PRAGUE

                         Czech Republic's Prized City

     Our hotel in Prague, in a quiet residential area, was in the process of restoration. Built in 1910, it was owned by the owner’s grandmother. When the Communists took over the house they allowed the lady to live in a small two room apartment. She died in 1985. When the country was free from the communists the grandson put in for repatriation and regained the home. He was restoring the home as time and money permitted. In the beginning he had as many employees as guests and quickly learning that was not profitable, he made changes and was progressing. It was a lovely home and by now I suspect he has finished the restoration.

      Our lectures, all by college professors, were excellent and so interesting that we didn’t mind sitting generally for three hours!  The Czech Republic consists of Bohemia, Monrovia and Silesia. The rest of what once was Czechoslovakia in now Slovakia.  The Czech Republic is landlocked by Germany, Austria, Slovakia and Poland. In spite of heavy deforestation, one-third of the country remains forest. However, in northern Bohemia the forest is damaged from acid rain from burning low grade brown coal and presents a problem for the country.

      Prague is a huge city and so our local guide split our sightseeing into four full half days. The city is built on seven hills and on both sides of the Vltava River. It is often referred to as the City of a Hundred Spires. The city of stone and limestone dates back to 965, and is now a UNESCO site.

     The city is a living museum and an architectural treasure. Although occupied by Germans during WW II, fortunately it received no major damage. The Gothic architecture dates to the Romans and the Baroque to the Hapsburg era. Prague, the country’s largest city is the center of cultural and intellectual life as well as the main commercial and industrial center. Prague University,1348, dates to Charles IV and is the oldest in central Europe. It is also a city of castles, manors, and museums.

     The Vltava River runs through the city in the shape of a question mark separating Mala Strana—Lesser Town on the west bank—from Stare Mesto—Old Town on the east bank..  Eighteen bridges span the river, the Charles Bridge being the most famous.

     Prague is a wonderful city, loaded with history and with much to see and do.

Much more to come.