This is one of the most visited bridges in the world, but you wouldn’t know it in the wee hours of the morning. It was the second time on this trip when I would wake up a few hours before dawn, meander through the Old Town—tripod in hand—hoping to arrive in time to catch the many gradations of the sky just before sunrise.
Karlův most, or Charles Bridge, is a medieval stone bridge crossing the Vltava river in central Prague. One of its distinguishing features is the collection of 30 statues of various saints sitting atop balustrades on both sides of the bridge. The statues seen today are actually 20th century replicas, and the originals have since been moved to the Lapidarium in the National Museum.
The bridge, like Prague in general, has been a delight to photograph during the day. And because there are no tall buildings near the Old Town, one can see the silhouettes of old buildings against an unobstructed sky. I thought the only way to really appreciate the silhouettes though, would be in the wee hours of the morning. Sunrise was at around 5am at this time of year, and I got here just a bit too late on my first try. But my second attempt was surely worthwhile, and I was able to catch the silhouettes while the streetlamps along the bridge were still shining upon the last vestiges of darkness before dawn.