Tag: Mala Strana

Winter weather & walks

Sunset over Podbaba © Ricky Yates

Where is winter? It is a question I’ve been asking for several weeks. This time last year, there had been snow lying on the ground for about seven weeks. Until yesterday, when we finally had a few heavy snow showers, there had been no snow at all in Prague this winter.

The temperature this evening has just dropped below freezing and the forecast is for temperatures of below 0 degrees Celsius for the next four nights at least. But there is still no sign of any serious snow.

There is a very good reason why I want some serious snow and for temperatures to remain below freezing for many days at a time. To ensure that the mosquitoes are kept at bay!

In the Autumn of 2008 when we first arrived in Prague and throughout the warmer months of 2009, we suffered from an abundance of mosquitoes here in the Chaplaincy Flat and elsewhere. Then two successive severe winters caused their numbers to drop to a handful. I fear that a mild winter might just allow the Prague mosquito population to recover!

In the meantime, a few evenings ago, we did experience this wonderful sunset, the picture being taken from one of the balconies of our flat. The floodlight pylon belongs to the stadium of FK Dukla Praha who, like the rest of the football clubs in the Czech Gambrinus liga, are on their mid-season break which started in early December and doesn’t conclude until late February. In view of the mild weather we have experienced so far this winter, they could still be playing!

As I mentioned in my recent sad post about Sam the dog, one of the many great things he did for Sybille and I was to get us out walking far more than before we adopted him. He became our ‘weight loss programme’ because he exercised us as we exercised him! We are both determined to continue walking just as much as we did when we had Sam so as to maintain our weight loss which between us now exceeds 30 kilos.

Most days, we would walk from the Chaplaincy Flat to the extensive and beautiful Stromovka Park, which lies about twenty-five minutes walk away from where we live. Through doing this, we got to know numerous other Czech and expat dog owners and improved our ‘dog Czech’ no end.

Talking on my mobile phone © Ricky Yates

However, one behavioural habit which I regularly observed and continue to observe, annoys me intensely – dog owners and parents of young children, who go to the park, but then spend the whole time they are there, talking to someone else on their mobile phones!

The most extreme example I remember was of a woman we met, just by the entrance to Stromovka. She was pushing a buggy with a baby in it; was also holding onto the hand of a toddler and had a dog on a lead. She also was responsible for a slightly older toddler walking in front of her and for a second dog who was off-lead. But at the same time as all of this, she had her head bent to one side to hold her mobile phone next to her shoulder, in order to have a long conversation with one of her friends. I know women are meant to be able to multi-task, but…….

What conscious or sub-conscious message does such behaviour send to either the children or to the dogs? Why do people need to have such phone conversations if they are going to the park in order to spend quality time with their children &/or their dog(s)? Mobile phones are incredibly useful but they can also be a curse.

My photo is of a young woman walking across Václavské námestí/Wenceslas Square, also talking on her mobile, though admittedly, without dog or child in tow. But I hope I make my point – it is perfectly easy to say in response to a call, “I’m in the park with my dog/my children. I’ll call you back when I get home”.

Historical 'Restaurat' in Malá Strana © Ricky Yates

As part of our ongoing walk programme, as well as walking to and around Stromovka Park, Sybille and I have also recently started walking around some of the more central areas of the city, particularly as they are currently relatively free of tourists! However, I’m afraid I cannot resist posting this further wonderful example of Czenglish we spotted one evening recently in Malá Strana. What might be on the menu at a ‘Restaurat’?

Finally for this post, below are two photographs, both of which brought a smile to my face as I hope they will for the many readers of my blog.

This year, New Year’s Day was a Sunday. Our Church Treasurer Gordon is a Scotsman and marked Hogmanay, by coming to Church in his kilt. I did jokingly suggest that he could put the collection in his sporran to take it home to bank the following day! I should add that it is post-Eucharistic coffee rather than a wee dram that he is drinking!

