Prague was our first city in central Europe. We’d heard of its architecture, its old town, and its old world charm – beyond that, we hadn’t planned any significant activities in the city, nor had any significant expectations. No museum visits, no castle visits, nothing special – though we did book a private tour with a local guide from withlocals.com.

As we’d come to learn, these short (3hr) private tours are money well spent – a great way to see parts of the city – somewhat off the beaten path – and to hear about the city and its culture and history. It’s easy to get information on the popular attractions, not so with the hidden gems and personal reflections on some of the significant historical events.

Some of the highlights from the tour included the Lennon Wall – initially created by an unknown artist following Lennon’s murder, now as a form of legal social commentary. Interestingly, the tree behind, on a priory grounds, is said to be over 900 years old!

Following that, we came to the Baby sculptures – a bit of wimsy in modern art – with barcodes replacing the baby’s faces. We’re no longer people, just numbers – or something like that.

From there, we made our way to the Prague Castle complex under the ownership of the Czech government and site of the St. Vitus Cathedral, home of the seat of the Archbishop of Prague.

Again, a deep sense of history when we hear the original cathedral was founded by the Duke of Bohemia in 930. The present-day cathedral, began in 1344, when the seat of Prague was elevated to an archbishopric. 

Another stop on the tour was in the Old Town Square – where 27 leaders of the Bohemian revolt were executed by the Habsburgs as revenge against the Prague Defenestration in 1618 and subsequent Protestant uprising of the Bohemian estates against the Catholic Habsburgs – in the early parts of the Thirty Years’ War (1618 – 1648). For us, this really brought an appreciation both of the religious conflicts in the 17th century, during a time when immigrants were first colonizing what was to become the United States, and the significantly greater sense of history in the country and region.

Our tour ended at the Astronomical Clock, dated to the early 15th century! The four figures flanking the upper dial on the clock are set in motion on the hour, to put on a “show” for the many gathered tourists (including us). The figures represent four things that were despised at the time of the clock’s making. From left to right in the photographs, the first is vanity, represented by a figure admiring himself in a mirror. Next, the miser holding a bag of gold represents greed. Across the clock stands Death, a skeleton that strikes the time upon the hour. Finally, there is a Turkish figure representing lust and earthly pleasures. On the hour, the skeleton rings the bell and immediately all other figures shake their heads side to side, signifying their unreadiness “to go”.

I’m thinking we could use a statement piece like this!

We spent the rest of our time in Prague, revisiting some of the sites we’d seen on the tour, as well as wandering, to enjoy the architecture and the old world vibe of the city itself.

In all, Prague is a beautiful city, with a very rich history and much to celebrate. Yes, beer is cheaper than water, and that seems to attract many. For us, a very unforgettable experience of old world charm.