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Our first day in Prague
Entry 5 of 47 | show all | print this entry |
For Bill, arriving in Prague is a return to 40 years ago, when he directly experienced the time of "Prague Spring", coming here at the peak of the demand for change as Czechs and Slovaks in 1968 stood up against their common enemy, the USSR Communist System... and argued back at the Russians demanding they get out of their country. The people demanded freedom of speech, demanded the right to run their own affairs without dictat fromMoscow. There was an air of rebellion and a feeling the Russians couldn't, or wouldn't in the face of international condemnation dare to stomp on these seemingly workable demands. But they did and it ended sadly, when Soviet tanks rolled into Prague and removed the leaders of this "rebellion". There is a kind of satisfaction that the end of Soviet Communism that the Czechs wanted so badly in 1968 has come to pass. The freedom of speech they demanded then, they are now practicing. It took a long time, and they had to wait for the USSR to collapse first, but the good guys won. The old Soviet Socialist Art-influenced statuary is gone from buildings and streets and probably most today except those in their 70s and 80s don't even remember the old days. And that's good.
To get a feel for the place, we took a "walking tour" through what we loosely call the "Old City". We walked, took a boat and tram ride etc for six and a half hours! We started off in Wenceslas Square ("Good King Wenceslas looked out, on the feast of Stephen," if you remember the Christmas carol) and it is truly remarkable how much of Prague has survived various wars and general shooting and mayhem. A stroll after lunch across King Charles bridge took us to the castle and the day's high point was a visit to the old Royal Palace for the changing of the guard and then a walk through the Royal Chapel, where the coloured glass windows cast a wonderful glow on the scene. We have fallen in love with the city and are already talking about returning!
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