Ahoy,

You undoubtedly all have better things to be doing than to be reading my ramblings, but here's the last installment for this trip (thank heavens!), starting with a couple of photos I took in Prague before my digital camera bit the dust:

Prague's Central Square
http://deanoman.com/0501/praguesquare.htm

Dean on the 14th Century Charles Bridge, Prague http://deanoman.com/0501/czech1667.htm

I'm a bit anal-retentive about list making. It may be time to start a list of most beautiful small towns separate from my most beautiful cities list. If so, the town I am now visiting, Cesky Krumlov, is so unrelentingly picturesque that it's hard to keep enough film in the camera, and would probably appear at the top of such a list. It's a well-preserved medieval Bohemian town centered on a perfectly formed oxbow of the meandering Vltava River. In the summer, the river is filled with people floating on inner-tubes, entering at one end of the oxbow, exiting at the other end, walking 100 meters and repeating the process. Some have already begun this in spite of the cold waters.

Many folks are drinking the native Budvar, the original Budweiser, a sacrilege considering that it's nearly as bad as the American version (to my tastes at least) and the Czechs otherwise brew some of the world's best beers. Czechs are also the per capita champs of beer consumption. It's literally not just for breakfast here; it begins and ends with sunrise.

The Czechs rarely provided much resistance to foreign invaders over the centuries, preferring more often to fight with words rather than with arms. (Or, maybe it was the beer). This has lead to prolonged occupations by foreign powers, but while other nations that resisted were being leveled and decimated, Czech architecture has been left largely unscathed and their cultural heritage well-preserved.

Since the Wall came down in 1989, all remaining walls in Eastern Europe have become covered in graffiti, something virtually unseen prior to that time. Much of it resembles what can be found in the States, but with occasionally more intellect. In the Czech Republic, those Bohemians, ever mindful of all forms of artistic expression, seem almost to value and encourage graffiti drawing -- though probably not the property destruction. Several places I have visited, including some private homes, have folks who have encouraged their adolescents to go wild on selected walls and doors, perhaps under the premise that this outlet for self-expression may sufficiently quench the need and prevent broader property damage. If so, it hasn't worked very well.

A scoop of ice cream costs 15 cents. Remember those days? Some of the folks reading this weren't born yet. Meanwhile, beer, which flows like water here, is actually cheaper than water -- 50 cents or less for a half liter.

I'll spare you any more of my long-winded ramblings. Tomorrow, I will begin a visit of several Czech friends in yet another picturesque Bohemian town, Jindrichuv Hradec. Don't try to pronounce that; you'll hurt yourself.

Deano