Editor’s note: like Sam, I preferred the east bank of Prague to the west, but found value on both sides. Make sure to click here to visit Sam’s article on the eastern part of the city, and when you fall in love with his writing, click here to visit his index page.

As a travel enthusiast, I love to read blogs and magazines and watch YouTube videos on travel. One of my favorites to follow is a YouTuber named Drew Binsky, an American Jewish guy who has been to every country in the world. In one of his videos, he states that he has been to over 700 cities and has ranked his top 20 cities. Drew’s favorite city in the world? Prague, and he could very well be right. There is so much to do in Prague that I have divided the city into two articles, one on the East Bank of the Vltava River with Prague’s Stare Mesto (Old Town), and this article focusing on the Charles Bridge and the Mala Strana (Lesser Town) on the West Bank of the Vltava.

The Charles Bridge might be the most beautiful and interesting bridge in all of Europe. Construction on this medieval stone bridge that spans Czechia’s largest river, the Vltava, began in 1357 under the rule of Holy Roman Emperor Charles IV and was completed in 1402. It is 31 feet wide and has a length of 1692 feet. Bookending the bridge are medieval towers, two on the Lesser Town side, and one, the most famous, on the Old Town side, called the Old Town Bridge Tower welcoming people into the Old Town. These towers date back to 1357 as well. In the 1700s, 30 Baroque statues and sculptures were put across the bridge, but today most of the statues are replicas of these. The statues line both sides of the bridge and largely depict Catholic saints. Perhaps the most famous statue is a bronze depiction of Jesus on the cross, called Calvary, flanked on either side by the Virgin Mary and Saint John. In 1696, the leader of the Jewish community was accused of blasphemy by local officials, and his punishment was that he had to raise money for gold lettering to put in Hebrew surrounding the statue the quote from Isaiah 6:3, “Holy, Holy, Holy is the Lord of Hosts”. At another statue, that of St. Vincent Ferrer and St. Procopius, there is a depiction of a mournful rabbi, who is despairing over the saints’ success at converting Jews to Christianity. While the Charles Bridge is beautiful, there are sad reminders of the antisemitism Jews faced in Europe on the bridge. For the best views of the bridge, visit at sunrise or sunset when the light, and perhaps fog, provides a haunting and powerful backdrop to the statues.

Wandering the streets of the Lesser Town as you make your way up the hill where Prague Castle sits is an adventure in itself. This part of town is far more reminiscent of the Renaissance artwork and architecture seen throughout what was the Austro-Hungarian Empire, as seen in cities like Vienna and Budapest. On many of the buildings are pictures of faces that symbolize different attributes and characteristics. Before many people could read street names, these were placed on the buildings so that people could use them as directional points (i.e. go down the street with the green man). On your way up to Prague Castle, stop off at St. Nicholas Church. What is a bit confusing in Prague is that there are two St. Nicholas Churches, one in Old Town and one in the Lesser Town. Both churches are built in Baroque architecture and were founded in 1704, so it would have been a bit less confusing had they named them differently. The one in the Old Town is affiliated with the Czech breakoff of the Catholic Church called the Hussite movement, while the Lesser Town one remains Roman Catholic. Both churches are beautiful and worth visiting, but if you have time for only one, I will give the nod to the one in the Lesser Town, which has been called Prague’s most impressive Baroque building. This church has a spectacular blue dome and the artwork inside of the church is one masterpiece after another. The organ has 4000 pipes and Mozart performed on them. The interior of the church is designed with statues, and on the walls are frescoes as well as one on the 70 meter high dome.

Once you get up to Prague Castle, turn around and admire the beautiful views of the entire city below. You will spot the Charles Bridge and Vltava River, the Church of Our Lady before Tyn, and the St. Nicholas Church that you just visited. While the Church of Our Lady before Tyn is in many ways a symbol of the city because of how it dominates the Old Town Square, the most iconic church in Prague and the seat of the Archbishop of Prague is St. Vitus Cathedral. St. Vitus Cathedral stands imposingly as part of the castle complex. Construction on the cathedral began in 1344 and was completed by Peter Parler, the same architect of Charles Bridge, when he was only 23 years old. The cathedral is a Gothic structure that bears resemblance in different ways to the Gothic cathedrals of Milan, Cologne, and Notre Dame in Paris. Make sure to check out the mosaic of the Last Judgment at the Golden Gate when entering, the many gargoyles on the outside of the darkened building, and dome vault of the chapel of St. Wenceslaus, which contains many relics of the 10th century Czech king and saint who is buried here.

The Prague Castle complex has many museums and places to visit, such as the National Gallery and St. George’s Basilica, another church on the complex which dates to 920 CE. Prague Castle, which today is the home and working residence of the president, dates to 870 CE. It is Czechia’s most visited landmark with over 2.5 million annual visitors. Despite being so old, you would not realize that this castle is this ancient when visiting, as different parts of the castle architecturally reflect different eras that it has been through. When touring, you will see the different rooms, gardens, and the crown jewels. The castle is the largest ancient castle in the world at 750,000 square feet. However, the most memorable part may not be inside the castle but outside. The gate of the castle is flanked by two large statues of two mythical giants battling each other. At the base of the gate stand two royal guards. Every hour there is a changing of the guard ceremony; however, the main event takes place at noon with a changing of the flags as well. Do not be an obnoxious tourist and harass the guards who are quietly standing at attention, as I saw some do this and the guard quickly let them know that this behavior was not appreciated.

Despite being called the “Lesser Town”, the name is not a reflection of all there is to do on the West Bank of the Vltava River. Make sure you spend a whole day of your Prague stay here, it will be well worth it and make your experience no lesser, but much fuller!

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