Kateřina lodged at the same hotel we did so she wouldn't have to commute in from her home each morning.  Bright and early (right after breakfast) she gathers her chicks on the street in front of the hotel, counts noses, and gets us all moving in the same direction... up.

A short uphill jaunt to the end of Jánský vršek leaves us at the bottom of a flight of stairs -- not too many, 30-or-so -- and those take us (up) to Nerudova.  From there, it's ½ to ¾ of a mile to the castle -- uphill.  You can see from this picture the steepness of the streets.  We 'flatlanders' are (gasp!) not used to this.  Kateřina, having done this all her life, lopes uphill like a gazelle.  There she is, leading the way.

Thankfully, she paused several times to point out interesting landmarks and (not coincidentally) allow us to catch our breath.

Note the cobblestone street.  This appears to be commonplace throughout Prague.  What's not commonplace are potholes, which leads me to believe that cobbles are pretty sturdy.

Changing of the Guard at Prague Castle.

On the grounds of the 12^th-century Prague Castle (Pražsky Hrad) we find St. Vitus' Cathedral, another breathtaking example of Gothic architecture.

This is but a single example of dozens of spectacular stained glass windows (including one by Alphonse Mucha) in the cathedral, and I have pix of several of them.  To avoid boring you, they are not included here; on special request, I will send them as email attachments.

Vladislav Hall in Pražsky Hrad dates from 1490 and is in a remarkable state of preservation.  It is said that this room was sometimes used for jousts(!)  This picture shows about one quarter of the room.