East Europe 2016 Travelogue Part 1 - Prague, Cesky Krumlov, Dresden, Berlin

Saturday, December 24, 2016


Hello friends! So it has been a month since my last post, and here I am finally writing about my trip to Eastern Europe. This is my second time going to Europe (with Spain and Portugal being my virgin trip in 2015) and I was so pumped for it. This time round, I made an effort to remember the attractions. The tour was sometimes overwhelming, with lots to see and photos to take, but I think I made the best of it :)

Here we go!



Day 1 - Singapore to Dubai, Dubai to Prague


We took the night flight from Singapore to Dubai, which was a 6-7h trip. We were put on Emirates, which was a first for me!


Happy Dad and BL (she's my cousin).


Tired but happy faces from Mom and I.


Me with Habibi M&M in Dubai! There we saw so many couples in traditional wear, that is to say the male Kandura and the female Abaya. Quite an eye-opener. Couldn't help but wonder at how much culture Dubai has, even from it's airport! Would definitely like to explore it some day.



Finally after another 6-7h from Dubai to Prague, we reach the Czech Republic and proceed with our day tour. Here we are at Prague Castle, watching the uniformed guard's procession, that happens every hour with the Change of Guards.


Right outside the main gate of Prague Castle. The gate is flanked with statues of fighting giants and putti (cherubs), some crowned with lions and eagles.


This is the facade of the amazing St Vitus Cathedral. This is an introduction from the Czech website, A View On Cities:

When Charles IV acquired the bones of St. Vitus - a popular fourth-century martyr - and brought them to Prague, the city became a center of the St. Vitus cult. 

In 1344, when Prague became an archbishopric, Charles IV started with the construction of the St. Vitus Cathedral. The first part was built by the Frenchman Mathieu d'Arras. After his death in 1352, Peter Parler took over for the next forty-seven years. In 1421, the Hussite wars stopped work on the cathedral, and it wasn't until 1872 that works resumed and finally in 1929 the cathedral was completed. 



We even saw a couple taking their wedding shots at Prague Castle! (We say Prague Castle, but it is actually huge, with many courtyards. In certain courtyards, there would be a cathedral or smaller castles, but the whole place is called Prague Castle).


Inside of the beautiful St Vitus Cathedral. A short writeup by Wikipedia:

This cathedral is an excellent example of Gothic architecture and is the biggest and most important church in the country. Located within Prague Castle and containing the tombs of many Bohemian kings and Holy Roman Emperors, the cathedral is under the ownership of the Czech government as part of the Prague Castle complex.


Stained glass windows.


Part deux.


In the courtyard with St Vitus Cathedral, there is a 17 meter tall obelisk which is a WWI memorial by Joze Plecnik.


The other side of the exterior.


Details on the Golden Gate. Again from the website A View on Cities:

Until the nineteenth century the Golden Gate (Porta Aurea) was the main gate of St. Vitus. It was used as the doorway by which kings entered on coronation day. Just above the entrance is a large mosaic of the Last Judgment. Inside, the most remarkable part of the church is the surprisingly high chancel with an elegant net vaulting. Also noteworthy is the richly decorated chapel of St. Wenceslas.


Next, we head down the steps towards Prague's Charles Bridge.


From myczechrepublic.com
Charles Bridge is a stone Gothic bridge that connects the Old Town and Lesser Town (Malá Strana). Its construction was commissioned by Czech king and Holy Roman Emperor Charles IV and began in 1357. In charge of the construction was architect Petr Parléř whose other works include the  St.  Vitus Cathedral  at  the Prague Castle. It is said that egg yolks were mixed into the mortar to strengthen the construction of the bridge.


Me trying to look editorial, standing in front of some posters. (Is it working? Haha!)


We head to Prague's Old Town Square, to the Astronomical Tower, which contains the world's 3rd oldest astronomical clock, and the oldest one still in operation today!


From Wikipedia:

The Orloj is mounted on the southern wall of Old Town Hall in the Old Town Square. The clock mechanism itself is composed of three main components: the astronomical dial, representing the position of the Sun and Moon in the sky and displaying various astronomical details; "The Walk of the Apostles", a clockwork hourly show of figures of the Apostlesand other moving sculptures—notably a figure of Death (represented by a skeleton) striking the time; and a calendar dial with medallions representing the months. According to local legend, the city will suffer if the clock is neglected, and its good operation is placed in jeopardy and a ghost, mounted on the clock, was supposed to nod his head in confirmation. According to the legend, the only hope was represented by a boy born on New Year's night.


