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Discover the Magic of Prague's Astronomical Clock: The Famous Prague Orloj

The Prague astronomical clock or Prague Orloj  is a medieval astronomical clock attached to the Old town hall at the Old town square in Prague. 

The clock was first installed in 1410, making it the third-oldest astronomical clock in the world and the oldest clock still in operation. 

 

 

The clock mechanism has three main components – the astronomical dial, representing the position of the Sun and Moon in the sky and displaying various astronomical details; statues of various Catholic saints stand on either sid...

Exploring Czech easter traditions: From egg decorating to whipping monday

Easter means that spring has arrived. Many traditions are still observed and practiced, especially in villages, and different regions may have their own Easter traditions and customs. The week preceding Easter is called Holy Week. And Monday? Monday is all about folk traditions! And what are they?

 

    

The most famous symbol of Easter, not only in the Czech Republic, is the painted egg, which used to represent fertility and new life. Today, they are only used for decoration. Empty eggshells are decorated in a ...

Kranner staircase

As early as 1622, Charles of Liechtenstein was thinking about the staircase between Kampa and the Charles Bridge. Time, however, had other concerns. Only the flood in 1784 was the last impulse to build at least a wooden spiral staircase from Kampa to the Charles Bridge in 1785. 

 

 

Until then, people from the flooded Kampa had to climb ladders from their houses and boats to the bridge. In 1844, Josef Ondřej Kranner built the current neo-Gothic stone staircase. This staircase is still a popular backdrop for fi...

Column of Knowledge in Prague

The so-called Idiom, a column made of 8,000 books, has been present in the vestibule of the Central Library at Mariánské Square since 1998. The author of the Idiom, sometimes dubbed the “Column of Knowledge“, is the Slovak artist Matej Krén. It has been standing in the entrance hall for twenty five years and is rightly attracting a lot of attention. Lean into it – and you’ll know right away what infinity is.

 

 

 

 

Matej Kren often uses books to connect viewers with the feeling of infinity, exploring their st...

Prague: City of love

Prague is the 2nd most romantic city in Europe. Did you know that? Prague has a lots of breath-taking views, fairy tale cobblestone streets and pastel-coloured buildings, chapels, castles, candlelit dinners, and horse-drawn carriages is the ideal recipe for romance. As one walks the historic bridges and old parts of the city, one will hear buskers playing classic old music that catapults one back to the times of Mozart and Beethoven.

 

 

Prague is one of the continent's main tourist attractions. In fact, it is...

Four Prague mysteries: Faust's house, the Jewish town, a miraculous mummy and the Devil's column at Vyšehrad

 If you are planning a trip to Prague, do not miss these tips on four mysterious places, which are not usually on the first pages of the guides and are definitely worth a visit. You should not miss the famous Faust House, the old Jewish town, the miraculous mummy of Maria Electa on Hradčanské náměstí or the Devil's column in Vyšehrad.

 

 Faust Hause

 

The Faust House:

 

The Faust House stands at the Charles Square, in the area, where people used to bring sacrifices to the dark goddess Morana in the pagan times. The plac...

140 years since the first phone call was made in Prague

The first telephone call in Bohemia was made on April 10, 1881 between the Hartmann coal mine in Ledvice and a nearby train station in Duchcov, covering a distance of around two and a half kilometres.

 

 

 

A year after the first phone call took place, the first switchboard was established at Pragues Malé náměstí, in a house called u Rychtrů. In the beginning, 13 people were interested to own the phone. It was far from a cheap service. In addition to the call charge, other fees were paid - for the distance of ...

Prague Castle Garden on the Ramparts and Bull’s Staircase by architect Josip Plečnik

In 1920, Tomas Masaryk, the first president of the Republic of Czechoslovakia, asked Slovene architect Josip Plečnik to restore the Prague Castle as a new symbol of independence and democracy. From 1920 to 1934, Plečnik completed various projects around the Castle.

 

 

 

One of his work is also the Garden on the Ramparts from where you can enjoy a great view of the whole city of Prague. Its surface area covers 1.43 hectares. The garden is accessible from the Prague Castles third courtyard via Plečniks Sta...

The new season at Prague’s Náplavka waterfront

If you wonder what the name Naplavka means, it’s an area on the river bank which lies lower than the waterfront road itself. It most often serves as a dock for boats, but properly arrranged, it is the perfect place for romantic walks by the river. There are several embankments (Naplavka) in Prague and each of them attracts visitors to something different. There are nice restaurants and bars that offer many specialties. Some of them host a number of interesting events during the season.

 

 

At first glance, vis...

Mysteries of Star Summer Palace - Letohrádek Hvězda

At the place where the famous Battle of White Mountain (Bílá hora) took place in 1620, today we find a beautiful English park with rich alleys. The whole area is dominated by the original Renaissance building of the summer house, which has the shape of a six-pointed star and after which the park is named.

 

 

Letohrádek Hvězda is one of the most mysterious buildings in Prague. According to ancient legends, a sacred oak tree was supposed to stand on the site of the Star. In front of which a fire was burning, wh...

Gardens of Prague Castle will open on 1st of April 2022

Prague Castle will open its summer tourist season on Friday 1st of April. In addition to the main visitor buildings, part of Prague Castle Gardens will also be open to the public after the winter break.

 

 

Do you like to know which ones? Here they are:

Royal Garden, originally Renaissance garden founded in 1534 became one of the few quiet places in the centre of Prague. The garden is located on the site of old medieval vineyards, which later became famous for its rare botanical specimens and the exotic plant...

Forgotten amusement park in Prague

 In the 1920s something amazing was built in Prague. In Vršovice, on the site of the current Slavia football stadium, stood a huge amusement park, which was very similar to the famous Prater in Vienna.

 

 Archiv Praha 10

 

The spectacular attraction called Eden (Paradise) opened for Prague residents in 1922 and offered a truly wide range of entertainment. The biggest attraction was the huge roller coaster. It was five kilometres long. The Slide and the Ferris wheel were also very popular with the public.

Ede...

International Women’s Day

Every year, on March 8th International Women’s Day is celebrated to recognize the social, economic, cultural, and political achievements of women.

 

 

Although many people in our country associate International Women’s Day mainly with the obligatory red carnation, it was not always so. Communism took advantage of this day, and thanks to propaganda, many people still do not recognize it because they associate it with a not very popular regime. However, the reality and history of International Women's Day is qui...

St. Matthews Fair in Prague celebrates 427 years

 The most popular and biggest fair in Prague is back. After one year break, various carousels, swings and other attractions will be spinning for you again. In addition, there will be plenty of goodies from various fair refreshment stands.

 

 

The tradition of the St. Matthews Fair has been archived in the National Library since 1595. It became famous because it was the first spring fair in Prague, celebrating the feast of St. Matthew on 24th of February. It is also the first spring fair in Europe.

There are a...

Stolpersteine - Stones of the Disappeared in Prague

Stolpersteine, literally "stones to trip over", are 10×10 cm brass-coated paving stones set into the pavement in front of the houses of the victims of the Nazi regime, according to an original design by the German artist Gunter Demnig. The first stone was laid on 16 December 1992 in front of the City Hall in Cologne. Already more than 88 000 Stolpersteine or Stones of the Disappeared have been installed in 26 countries in Europe and so in their way constitute the largest memorial in the world.

 

 

Gunter Demni...

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