Prague, Wednesday, the 7th and final full day Mar 04, 2009

Fernando's computer went off at 7am and that seemed like a good time to get up. I slept well. The room was much warmer the last 2 nights, so the adjustments to heat seem to be working for me, though everyone else has a window open. I keep getting these emails from all of you saying how brave I am. Seriously, after you've gotten used to driving in Atlanta, hardly anything seems dangerous. Prague is a city of 1.2 million people (Atlanta has 4 million) so it has the same dangers as any other large city. Most of the crime is theft: pickpockets, purse snatchers. You can guard yourself against this. If you take care when crossing the street you have 90% of the dangers licked. And you can't protect yourself from everything. The thing I keep learning when I travel or backpack is that most people are good. I don't flash large sums of money or fancy jewelry to tempt anyone and I try not to make myself a target. Exactly the things I do at home. But most people will help you if they can, or at least do you no harm. This isn't much more dangerous than visiting NYC and far safer than crossing Buford Highway during rush hour. (My friend Dave tells me that is a little like saying it’s no more dangers than sword dancing on a freshly waxed floor!) I managed the tram back to the National Theater (Naroodni Divadlo) to take photos of Prague castle and St Vitus Cathedral again. My night photos are poor, so a day photo will work too. I am using the little Nikon Coolpix I just bought. I love my larger Nikon, but it is not practical to travel with. Plus this one is 10 Mega pixels with a decent zoom. Will see how they turn out when I get home. I think my photos are improving with use, but it probably would have made sense to read the instructions before I left. (Instructions are for amateurs!) For as much as my feet ache at night, I'm surprised at how very good they feel in the morning. I wear trail runners--hardly a fashion statement!--with special insoles and I think it does make a difference. Today's excursion is to Kutna Hora, a silver mining town 70km east of Prague. In the trip out, I was kept occupied by a lovely Welsh couple, who told me stories about her father, who had a pet sheep that road in the car with him. When they told me they planned 4 meals a day plus snacks "cause ya neva know when a fah-meen ca happen", I knew these were people I'd like. It is interesting the impression one has of another country. The man has been watching a Welch TV program about extreme fishing around the world. The 2 US segments fascinated him. In LA, they were using a glove to reach under rocks and grab catfish, which usually bit the glove as well. In FL, the program showed shooting fish with a bow and arrow. I hated to tell him that I'd never even heard of the glove catching technique. I think he was under the impression both stlyes were common sport. He was thrilled to know that my brother has done some bow and arrow fishing, though. Kutna Hora was settled by monks in the 11th Century and in fact "kutna" is the name for a monks robes. According to legend, a monk dreamed about the silver mines here and lay his robe on the spot where silver was later found in the 12th century. By the 13th century these mines were providing a third of Europe's silver and the Prague Groshen (coin) was one of the most stable currencies. By the time the Osel mine was closed in the 16th century, it had been the deepest mine in the world for 200 years, at 600 meters. Our first stop was at the Church of All Saints in Sedlec, just outside Kutna Hora. This small church is located near the original monastery (which is now a tobacco plant, owned by Philip Morris, go figure). The church's cemetery was very popular because it had been sprinkled with dirt from the Holy Land. By the 16th century they began digging up the bones and storing then in the chapel. By 1890 there were the bones of about 40,000 people, so a rich family commissioned a man to form the bones into decorative piles and arrangements. It is truly the last word in decorative styles! The Ossuary has garlands of long bones and skulls, four huge pyramids, even a coat of arms all done in human bones. I admit, this was the main reason I came on this tour. Hummmm I'm seeing a macabre pattern: ossuary, Terezin, the Museum of Torture...Maybe therapy? In town we were given a walking tour, traditional Czech lunch, then we continued the tour with the Church of St Barbara, protector of miners. It was begun in the 13th century, though building continued through to the early 20ith. It is mostly Gothic, with some Baroque touches, flying buttresses, and modern painted windows. Our tour guide, Tonya, was so interesting. A tiny woman of indeterminate age, she was trained and worked as an electrical Engineer, then worked in copy write law before taking the test to become a guide. She speaks 4 languages, but claims to "have forgotten how to speak Russian". And then she smiles. We got back to Prague with enough time for me to visit the Museum of Comunism. It isn't great, but an interesting novelity. I learned a lot. While there, I met a Frenchman, currently living in Jersey, who told me I was very lovely and should have dinner with him. Even though I suspect he was hoping I'd pay for dinner, it did wonders for my ego. I politely declined and wished him well. My plan is to have an early, lite dinner and make it an early night. My plane leaves at 7:15a and I'll have to be at the Metro when it starts running at 5am to make it. I will be very sad to leave Prague tomorrow. I have tried hard to capture the city of Prague and the few surounding areas I've visited. But of course, I've failed, as one always fails to explain a place, an experience. Now that the end is in sight, I realize I've forgotten to say so much: that the place is so clean, the lovely statues everywhere, the shear amount of art--even the sidewalks are patterned mosaics. This city has seen humanity from the stone age, probably before, and it must have a million stories to tell. I have not even scratched the surface of this amazing place. So I try to capture what one can in a mear week. It is not enough. Three lifetimes would not be. And yet it is still wonderful. As Rick Steves says, "Travel is one of the last legal forms of adventure." So come to Prague yourself, or where ever your heart leads you. And take my travel
advice: Pack light, wear good shoes and never, never miss an opportunity to pee!