A panorama of the Old Town Square. There we were given some free time to explore!

Day 2 - Prague to Cesky Krumlov


Hello world! It was a 2h drive from Prague to CK, which is a small town in the South Bohemian region of Czech Republic. We went through tons of trouble just to see this town because my mom really wanted to explore it. It was an optional tour, so the people who felt that they didn't get enough of Prague skipped this.


We arrived at Cesky Krumlov, this is the Tower in the town grounds.

From Wikipedia:

Český Krumlov Castle is unusually large for a town of Krumlov's size; within the Czech Republic it is second in extent only to the Hradčany castle complex of Prague. Inside its grounds are a large rococo garden, an extensive bridge over a deep gap in the rock upon which the castle is built, and the castle itself, which in turn consists of many defined parts dating from different periods of time. 


First food shot of the post. I believe this was lunch or dinner one of the days. A really delicious serving of chicken leg. So food was all inclusive on this tour, with meals being split between a la carte and buffet styles, Chinese and Western food.


We got lost going back to the bus from the Castle grounds, but it's alright. Got to take such gems as a result. Hehe.


Bus selfie :P


Another one of our meals. I was mad addicted to the sauerkraut the whole of this trip.


Mom and Dad at Cesky Krumlov.



The view from the CK Tower - we were given some free time and got to look at the town from the top of the tower. Was a slightly precarious climb but it was worth it in the end.




View from the CK Tower part 2.






Taken at the hotel backyard. Can't believe a random garden pretty enough for us to take insta-worthy shots.

Day 3 - Prague to Dresden


A panorama of the beautiful Dresden, the cultural capital of Germany.


The magnificent Semper Opera house. From A View on Cities:
The oval shaped building features a large central portal topped by a panther-drawn quadriga with Dionysos, Greek god of the art and his consort Ariadne. On either side of the portal are statues of Goethe and Schiller, famous German writers. In niches at the sides of the building are the original statues of Shakespeare, Sophocles, Molière and Euripides; they were saved from the old Semper Opera House.
The Opera house was actually destroyed and rebuilt 2 times, first in a fire in 1869, and then in WWII in 1945.



Heya!



Details on the statue of King John Statue.


 Inside the museum, just look at that level of detail on the ceiling! This is to be a recurrent theme. There were many cathedrals and churches with amazing engravings on the ceiling.


Our day trip tour guide, who was very informational.


A panorama of Zwinger Palace. From Wikipedia:

The Zwinger (GermanDresdner ZwingerIPA: [ˈdʁeːzdnɐ ˈt͡svɪŋɐ]) is a palace in the eastern German city of Dresden, built in Rococo styleand designed by court architect Matthäus Daniel Pöppelmann. It served as the orangery, exhibition gallery and festival arena of the Dresden Court.
The location was formerly part of the Dresden fortress of which the outer wall is conserved. The name derives from the German word Zwinger(an enclosed killing ground in front of a castle or city gate); it was for the cannons that were placed between the outer wall and the major wall. The Zwinger was not enclosed until the Neoclassical building by Gottfried Semper called the Semper Gallery was built on its northern side.


One of the gates, which is shaped like a crown.


The another museum we went to. This is the model view of the building.


It was previously destroyed then rebuild after the world war. Here you'll see some pictures depicting the devastation.



They enclosed the ceiling in the courtyard so as to keep the rain and snow out.


A pretty window showcasing Christmas decorations!


The guide told us that Audi was a brand that was founded in Dresden. That's kinda amazing.


We see the dome of the Frauenkirche (Church of Our Lady). From its official website:

The Frauenkirche Dresden can look back on a 1000-year history. Already its predecessor churches were dedicated to the Mother of God and called Frauenkirche. In the 18th century, the famous dome structure by George Bähr was built and dominated Dresden’s cityscape for 200 years. The church was destroyed shortly before the end of World War II. Its ruin remained as a memorial at the heart of the city.


The interesting part of the buildings in Dresden is that, most of them were rebuilt after the World War. The parts of it that were still standing were blackened by fire.


