This week we added our economics class to the schedule, so I’ve been pretty busy trying to keep up with the academic load. Hence, the blog has fallen behind.
Sunday I had a chance to attend The International Church of Prague. The church meets in a Seventh Day Adventist church building about 25 minutes from my dorm. The church began as a Bible study meeting in the British and American embassies shortly before the fall of communism. After the Velvet Revolution this small group organized into a church.
In the summer much of Prague’s international population goes elsewhere, so a large proportion of the worshipers at ICP were visitors. The senior pastor was gone as well, so it was not a typical service. I was glad to be with other believers and hear the Word preached.
Sunday afternoon I met up with a classmate from Singapore. (He just graduated from Penn State in bioengineering and econ, and he is headed to Stanford next year for a masters in some form of international relations.) We rode a train out to Karlštejn Castle, which guide books list as a must-see. The castle was built in the 14th century by King Charles IV, the King of Bohemia and Holy Roman Emperor. The castle was used to store the crown jewels and relics. Today it has a large collection of gothic art.
Unfortunately, photography is not permitted inside the castle. The interior, though, was what you would expect of a medieval castle. Most the rooms were large and boxy, with stone floors and walls and beam ceilings. Some rooms broke the castle stereotype with rich tapestry wall coverings or ornate wood paneling. It amused me that the castle staff, including our tour guide, use large, old-fashioned skeleton keys that look like original equipment. The highlight of the tour was period music performed by a femal singer and a man playing a 20-stringed instrument that I didn’t recognize.
