The words in the title above are attributed to Oscar Wilde and I suppose it must give what I write now an aura of being something profound if I can begin by quoting Wilde! Or maybe not?
However, it is a phrase that came to mind very recently in an odd sort of way. We (Thérèse and I) went to Prague for a long weekend just over one week ago. I had been there, very many years ago, as part of my work. Although there can be a sort of glamourous image attached to travelling on business to interesting (or uninteresting) places, one of their hallmarks is that there is seldom the opportunity to do other than the most minimal sightseeing and even then, it tends to be in the evening. However, although it was quite some time ago, I did recall a few things. I recalled the name of the bank that I was working with at the time, I remember Wenceslas Square, and finally, I recalled an evening walk on the Charles Bridge, one of Prague’s most noted attractions. All in all, good memories.
Prague came on our agenda as Thérèse had a special birthday this year (21 is such an important age!). While I knew for quite a long time that I would take her somewhere nice, I had no idea of the destination that would be selected. In truth, it could just as easily have been the west of Ireland, Scotland, or France, as we love all of these and more. Now, in October, I can’t say specifically what it was that made me choose Prague except that I’m certain it was something that she said, a wish expressed, to see the city. And so it was that on January 7 this year, I booked flights to go to Prague on October 11. No more was said for nine months – a pregnant waiting!!
Prague is without doubt a beautiful old city. We arrived late on a Thursday evening into what was, believe it or not, a balmy Prague evening. This welcome weather continued for the duration of our trip and so we were indeed very fortunate. While we had no intention of putting on hiking boots and setting out to conquer the city with long walks, we certainly had specific highlights in mind and insofar as was possible, we intended to enjoy them by wandering from place to place, with occasional stops along the way to … well, have a drink and be refreshed.
Our first stop was to Prague Castle and the Cathedral of St Vitus. It was a Friday and although we were well outside the rush hour, the tram was far from empty. And we soon found that very many were going to the same place. The concierge at our hotel had told us not to get off at the Prague Castle stop but to go on a further two and walk from there. It was the difference between a significant uphill walk from the first stop to a downhill and scenic walk from the further stop. A very good tip!
As we drew closer to the castle, we were amazed at the crowds that were present. We queued to go through the security check at the castle, listening to a veritable babel of languages, and made our way, first, to the Cathedral. Crowds! There must be something on today, I said to Thérèse! And so we joined the line, made our way into the Cathedral, realised that without a ticket we could only venture around the back of the building, made our way outside to purchase the much-needed ticket, and returned to the line, back in, and on into the body of the building by going through a ticket-stile.
A beautiful building, without doubt. Awesome in its size. And as I often feel, when standing in places with such a long history, if only the stones themselves could speak, what stories they would tell of the hundreds of years of history in that place. And yet, there was something nagging at me (and for the avoidance of doubt, this was not Thérèse!). Yes, I was taking photographs to try and capture some of the beauty of the place, but more than that, I was also trying to get a sense of the place, to ‘feel’ something of the history of those who had built it, decorated it, prayed in it; of the many services that had been held there. But there were too many people. It was impossible to stand in one place without being in someone’s way as they made their way about the place; the noise never stopped.
To be sure, I was among the “too many people” for the others. So of course, I was as much a part of the problem – I certainly didn’t see it as the fault of others.
You can imagine my surprise to find that the problem, such as it was, didn’t stop at the Cathedral and Castle. We went to the major parts of the city, to Wenceslas Square, to the Old Town, we strolled along many streets. But everywhere we went, we encountered tsunamis of Japanese tourists, armies of Germans, and entire pilgrimages of Italians (and yes, a lot of Italians for some reason). It got to the point that when you saw a raised umbrella above the approaching crowds, or a small flag being held aloft, it was a warning to stand aside unless you wanted to be swamped by a flash-flood of people as they tried to stay in contact with their flagged leader on very crowded pavements.
And so the words of Oscar Wilde and his words of wisdom on moderation. Is it possible that a place, in this case, Prague, can have too many tourists? Can it happen that so many tourists arrive to a place that our very numbers themselves deprive us, as tourists, from experiencing that which we came to see and experience? I’m quite certain that the benefits to Prague, economically, must be enormous. One has only to look at the number of hotels through the city, of an airport that is clearly busy with flights going to all parts, to see that there is plenty of money. Indeed, as we made our way in from the airport on Thursday evening, I was struck by the major car brands on the many dealerships that we passed along the way. Of course, there were the Škoda dealerships – it was Czech after all and this is their home brand. But then I saw Maserati, Bentley, and Ferrari showrooms, to name but three! All this was on one route from the airport into the city. If there are purchasers for these brands – and why else would they exist – then there can be no doubt that there is a lot of money in Prague. Maybe it is not all tourism – I don’t know enough about the place to say with any certainty – but what I experienced during the days of our visit would surely suggest that tourism has delivered huge economic benefit to the city.
But at what cost? Is it all good? On one of our days, we took a river cruise on the Vlatava River. I should say here that the weather during our time was magnificent. It is completely true to say that during our entire visit, we saw only blue skies, with the sun shining from morning until evening. So, a river cruise was a way to both enjoy the city and to enjoy the weather. As the boat headed towards the famous Charles Bridge, we could see from a distance the crowds; it was so obvious. And as we drew closer, it seemed to us as if an event was taking place on the bridge, or perhaps performers were drawing visitors. In fact, there were so many people that the very many boats that we saw were themselves well populated.
When the cruise finished, we made our way to the Charles Bridge on foot. Well, what a sight! Even the crowds in the city, and what we could see from the river, could not have prepared us for the volume of people making their way in both directions. We thought that the Cathedral, and the Castle, and the Old Town, were all crowded. But the bridge! In a confined space – it is wide but there is a limit to its width – it was like walking up Jones’ Road in Dublin after an All Ireland Final (for Jones’ Road, and those not familiar with it, substitute Wembley Way and an FA Cup Final and you have the right image!). And this was not the height of summer; no, this was almost mid-October!
So can a place have too many tourists, is there a point where the economic value, great and all that it is, tips over and begins to destroy the cultural value and experience? I’m not sure. I am unable to give a certain answer because I loved the visit, I loved Prague, and if the opportunity arose again, I would return. However, on the other side of that argument, I have a strong feeling that in many ways, I was denied the possibility of a true Prague experience, of feeling the history and the place, and the opportunity to breathe in all that has in its streets and its building and yes, in its local people. And I am uncertain too, because as I said earlier, because it isn’t an us (tourists) and them (tourists) as I am, for another group of “us” a “them.”
It would be wonderful if it was possible to have moderation in the number of tourists and at the same time, and to follow the words of Oscar Wilde, to have such moderation in moderation. Sadly, I don’t see it happening. I don’t know why it was that Prague struck me so forcibly on this point. After all, so many of the world’s big cities attract millions of visitors; could Prague even compare to the number of visitors that go annually to London, or Paris, or New York? Not likely. Perhaps in the case of Prague, it is because when all is said and done, the real wonder of Prague is contained within a relatively small area.
I loved the visit, I loved the time there, I was intrigued by much of what I saw and the sense of a long history about so many of the places. But also, I felt a little short-changed, and left with a sense that there was so much more to see and experience about such a wonderful place and perhaps those elements of ‘more’ can only ever now be reported in the tour guides and the stories, but no longer in the lived experience of such a visit.