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SpecialStage managing Prague Castle - Zdeněk Lukeš remembers Václav Havel
When Václav Havel came to Prague Castle, it meant a complete upheaval not
only of the old system of governance, but also of the way things were run
at the historical seat of the president itself. One of those who has been
at Prague Castle since the very outset of that period is architect and art
historian Zdeněk Lukeš, who worked closely with Václav Havel on
revamping the castle and shared in the exuberance of the early
administration. Speaking here with Christian Falvey, he recalled working
with Mr Havel in the Civic Forum, the first post-Communist political
movement. More
SpecialA tale of two brothers, and the building of a nation
For the occasion of September 28, I’m here at a place that some people
actually call the real centre of the Czech Republic. Not the geographic
centre to be sure, but certainly the focal point for much of the Czech
Republic’s rocky modern-day history. It’s a statue of a man on a horse
(which people call ‘the horse’ when they arrange one of the hundreds of
meetings that take place here each day). But it’s of course the man on
the horse that has overseen everything over the last hundred years from the
declaration of Czechoslovak independence to the various political
demonstrations that gravitate here today. Above me is of course Saint
Václav, or Wenceslas, from which the surrounding square takes its name,
and his likeness has adorned this place for at least three hundred years,
in different incarnations. Legend has it that when worse comes to worst for
the Czech lands he will come un-petrified, and ride away to quash their
enemies – a disconcerting prophesy when one considers the parades of
Nazis and Communists that the statue saw come and go. But even in that,
there is a good point to be made: this symbol of Czech statehood is
indomitable; the legacy of St. Václav rides on through the ages, now for
about the 1,076th year. More
PanoramaPrague’s Golden Lane to reopen to visitors
It’s one of the most Romantic places in the Czech capital. With its
charming row of tiny houses built in the Mannerist style Prague’s Golden
Lane attracts visitors from near and far. Painters strive to capture its
old-world charm and tour-guides elaborate about the colourful personalities
that once inhabited them – alchemists who tried to turn stone into gold
or make youth elixirs, Franz Kafka who reportedly resided there for a time,
or fortune-teller and astrologer Magdalena Prusova also known as Madame de
Thebes who was killed by the Gestapo because she foretold the end of
Nazism. More
Current AffairsAdmission fees re-introduced at St Vitus Cathedral – but not for believers
After four years when entrance was free, visitors now have to pay admission
fees again at St Vitus Cathedral at Prague Castle. The castle’s operators
say charging should make the magnificent cathedral more peaceful. But not
everyone has to pay. If you come to pray – and you look the part – you
can still enter for free.
More
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