Phil and Teresa Mohr Czech Republic: Days 50-52

As the end of our time in the Czech Republic is rapidly approaching, we are trying to take care of many last minute things. On Monday and Tuesday Phil continued to help with preparations for Royal Rangers Camp, building picnic tables and wooden cots. Phil enjoyed working with the rough hewn lumber harvested directly from the forest, and using traditional tools. (Ok, the chainsaw was an exception, though watching a professional woodsman use it as though it was an extension of his hands was awe inspiring.)   Everything smells so good in the pine forest after the rain. Phil could spend hours there just breathing the air and watching the small brook bubble by.  Eric and Daniel spent one afternoon playing in the forest while Phil worked. The favorite hide-out for Eric was the 3-foot deep hole that had been dug for the latrine. Fortunately it had not yet been commissioned.   There are still many little projects to complete, but we are confident the camp will be ready in time.

On Monday Phil was interviewed for radio by Petr, a member of the congregation, who is a Christian broadcaster. Petr creates radio broadcasts for various radio stations, including the Czech Republic's version of BBC or NPR. The 90-minute interview (before editing) covered many topics from Phil's life history to cultural differences between Germany, the US, and the Czech Republic, to Phil's impressions of the Czech Republic, to topics relating to Phil's Christian faith and worldview. The conversation revolved mostly around these faith issues. This was in part because Phil feels more comfortable talking about these topics than politics and economics, so the conversation tended to return to faith perspectives on whatever topic was being discussed. The program will air in two weeks on Sunday morning on the Western Bohemian Public Broadcasting station. Vladimir from church translated all of Phil's responses into Czech, so that the Bohemians can understand. Please pray that the interview sounds somewhat intelligent, and that it might positively influence someone who hears it.

On Tuesday evening we had a goodbye barbeque with the firefighters at Pavel the fire chief's house. This was a great time with grilled meats over the open fire, and lots of laughter as we talked long after the sun went down over Tachov. Pavel's house is at the edge of town, overlooking some pastures and the train track. Pavel grew up in the house, which his father built. It was not uncommon here in communist times to build your own home. Now he and his family share it with his parents.  It is also not uncommon to share the home between generations. A great custom (as long as you like the in-laws).

Today we took the train to Prague (about a 3-hour ride), where we will spend three days, staying at the Methodist Church District Office, which has a small apartment they are allowing us to use. We were pleased to find that the apartment is adorned with artwork by Ralf Most, a Czech poet/artist who we got to know as the camp manager at the youth camp. The district office and apartment are right downtown, and the people here are exceedlingly friendly to us. Good Methodists!

Prague is a magnificent city, which is also completely overrun by tourists. We heard English, German, French, Spanish, Japanese, and just a little bit of Czech today. Bustling Prague is the antithesis to the slower paced rural Czech Republic we have come to know. It is easy to envision Tachov under an oppressive communist rule. Today it is almost impossible to imagine Prague that way. The life, the vibrancy, and the energy of the city rival that of any other European city like Paris, London or Berlin.  The buildings are beautifully restored or maintained, and there are endless corners to discover. One afternoon Phil was lumberjacking in the unspoiled forest - the next day exploring a major metroplis. Life is good.

Speaking of travel, we want to rewind to communist times and change the subject once again. At Vladimir and Helena's house on Sunday we learned a little bit about travel in the Czech Republic before communism fell, and we found it fascinating and worth sharing. When Vladimir was a child, his parents loved to travel. However, receiving permission to travel outside the country was difficult (hence the culture of building weekend cottages inside the Czech Republic).   To get permission to travel abroad required getting someone who was trusted by the communist party to vouch for you that you would not attempt to flee to the West. If you did flee, the family that vouched for you could suffer harsh reprisals.   One time Vladimir's family traveled to Yugoslavia. However, they could not travel the direct route through Austria. Instead they had to drive around Austria through Hungary. The trip took six days in the small Skoda 100, which was packed with spare parts for the Skoda, and with cases of beer with which to bribe the border guards (there's nothing like a couple of Pilsner Urquells to grease the border crossing process!!).   Permission to go to Yugoslavia was particularly difficult to obtain because fleeing to the West from there was easier. A favorite destination for Vladimir was East Germany, because they had model railroads there, which were nearly impossible to get in the Czech Republic at the time. Vladimir lived in Plzen at that time, and travel to Tachov would not have been advisable or desireable with it being so close to the border with the West. Tachov at that time was inhabited mostly be soldiers, secret police, border guards, and miners who worked in the Uranium mines.

And today you walk around Prague, swamped with so many foreigners (Western, Eastern and otherwise) that the Czechs have all fled for the hills and you can't help but be stunned by what a difference 20 years can make.

Some photos:

Building picnic tables and beds at the Royal Rangers camp.