And alongside is an invitation to ‘Explore the meaning of life’ – in Czech!

Gordon in his kilt on New Year's Day © Ricky Yates

An invitation to 'Explore the meaning of life' - in Czech!

Celebrating the Royal Wedding in the Czech Republic

Being interviewed on Czech TV ©
Being interviewed on Czech TV © - with my correct title on the screen in Czech

One of the things I have begun to learn as part of being the Anglican Chaplain in Prague is to expect the unexpected. So when on the afternoon of the Wednesday of Holy Week, whilst walking along Jugoslávských partyzánu, my mobile phone rang with a call from a number unknown to me, I answered it with my friendly “Ricky Yates speaking”, unsure what the response would be.

“This is Czech TV”, said a female voice in English. “We would like you to take part in our special programme next Friday covering the Royal Wedding”. Therefore, following an email exchange with Veronika Linková of channel ct24, yesterday morning at 08.30, a taxi arrived outside the Chaplaincy flat, to whisk me away to the studios of Czech TV in the southern suburbs of Prague.

Upon arrival, it was first into the ‘make-up room’ to make sure my face looked its best under the glare of the lights. Then it was downstairs to the lounge where I was able to avail myself of several glasses of water to lubricate an increasingly dry throat. Here I met Martin who was to translate for me. I was also able to see and hear the live broadcast coming from the neighbouring studio.

Next it was the technician who ‘wired me for sound’ with a clip on microphone on my lapel and the battery pack clipped to my back trouser pocket. I was also fitted with an ear piece through which I would hear what I was being asked in Czech, translated into English. Then finally came the call to go into the studio to be interviewed live on Czech TV.

The balustrade overlooking the British Embassy garden suitably decorated for the Royal Wedding © Ricky Yates

I had been told in advance that I would be asked about the Anglican Church and the Marriage Service but I had no forewarning as to what the exact questions would be. Some were what I expected such as the relationship between the Royal Family and the Church of England and what impact I thought the televised wedding would have on people’s attitude to the Church.

As the Roman Catholic Church is the majority Church in the Czech Republic, I was also expecting a question regarding differences between an Anglican and a Roman Catholic ceremony. But what I wasn’t expecting was the surprise expressed by one of the two joint presenters Hana Scharffová, that a wedding should take place on a Friday because she claimed, that would never be allowed in the Roman Catholic Church as Fridays are meant to be days of abstinence.

The tower of the British Embassy with the Union Flag flying © Ricky Yates

The question I certainly wasn’t expecting came from the other joint presenter Tomáš Šponar. He asked me about the level of support for the Royal Family within the Anglican Church in view of the outburst by Bishop Pete Broadbent on Facebook at the time of the announcement of the Royal engagement in November 2010. This was one piece of news that I didn’t realise had trickled down to the studios of Czech TV!

Unfortunately during the first part of my interview, the English translation into my ear piece was intermittent due to a loose connection somewhere. Fortunately, a combination of my limited understanding of Czech and both presenters occasionally re-phrasing their questions in English, allowed me to answer reasonably successfully. During a brief break, the technician who had wired me up, came back into the studio and sorted out the problem.

My questioning over, courtesy of Czech TV, I travelled back once more by taxi, but only as far as Mala Strana. There I was meeting up with Sybille as we had previously accepted an invitation to an event to celebrate the Royal Wedding that was not being televised! We were formally invited by the British Ambassador and her husband, to a Champagne Lunch at the British Embassy and more informally invited by ‘Sian and Richard’, to watch the Royal Wedding on TV beforehand. As we do not have a television ourselves, we were very pleased to have opportunity of watching it at the embassy.

The Embassy was suitably decorated to mark this special occasion as can be seen in the two accompanying photographs. As a memento of the day’s events, each guest was presented with a beautifully decorated gingerbread heart which can be seen below, laid out on a table, along with the visitors’ book.

