Prague gardens, château and amazing views

Today was jammed pack with exciting activity. While we could wander through the heart of Prague for weeks and not see everything, we thought we’d head to the city’s outer suburbs to see some of the sights and attractions as well. Our first stop was to visit the Prague Botanical Gardens, an urban oasis.

The garden is broken up into several sections, from a large tropical greenhouse to massive lawns where patrons can picnic. The grounds of the botanical garden are situated on the right bank of the Vltava river near the Troja Castle and the Prague Zoo. We were told that in the springtime months, when the magnolia fields are in full bloom, weddings occur nearly every day. Walking through the tropical greenhouse we discovered some interesting facts, while seeing some fascinating plant creatures. Straight out of “Little Shop of Horrors,” they had a wide variety of carnivorous plants (bug eaters). Have you ever seen this type of plant? They have large mouth-like pod with sharp teeth. The plant patiently waits for something to fall within its clasp, them quickly clamps down. The plant then secretes fluid that breaks down the insect, eventually absorbing the nutrients. Just fascinating how nature is able to adapt.

We then walked to a lovely place for lunch, a restaurant called Krasna Vyhlidka, which is perched atop a hill providing some great view of Prague, along with a wonderful outdoor patio for dining. They also have a cool private dining area in the basement for small gatherings.

Just down the road was our next stop, the Troja Château. It has been said that this Château was built to recreate the atmosphere of the “eternal city.” This grand suburban villa is packed with works of art surrounded gardens and vineyards with a murmuring river.

We then headed back to the center of Prague to the Old Town Square, where we got a private tour of Old Town Hall, which houses the famous astronomical clock. A few days earlier we had strolled Old Town Square and witness the clock striking the hour, where a procession of the Twelve Apostles appear, accompanied by a skeleton pulling on a string. Lots of people gather each out to bear witness to this interesting event. This time however, we got to see the action from inside the clock tower.

Additionally, we toured the underground cellars of the building, which is an area of the building that few get to see, and, it dates back to the 12th century. I will be doing a story on the Old Town Hall in the weeks to come as it was such a fascinating place to visit.

Our last stop of the day was to the Zizkov Tower, which is affectionately known as the 2nd ugliest building in the world. When you’re within the tower, all the “ugliness” disappears because you are blinded by the surrounding beauty of this magnificent city. From my experience, restaurants with a view are often overrated, but not in this case, Oblaca Restaurant matches its modern cuisine with the beautiful metropolis view of Prague.