Prague's Charles Bridge and Mala Strana

11-Aug-2012 • Prague Czech Republic

We stayed in Prague for three and a half days and given that short of time, it was impossible to see everything.  Within that time frame though we did manage to see a lot.  Of course, I would like to go back and visit the city once more but on a leisurely pace next time.  There is still so much to do and explore if and when we return.

One of the sights I just had to see right away was the famous Charles Bridge.  I never realized how beautiful and impressive the bridge was.  It was truly magnificent.  All throughout our stay in Prague, we walked on it everyday, at least twice a day.  Since we were there at peak tourist season, the whole city was packed with visitors.  Although I heard English spoken here and there, majority of the tourists I saw were Europeans.  I even saw and  heard many Spaniards.  I certainly was glad to see many people from Spain there given the country's economic crisis.

Right before anyone walked on the Charles Bridge, one passed by Square of the Cross where two churches stood.

The Church of St. Francis of Serafin

The Church of St. Salvator

The tower on one end of Charles Bridge called the Old Town Bridge Tower

The beginning of Charles Bridge, The Old Town Bridge Tower

The religious statues and icons that adorn Old Town Bridge Tower of Charles Bridge

I was quite surprised to see sculptures, statues and other adornments that were very religious in nature lining both sides of the bridge.  They looked very artsy and pretty.

It was really impossible to have a solo shot on the bridge given the crowds.  Here's one of myself touching the figure of the Lord Jesus on the bronze decor on the bridge for blessings and good luck.  There were literally hundreds of other people waiting all around Marc and me to touch the same religious icon.  This picture was taken in a quick second.

St. Johanes Nepomucensis

Approaching the other tower of Charles Bridge on the side of Mala Strana

Nearing the Judith Tower, the tower on Charles Bridge as we came closer to Mala Strana

This is the area of Mala Strana one arrives in upon crossing the Charles Bridge from Old Town.

A walk further down this street towards the St. Nicholas Cathedral lead us to Prague's one and only Filipino Food Store.  We were pleasantly surprised to find it and see food stuff from my native Philippines sold here.  I found out that it had just opened a few months prior to cater to a tiny group of Filipino expats numbering less than 300 for the entire Prague and Czech Republic.

This was the Filipino Food Store in Prague. It is owned by a Filipina married to a Czech national. Marc and I actually chatted with her and she invited us to stay and meet the Philippine Ambassador who was due to visit her store that afternoon.

I thought this store sold only Filipino food.  It was only after I uploaded this picture did I realize that they also sold other Asian food as their store window advertised.

Just a few steps away from this Filipino store was the Cathedral of St. Nicholas

The impressive Cathedral of St. Nicholas

This column with religious statues and icons was located right in front of the Cathedral of St. Nicholas.

An image of the Sto. Niño in a church in Mala Strana

This church turned out to be the Church of the Virgin Mary the Victorious.

Inside the Church of the Virgin Mary the Victorious

Can you spot the tourists all gathered in the middle taking pictures of the Santo Niño?

It never dawned on me that the Santo Niño actually originated from Prague.

This altar was located on the right hand side of the church past the main entrance.

That's me looking at the altar where the Santo Niño was.

Here's a closer view.

The statue of the Blessed Santo Niño

A frontal view of the Sto. Niño

We visited this church several times in the span of one afternoon.  The first time we went, a Spanish mass was being celebrated.  Not wanting to take pictures and coming across as disrespectful while mass was going on, we left, and returned to the hour when we thought the service was over.  When we arrived the second time, an Italian mass but without any attendees was then being celebrated.  That time, we just started taking pictures since all the other tourists were doing the same thing.  I bought a rosary here.  After shopping at the church's gift shop, we visited the museum also inside the church.

This was taken in the museum inside the Church of the Virgin Mary the Victorious.

One of the religious icons on a wall inside the museum

A statue of the Virgin Mary

A statue of the Sto. Niño, one of the many inside the Church of the Virgin Mary the Victorious.

This was a poster of the Sto. Niño.

This picture was taken after we had gone to Mala Strana and we were walking back to the opposite side of the city where Wenceslas Square was.  You can see the religious statues on both the left and right sides lining the bridge.  See the crowds?  It was really jampacked.