Decorated gingerbread hearts to celebrate the Royal Wedding © Ricky Yates

Flooding in Prague

The height of flooding in Prague over the last 300 years © Sybille Yates

Prague is a beautiful city. One of the reasons it is so beautiful is being situated either side of the River Vltava. However, with the beauty of the riverside location comes the inherent danger of flooding. Unfortunately, over the centuries, this is something to which Prague has not been immune.

The picture on the left is of the wall of a building in Mala Strana, just south of Charles Bridge, and shows the height reached by floodwaters on several occasions during the last 300 years. Bearing in mind that I am quite tall, (1.87m or 6’ 1½”), and that where I am standing is well above the normal river level, it does illustrate the immensity and devastating nature of the flooding that engulfed Prague as recently as August 2002.

Apparently, there is an historic Prague expression, “The 100 Year Water”. As you can see, if you do a simple mathematical calculation, there actually was a 112 year gap between the last major flooding of 1890 before the flooding of 2002. And whilst the expression has no scientific evidence to support it, going further back, there were 106 years between the floods of 1784 and those of 1890.

Flood level marker 1890 © Ricky Yates

Flood level marker for 1890 with normal river level in the background © Ricky Yates

The two photographs above show the location elsewhere in Mala Strana, of another marker of the height of the serious flooding in 1890. Here I was able to get a backwater/mill stream of the River Vltava into my picture which I hope will indicate the difference between the normal river height and where the floodwaters rose to 120 years ago.

In the floods of 1890, three arches of Charles Bridge were destroyed as shown in the historic photograph below. Fortunately, the floods of 2002 did not destroy any part of the historic bridge though they did leave it seriously weakened. Over the last two years, major renovation work has been undertaken to it, both above and below the waters of the Vltava, to strengthen it and restore it to its former glory. Hopefully, this work will be completed in the next few months, thus allowing locals and visitors to walk freely across it without having to negotiate their way around scaffolding and fenced off sections.

As for “The Hundred Year Water”, I don’t think I will be around to witness it in the early years of the 22nd century!

The damage caused to Charles Bridge by the floods of 1890. Image source; in public domain therefore assuming fair use.

Snowy Prague

Chechuv Most, Prague; in the snow © Ricky Yates

Like much of Central and Northern Europe, the Czech Republic has recently experienced extremely heavy snowfall. Here in Prague, it started snowing just over a week ago on Friday 8th January and continued doing so, almost without interruption, until part way through Monday 11th January. According to the local media, around 40 centimetres of snow fell during this period, the heaviest snowfall here for 17 years.

Since it has stopped snowing, the weather has been overcast and grey with virtually no sunshine. Temperatures have risen slightly, but have rarely got above zero degrees Celsius, meaning that hardly any of the lying snow has melted. According to the weather forecast I have just looked at, it will start snowing once again tonight and ‘Heavy snow’ can be expected for the next two days!

Phillip in the snow in Mala Strana © Ricky Yates

I was rather worried on Friday 8th January when it started snowing heavily, as my son Phillip was due to fly in that day from the UK to visit me over the weekend. Knowing that the UK had just experienced its worst snow for nearly thirty years, I had visions of his flight being cancelled, either because it couldn’t take off or because it couldn’t land. Fortunately, East Midlands Airport, which serves the city of Derby where Phillip lives, was less affected by snow than most other UK airports. Therefore his Friday afternoon flight was able to take off without any problems. And because the Czechs are used to dealing with snow, Prague Airport was still open and functioning, allowing his flight to land safely and on time.

I cannot help but contrast the way the UK deals with snow compared to the Czech Republic. As every British person knows, as soon as it snows in the UK, the country grinds to a halt. Last winter in London, snow falling caused the complete cessation of the capital’s bus services. Here in Prague last Sunday, despite two days of continuous falling snow, we travelled by tram from our flat in the north-western suburbs, to Church in the city centre, without any problems whatsoever. Likewise, the few flights to or from Prague Airport that were cancelled over last weekend, were almost all cancelled because of snow problems at other airports, particularly British ones, together with ones in northern Spain, not due to snow problems in Prague.

