My Czech Republic Blog

Blog written by two Prague residents about life in the Czech Republic.

Restoration Completed on Astronomical Clock in Prague

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The scaffolding has come down and the restored astronomical clock in Prague can now be seen. Once again, groups with gather and stare up at the revolving apostles on the hour. According to the City of Prague website, the work included overhauling the Mánes Calendar, repairing the astrolabe’s pointer mechanism and restoring the wooden sculptures. The total cost was estimated to run close to 2.5 million Czech crowns (100,000 USD – 85,000 EUR).

As I promised in a previous post, I have included before and after photos. I also show a close-up picture of one section of the orloj. The lighting in the photos it different, but it is still possible to see what a difference the restoration work has done to the appearance of the orloj.

Orloj Before
Before		 Orloj After
After
Orloj Before
Before		 Orloj Before
After

The Christmas Tree Is Up!

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The Christmas tree that is going to adorn Prague’s Old Town Square this year was transported to Prague yesterday. It started its journey in Rudolph’s Valley in the Krkonoše Mountains in Eastern Bohemia and arrived at the outskirts of Prague in the afternoon. The 20-meter tall tree was installed on the Old Town Square last night and was being decorated when we dropped by there this evening. Other work was going on in setting up the annual Christmas market that is scheduled to open this Saturday. The Old Town Square had an unusual look tonight – that of a construction site almost devoid of the typical mix of tourists and locals returning from work.

The Christmas tree will be lit at 6 p.m. this Sunday, November 27, by the mayor of Prague Pavel Bém.

Wenceslas Square will not have a real tree this year. A 15-meter tall artificial tree will be used instead.

Christmas Tree on Old Town Square, Nov. 22, 2005    Christmas Tree on Old Town Square, Nov. 22, 2005

First Snow in Prague

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We had our first snow of the season here in Prague. As the day wore on, most of the snow melted and it could just be seen in parks, on cars and on rooftops. More snow is in the forecast for the next few days. As a photographer, I hope there are a lot of snow days this winter, so I have a good opportunity to capture the beauty of Prague and elsewhere in the Czech Republic under snow. As a Prague resident (and a former Californian), I hope the winter is not too harsh.

      

Thumbs Up for Prague Wine

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Just got back from a most enjoyable lunch/dinner at U Grébovky in Prague-Vršovice (you can read about them on our Prague Restaurants page on My Czech Republic). The food and dessert were delicious as usual and I finally got to try the wine from the Grébovka vineyard, i.e. wine produced from the grapes that are grown right here in Prague, in the Havlíčkovy Sady park on the border of Vršovice and Vinohrady. I didn’t expect much, but all three of us who shared the bottle and who are more or less spoiled by French and Napa Valley wines were impressed with it. It’s too bad that the vineyard has recently decided to keep all their wine to themselves and the restaurant is not going to carry it anymore. Oh well, we’ll just have to try one of their South Moravian selections next.

(Inside info: The Grébovka wine that’s going to be sold AT the vineyard has supposedly been commercialized and made into a boring table wine. I guess the only way to verify it is to go and try it.)