl who is an informative and amusing guide. We return later in the evening to watch the famous clock strike and to go up the tower for the view. As a 30-something traveller I prided myself on climbing everything there was to climb and not using the lift (it was cheaper). Nowadays Peter and I only go up towers that have lifts, as this one does.
We cross Charles Bridge twice, in the late afternoon and evening when you can easily get a bit of parapet to yourself to lean over and watch the cruise boats passing underneath, turning, or heading up into the lock. We go on one of these cruises at lunchtime, but without booking lunch. As it is showery and quite chilly, we have the upper deck to ourselves to watch the manoeuvring, tying up and untying from close range as we pass through the lock. We are very taken with a device that looks like a double toasting fork, used to drop a line over a cleat or bollard.
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| Toasting fork in action - need to zoom in. |
The Vltava is a gentle river in Prague, very different from the Danube. No big cruise boats, only the local day trippers. There are a lot of small leisure craft - cruise boats toot to warn off pedalos, dragon boats, even stand-up paddle boards.
We considered the pedalo option, but decided the river was better looked at from above, either from Castle Hill, Petrin Hill or Vysehrad, all of which we visited. The last of these has an interesting cemetery where we paid our respects to Dvorak and Smetana.
One of the best things about our time in Prague is that after the first day, when we hide from 36 degree heat in a museum, it is cool, low 20s. In Vienna, Budapest and Bratislava it is so hot that we fear our raincoats and warmer clothes are just a waste of space in our luggage, but they all get worn in Prague.
One of the best things about our time in Prague is that after the first day, when we hide from 36 degree heat in a museum, it is cool, low 20s. In Vienna, Budapest and Bratislava it is so hot that we fear our raincoats and warmer clothes are just a waste of space in our luggage, but they all get worn in Prague.
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| Penguins guard the entrance to the Vltava lock |
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