They do things a little differently here in Czechia. For instance, the basement of my church in Pittsburgh was home to Sunday school, a hanging wardrobe for choir robes, and (my personal favorite) the annual strawberry shortcake festival.
In Sedlec they use the basement for a different purpose. The first clue was the entrance.
Of course to protect the sanctity of their basement no photos are allowed but as I’ve said before, accidents do happen, and when making clever objets d’ art out of one’s ancestors and then charging the Philistines coin of the realm, which in this case is not the Euro but something called Czech koruna, you’ve got to expect a fair amount of curiosity seekers. After all, it’s featured in Atlas Obscura. At least that’s where we found it. (Official photos here.)
Saint Mary’s perched on top, turns out to be a lovely chapel.
One last shot of the forbidden ossuary from the upper floor of the chapel.
Please tell me that this is not the owners car, parked out front.
Down the road apiece is the UNESCO-listed Church of the Assumption of Our Lady and Saint John the Baptist. We only ducked in because it was included in our ticket for the ossuary but the interior took us by surprise. The original church, built about 1300 in High Gothic style, burned down in 1421. From 1700 to 1708 it was rebuilt in the Baroque Gothic style. The high vaulted ceiling takes your breath away.
They’ve got their own bones here, as well as relics of Vincent of Saragossa.
So let’s see what other oddities we can dig up in the land of the koruna.
The riverside settlement now known as Prague has been occupied since the Paleolithic times due to trade routes that follow the Vitava River which meanders through the center of town. By 880 Czech Prince Borivoj moved into town and built Prague Castle overlooking the burgeoning town. It’s still considered the largest castle in the world. Yours Truly will agree it’s one of the larger numbers to have to walk around.
The first stone bridge over the Vitava River was built in 1170, known as the Judith. It collapsed in 1342. A new bridge replaced the Judith in 1357, and it’s still in use today and known as the Charles Bridge. This time they wisely chose to model it after the Old Stone bridge in Regensburg.
Prague is not one of those towns that slowly ramps up into a genuine destination as you walk in. No, it hits you straight between the eyes from the get-go.
I don’t care how jaded you are, this place does not disappoint and the crowds attest to that, but no matter how crowded, you can always find a narrow secluded and cobbled alleyway with copious quirky hidden treasures.
In a new Escape Velocity exclusive tip; ignore the sea of humanity standing shoulder to shoulder at the astronomical animated clock, known as the Orloj.
At noon grab a table at one of the bars across from the clock, order a pint of icy Pilsner Urquel and enjoy the show. We did this the third time we found ourselves in the neighborhood, and it works a charm. My kind of place.
Marce was here forty years ago when Prague was still behind the iron curtain and predictably she says it’s changed a lot. As in, there are way more people now.
It should come as no surprise that there’s no end to the myths surrounding the Orloj. For one, if the clock stops for any length of time a curse is activated, the skeleton continues to nod his head, and bad luck follows until the clock is running again.
Legend has it that the clockmaker Hanus was blinded by order of the town council so that he wouldn’t be able to repeat the secrets of the Orloj. That last one may be apocryphal. There’s another one about the Golem that Rabbi Loew made from Vitava River mud, but I’m just not going there.
Does Prague have any palaces you ask? The place is lousy with them. This one is the Kaiserstein Palace.
And across the street, St. Nicholas Church.
Not to put too fine a point on it, after this church we felt our eyes needed a rest. A short discussion later and it was unanimous for ice cream. Strolling down one of those narrow cobbled lanes in the back water of Prague you can imagine our surprise.
Giving order to the cosmos and celestial flavors as well, that Kepler was truly a renaissance man. Naturally we cast about trying to find the Clementium where Kepler did a lot of his work. Through another hole in the wall, of course, we found the Astronomical Tower and Baroque library, founded in 1556, said to be the most beautiful library in the world, housing some 27,000 of the earliest printed books including Kepler’s handwritten work. Einstein taught here and Mozart played here many times.
After wandering about the several ton bronze statue of Atlas perched on top of the astronomical tower we started to climb the stairs.
However, one is only allowed to gaze at the dimly-lit Baroque Library through its open doors. It is the most beautiful library I have ever seen.
More stairs, steps, and ladders and we entered the astronomical room to see some of the instruments used by Tycho Brahe and Kepler.
Onward and upward.
The twin spires of our Lady before Tyne, over our left shoulder, is where Tyco Brahe is said to be buried. How hard could it be to find a twin spire church in Prague? We’re keen to find out. I mean what could possibly go wrong?
Another skeptic
It took a while but we weren’t leaving without a visit. Across the old town square and maybe a couple of zig-zags and Bob’s your uncle.
Using Tycho’s meticulous observations Kepler was eventually able to discover that the earth and planets travel around the sun in elliptical orbits, not circular, as astronomers believed before. I think it’s safe to say the two of them revolutionized the way we understand our solar system.
