St. Nicholas

Upon entering the church, Jason and I both paused with a "whoa." We'd read that this was it was Prague's finest display of Baroque construction, but we weren't quite ready for the gold gilded extravaganza in the church's interior. You had to really look to find a surface that wasn't made of marble or covered in gold or with an elaborate painting. As is typical of the Baroque period, moderation wasn't an option -- they subscribed to the philosophy that more is good and a lot more is a lot better. (I joked with Jason that I wondered what their Christmas cookies would look like, since he's one to pile his cookies sky-high with decorations.) I also now understand the name of the Baroque period -- because surely after paying for all that marble and gold the builders would have been "b-roke."
But jokes aside, the inside of the church really was beautiful. Our brochure said that St. Nicholas significantly contributed to the develop of high Baroque architecture. Construction began in 1703 and lasted until 1752, though they were able to start having mass in the building in 1711. Its beauty belies its age, though this may largely be due to renovations in the 1950s.
The most striking feature of the outside of the church is the large dome, which highlights the Prague skyline below the castle. We read that during the communism days, the secret police used the top of the dome as a lookout to spy on the actions of the various embassies that dot the neighborhood's streets.
There are several more pictures on the picasa site.