Check out Prague

Prague stands in Bohemia on both sides of the river Vltava where it bends Northwards between two ranges of hills. On the South side, inside the bend are the Old and New Towns and the historic Jewish district, while to the North are the Castle district and the Little Quarter, connected by the famous Charles Bridge.

Prague has seen some famous rulers. Václav (say “Vat-slav”), the Christian prince murdered by his brother in 927, became Bohemia’s national saint and is remembered in the Christmas song “Good King Wenceslas”. His statue stands in the huge Wenceslas Square, in the Old Town, for centuries a centre for political demonstrations.

Charles IV of Luxembourg became king in 1346 after his father died fighting the English in France. The English commander, the Prince of Wales, was so impressed by John’s courage that he adopted his badge of three ostrich feathers, which you can still see on England's older 2p coins. Charles was a good king who built the bridge, founded the university and left his country strong and prosperous.

After five centuries ruled by the Austrian Habsburgs, the Czechs of Bohemia and the Slovaks founded The Republic of Czechoslovakia at the end of the First World War. In 1948 it became a Communist state, but the regime collapsed in the “Velvet Revolution” (so called because there was no fighting) of 1989. A few years later the Czech Republic separated from Slovakia peacefully (“The Velvet Divorce”). The first President of Czechoslovakia was Tomaš Marsaryk, while the dramatist – politician Václav Havel became the first non-Communist President in 1989.

Culture and education have always been strong in Prague. The preacher Jan Hus translated the Bible into Czech (and was burned alive for it) around 1400. The Habsburg Emperor Rudolf took a great interest in science. In the 1600s Isaac Komensky (or Comenius) promoted modern methods of public education. Wolfgang Mozart visited Prague often and thought Prague audiences were better than those in his home, Vienna. During the 1800s, Czech national feeling was growing. Writers began to use Czech instead of German, and a series of composers took the folk music and countryside of Bohemia as inspiration.
Bedřich Smetana’s orchestral suite “Má Vlast” (my homeland) includes the beautiful “Vltava” portraying the river from its beginning in the Sumava mountains to  beyond Prague, and his opera “The Bartered Bride” is set in a Czech village. Antonín Dvořák (say “Dvorzhak”) also used folk tunes, though he worked for years in the USA; his 9th symphony is subtitled “ from the New World.”

In the 20th century some Czech writers began to criticize the governments they lived under using both humour and surrealist images. Jaroslav Hašek (“Hashek”) created the comic character Švejk (or Schweik), a likeable Prague layabout with a crafty streak, who joins the Austrian army and causes chaos wherever he goes – though he is always “trying to help”. Franz Kaftka’s books show a grimly bureaucratic, weird and seemingly meaningless world through which citizens make their way as best they can.

Bohemia is right in the middle of Europe and has often been invaded – by the Mongols and Hungarians, Swedes, Germans, and Russians. Somehow its people manage to survive. They have a rather black sense of humour, but also enjoy good food and drink. Czech food is usually rather heavy – lots of pork and potatoes and the famous ‘Knedliky’, dumplings made from dough or potatoes, - but the beer is excellent, and brands like Budweiser (from Budéjovice) and Pilsner Urquell (from Pizěn) are world famous. They also grow a lot of fruit, much of which is used to flavour spirits like slivovice (plums), višňovka (cherries) and borovička (juniper berries).

Prague is one of the most fascinating cities in Europe, and well worth a visit. Go in the spring or autumn to avoid the main tourist rush and, although the city has good public transport (trams and buses), it is small enough to walk around comfortably. Take a camera – it is very photogenic and there’s always something strange or pleasantly surprising around every corner – and if you have time, set out into the countryside, the “woods and fields” of Smetana’s music. It’s good for the soul.