Prague, Czech Republic – Rainy Spring-Like Day 5

Although it was pretty much overcast the whole day and in the afternoon moments of soft spitting rain, it was still pretty warm and still being in Prague is a magical experience.

I walked for hours today staying mostly in the New Town area and not doing much of anything but walking and gazing at buildings, people and the general busyness that makes up a Prague day. “The New Town has a misleading name - it was actually founded by Charles IV in 1348, following his coronation as king under the Holy Roman Empire. Consequently, the New Town (Nové Město) has historic buildings and squares, around which much of the modern development of the city has taken shape. Wenceslas Square lies at the heart of the New Town, and is a vibrant area of hotels, shopping, commerce, restaurants, entertainment and nightlife. Other large, notable squares in the New Town are Charles Square and Republic Square and together it all overs a sizeable area. It wraps right around the Old Town on one bank of the River Vltava (across the river is the Lesser Town and the Castle District. Together these 4 areas form the city centre of Prague).  Back in the 14th century, with the construction of the New Town, Prague became the third largest city in Europe. Wenceslas Square was laid out as a horse market, Charles Square as a cattle market, and a hay and straw market was set up at Senovážné Square - the modern day Vodičkova and Jindřišská streets still interconnect these three squares. Great churches were erected and the New Town Hall was built at Charles Square - all within a period of just fifty years. Residents of the overcrowded Old Town and the areas surrounding Prague, flocked to the New Town to build houses and establish businesses. The New Town was not envisaged as a mere add-on to the Old Town, it was to be the centre of the city of Prague. And to cement this, in 1380 King Wenceslas IV built the Royal Court Palace here, next to the Powder Gate (one of the original entrances to the Old Town). King Wenceslas IV made the Royal Court Palace his main residence, and the Bohemian Kings continued to live there for another one hundred years, before transferring to Prague Castle in 1484.”

 

One of my favorite buildings in New Town is the Municipal House built in 1911 on the site of where the Royal Court mentioned above was  and now forms the center piece of Republic Square (Náměstí Republiky). Also on Republic Square today is the ultra-modern, multi-level Palladium shopping complex, the largest in the city centre. I peeked in but couldn’t handle going in with all the crowds. It’s just a huge, huge shopping center.

The Municipal House in Prague is the city's foremost Art Nouveau building, and one of the finest in the whole of Europe. Municipal House is a magnificent complex of rooms, serving a variety of functions, with a glorious concert hall at its heart and opened in 1912, having been constructed on the site of the former Royal Court Palace it gained fame on the 28th October 1918 when the historic proclamation of the independent state of Czechoslovakia took place here. The outside has intricate stonework, gold trimmings, frescos and stained glass windows.

In one of my pictures of the Municipal building you can see the sooty-covered Powder Gate tower to the left. “The Powder Gate can trace its origins back to the 11th century, when the original gate was one of 13 entrances to Prague's Old Town. Work on the present structure began during the reign of King Vladislav II in 1475 and was modeled on the Old Town Bridge Tower, built a century earlier. Originally known as the New Tower, its name was changed to the Powder Gate in the 17th century when it was used to store gunpowder. Today, the Powder Gate houses an exhibition entitled "Prague Towers" and photos by Ladislav Sitensky. It is also possible to climb the 186 steps inside to reach the viewing platform at 44 metres, to enjoy views over the Old Town. As with other historically important towers in Prague, the Powder Gate retains an appropriately sooty look that reflects its past. Inside, a marble staircase leads you to the huge Smetana Concert Hall, which is only rivaled in size by the Dvorák Hall at the Rudolfinum.

