Prague In Pictures

This past weekend we went to Denmark to take a sneak preview of what might be the next chapter of our lives overseas... but that story will have to wait.

So for now, back to Prague where I've managed to narrow down about a 1,000 pictures to about 30 of the better ones. Picture-taking conditions were not ideal: it was hazy all day and raining or snowing about half the time. The buildings and bridges all need that first good spring rain to wash the grime off them and brighten them up. I can't wait to go back on a clear, summer day to try this again!

First, a panorama shot from one of the walls of Prague Castle... stitched using the demo version of Autopano Pro. Click to expand:

And then the slideshow:



Cheers!

St. Vitus

The grounds of Prague Castle hold the impressive St. Vitus Cathedral. It is the 3rd cathedral to be built on this spot, the first built in 925AD and the last started in 1344 but not completely finished until 1929. This is largest and most important church in the Czech Republic. We spent a few hours up around the cathedral -- we attended a short concert in the next door St. George's Basilica.

This first picture is another panorama from stitched together photos. This one was a bit more ambitious and stitches 46 photos together -- click to enlarge:


And a slide show...



Cheers!

But, Yes, We Have No Salisbury Steak

This past weekend we did a very quick run through Bath, England then stayed the night in Salisbury. Our host in Salisbury gave us a condensed history of the town and told us about Old Sarum. Sarum, the old one, was the first settlement that was near present day Salisbury.

Present day Sarum (now Salisbury), was established when the top of the hilltop establishment became too small for both church and castle. The clergy moved out and established a new cathedral (picture top left) about two miles south and this became the Salisbury that still stands. Legend has it that the Bishop of Old Sarum shot an arrow from the hilltop, declaring that where it landed is where they would build the new cathedral. The arrow struck a deer and the deer ran and died on the new site miles away.

The Salisbury Cathedral features the tallest spire (404 ft) of all churches in the United Kingdom. Modern engineering has been added to the structure to keep it from collapsing under its own weight. This year marks the 750th anniversary of its consecration in the year 1258.

On our host's tip, we decided to take a quick pass by Old Sarum Castle -- or what's left of it. Like Stonehenge, this place is also bordering on ancient. There is evidence that people lived here over 3000 years ago. It also shows up on Roman maps of the area as Sorviodunum. The pictures don't show much -- you really had to use your imagination to see the castle as it once was but walking over a moat can help get you in the right frame of mind.

For reasons we discerned later, Boo loved this place. She ran here and there in quite a spirited fashion and liked to pop up and look over the broken down walls. On our way out, I noticed that the place was posted for guard dogs that roamed the grounds at night -- this place was dog scent Nirvana.

Cheers!