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Skyline like a painting
Prague in Summer is like a living painting

 

Related Book:

Eyewitness Travel Guide: Prague

Praha, June 13-15, 2000:

Strahov LibraryKathleen visited Prague after the fall of communism, and remembered it held many treasures. From the looks of things, those treasures have been discovered by many others in the ten years since.

A fair copy of the sky outside makes up the ceiling of Strahav Monastery's Library.

Star chartTheir collection includes fine illustrated manuscripts like this star chart.

These charts date back to ancient Greece, and tell the name of each star in a constellation along with the time and date it will appear. When these books were 'rediscovered' after the dark ages. they formed the basis for reliable celestial navigation, opening the globe to Europe.   

   

Sign HolderLibrary secondary room   

The big news in navigational aids today is the computer browser.

Prague is flush with sign holders directing you to the nearest portal.

  

Internet Cafe   

Many of these are trendy cafes set up to provide fast internet, an iced coffee, and, surprise, a little anti-American snobbery as well.

Changing the Guard   

   

   

   

Castle Gates   

   

Up on the castle hill, the guard changes to the beat of a brass band every hour to deter terrorists and attract tourists. Their new uniforms were commissioned by Playwright-President Vaclave Havel from the costume designer for the movie Amadeus.  

Toy Museum      

      

Further along on the castle hill is the Toy Museum. Special show: Barbie's 40th Birthday. Why I remember when she was no bigger than my forearm...

Band playing    

The level of tourism here is much higher than anywhere else we've been in Eastern Europe.

We'd think we were in Rome or London.

   

   

      

   

Canal ZonePuppets   

Or even Venice.

As masks are to Venice, puppets are to Prague. Shops with exquisite specimens can be found anywhere, as are invitations to Mozart operas performed by marionettes.

   

   

Artist on the streetCharles BridgeCharles' Bridge is the place to buy photos of this attractive monument without tourists on it.

It's no longer possible to get capture such a photo with your own camera.

   

  

   

Jesus with HebrewWe wondered about one of the monuments on the bridge. It's a Jesus surrounded by Hebrew letters. Legend has it that a Jew was caught mocking Jesus, and for his safety, he gave the city the money to put gold lettering on this statue.

   

Cooling the streets   

The weather was so hot when we were there, the city had trucks spraying water just to cool off the streets.

   

   

   

Center Square   

   

Astronomical Clock   

   

In the center of Old Town is where most people congregate. At the modern extreme, a large video board is set up for concerts.

At the Gothic extreme, an Astronomical Clock shows the locations of the sun and moon relative to the zodiac and the shifting seasons.

   

On the hour the figures of apostle march past the windows up top, and the figures of Death, Greed and Vanity shake in terror below them. The crowd claps politely when it's done; they seem respectful of the best automated entertainment available 700 years ago.

   

Camel Butt AdBreasts SellOn our way out of town, we admired the billboards.

The advertisers here don't seem to worry much about subtlety.

   

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