Near the Republic Square where the Municipal building sits is the Jerusalem Synagogue and I think the only one outside the Jewish District. “It is an interesting example of Art Nouveau stylization of the morphology of the Moorish style. The ground plan of the synagogue comprises a basilica type triple-nave with two transverse wings. The main facade displays a large Islamic arch and a rosette window with the Star of David in the center and a biblical verse along the perimeter: “This is the gateway to the Lord – the righteous shall enter through it” (Psalm 118:20). The front gable is surmounted by a marble tablet of the Law with two turrets along the sides. The central arcade of the front portal is bordered by the verse: “Have we not one Father? Did not one God create us?” (Malachi 2:10). During the war, the Jerusalem Synagogue was used as a warehouse and, as a result, was protected from destruction. For almost a century it has been used for the services of the Jewish community of Prague. In January 2003, during a survey of the wall paintings, a parchment scroll was found under the marble slab to the left of the Ark, having remained intact for almost half a century. This is a calligraphically executed memorial document, which contains a description of the history of the building, information about the owners and builders of the synagogue, and a list of the firms and craftsmen involved in the construction and decoration of the building. The document ends with the following text by the founders: “This document was drawn up in commemoration of the successful completion of this building. It was signed by all those who were involved in the construction and, in the presence of many guests of honor, it was placed in the last stone of the building. May this temple survive many centuries and testify, even in the distant future, to the devout souls of its founders. May it fully serve its purpose for all time: to bring together worshippers in a place where they can uplift their souls to the Creator.  May the Lord give! Done in Prague, on the 16th of September of 1906.”

 

I then walked for a long while and found myself in Jungmann Square again near the Our Lady of Snow Church and the Cubist Lamp Post. I really love the lamp post and a very sweet young French couple were there and I took a picture of them with it so they were kind enough to take my picture with it as well. I also, later took a picture of it when it’s lit for evening although the photo is incredibly yellow.

Near the lamp post and to the left of the arch you enter to go to the church courtyard there is a gallery which I noticed yesterday and they have a very interesting exhibit open to the public free so I stopped in and enjoyed some fabulous black and white pictures by Austrian photographer, Gerti Deutsch taken in Prague from 1935 – 1965. There was a great picture of the famous Italian conductor Arturo Toscanini sitting in the front seat of a large black car with his finger to his lips deep in thought. It’s an amazing and thoughtful shot. The exhibit is taking place in the Austrian Culturial Forum Gallery in Jungmann Square and is titled “Gerti Deutsch – Fotografie 1935–1965.”

Jungmannovo náměstí (Jungmann Square) is a square located on the dividing line between the Old Town and the New Town. It was formerly named Franciscan Square, after the neighboring monastery. It gained its current name in 1878, when a statue of Josef Jungmann was placed there. Josef Jungmann (1773-1847) was a Bohemian poet and linguist and creator of the modern Czech language. The statue was originally located in the center of the square, but when the construction of a metro station started there, it had to be moved to a different position. The most notable building on the square is the church of Our Lady of the Snow - a beautiful Gothic church with the highest nave in Prague. Entrance to the church however is not directly from the square, but from a courtyard in front of the church. Next to the church there is a Franciscan monastery, whence the original name of the square was derived. There is also a nice calm public garden called Františkánská zahrada in the vicinity. An important street called Národní (National Street) goes from Jungmannovo náměstí to the west in the line of former moat, surrounding the Old Town.”

There was one church I had wanted to visit and went on Monday but it was closed. It’s in New Town but out a little further from Wenceslas Square. We had initially, me, mom and Melody walked by it on the first trip to Prague 5 years ago and it was closed then as well. I remembered it partly because I suggested after seeing it was closed and us all being so tired from walking for hours that we take the tram back to the city center but I got us on the wrong tram which took us outside the city we had to change to another tram that took us even further out and near the airport and then we just got on the nearest subway and were back in town in a few minutes. I still can’t believe I got us so lost that day but since then I’ve wanted to see inside the church. Well by the time I managed to get there it was about 4:10pm and I went in to a Costa Coffee across the street for some water and to use the bathroom and as I looked out past the triangular park that sits around the church I noticed everything was dark.