About the Procession of the Princes:

The Fürstenzug (English: Procession of Princes) in Dresden, Germany, is a large mural of a mounted procession of the rulers of Saxony. It was originally painted between 1871 and 1876 to celebrate the 800th anniversary of the Wettin Dynasty, Saxony's ruling family. In order to make the work weatherproof, it was replaced with approximately 23,000 Meissen porcelain tiles between 1904 and 1907. With a length of 102 metres (335 ft), it is known as the largest porcelain artwork in the world. The mural displays the ancestral portraits of the 35 margraves, electors, dukes and kings of the House of Wettin between 1127 and 1904.
The Fürstenzug is located on the outer wall of the Stallhof (Stables Courtyard) of Dresden Castle.


Random horse carriages peppered in cities all around Europe.







Dinner was a Chinese buffet. I have to say I'm impressed at how Chinese restaurants are everywhere in Europe. Chinese people are really hardy business people.

Day 4: Dresden to Berlin


Happy to be in Berlin! But next time when I travel alone or come to Germany with my friends, I'll definitely hit the clubs there.


At Brandenburg Gate. From Berlin.de:

The Brandenburg Gate is one of Berlin's most important monuments – a landmark and symbol all in one with over two hundred years of history. A former symbol of the divided city, it drew visitors who used to climb an observation platform in order to get a glimpse of the world behind the Iron Curtain, on the other side of the barren "death-strip" which separated East from West Berlin, geographically and politically. It was here that on June 12, 1987, Ronald Regan issued his stern command to his cold war adversary admonishing him with the words: "Mr. Gorbachov – tear down this wall!". The speech delivered to West Berliners was also audible on the east side of the Gate and echoed President von Weizsacker’s words which translate as: "The German question is open as long as the Brandenburg Gate is closed."

Brandenburg Gate has turned into a symbol of unity

When Germany was reunified following the fall of the Berlin in November 1989 Brandenburg Gate quickly reinvented itself into the New Berlin's symbol of unity. It was officially opened to traffic on December 22, 1989 and 100,000 people came to celebrate the occasion. Unfortunately this also resulted in severe damage to the monument which needed to be restored and was only officially reopened on October 3, 2002.


One of the cathedrals we passed by, it was under construction.


The tour guide showing us the division of East and West Berlin on the map.


Finally we come to the Berlin Wall! From Wikipedia:
The Berlin Wall (GermanBerliner Mauer) was a barrier that divided Berlin from 1961 to 1989. Constructed by the German Democratic Republic (GDR, East Germany), starting on 13 August 1961, the Wall completely cut off (by land) West Berlin from surrounding East Germany and from East Berlin until government officials opened it in November 1989.


So the wall is painting with lots of colourful murals, with this one being the most famous:

My God, Help Me to Survive This Deadly Love, sometimes referred to as the Fraternal Kiss, is a graffiti painting on the Berlin wall by Dmitri Vrubel, one of the best known of the Berlin wall graffiti paintings. Created in 1990, the painting depicts Leonid Brezhnev and Erich Honeckerin a fraternal embrace, reproducing a photograph that captured the moment in 1979 during the 30th anniversary celebration of the foundation of the German Democratic Republic.


At Checkpoint Charlie thereafter.

Checkpoint Charlie (or "Checkpoint C") was the name given by the Western Allies to the best-known Berlin Wallcrossing point between East Berlin and West Berlin during the Cold War (1947-1991).


Family photo op!

Us at the Reichstag.
The Reichstag building is a historical edifice in BerlinGermany, constructed to house the Imperial Diet, of the German Empire. It was opened in 1894 and housed the Diet until 1933, when it was severely damaged after it was set on fire. After World War II, the building fell into disuse; the parliament of the German Democratic Republic (the Volkskammer) met in the Palast der Republik in East Berlin, while the parliament of the Federal Republic of Germany (the Bundestag) met in the Bundeshaus in Bonn.


That's all for part 1! Tune in next time for the next leg of the trip, which is to Poland and Hungary.

This is the 15D Glory of Eastern Europe tour by Super Travels in Singapore. Other options includes 13D Gems of Eastern Europe, Treasures of Eastern Europe or Eastern Europe + Russia. Singapore Super Travels Reviews Guided Tour 15 Days 13 Days  CTC travels review ASA travels review

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