HK Independent Traveller Blog

July 2013 Prague is one of the top visited cities in Europe.  I was there twice.  It remains one of my favourite cities.  There are many articles written about Prague.  Here summarises a few off beaten track places you may consider if you are visiting the eternal charming city. Charles Square (Karlovo náměstí) was founded in 1348 by the Emperor Charles IV.  It is the biggest square in Prague, also one of the three most important squares in the new town.  Other two are  Wenceslas Square (Horse Market) and Senovážné náměstí (Hay Market).  Apart from being an important transport hub, Charles Square also has a big green park where locals spend time leisurely and it is dotted with a few buildings.  A famous one is the new town hall which recorded a few events of defenestration of Prague .  It means people were thrown out of the window. New Town Hall - Charles Square Prague Letná Park is located on the opposite shore o...

Wallenstein Palace is late Renaissance style .  It is now the seat of the Czech Senate and sprawls over a whole city block at the foot of the castle. Built between 1624 and 1630 it is Mala Strana's most ostentatious monument reflecting the ambition of its builder, Albrecht von Wallenstein . He was a minor nobleman from northern Bohemia.  He married an old but immensely rich widow, rose to the commander of the Catholic forces and became the country's greatest landowner by acquiring the estates of exiled Protestant aristocrats at unbelievable cheap price. His ambitions caused suspicion and he was killed by a mob of soldiers with a halberd. In the center of the main façade is the three-arched Sala terrena .  It links the place to the parterres and statuary of its high walled formal garden.  Standing in front is an avenue of muscular bronze statues, masterpieces of sculptor Adrien de Vries .  They are copies and the real ones stay in Stockholm. ...

Vrtba Garden is a beautiful Baroque garden in Prague and listed at UNESCO. It is at the lower slope of Petrin Hill, hidden behind a modest doorway on Karmelitska street. We first visited the John Lennon Wall and ascended a bit upward, passing through charmingly beautiful buildings containing embassies to reach the tucked away  entrance. You will easily notice a figure carrying a globe on its shoulder.  The garden is structured in 3 levels of terraces, green flowery and pleasant. A small pond with numerous huge golden fish swimming freely, never mind the traffic of tourists.  A salon housing frescoes of Venus and Adonis by Vaclav Vavrinec Reiner is located at the ground level. The second terrace can be accessed through a butterfly shaped staircase. The third terrace is full of statues and one can have a wonderful view of Prague's skyline including the St. Nicolas Church and Prague Castle.     video http://...

18 July 2013 It's our last day in Prague. We spent the last hours on art and culture: Convent St. Agnes .  It is the earliest Gothic building in Bohemia.  Decoration inside was simple.  Treasure of art was abundant, mainly medieval art in Bohemia and Central Europe.  Subjects were predominantly religion related: annunciation , Mary and Jesus , cruxification , etc.  I like Bohemian art for some paintings are down to very details, cracked stone floor, little flowers, cute animal, nameless but very beautiful. Let's appreciate the beauty by theme. Annunciation Annunciation is the scene that angel Gabriel announced to Virgin Mary that she would conceive from the Holy Spirit and became the mother of Jesus.  She was afraid but accepted it and praised the Lord. Painters at different periods expressed the scene in their own ways.  Among all, I like the one from Fra Angelico .  Others like Leonardo da V...