I figured I’d just walk over and as I crossed the street I saw a women go in so off I went quickly over to the main entrance and up the stairs and not only was there this women the church was packed and although the lights were still low I could see they were getting ready for a 4:30pm mass. Apparently they have 4:30pm mass just about every day and people must really like this church because I’m not kidding it was packed on all sides. I stayed for mass which I think was presided over by the Bishop since the main priest was wearing a special cap and the other priest seemed to be honoring him and a women, at one point during the service, took his picture. I couldn’t understand a word but it was still nice to sit after hours of walking and enjoy the beauty of the church and the mass.  The church is called St. Ludmila and is a “…neo-gothic church of St. Ludmila is situated at Náměstí Míru (Square) in Vinohrady. The project plan of this church was prepared by the architect Josef Mocker, who was also one of the architects participating in the completion of St. Vitus Cathedral at Prague Castle. The foundation stone was ceremoniously laid on 25th November 1888. Huge credit for the church construction goes to the association formed to support the new church construction. This association had almost 1000 members during the construction period, who were financing the building as well as collecting the contributions from different institutions and individuals. Everything was properly documented in the year-end reports of the association. The church of St. Ludmila is a three-aisle basilica. The transept of the church has the shape of the cross. The front of the church features two towers of 60.5m in height and the tall gable with portal above the main entrance door. The portal is endorsed with the sculpture made by Josef Václav Myslbek. In front of the portal there is a wide single flight of stairs.  The towers are constructed on the square ground plan and have five storeys of unequal height. The tall windows with sun-blinds are situated below the tower gables, which also feature the tower clocks. The towers are finished with octahedral steeples. Their construction was completed on 11th July 1892. The slim tall Sanctus steeple rises from the roof above the church aisle. The church of St. Ludmila was ceremoniously consecrated on 8th October 1893. The main man was the Archbishop of Prague, Cardinal František de Paula Schönborn. Many of the profane and the spiritual celebrities were present.”

Later, around 6pm I had made my way back through the New Town to the Old Town and to the Charles Bridge where I didn’t cross but kept walking toward Josefov district and saw the last of the Synagogues in the area that I had missed the other day. “The Maisel Synagogue was built in 1590 - 1592 by the Mayor of the Jewish Town, Mordechai Maisel, who funded the extensive Renaissance reconstruction of the ghetto. The builders of this synagogue were Josef Wahl and Juda Goldsmied de Herz. The original building was seriously damaged by fire in 1689 and was then renovated in the Baroque style. In the end, it was considerably rebuilt to a pseudo-Gothic design by Prof. A Grott in 1893-1905. All that remained intact of the original Renaissance layout was the ground plan of the tripartite central hall with the upper-story women´s section. The Maisel Synagogue is currently used by the Jewish Museum as an exhibition venue and depository.”

I was getting hungry as you can imagine, I had last had a snack at the Jungmann Hotel after my picture taken with the Cubist lamp post. Interesting the Hotel is a very narrow, maybe 4 story building in a pale blue and in the lobby is a small café serving coffee, tea, wine and dessert.  I had a slice of incredible ginger bread cake with marzipan frosting and some sparkling water and just enjoyed the charming seating area in the very tiny café. It’s an interesting hotel because the women who got me the cake and drink sits behind a small bar (normal for a café) but then when a couple arrived to check in she does that as well. It’s a full-service bar in every sense of the word.

Back to dinner.  Since I was getting hungry and passing the Pasta Café which is in the first floor of the Spanish Synagogue and looked so beautiful with contemporary furnishings I went in. It also has large picture windows across the front so I could enjoy the view of the gorgeous buildings across the street as well as the people passing by and when I looked left I was treated to the gorgeous stained glass windows of the Synagogue and the food was pretty terrific as well. I had tagliatelle arrabiata pasta that was so flavorful and just what I needed after a long, long day of enjoying this great city.