City of Tiny Lights.

(From Indian Express)

THE fleeting television images of the furious swells of the Valtava river as they threatened to submerge the historical Charles Bridge were enough to trigger an anxiety attack. Would the city, which survived the World Wars unscathed, survive the worst floods in 100 years? It is a question that has haunted me the last few days. Only a few weeks ago, I was standing on the Charles Bridge, spellbound not only by the sheer majesty of the view from the 14th century construction but also by the ornamental structure of the bridge itself. So popular and crucial is the destination on Prague's tourist itinerary (the city has now been declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO), that crowds throng the bridge well past midnight. Every brochure of the Czech Tourist Authority displays the Charles Bridge, so does almost every T-Shirt. Built by and named after Emperor Charles IV, the bridge was the only link between the Lesser Quarter or Mala Strana and the Old Town or Stare Mesto for almost 500 years, until the 19th century. Thirty imposing statues dating from the 18th century lend a grand aura to the bridge. From the disaster reports on television and newspapers on the swirling floods, it seemed rather unlikely that the 645-year-old bridge would escape damage. So I dashed off a frantic mail to the Czech Tourist Authority and eagerly waited for a reply. I took the delay in a response to be an indicator of the graveness of the scenario, so imagine my relief and surprise on receiving a mail that said that not a single monument in the city had been damaged! I was suddenly reminded of the horoscope made by Charles IV to forecast the auspicious hour for the launch of his dream project in the historic city. The palace astrologers made a chart and gave an astrological calculation of odd numbers in ascending and descending order i.e. 135797531. The king then ordered the foundation to be laid in the year 1357, on July 9 (9.7.), at 5.31 am! In the mid-14th century, Emperor Charles also founded the New Town, the area worst affected by the floods. Of course, the people have suffered a terrible loss but they are happy that their city has survived. Prague, with its unbelievable beauty and vibrating lifestyles, has become a popular destination in the post-Soviet liberal era, in the Nineties. Typically, in July and August, Europe's peak summer season, Prague is filled with tourists from all over the world. Though the floods dealt a major blow to the tourism business - incidentally, it involves even more people than a national election - this season, the large numbers of tourists present in the ...