Prague was so much fun, from beginning to end. But now it’s time to move on.
In addition to the challenge of limited time allowed in Europe, and the challenge of avoiding green zones in our old campervan, there’s yet another challenge: paying for toll roads where there are no toll booths. Lots of RV travelers advocate avoiding toll roads altogether because in some countries it can get quite expensive. While backroads are beautiful, sometimes we just want to get somewhere.
Most of the countries we’re visiting have replaced tolls booths with cameras to read either your vehicle registration or an account barcode. And every country has its own scheme for payment. Luckily you can buy a ‘vignette’ or toll tag for each country. This used to be an actual physical sticker but now you just pay online for a set amount of time and your vehicle registration is read and recognized by the cameras. If you don’t have a vignette and end up on a toll road, you can be sure that at some point — maybe months later — you’ll receive a citation in the mail for the toll and a fine for nonpayment.
Before we entered the Czech Republic we bought a vignette valid for 10 days at a cost of 13 Euros and covering any toll road across the country. Lots of travelers don’t like paying for a vignette but we consider it a temporary road tax and we’re happy to contribute to the maintenance of the highways wherever we go. I think the system is genius, and I wish the US would come up with something like this. The last time we were in the US I spent many hours and more dollars than I should have just to pay the toll on the Pennsylvania Turnpike. They don’t make it easy. A one-day digital pass would make so much more sense.
Vignette secured, we made a last stop at a German supermarket where I took advantage of the wide selection of vegetarian and vegan products, including vegan braunschweiger.
Finally we crossed into the Czech Republic. I was here forty years ago when it was Czechoslovakia and as far as I can remember, it looks the same.
Our first stop was Plzeň, famous of course as the birthplace of the pale lager known as Pilsner. We enjoy the occasional Pilsner Urquel so of course we had to visit the brewery. We booked our tour for midafternoon and set off on a walk about the city.
Plzeň is Czechia’s fourth largest city, yet it’s human in scale and ringed by green space. We began by orienting ourselves with a walk around the park surrounding the old town.
Spejbl and Hurvínek – a monument in honor of the puppeteer Josef Skupa
One of our primary goals was a visit to the 19th century Great Synagogue. It’s the second largest in Europe and the fourth largest in the world. The interior is stunning, and despite the size the space feels intimate.
At the huge Republic Square we circled the gothic cathedral of St. Bartholomew but didn’t go in. We did find the gate decorated with angels where legend has it rubbing the head of a particular one brings good fortune. I never pass up an opportunity for luck.
These puppets caught our eye as we passed an art gallery.
At the appointed time we walked to the brewery for our tour. They’ve been making beer here since 1307 but in a method called top-fermented. In 1842 the Plzeň brewery recruited a Bavarian brewer who used local ingredients and a cool fermenting process to produce the first pale lager, what’s now called pilsner.
The tour is a well-orchestrated journey through the history of the brewery and the process of brewing this particular beverage.
A bus took us to the bottling plant, which I thought an odd place to start — at the end of the process — but it soon became clear that the stops were organized for dramatic effect rather than linear storytelling.
Our only beef with the tour was that the group was large and the spaces echo-y so we often struggled to hear the guide. Nevertheless, we enjoyed seeing the process, especially since for much of our work life we both spent a lot of time filming how things are made.
They saved the best for last, or course, the caves where the beer is fermented.
Then we all grabbed a glass and filed past one of the barrels for a sample of the not-quite-ready product.
On the way back to the van we saw a number of these critters as we crossed the bridge. We determined they are nutria, not something we see every day.
One gets that tingly feeling when considering that hundreds of years ago one’s ancestors floated under this same stone bridge on a barge loaded with everything they possessed. Courageous or just desperate, they cast their fate with leaders who had empty promises and dubious agendas.
My only problem is that it was a hike just to get from our parkup to the old walled town of Regensburg on the Danube River. It was originally a Stone Age Celtic settlement and around about 90 AD the Romans built a fortification beside the river. You can still see the remnants. In 1135 the magnificent 16 arch stone bridge was erected and is still considered a marvel of medieval engineering. That’s where we’re headed right now.
Access through the wall is at the Watchtower Gate
And here’s the medieval stone bridge, said to be the model for the Charles bridge in Prague.
Crossing the Danube River on the medieval stone bridge
Twin spires of St. Peter’s Cathedral.
Porta Praetoria, remains of ancient Roman fortifications.
These brass plaques are called “stumbling stones” and are embedded in front of houses where people lived who were seized, deported, and murdered by the Nazis. It’s an ongoing project with stones in most European countries. It’s considered the largest memorial in the world.
We’re in Kepler Land which makes Marce happy. She calls him one of her heroes.
Lovely Trinity Church
Regensburg has been an awesome surprise, showing little war damage. But we’ve got a long way to go so it’s back to the bus for the Escapees.
