One week ago today, we arrived in this wonderful and one week from today, we will sadly have to leave and return home. The halfway point of this course has been reached. Today’s journey was different than those of the last week because of we have gone from exploring architecture to exploring culture.

This occasion also marks an end to the first half of the timeline of Prague’s modern history. From the 9th century going till the 17th century, Prague was ruled by religious conflict and consistently changing landscapes. We saw the Czech fight their issues out against foreign rulers and religious oppressors, but now it is time for a new battle to be waged: a battle for a national/cultural identity. This battle has been waged many times in Czech history, but its true beginning came in the 19th century during the later times of the Habsburg era. In the 19th century, the Czech began looking its own identity as a people through culture and intellect, not only religion. Many famous figures rose up and progress was made to establish the Czech as people, not just peasants under the thumb of foreigners. Examples of famous figures from this era in Joseph Jungmann (first German to Czech dictionary), Bedrich Smetana (a composer), Vaclav Kremarius (first Czech newspaper), and Frantisek Palacky (most famous Czech historian). These people are only a few of the ones we studied on todays journey.

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Our journey today began with a walking tour of the area surrounding the hotel. As I said before, we were not looking for architecture anymore, we were looking for style and culture. Two famous styles that emerged during the late-19th century and early-20th century were Art Nouveau and Art Deco. Art Nouveau is characterized by dynamic designs, decorative statues and windows (reminiscent of Baroque), and heavy use of color. Art Deco is the successor to Art Nouveau and is characterized by simpler designs with rectangular windows, concrete designs, and an overall lack of vibrant colors. Art Deco could be considered a foil to Art Nouveau. Examples we found of Art Nouveau are Hotel Paris, the Municipal Building, and the Jan Hus Memorial. Examples of Art Deco are Hotel Imperial and Grand Hotel Europa. We viewed a few other locations throughout the city.

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Next we found ourselves heading back to Wenceslas Square to check out the modern styles of buildings as well as the National Museum. The Art Deco style was evident on most of the buildings in the Square. As we approached the National Museum, we passed the statue of Wenceslas/Vaclav himself. This statue is known for its legend that states Vaclav will revive if the Czech people are ever in trouble and ride across the Charles Bridge leading his armory with sword in hand. After we went into the National Museum, we got to see two exhibits: the Czechoslovakia centennial exhibit and the 200th anniversary of the museum exhibit. These exhibits hold many artifacts from the last few centuries that are of value to the Czech people. Especially inside the 200th museum anniversary, we saw 200 random artifacts that were selected to represent the Czech people. Some pieces we saw include Smetana’s oboe, concert posters for famous composers, dresses from women during previous eras, old radios and televisions, Jungmann’s dictionary, and many others. The items on display may not have special when they were created, but now they hold special value to the Czech people culturally. Seeing this stuff was quite the eye-opener because we got to see how theCzech people lived when they were trying to prove themselves as a people. It shows the decades and centuries of effort the Czech had to get to where they are.

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Our next stop was like opening a time capsule, we went down the street from Wenceslas’ Square to Lucerna Place, a shopping mall built during the early 20th century. This location is special because on the outside it has amodern appearance, but on the inside you can still see the old building designs from the 20th century. This is because, during the Communist era, the building fell into disrepair and the styles were never updated (even when the Communist regime left). This location also has an interesting statue located in its center that is considered a parody of the Wenceslas statue in front of the National Museum. As the statue in front of the National Museum has Wenceslas riding a horse, the statue in Lucerna Place depicts Wenceslas riding an upside down horse that is hanging. This statue was built back in late 1990s.

Next up, we passed by one of the most famous buildings of the Czech Revival era: the National Theatre. This location was the crown jewel of Czech revival being built on a large scale and using historicist, Neo-Renaissance architecture. It was opened in 1881 and suffered a fire that damaged it one year later. When they were gathering money to build and money to repair later, they asked for donations from the Czech people themselves. That way, the Czech people could be the ones that this building defines. We only saw the exterior, but just being near it, you could feel the passion of the Czech that went into the construction of it. It was exhilarating to see and I have a lot more respect for the Czech people after today.

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Finally, we wrapped up our day by paying a visit to a few smaller sites along the coast of the Vltava River. Our first stop was the Dancing House, an architectural marvel from the post-Communist era that amazes all who have come to see it. Next we passed a statue of Alois Jirasek, the person who compiled all the old legends and myths into his work: Old Czech Legends. All the legends mentioned by me in the last week were most likely compiled by him back in the 19th century. Our final stop was a monument dedicated to Frantisek Palacky, the famous historian who was the first person in modern history to compile all the Czech history. He had the largest monument of any we have seen for one person.

Going through today’s destination allowed to see how the Czech have shaped their capital city into something of their own. Yes, they had many foreign interferences that stopped them from expressing themselves, especially the Habsburgs. From creating their own styles through Art Nouveau and Art Deco to constructing buildings like the National Museum and National Theatre to allowing various individuals like Jungmann, Palacky, Jirasek to create new styles. The Czech have established themselves as a people separate from their previous foreign oppressors.

My respect for the Czech has grown immensely today and I am more than happy that I am taking this course. Back in high school, the Czech Republic and its people were always glossed over and ignored and I never realized how much this would annoy me. I now wish to go even deeper into my studies of foreign nations and their cultures. I do not want to gloss over the details anymore, I wish to know the people who share this world with me.