Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Prague & the Czech
Republic Today
Prague remains one of Europe's leading tourist destinations. The capital heaves
with more than four million foreign tourists a year, and most locals are accus-
tomed to the throng. The crowds can make crossing the Charles Bridge trying on
summer's day, but they bring vitality to the city and invigorate an already-boom-
ing culinary and cultural scene. The pace slows down markedly in the coun-
tryside, where unique aspects of Czech culture still flourish.
The Passing of a Velvet Icon
The end of 2011 saw the death of Václav Havel, the country's first post-communist
president and undisputed moral authority of the 1989 Velvet Revolution. Havel's death
at 75 after a long bout with cancer wasn't unexpected, but seemed to catch the country
by surprise. The outpouring of grief was uncharacteristically intense for normally stoic
Czechs. News of the death brought tens of thousands onto Wenceslas Square to lay
candles at the statue of St Wenceslas. Thousands more lined up days later to file past
his coffin and pay their final respects.
Havel was broadly respected outside the country, but his legacy among Czechs was
mixed. Many were grateful for his heroic 1989 stance that helped bring down commun-
ism, but his tenure as president (first of Czechoslovakia then the Czech Republic) was
hit and miss. Ironically, many faulted Havel for being too soft on former communists.
