— TOURING PRAGUE —
( Next Installment )

June 11, 2007 — Now that I've had a chance to sift through my photo archives from last month's trip, I can't resist showing you some images from Prague. I hardly know where to begin — it's such an extraordinary city. I guess I'll start off where we started off...

St. Vitus's Cathedral
We began by visiting St. Vitus's Cathedral, which is the "soul" of the famous Prague Castle. The Castle, which sits on a rocky ridge overlooking the Vltava River and the city, was established as a simple wooden fortress back in the 9th century. Over subsequent centuries the Castle was transformed into a sprawling complex of spectacular stone buildings, including the Royal Palace and St. Vitus's Cathedral, Prague's largest and most famous church. The cornerstone for St. Vitus was laid in the 1300's; construction continued for another 600 years. I loved this church.

A Bird's-eye view of Prague
Below is a view of the city, taken from the tower of St. Vitus. We had to climb a very dark and narrow spiral staircase to reach the top — 287 steep and claustrophobic steps, to be exact. The space is so tight you have to press yourself hard against the thick stone walls to make room for people who are coming down from the tower. The climb is not for the weak or faint of heart.

Here are more views from the tower:

Scenes outside the Cathedral
It's difficult to convey the sense of scale. The Prague Castle is the largest medieval castle complex in the world. It covers 18 acres. If you count the surrounding gardens, the Castle covers 110 acres.

Photo Details
For those who are interested, my camera is the Canon 5D. I used just one lens for all the photographs, Canon's EF 24-70mm f/2.8L. The interior of the cathedral was very dark. I shot, without benefit of a tripod or flash, at ISO's ranging from 800 to 1250. I think the lens performed quite well considering the conditions.