Praha

Yesterday we went to the Communism Museum. I don't feel much more educated by it, though I learned and re-learned a little history. The Communism Museum is a for-profit business run by Americans and you can get directions to it on its website that tell you it is right above the McDonalds. I suppose this is not really ironic as it is a museum and educating you about a thing of the past. Still I like calling it the capitalist museum.
Today we went to the Prague museum which I really enjoyed. It had a very nice model of Prague's old town. Much of it is still intact as Prague was not hit as hard during WWII as many other European cities. We learned at the Prague museum that during the totalitarian regime many of the Kava (coffee) houses were destroyed because they encouraged intellectual ferment and were filled with the bourgeoisie. I am still unclear about why churches weren't allowed under the communist government. In the museum they had lovely old coffee bean holders and cash registers and glassware used for various kava drinks.
There are many very tall people in Prague. Quite different from France, where there were less tall people. I am told the people are of mixed euro-ethnicity here not unlike many Americans.
On May fifth, Condoleeza Rice is coming to Prague representing the U.S. and their weapons. There will be a demonstration / protest. I read that the majority of the people in the Czech Republic are against the U.S. putting their missile launcher just outside of Prague but it is likely to happen anyway. Does this sound familiar? We are both republics now. There is no longer a totalitarian regime, or so they say... I have also read that the majority of Americans are against the war(s) that continue in Iraq et al. I'm sure things truly were really ugly during the Stalin days and I am really happy for the Czech Republic and I hope things turn out better here than they have in the United States thus far. The change must be very dramatic. I was hoping to get more a feel for what it was like to live here before from the Communism Museum. Our landlord who kindly picked us up at the station, confronted me with the notion that I was likely to get first hand experience in limited freedom the way things are going in the U.S. as I got off the night train from Switzerland. I think he was curious to know how it feels to be on the fliip side -descending toward totalitarianism, whilst they have left it behind. I remember hearing stories of neighbors spying on one another from a young Hungarian woman who visited us at the lake in the late eighties.
Praha is a beautiful and safe city filled with gorgeous architecture and blooming flowers (at the moment.) I've been a little home sick as Praha smells like Michigan spring time. Lilacs galore. Also the intermittent rain showers and sunshine, hockey, cigarette smoke, and techno music contribute to the Michigan air. Not very Californian seeming, other than the many health food shops and one smoothie bar. That doesn't stop me from missing Brutus.