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Franz Kafka's House
Franz Kafka was born here, by the Church of St Nicholas in the Old Town of Prague, on 3 July 1883, and he would live here for another thirty years. The actual building he lived in has since been demolished, but the street is now named for its most famous resident.
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Old Town Square
“This narrow circle encompasses my entire life.”, Kafka once said, and he wasn't exaggerating. His childhood home is not far from here and many of the apartments he lived in overlook this beautiful square.
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The Old New Synagogue
While Kafka was Jewish, he didn't share his parents' faith and only visited the synagogue on the four High Holy Days of the years. This synagogue is also notable for being the oldest in Europe and the home of the legendary Golem of Prague.
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Navigating the winding paths of bureaucracy was something Kafka knew well, between 1908 and 1922 he worked at the Workers' Accident Insurance Company. Now the Hotel Century Old Town. This uninspiring job may have been the inspiration for some of his most troubled characters.
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Cafe Louvre
When he finally escaped his desk, Kafka would often be found in one of Prague's many cafes. The Louvre was a personal favourite. Over the years its high ceilings and billiards room have hosted many of central Europe's intellectuals.
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Savoy Café
Kafka found an interested in Jewish folk theatre after watching a memorable performance at the Savoy Cafe on Kozí plácek Square. He became friends with the troupe's leading actor, Jizchak Löwy, and wrote many diary entries about their performances.
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Charles Bridge
This historic structure has bridged the Vltava since the 15th Century, connecting the Old Town to Prague Castle on the western bank. It's also believed to be the bridge that Josef K crosses in the final chapter of The Trial.
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Prague Castle
Unlike the castle of Kafka's unfinished novel, Prague castle is open to all visitors. The castle complex is the largest in the world, covering 7 hectares of the city centre, and home to the Bohemian Crown Jewels.
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Franz Kafka Museum
A must-see for any fans of the writer, the museum includes exhibits of manuscripts, first editions, photographs, and letters exploring how the city influenced his writing, and his writing's influence on the city.
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Franz Kafka Monument
This surrealist bronze sculpture, found on Dušní Street in the Jewish Quarter, was designed by Jaroslav Rona and based on the Kafka's short story, Description of a Struggle (1912), one of the author's earliest surviving works.
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The Head of Franz Kafka
This enormous moving sculpture by artist David Černý is installed outside the Quadrio shopping centre. As the layers spin and the face distorts, it reflects Kafka's fragmented and complex view of the world.
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Kafka's grave
When he died in a sanatorium near Vienna in 1924, aged just 40, his body was brought back and buried in the New Jewish Cemetery in Prague. Fans of Kafka often make a pilgrimage here on 3 June, the date of his death, to pay their respects to Prague’s most famous writer.
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