Prague, Old Town Square

The famous Old Town Square (Staromìstské námìstí) is the indisputable heart of Prague. The most notable sights, easily viewed from the comfort of the outdoor cafes, are the Astronomical Clock Tower (part of the town hall, just out of the photo, to the left) and buildings of Romanesque, Baroque and Gothic styles. Towering above the square, and half-hidden behind a row of houses, is the fairy-turreted Church of Our Lady of Tyn.

On our second visit to Prague, in 1991, we asked to see (but she was busy) the United States Ambassador, Madam Shirley Temple Black (yes that Shirley Temple). Appointed by President Bush in 1989, she served until 1993. It happens she was in Prague to help set up a chapter of the Multiple Sclerosis Society, and saw people being killed during what is called “The Prague Spring,” when the Soviets invaded this city in 1968.

She was in Prague as U. S. Ambassador when the Czechs celebrated the “Velvet Revolution,” the collapse of Communism in 1989. This 61-year-old American grandmother, dressed in a jumpsuit and yellow Reeboks, had watched the antigovernment rally in Wenceslas Square, while perched on a filthy window ledge. In January 1993, as a result of the "Velvet Divorce" Czechoslovakia was peacefully replaced by two independent states: Slovakia and the Czech Republic.