The weekend of May 18-20 offered a variety of events and attractions for this year's festival in Slany. This small town, located 40 km NW of Prague, has a storied past. Hussite warriors and Napoleonic forces had visited Slany and the people of this area celebrate their past annually with a jousting tournament, military displays and re-enactments. This year's event was great fun yet next year's festival should top them all.

2013 marks the 200th anniversary Napoleon tried his best to occupy the town in hopes of adding Bohemia to his "trophy case" of conquered European regions. It did not work too well for him near Slany in one of his few set backs. The town of Slany has already started preparations for this big anniversary set to take place next year on the third weekend of May 2013. Please visit the Photo page on this site to see more of this festival.

(40 minute drive south of Prague)

An amazingly beautiful castle that is celebrating it's 700th year. Several parts of it's architecture and moat remain from it's original design yet many other "add-on's" have changed the look of it's exteriors and interior salons. Many hunting trophies decorate the inside hallways (The Archduke was an avid hunter and collector before his assassination). The moat houses two live bears (both vegetarians) and the grounds surrounding the castle are very beautiful and peaceful. The rose garden and lake add more "peace and quiet" to the 555 acres. Konopiste (Chateau) Castle is on the UNESCO World Heritage Sites List.
-Pete

(Plzen, CZ.)        On May 6th, 1945 General George Patton's American 3rd Army liberated the western Czech city of Plzen from the Nazis.  This past weekend (May 5, 2012) I drove an hour outside of Prague with my wife and son to the "Thank You to America" parade.  What a great showing of support for what America did for this part of Bohemia!  The people were wonderful as they paid tribute to the American forces that freed them from Nazi control.

This celebration is now over 20 years old.......a generation removed from the Communist's ban on telling the truth on who liberated the city.  The people who lived it remembered but were not allowed to show any such tribute to the Yanks that rolled into town in their Sherman tanks back in '45.

Today two large granite pillars occupy downtown Plzen stating "Thank You America!". 


During this annual celebration, nothing stops the outpouring of affection these Czechs have for the American troops then and now.  I am glad my young son got to see this event and be proud of his American heritage.

I could not help to think of my grandfather's service in Europe as he pressed on from North Africa to Sicily and from Rome to Nancy, France. He was able to see some of this similar outpouring of joy back in 1945....something he never forgot.

I'm was very proud to be an American today and very thankful to the Czech people for remembering our "Greatest Generation" in this manner.  Thank you Plzen!

Every April 30th Czechs all around Bohemia and Moravia burn a witch in effigy to bring in the Spring. It is a celebration to move past the winter by burning all the bad spirits away..... In the form a witch made of hay or something flammable.
Kids in volyne, where I visited April 30th, dressed up and played games before the big burning.
I know.... this somehow doesn't sound right....the "Burning Times" that were in Europe's past is nothing to glorify..... thousands of innocent people lost their lives to superstition but I like to think of this active tradition as a way to move forward from the dark winter days to celebrate the new. Some actual Wiccans (religious order of Wicca or witches) worship with fire on this date as well because it is the most revered day of the year. Anyway, another reason the have a Czech celebration and kick back some Pivo (beer)......Czechs love their holidays and Pivo!

Spring is finally here in Prague. Absolutely beautiful today.  The weekend looks to be sunny and warm. As I stated in an earlier post, many Czechs plan on heading to their summer cottages in order to fix them up for the summer holidays. We maybe doing the same in Volyne (just South West of Prague).

April is wrapping up and the weather is getting better here in Praha. The next two weeks include Tuesday holidays (May 1st: May Day and May 8th: end of WW2). This allows for 2 four-day weekends and many Praguers hit the road to fix up cottages for the summer or just get out of town for a break.