On the must visit list for Prague was the sprawling Prague Castle.   I was going to say the “must see” list, but the castle complex is something you can see from just about everywhere around the heart of Prague.  Its position on a hill in Mala Strana and its sheer size has it towering over the Vltava River and demanding your gaze.  No matter how picturesque the castle is from viewpoints along the river, it takes a trip through the complex to fully appreciate it.

The first stop for us inside Prague Castle is St. Vitus Cathedral.  There are a lot of beautiful churches in Prague, but this one is the most spectacular:

The outside Gothic architecture is especially striking in the early morning light and it’s a great prelude to what’s inside.  Interestingly, this is the third religious building on this site.  The precursor buildings were originally built in 925 and 1060 respectively, with this cathedral starting to take shape in the mid 1300s.

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