It’s funny how sometimes the best travel moments happen by pure accident. That’s exactly what happened to me and my friends on a crisp afternoon in Prague. We had spent the entire morning wandering through the city's picturesque streets, soaking in the Gothic charm of the Old Town, and stuffing ourselves with sweets.
We experienced random and spontaneous discoveries in between our 'must see' from our list before, but little did we know that our random decision to take a break near Prague Castle would lead to one of the most unforgettable experiences of our trip which was the Changing of the Guard.
We started our exploring adventure quite early that day, and we spent a good amount of time at the Castle, and then at its gardens, but since none of us is a big fan of crowded places, we decided to rest in a place that seemed a bit more chill. But as nothing happens for a reason, we stopped close to one of the entrances of Prague's castle, all of them being safely guarded non-stop.
Since we've already have seen that part of Prague, we had no particular plan, just the idea of resting our legs and enjoying the view before making it slowly to a different part of the city.
As we sat nearby, relishing the moment, a sudden burst of movement and synchronized marching caught our attention. Not only that many people started making their way to the same direction, but a group of sharply dressed guards in blue uniforms, completed with polished boots and formal caps, was making its way through the castle gates.
I sort of anticipated what was going on, but I really wanted to see everything more closely, so I started running not to miss the moment, even if the girls I was travelling with decided to admire everything from the same spot where we were resting, we promised that we'll meet again in the same place once the change of the guards is over.
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Now, here's the part that makes our story even funnier. After a quick research on the internet to understand better what we've just seen, I found out that this kind of guard change happens hourly between 7 AM to 8 PM every day, but at noon the change of guards is a lot more interesting, speaking of a fanfare and whole show that lasts for around 20 minutes in comparison with 3 minutes you enjoy at any of the other hours.
I am not sad I missed it because, in fact, I got to attend one of the others without even knowing about its existence, but through this post, I'd like to encourage anyone who wants to see this moment to attend the one from the noon, which is surely worth an early wake up in the morning.
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What I was even more impressed to see, was that, even if the ceremony was over, the guards that were now out of their working schedule, still continued to move with such precision, each step being perfectly synchronized.
I even managed to approach more closely the gates once the crowd dispersed, having one of the guards slowly smile at the camera! How cool is that?
Anyway, our unexpected experience at the Changing of the Guard is a perfect example of why I love travelling. It’s not just about checking off landmarks or following a strict itinerary but also about those moments of discovery where the surprises remind you why exploring the world is so magical.
So, if you ever find yourself wandering near Prague Castle, take a moment to pause, breathe, and soak in the atmosphere. You never know, you might just stumble upon a little piece of history in motion, just as we did. Which feels even more amazing than a planned experience.
Other places I've seen during my stay in Prague:
- The "John Lennon" Wall
- The Nustle Bridge also known as "The Suicide Bridge" of Prague
- Street Art in Prague
- The Dancing House
- Idiom Installation - the book tower of the Prague library
- Vyton Naplavka and Palackého Most
- Grotta, Havlíček Gardens
- Vyšehradské Sady (Vyšehrad Gardens)
- National Library of Technology
- Prague's Astronomical Clock (Pražský Orloj)
- The Narrowest Street of Prague
- The Brick Gate (Cihelná Brána)
- Letná Park (Letenské sady)
- Vyšehrad Cemetery (Famous Czechs of the Past)
- Saints Peter and Paul Basilica
- First Ladies’ Fashion Exhibition (at Prague’s National Museum)
- The South Gardens (Prague, Czech Republic)
- Accidentally Witnessing Prague’s Changing of the Guard
more coming soon...
Gabriela Travels is the FOUNDER of "Festival Mania" who started this community from the passion of attending various festivals and with the purpose of encouraging more people to explore festivals all around the world and share their experiences. At the same time, Gabriela is an independent Graphic Design Freelancer since 2019 completing over 600+ orders in this time and collaborating with various businesses and people from all over the globe. Additionally, Gabriela has her own corner on the internet since 2017 where she writes various articles for her blog, the most popular being the travel ones (300+ articles written on this field), but also approaching other topics as well, like game reviews, movie and series reviews, photography posts, cooking recipes and more, boosting the total number of articles written to 750+ blog posts. Gabriela is also a gamer since she was 11 years old and gaming remains one of her biggest passions along with traveling, editing, cooking, and doing various sports activities.
~ @GabrielaTravels ~