Sunday, April 13, 2008

Vysehrad on Sunday

It being the weekend I decided to visit Vysehrad. You may think the monster at left is scary, but heck, doesn't it look like he's laughing a little? It's the metro that's scary. And then off the metro on a tram to which stop? hmmm. The twin spires atop a fortified wall give me the big hint. Vysehrad is an area just a bit down the river from the Charles Bridge. A bit enough to make it worth taking the tram and not walking. Because once you get there you go uphill.

I decided against tyring to find any main entrance and opted to explore the neighborhood a bit. I turned up a wee little alley and up and up I went. I couldn't believe it when a biker whizzed by me, but he stopped halfway to catch his breath and I was reassured he was human. Naturally while attempting to take the path less trodden it led me directly to the "castle" complex. There's no real castle anymore. There are a couple of lovely parks and hilltop views of Prague.


Most importantly there is a cemetery. It is full of some of Prague's most famous artists, especially musicians. Do you think one might be a conductor? Dvorchak rests his weary bones in this cemetery too.


All of the tombs are very elaborate and so many of them have sculptures of one sort or another. It reminded me of the idea that these famous, beloved artists might have been thought to need a tangible representation of themselves (or their hands) to take with them into the afterworld. But that thought was undermined by the towering church adjacent.

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

WOMEN'S WAY sends our regards! Thanks for the link to your BLOG. The pictures are great. -Sarah Friedman