One of the things I consistently do in every destination I visit is try to find a high peak and gain perspective, whether it’s at the top of a tall building or a lookout at the summit of a hike. I get a lot of appreciation for a place by doing this, and it helps me understand how everything is laid out and connected – insight you don’t get on the ground.

When it comes to Prague and a lot of the other older cities around the world, I find this especially enjoyable since they can be filled with narrow streets and become, at times, a bit disorienting. I had two places in mind in for a perch above Prague, one located at the top of the clock tower at the Old Town Square and the second on the other side of the river, looking back over the town and the bridges. As you’ll see, I got very fortunate with the weather for the former, but I can’t say the same for the overlook from across the river as the position of the sun rained on my photogenic parade. Normally I would schedule my visits to avoid bad lighting, however sometimes the stars simply don’t align and you have to go when you can go.

Because of my job, I often get caught up in the pictures. I look at them and realize they don’t tell the whole story – they don’t show what I really saw. But as a traveler it pleases me very much, photo or no photo, to be able to close my eyes and remember what I saw and felt.

Here’s a few of the better ones from what many consider to be one of the world’s most beautiful cities: