Prague Journal

Friday, December 3, 2004.

Prague is furiously getting ready for Christmas. Old Town Square smells like sawdust from the marketplace kiosks and performance stage in their last stages of construction. Wenceslas Square and Namesti Republiky are also setting up markets, all of which are set to open tomorrow and stay up through “Three Kings Day” on January 6th, the end of the 12 days of Christmas. The Prague Christmas markets consist of rows of brightly decorated wooden huts, selling mostly Czech handicrafts, hot sausages and hot sweet wine. Old Town Square always has a mini zoo and a live crèche, a sort-of Bethlehem manger scene in a wooden stable complete with Mary, Joseph, baby Jesus, and the 3 kings. The Hari Krishna dancers/marchers add music to the bustling crowd around the Old Town Clock.
There’s a huge Christmas tree near the statue of Jan Hus, with its stray tinsel glistening in the streets from the overhead lights. Last year’s tree was almost 100 ft tall, but four people were injured when high winds knocked it down, so there was some controversy about putting up a large tree this year. Apparently, this year’s tree is half the size of last year’s and the organizers of the Christmas markets have been replaced with a new management team. Even with all the Christmas displays, walking through the square is enjoyable for me. I feel like I’ve been transported in time to centuries past. Of course, the Christmas carolers haven’t started yet, but I like the street life and the horse-drawn carriages and the people congregating in the square. The outdoor cafes are still serving dinner. There are heat lamps that warm the diners, most of whom keep their hats and coats on, but don’t seem to mind the cold.
The Spanish Synagogue this evening had a full house, mostly because of group of 30-some teenagers from Geneva, who came through Prague as part of their youthgroup tour. The rabbi, who had the most magnificent bass voice, chanted the parsha in Hebrew and one of the students translated the English to French. Petra translated to Czech, so we had a four-language service! The voices and enthusiasm of the kids added a lot of spirit to the service. They ended the service with a perfectly-coordinated Odon Alom that you could probably hear in the street.
After the service, we joined Howard and Marketa for dinner at a lovely restaurant, two stories underground – a typical Czech cellar with untypical modern décor and wonderful food.

posted by JWinn @ 11:58 PM