Robin's Adventures

Danube River Cruise
A River Adventure

Regensburg Town Hall

The Town Hall building was built during the 13th century. From 1663 to 1806 the Imperial Diet (highest general assembly) of the Holy Roman Empire met here. Today the building is a museum with a torture chamber in the basement.

Notice the two figures above the entrance. They are named Schutz and Trutz (Protection and Defiance). Their job is to keep the city safe. Right below them, the keys to the city are carved into the wall.

Regensburg Cathedral

Saint Peter's Cathedral is a Gothic style building that was completed in 1520. There are elaborate carvings all over the outside of the church. One disturbing carving (not shown here), called a Judensau (Jew's sow), is designed to be an antisemitic image of Jews suckling from a large sow.

Inside Regensburg Cathedral

Inside the cathedral there are impressive arches and lots of stained glass windows. The large organ pipes were also quite impressive. It is said that there are more than 1,000 images of Saint Peter inside and outside this cathedral.

Seen in a Shop

As we wandered through Regensburg, we saw some interesting things in the shops. A couple of the stone birds came home with us to be placed in our garden. Fortunately, I had packed light and the weight of the stones did not lead to extra charges for overweight luggage.

Vilshofen

Vilshofen was an unscheduled stop. The rain caused a large enough rise in the level of the river, that we were unable to fit under the bridges safely. Our trip would end in Vilshofen instead of Nuremberg and we would go by bus to our final destination, Prague.

From the dock, Vilshofen looked like a cute little town. We could see the clock tower and church steeple that seemed to be a staple of every town we passed.

We got off the boat briefly to take photos of a cool statue, some beautiful flowers, and some baby swans.

Prague

Prague is a delightful city with cobblestone streets, beautiful old buildings, lots of interesting churches and synagogues, and an old town square that is bustling with activity.

We stayed in the K & K Hotel that was right off of Wenceslas Square and about a 15 minute walk to old town.

Old Town Square

Old Town Square has many interesting buildings with an assortment of different architectural styles. The Gothic style Church of Our Lady before Tyn was built in the 14th century and has spires that are just over 262 feet tall.

There is a wonderful clock tower with the oldest working astronomical clock in the world. Nearby is the red old town hall building and the minute house with decorative plaster figures.

The Baroque style Saint Nicholas Church is also in old town square as well as Kinsky Palace, the home of the Czech National Art Gallery.

Astronomical Clock

The astronomical clock in old town square was first built in 1410. It is the oldest working astronomical clock in the world. The crowds begin to gather just before the clock strikes every hour.

As the clock begins to strike, a hush falls over the crowd and the sound of hundreds of cameras clicking fills the air. Not sure which is more interesting... watching the clock or watching the crowd.

Clock at Work

The face of the clock is surrounded by four figures which represent the concerns of the citizens of Prague in the 15th century: vanity (holding a mirror) , greed (holding a moneybag), death (a skeleton), and pagan invasion (a Turk).

When the clock strikes, the skeleton rings a bell and turns over an hourglass. Then two windows above the clock face open and the twelve apostles parade past the windows. The rooster just above the apostle's windows crows and the hour chimes.

Prague Castle

Prague Castle, with an area of 753,474 square feet, is the largest ancient castle in the world. It was first built in the 9th century and still serves as the official residence for the President of the Czech Republic.

The castle consists of many buildings which include several churches and museums. The castle is located on a hilltop with beautiful views of the city below.