On our second day, we visited the Olšany Cemetery, the largest cemetery in Prague. The Olšany Cemetery was originally created for the plague victims of Prague, but it now houses many famous writers, artists, and actors. This cemetery was like no other I had seen before. Beautiful vines and trees grew in every direction. Tulips, baby’s breath, and wildflowers unexpectedly sprouted from the tops of many burial sites and mounds.
The Art Nouveau tombstones were my favorite because they seemed to fit in perfectly within their natural surroundings. I found a few tombstones that featured tree sculpted with long branches that seemed to be weeping over the names of those deceased. Even though so many bodies were buried in this cemetery, the cemetery was not as frightening as I imagined because of the overgrowth of foliage around the tombstones and the relative peace and stillness in that place. -Caitlin O'Brien
A few additional thoughts: taking photos in a graveyard is a spooky concept, but I found myself similarly wrapped up in the beauty and silence of the Olšany Cemetery. No two grave sites were the same, and I after an hour I began to focus just on the various sculptures that decorated the burial mounds. No angel held the same pose or expression, and my main man JC (Jesus Christ) also appeared in various stances. Spooky, but overall peaceful experience. (Peaceful....um unintentional, kind of weird pun...)
Also if you're a Doctor Who fan, walking around this large cemetery by myself definitely reminded me of the episode where the Doctor and his comrades get attacked by the "crying angels"--sculptures that come to life and attack you when you are not looking at them. Yep...nerd alert.
