Archive: Travel | Monuments Monuments
A Tale of Two Towers
Prague’s skyline gave the capital one of its nicknames: the city of a
hundred spires. But in actual fact around a thousand spires, belfries and
towers of various styles and ages now grace the city centre. Some of them
are popular tourist attractions offering great views of the city, others
only recently revealed their mysteries. One served as an observation post
for the secret police; another hosted a morbid display of a dozen severed
heads. More
Sacral tourism on the rise in the Czech Republic
Sacral tourism is fast gaining ground in the Czech Republic. Although it is
perceived as one of Europe’s most atheist countries the Czech Republic
has an impressive network of cathedrals, basilicas, chapels and, even a
church museum. More
Olomouc - a treasure trove of historical architecture
With its sloping cobbled streets, beautiful baroque churches and an
abundance of historical architecture, Olomouc is easily one of the most
appealing cities in the Czech Republic outside of Prague. Typically, this
bustling university town in North Moravia owes much of its architectural
splendour to its long and somewhat chequered past. Some claim that this
ancient city dates back as far as Roman times, when it was reputed to have
been founded by Julius Caesar himself. More
St. Martin in the Wall
I had never really been inside or had a proper look around, but I was sure
the small church of St Martin in the Wall would have an interesting story,
if for no other reason than its ancient appearance and peculiar name. Just
off the central Národní třída is a classic Prague alleyway that’s
tucked away from the shopping boulevard, neatly dividing the centuries from
one another, and there you’ll find it. One of the oldest churches in the
city, St Martin in the Wall is one of those relatively few landmarks whose
story can transport you all the way back through the ages to the beginnings
of the Czech metropolis. More
The small Vršovice château – an old landmark rising slowly from the ruins
Standing atop of a small hill, with a tramline swooping around it,
punctuated by a baroque Roman Catholic church on one side and a modernist
Hussite church on the other, Rangherka, or the small Vršovice château,
contains within its own story the history of the surrounding district as
well. The original building was put up just as the then village of
Vršovice began to grow and develop rapidly. Now, unlike the surrounding
neighbourhood, it is a sad sight. The prominent neo-renaissance building is
in ruins, with reconstruction having dragged on for more than six years,
although the past year has seen the work finally intensify. More
The House of the Black Madonna – home of the only surviving Cubist café in the world
Nestled between busy Wenceslas Square and Prague’s number one tourist
destination, Old Town Square, the House of the Black Madonna houses a small
museum of Cubism as well as the only surviving Cubist café in the world
– the Grand Café Orient, which was renovated between 2002 and 2005. More
St. Procopius Basilica in Třebíč
The Basilica of St. Procopius in Třebíč is one of only 12 places in the
Czech Republic inscribed on the UNESCO list of World Heritage Sites. In
this edition of Spotlight we’ll give you a taste of some of what makes
the 12th century structure such a marvel. More
New CzechTourism campaign invites visitors to create their own stories
The national tourism agency CzechTourism has launched a new advertising
campaign branding the Czech Republic as a ‘land of stories’, using
experiences famous figures such as Goethe, Einstein, Apollinaire and Peter
the Great had in the country to attract visitors from abroad. The new
campaign invites potential tourists to make the Czech Republic the place
for their own stories just as famous figures from their countries have done
before them. Maggie Lund caught up with Leon Sverdlin, creative director of
the advertising company Mark BBDO, whom CzechTourism commissioned to
produce the campaign, and asked him what image of the Czech Republic they
wanted to get across. More
National Heritage Institute seeks to attract more visitors to Czech castles and chateaus
The Czech Republic is sometimes called the land of castles and chateaus.
For historic reasons, many of those monuments, including some of the most
popular ones such as Lednice, Český Krumlov and Karlštejn, are owned by
the state and run by the National Heritage Institute. To attract more
visitors to these sits, the institute this week opened an information
office in Prague. Radio Prague spoke to Tomáš Brabec from the National
Heritage Institute, and asked him what information visitors can find in the
new facility. More
A visit to Skalka in Prague's Smíchov
In this week's Spotlight, Dominik Jun visits Skalka in Prague's Smíchov
district, and discovers baroque-era ruins, and forests and meadows
galore... More
+1
