Prague has been the capital of our republic since 1918, it is the seat of our government, the centre of political and cultural life in our country. Prague is often called “The Mother of Towns” or “Golden Prague”. It is situated in the very heart of Europe in central Bohemia and on the Vltava river. There are many historical monuments and the town belongs to the most beautiful cities in the world. Many tourists from all over the world come to visit Prague every year. We can find there all architectural styles: Romanesque, Gothic, Renaissance, Baroque and so on.
Prague consists of six parts, mostly former towns which were integrated in the 18th century. They are The Old Town, The Jewish Town (now called Josefov), The New Town, The Little Quarter, Hradèany and Vyšehrad.
The Old Town lies on the right bank of the Vltava river. It is connected to the Little Quarter by Charles Bridge, which is the oldest bridge in Prague. It was founded by the Emperor Charles IV. The bridge was later enriched with Baroque statues.
In the heart of The Old Town there is the oldest preserved university building in central Europe - the Carolinum founded in 1348 by Charles IV. It's a part of the Charles University.
Another historical monument there is the Powder Gate between the Old town and the New town. On The Old Town square there are several sights - such as The Old Town Hall with the astronomical clock (twelve apostles, signs of zodiac) and in the centre of the square there is the statue of Jan Hus.
In The Jewish Town (Josefov) there is the old Jewish cemetery and several synagogues where are museums of Jewish culture.
The Little Quarter is on the left bank of the Vltava river. Its dominant is St. Nicolas Church - the most beautiful baroque building in Prague. On the top of Petøín hill there is the Petøín look-out tower. It provides a marvellous view of the city.
Everybody would like to see the Prague castle. It's about 1,000 years old. The castle was founded by Boøivoj at the end of the 9th century and became the seat of the Pøemyslid dynasty. It was reconstructed during the reign of Charles IV. The construction of St. Vitus Cathedral started in 1344 and the architects were Petr Parléø and Matthias of Arras. In the underground there are the tombs of Czech kings. From the castle we can go into Golden Lane with small houses of artisans who worked for the castle in the past. Nowadays some of these little buildings serve as shops with souvenirs. There is also the tower Daliborka which was used as a prison.
The New Town was founded by Charles IV. in 1348. There is the National Theatre which was opened in 1883 with the performance of the opera Libuše by Bedøich Smetana. The National Museum is situated on Wenceslas Square. The historical and scientific collections are installed there. Wenceslas Square is also famous for the statue of knight Wenceslas on horseback.
Vyšehrad castle is situated on a high rock above the Vltava river. There is the Vyšehrad cemetery. One part of the cemetery is so called Slavín, which is a collective tomb of fifty famous Czech personalities.
Prague offers modern facilites for sport and recreation - sport stadiums and halls for sports and concerts, parks, swimming pools, amusement parks. There are also many theatres, cinemas, museums and art galleries. We can visit the Prague zoo to see various exotic animals.
Most people in Prague live in suburbs and they travel to work by cars or by public transport. They can go by the underground, trams or buses. If you have a lot of money, you can take a taxi (but it's cheaper if you speak Czech).
What are the advantages and disadvantages of living in a big city?
seat sídlo provide poskytovat
government vláda marvellous nádherný, úžasný
belong patøit, náležet view of výhled na
former bývalý found založit (napø. mìsto)
lie,lay, lain ležet reign vláda
bank bøeh tomb hrobka
connect spojovat Golden Lane Zlatá ulièka
enrich obohatit artisan øemeslník
statue socha tower vìž
the Powder gate Prašná brána prison vìzení
square námìstí performance pøedstavení
several nìkolik knight kníže
astronomical clock orloj offer nabízet
signs of zodiac znamení zvìrokruhu amusement park zábavní park
cemetery høbitov suburb pøedmìstí
Jew, Jewish Žid, židovský
Žádné komentáře:
Okomentovat