Social events

Monday 19:00: welcome reception at Kavárna Mlýnská

(free, invitation to all by Jan, but please register).

Welcome reception will take place at Kavárna Mlýnská (the full address: Kavárna Mlýnská, Všehrdova 449/14, Praha 1 - Malá Strana), 959 m from the conference venue (= 15 min walk).

Kavárna Mlýnská can be translated into English as the "Cafe in the Mill". The building, in which the cafe is located, was originally a medieval water mill, built on shores of the canal Čertovka. The building does not work as a mill for many years, but it still has the rotating wheel. The cafe is quite famous and is certainly worth to visit.

Tuesday 18:30: organ concert

(free, at the conference venue, no need to register). Starting time: after the end of the Tuesday programme, around 18:30.

House of the Professed, where our conference takes place, is now a part of the Faculty of Mathematics and Physics of the Charles University, but it was built in 1691 as a Jesuit college. It was erected on basis of much older buildings, a part of the St. Wenceslav rotunda (from the 11th century) exists till today in the underground of the current building. Organs are part of the refectory.

Wednesday 16:00: a guided tour through astronomical Prague

(free, but please register). Starting time: around 16:00 after the end of the Wednesday programme, starting place: a conference venue. See division into groups

The guided tour in its shortest version will go from the House of Professed (the conference venue) to the Charles bridge, the eldest Prague bridge built between 1357 and 1402. Charles IV, who started its construction, is also a founder of the Charles University; he was a Roman Emperor (meaning more or less a German emperor for those unfamiliar with the European historical nomenclature) and the most famous and favourite Czech king.

Then we will go through the Old Town, with many historical reminiscences (Kepler's house, when Johannes Kepler lived in 1607-1612, etc.), to the Old Town square. This is one of the most famous squares in the Czech Republic, and a historical one. There is the Prague astronomical clock from 1410, the oldest astronomical clock in the world still working (and one of the oldest altogether). The Prague meridian is indicated in the pavement.

Then we will continue to Clementinum, the former Jesuit college, later merged with the University. It is a big complex of many buildings, now it belongs to the National Library. There, the Astronomical Observatory was founded in 1752, and since that time also meteorological observations are performed there without an interuption till today. We will visit Clementinum (the Mathematical hall and the Astronomical Tower).

Thursday 19:30: conference dinner in the restaurant Nebozízek

(not free, please register and pay through your personal page).

The restaurant Nebozízek lies on the slope of the Petřín hill. It is possible to go on foot from the conference venue (about 1.5 km), or go by tram two stops (from Malostranské náměstí just in front of the conference building to Újezd, direction: South) and then change to the funicular (lanovka in Czech). The funicular goes from Újezd to the top of Petřín, there is only one stop in the middle where you can get off, and this is Nebozízek. The funicular is a part of the public transport, so normal tickets apply.

Petřín is a hill in the middle of Prague. It is full of trees, parks and gardens and walking there is really nice, though it can sometimes be quite steep (but roads are good and easy to walk even in city shoes). On top of the hill there is the view tower (a small copy of the Eiffel tower from 1891), a mirror labyrinth and the Prague public observatory.