Next day - back to Prague. Kristyna had planned things well. Yesterday we explored the old and new towns on the east bank of the Vitava, today we were heading for Mala Strana and Prague castle on the opposite bank. On paper it looked like a more compact area, and it is, however the west bank of the river is much hillier, so no less exhausting.
We got off the train at the stop before Prague's main station. Compared to Prague's stylish main terminus, Smichov station is more utilitarian.
Built in the mid-fifties it reflects the solid, functional ethos of a socialist state. The fate of Czech mid-century buildings is controversial, some people, seeing them as symbols of authoritarianism, are happy for them to be demolished, others assert their intrinsic architectural merit or extol their workaday functionality. I lean towards the latter point of view.
This debate is not confined to the former Eastern block. In the UK, as the shopping malls, civic buildings and tower blocks of the 50s and 60s reach the point of needing major refurbishment there is limited enthusiasm for saving them, most are dismissed as 'carbuncles'. However, they do have a story to tell about a time that looked to the future with a degree of optimism and espoused more egalitarian values, This can be discerned in buildings on both sides of the 'iron curtain'. Owen Hathersley's 'A New Kind of Bleak' and John Grindrod's 'Concretopia' are both great reads about British post- war public architecture. I realise, my enthusiasm for the subject is a bit niche, Sadly I could only glance at the proletarian delights of Smichov station as we dashed for the tram that would take us to the more conventional architectural wonders of old Prague's medieval core.
Most of the Prague's trams are modern, quiet and smooth, similar to those you might find in Manchester or Sheffield. However there are a few older ones with a mid-century vibe, sporting a more 'ovoid' styling.
They rattle and shake around the network, tourists clinging on, locals swaying like old salts. As we passed through one of Prague's older residential areas Kristyna caught our attention, "I grew up around here," she explained.
One of the delights of cities on the continent compared to the UK is that many of them retain vibrant neighbourhoods close to the city centre. This is only possible because the majority European city dwellers live in apartments. This is not what British people prefer, we want a house with our own outside space.
Consequently our cities sprawl outwards creating encircling suburbs and a 'commuter belt' of satellite towns. What is true, however, is that having a small 'weekend place' in the countryside is popular amongst continental Europe's city dwellers, we've come across this in Spain, Sweden, Italy and France. I was surprised to learn from Kristyna that this was commonplace in the Czech Republic too, even during communist era. She mentioned her mother had only sold their family's place in the country when she moved from her apartment in Prague to her house in Karlstejn.
We headed for Prague Castle. If your inner seven year old yearns for turrets, crenulated walls or a portcullis then you are doomed to disappointment. There hasn't been a proper castle here for at least 300 years, fragments of the medieval structure remain in the courtyard of the Old Royal Palace but most of the impressive buildings date from the Renaissance or Baroque era.
The hourly changing of the guard in Hradcany Square is a popular spectacle, we learned this by accident as we just happened to arrive at midday. There was lot of barking orders and marching about, Gill had to be ushered out of the way by a policeman sporting a sub-machine gun as she inadvertently wandered into the path of a phalanx of overdressed soldiers crossing the square with the involuntary determination of steampunk automatons.
This momentary flurry of activity was followed by statuesque calm, blue uniformed guards standing stockstill beneath the glowering gaze of Baroque statuary. I can't really be doing with military displays, whenever I see them their absurdity reminds me of the Monty Python fish slapping sketch.
The location of the Royal Palace became a magnet for other members of the aristocracy to build magnificent mansions, their style runs the gamut of uniquely Bohemian renaissance edifices....
to grandiose Baroque concoctions...
As well as a seat of political power the area contains a clutch of important ecclesiastical monuments - not only churches but sprawling monasteries and grim looking seminaries.
Many of the buildings date from the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries when Prague was a key city within the Counter-Reformation Habsburg Empire.
Not everywhere in Hradcany and Mala Strana is built on a grand scale. Here and there patches of more modest buildings remain, handsome burghers houses and old inns. It's a pleasing mixture, old Prague has corners of charm and grace as well as grandeur.
The afternoon turned showery and we headed to the National Gallery's cafe for a late lunch. By the time we finished the sky had cleared. We made our way back towards the castle area, pausing to look at St Vitus cathedral. It would have been interesting to peek inside but the only tickets on sale covered all the big monuments of the Prague castle area. Not an option with Jesse.
The Gothic style spread into central Europe two generations later than when it first developed in France. Consequently the earlier stages of the style's development is missing, you get the full-on spiky splendour of the Perpindicular. If late Gothic was a music style I think you would be talking the OTT hi-jinks of Iron Maiden metal.
Beyond the Cathedral is an earlier Romansque church dedicated to St. George. The towers and the apse survive from the twelfth century, but somewhat incongruously a Baroque facade was constructed later, then in the reign of Marie Theresa a classical style portico added.
It was time to head back to the station. As we walked down the hill we came across a short stretch of the original castle wall, so my inner seven year old did get its fix of turrets and crenalation.
There's a fabulous view of the city from the rampart too..
Time to take a photo of Matthew, Kristyna and Jesse who made our two days in Prague wholly delightful.