Czech,
Please!
For
good reason, Prague is the latest darling among gay and
lesbian travelers.
by
Tony Yarbrough
Barely
10 years after the fall of the Berlin Wall in November
of 1989, the Czech Republic represents one of the greatest
success stories resulting from the democratic influences
of the post-Communist era ... and its capitol city,
Prague, has become Europe's newest darling among lesbian
and gay travelers.
Toss
out (recycle, please) those outdated maps from the 1980s
because there no longer exists a place called "Czechoslovakia."
That name ended with the fall of Communism 10 years
ago. This lovely country is accurately called the Czech
Republic. Refer to it otherwise in Prague at risk of
offending a newfound friend. The Czech people are extremely
proud of their language, heritage, culture, and history.
Make the effort to learn from, respect, and appreciate
its distinct and unique aspects and bear in mind that
this culture, along with most other cultures that exist
on this planet, pre-date our own by several centuries.
As
one of only a few major European cities spared from
Allied bombing during the war, Prague (the Czech name
is Praha) stands today as a shining architectural monument,
seemingly defiant to its history of soviet occupation,
corruption, and oppression.
I
recently visited Prague during a three-city European
holiday with Danny, my partner of 13 years, and his
mother, Joan, a social liberal who is an extremely hip
and well-traveled woman much younger than her years.
Our interests tend toward popular/familiar attractions
and what aspects of "our" particular culture that a
city may offer. And shopping.
Gays
and straights seemed to mix well in downtown nightspots,
but there were also bars, clubs, and saunas that catered
exclusively to gays. While there were no establishments
dedicated exclusively to lesbians, a few bars featured
attractions for lesbians on specified nights of the
week. As for bars and clubs, more variety and selection
existed than I would have guessed. (The Pet Shop Boys
were even scheduled to appear in Prague during their
current very-select world tour).
From
a culinary perspective, Prague offered a surprising
array of gastronomic delights that practically left
us weak-kneed; a sumptuous four-course feast can be
had for about $15 each, complete with wine, coffee,
and dessert. One of our faves was La Provence, a popular
French restaurant located in a basement near Old Town
Square. Above it, in contrast to the quaint little bistro,
was a lively and gay-friendly nightspot called Banana
Café. Another cherished experience occurred in an elegant
dining room called U Maliru, located in the Mala Strana.
As
someone who compulsively collects articles most find
meaningless, Prague was a shopping Mecca for me. From
the city's eclectic shops, I secured some prized additions
to my collections of old shaving brushes, silver hip
flasks, ink wells, religious icons, finials of all types,
cobalt glass, and antique leather-bound books. Throughout
the city, most items were very reasonably priced and
little, if any, price haggling occurred. When we did
encounter the occasional bargaining merchant, it was
inevitably in one of the open markets. Most local residents,
especially merchants, spoke English rather well, often
fluently.
Due
to its historical significance, stark beauty, and interesting
culture, we set aside a full afternoon for a visit to
the Jewish Quarter and Jewish Ghetto of Prague, known
locally as Josefov. Many of these ancient buildings
now contain contemporary designer boutiques and design
houses like Nina Ricci, Hermes, Louis Vuitton, Calvin
Klein, Gucci, and Prada, among those of other well-known
fashion icons.
Ultimately,
we made our way to the Jewish Ghetto, although it was
not what I would have called a ghetto. Here, amidst
posh shops and luxurious surroundings, the city's five
synagogues have served as both house of worship and
grim monument. They've been used by the small but consistent
Jewish population that has existed here since the early
Middle Ages. But they owe their existence to a more
sobering explanation: The synagogues were deliberately
preserved by the Nazis during their occupation in the
1940s with the intention of creating a collective museum
to the culture of a people who they were in the process
of annihilating.
Visitors
to Josefov should not miss the Pinkas Synagogue in particular.
Its original sanctuary was adapted to create a memorial
to the victims of Nazi persecution and in so doing,
list the names and biographic dates of the 77,297 Jews,
Gypsies, homosexuals, and other non-Aryan races from
Bohemia and Moravia who were exterminated. Of the five,
the Old New Synagogue is the only functioning sanctuary,
offering weekly services to Prague's minute Jewish population.
Nearby,
the Old Jewish Cemetery (Stary' zidovsky' hrbitov) left
us breathless. A walk around the perimeter of this small
plot of land reveals an inconceivable number of headstones
crowded against one another, the oldest dating back
to 1439. We read that while almost 12,000 headstones
stand in the tiny cemetery, they represent only a fraction
of the actual number of individuals buried here. The
last marker is dated May 29, 1787, when use of the cemetery
was stopped due to space limitations.
The
Old Jewish Cemetery pre-dates the Holocaust and therefore
has no connection to it, but evidence of the Nazi occupation
does exist in the decline of the Jewish population of
Prague. Many of its 150,000+ Jewish residents fled during
the 1940s, but those without the means to leave or to
be hidden were sent to concentration camps like the
one established in the village of Terezin, about 25
meters northwest of Prague.
We
visited the camp on a half-day excursion that was indeed
a sobering and important experience. Sandra Wilkins
recommended a reasonably priced private guide who picked
us up at our hotel in Prague just after lunch. Karel
Rysa'n owns and operates Rainbow Travel, a tour company
that caters to gay and lesbian travelers (http://www.rainbowtravel.cz).
Karel provided expert guidance and care while sharing
his impressive knowledge of Terezin and the area's dubious
place in history.
I
can't think of a destination more worthwhile than the
Czech Republic. The experience left each of us enriched
in so many ways, individually and collectively. Take
a little time to research your itinerary and you'll
undoubtedly enjoy one of the more memorable vacation
experiences of your lifetime.
Houstonian
Tony Yarbrough is a global traveler (and shopper), who
also happens to sell SilverSea Cruises.
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