Vilnius, Lithuania

Vilnius, the capital of Lithuania, has a charming little old town with Baroque buildings, courtyards, churches and cobbled-stone streets.

My favorite part of the visit was simply wandering down the narrow alleys and exploring the courtyards and churches. Vilnius has a mixture of Gothic, Baroque and Neoclassical churches, with the bulk of them being Catholic and some being Orthodox Christian.

I also climbed up Gedominas Hill, which contains the remains of the Upper Castle and has a superb view of the old town. Furthermore, I enjoyed Vilnius University, with its Baroque courtyards.

Krakow, Poland

It seems we somehow carried the rain from Ukraine into Poland as it was damp when the bus arrived at Krakow. This city was the former royal capital of Poland and is its most beautiful city architecturally.

The first thing I noticed when I arrived in Poland is the use of the Latin alphabet! More conspicuous around the city are its Gothic, Renaissance and Baroque architecture as this area was ruled by the Polish and Austrian-Hungarian empires. There were so many churches that it was hard to keep track (and so many weddings on the particular Saturday I was there). My favorite was St Severus Church, with its fountain of mineral-rich water and sculptures of bishops in its surrounding park. Moreover, many of the buildings are named “John Paul II”, after the pope who used to live in the Krakow area.

My favorite building though, has to be the Collegium Maius, founded in 1400 as part of Jagiellonska University, Central Europe’s second oldest. The Gothic courtyard with its old library was especially aesthetically pleasing.

Krakow also contains Wawel hill, the seat of royal power, overlooking Krakow. On top of the hill are Wawel Cathedral and Castle. The cathedral has a distinct architecture, composed of red bricks, gray stones, green spires and a golden dome. The castle has a three-storey Renaissance courtyard with some frescoes remaining.

And perhaps not surprisingly, Krakow has a Jewish quarter, Kazimierz. The city is also near two concentration campus, Auschwitz and Birkenau (which I did not have time to visit but will go next time). Kazimierz, similar to the Jewish quarter in Prague, has its fair share of synagogues and a cemetery. It is now a tourist neighborhood filled with restaurants, bars and cafes.

Prague, Czech Republic

Prague is sometimes known as the “Paris of the east” and it’s not hard to see why. Gothic churches, Baroque theatres, Neo-classical monuments and Art Nouveau mansions rub shoulders with each other by the Vltava River. The landscape is dominated by the 13th century Charles Bridge, lined with statues of luminaries; and Prague Castle, a complex of buildings perched on a hill with St. Vitus Cathedral the most prominent structure.

I came to Prague to visit my friend Roman and to use this as a halfway “rest stop” of my trip across Europe. I had enough time to socialize with Roman and his roommate Mat and even to visit some neighborhoods and sights more than once.

One of my highlights had to be the varied architecture. Prague itself is like a school of architecture throughout the ages, from Romanesque all the way to contemporary. I enjoyed wandering down streets and admiring the ornate facades (e.g., statues, stucco). My favorite buildings include the Gothic St. Vitus Cathedral, the Neo-classical National Theatre and the contemporary Dancing Building.

I also spent some time discovering David Cerny’s sculptures throughout Prague. Cerny is know for controversial sculptures that are simply wacky. Examples include crawling babies on Zizkov Tower, the tallest TV tower in Prague; and a man riding an upside-down horse.

One interesting observation was that Prague is very Westernized. Prague is just like any other European capital. Vestiges of the communist era remain only in the subtlest forms, such as the refurbished communist apartment blocks, or panelaks.