Charles Bridge Dusk Blue Countdown Timer

This is Charles Bridge at the blue hour, from above, looking down the length of it towards Prague Castle, and the whole river has gone the colour of turquoise glass. The bridge itself is a line of warm light cutting diagonally through the frame, lined with lamps and statues and people, hundreds of people, their movement blurred into pale streaks by the long exposure. Above them the castle sits on its ridge, lit up gold, the cathedral spires rising out of it. The sky is a deep even blue with those long stretched clouds that look like they have been smeared across with a brush. I was up on a tower on the Old Town side, leaning out over a parapet, which was probably not allowed, and the wind was cold enough that my eyes were watering. The boats on the river were just light trails, three of them, red and white. Below me the bridge went on being itself, the oldest thing in the picture, and the most alive, which is a strange combination and the reason people come. I climbed back down the tower stairs in the dark and got lost twice before I found the door.