Compact archive December 23, 2008

Merry Christmas From ABC Prague

Tuesday 23 December 2008 15:15

It has been a long year, during which we have presented approximately 1300 articles on our blog. We tried to map the whole Blob matter, from the beginning, to its bitter end. Also another very closely watched theme is the Radar as a symbol of future development of the CR – with the USA or Russia? Last Christmas, the position of Right-wing government seemed unshakable, now everything is different. We were here and tried to give you all the information you need, and we hope we did good. If the theme is Prague, we inform about it.

Regardless of the world financial crisis, we hopefully stay here until the next Christmas, and so we all here can enjoy the ceremonial evening and to wish you to enjoy it as well. Whether you are in Prague, or at any other place on earth, we wish you peace and calm, and hopefully everything is going to go as planned and wished for. So again – Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

Czech Christmas Eve

Tuesday 23 December 2008 13:33

Czech Christmas celebrations are concentrated to one evening; the Christmas Eve, forgot the American style when you get the gifts on 25th in the morning.

In the Czech Republic (and Slovakia) the day goes like this: If there is snow outside, one should take something out and start sledging the hills. Than home, and turn the TV on. To watch the fairy-tales! But they must be Czech fairy-tales, as they are among the least violent of prolly all the fairy-tales in the world. All who can must join, and enjoy them.

When the evening comes, there is the time for the ceremonial dinner. It should be a carp, or any other fish with potato salad, served with good beer, or vine. Lite up the candles and talk.

The main phase starts after dinner: There are gifts under the tree! Time to unwrap it, slowly and nicely, and finally marvel at all the things your closest ones gave you, and to enjoy the others unwrapping those you gave to them.

When it is all over, you can finally heave a sigh of relief, and go to sleep, with the nice perspective this circus won’t be back until the next year.

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Various pictures of Jesus' birth in Prague

Tuesday 23 December 2008 11:52

The exhibition shows Nativity scenes made from various materials, there are various shapes, attitudes, sizes… The Burgrave at Prague Castle is filled with families, and both the parents and kids marvel at the unique pieces. They stare in disbelief at the cute marionette theater, which served as a narrator of Christmas happening more than a hundred years ago. No plasma screen!

Parents wisely nod their heads, when they read the moved history of the unfinished nativity scene, which should have been made for St Vitus chapel, but works on the original were cut off by the WWII and than by the communists in 1948. The spacious piece of art got lost, leaving no clues. The only reminder is its period model, depicting the setting in traditional Czechoslovak clothes and scenery. Only the wizards are in traditional costumes.

If you have a family, you can get a nice ticket for reasonable money. The exhibition looks nice, feels nice and smells nice as well, the energy is really christmas-like. Good for the Christmas spirit boost.

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Prague – No Christmas Snow

Tuesday 23 December 2008 09:00

Meteorologists warn that snow is going to be a bit of rarity during the Christmas season. Probability of snowing during the holidays have dramatically lowered in the past 100 years. And in the coming tens of years, when the north pole will grow even smaller in size, white Christmas are going to be even rarer. Reuters launched a study in cooperation with German weather institute, finding out that in the lowland-located Berlin are the future generations probably not going to see white Christmas at all, leaving them dreaming about it.

Of course, the chances for snow are different at different places and the elevation above the sea-level and distance to the sea still give hope for Prague there are going to be white Christmas a few times still. But not this year – the temperatures are right above zero. But there is also other reason, beside global warming – as our calendar changed in 1752, Christmas moved 12 days to the earlier date. In January snowing is more common.

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