As we've written in an older blog post and as we mention on our website, May 1st is the unofficial day of love in the Czech Republic. We went to the Petřín Park to enjoy the spring day. The park was busy with couples strolling, sitting on the grass and visiting the statue of Karel Hynek Mácha, the Czech patron of lovers. A nice man in a suit played the violin in front of the statue as couples stopped by to lay flowers and spend a few moments.
I wrote about the Day of Three Kings a few years ago, although my post wasn't really about the Three Kings tradition per se. I witnessed the custom performed in a Moravian village this year. Three children about five to seven years old (all of them happened to be girls) came by, rang the doorbell, lined up and sang the Three Kings carol to us. They were dressed as Kašpar, Melichar and Baltazar, each initial printed on a paper crown on their heads. They gave us a packet of sugar and frankinsense. The girls were accompanied by a woman who carried a donation box. We made a donation and she proceeded to write the inscription K + M + B + 2011 on the doorframe with a chalk. The inscription supposedly means Christus mansionem benedicat ("May Christ bless this house"). The donations go to the Czech Republic Charity (Charita České republiky).
We would like to wish all our readers a peaceful holiday season and all the best in 2011!