Sunday. Staying in an apartment close to Pražský hrad [Prague Castle, generally known as the Hrad] I decided to go straight there to look at the courtyards, etc., and maybe catch them before the worst of the crowds arrived. I wandered slowly through and took quite a few photos under the grey light. There were plenty of tourists already, but it's a big place. The restored mosaic over the south door of St Vitus cathedral had building works nearby, but I did what I could. I didn't go in anywhere, deciding that I'd need to spend a couple of days here to do it properly, and I didn't feel it worth paying for Golden Lane (the honey-pot street of small cottages built in the 16th Century for members of the Palace guard) on this occasion.
I walked to the end and into the cafe of the Lobkowicz Palace for an expensive hot chocolate (Kc95); the weather is still cold. Made use of the princely loo – I must say the aristocracy have excellent standards in sanitary ware. Retracing my steps I managed to follow some guards on their way to the changing of the guard at the front gate, and tried to grab some photos on the move, with mixed success. But it's a good way of getting through the crowds and I probably appear in quite a few holiday snaps.
A couple of nights earlier, when the sky was clear, I'd walked up to the Hrad and rested the Nikon D300 on the wall for some night shots over the city. A couple of people were there with tripods, but actually the night view looking down is nothing special. |