On Saturday 9th January, Sybille and I took Phillip on a walking tour of parts of Prague that he hadn’t had the opportunity of exploring on his three previous visits. We took the tram to Prague Castle and then walked down through Mala Strana, the ‘lesser town’ or ‘lower town’, that lies beneath the castle and is full of architectural delights. He was particularly keen to see the Lennon Wall and some of the artwork which lies outside the Kampa Museum alongside the Vltava River.

Phillip in front of the Lennon Wall © Ricky Yates
Father & Son in front of the Lennon Wall © Sybille Yates

I took this series of pictures during our walk last Saturday. I hope they help to convey the beauty and character of Mala Strana, together with Phillip’s enjoyment of his time with us.

Phillip outside the Kampa Museum © Ricky Yates

Phillip, Lion & Beer © Ricky Yates
The French Embassy in Mala Strana © Ricky Yates

Celebrating the Queen’s Official Birthday

Our Official Invitation
Our Official Invitation

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland (to give my home country its full official name), does not have a National Day as such. Some of the constituent parts of the UK do have their own special day with the Welsh making much of ‘Dydd Dewi Sant – St. David’s Day’ on 1st March and the Irish, both north and south of the border, celebrating St. Patrick on 17th March.

The nearest we get to a National Day is the Queen’s Official Birthday. This is usually celebrated on the second Saturday of June each year. Queen Elizabeth the Second’s actual birthday is 21st April but she has her official birthday in June in the hope the weather will be better for events put on to mark the occasion, most notably, the Trooping of the Colour ceremony in London.

The occasion of the Queen’s Official Birthday is used by British Embassies in foreign capital cities around the world, as a very good excuse to host a diplomatic reception. So it was that on Thursday 11th June, Her Excellency Linda Duffield CMG, the British Ambassador to the Czech Republic, hosted a Reception marking the official birthday of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth the Second, and we were invited to attend!

The British Embassy, like a number of other foreign embassies, is situated in Mala Strana, the ‘Little Town’ or ‘Lesser Town’, an area of wonderful architectural delights that lies immediately below Prague Castle. It occupies a building originally known as Thun Palace which has a history going back to mediaeval times. You can read more about it on the embassy website here.

Having passed the inevitable security check and climbed up several flights of stairs through the embassy building, we arrived in the embassy gardens that lie immediately under the walls of the castle, to be formally welcomed by the ambassador. I had previously had an hour-long meeting with Linda Duffield back in January. But Sybille had never met her before so I introduced her to the ambassador and remarked that as a German citizen, Sybille was surprised to be invited to a reception marking the British monarch’s birthday! In reply the ambassador pointed out that the German ambassador was actually immediately in front of us!

The guest of honour at the reception was the President of the Czech Republic, Václav Klaus. His official residence in Prague Castle effectively overlooks the British Embassy garden and jokes about looking down on the ambassador and her embassy were an inevitable part of his speech. This followed the ambassador’s speech in which she spoke of good Czech – British relations over the 90 years since the first ambassador of the UK to the newly formed nation of Czechoslovakia, presented his letters of appointment to President Tomáš Garrigue Masaryk in 1919. The speeches were followed by the playing of ‘God save the Queen’ and the Czech national anthem.

The Reception was an interesting mixture of things British, with Pimms being one of the drinks served, and things Czech, with a large tent where Pilsner Urquell was freely available. Strawberries and cream were served along with cheese from both Britain and elsewhere. Despite several strong gusts of wind, no marquees or gazebos blew over and the rain just about managed to stay away.

When all the guests arrived, we were duly piped in by two Scottish pipers playing the bagpipes. The Reception was officially meant to finish at 7pm. At 7.15pm, those of us still present were given a pertinent reminder that it was time to leave by the same pipers striking up to pipe us out of the embassy garden and down the staircases of the embassy building and back out into Mala Strana.