To the Castle and Back

To the Castle and Back

Vaclav Havel

Language: English

Pages: 400

ISBN: 030738845X

Format: PDF / Kindle (mobi) / ePub


From the former president of the Czech Republic comes this first-hand account of his years in office and the transition to democracy following the fall of Communism.

A renowned playwright, Václav Havel became one of Czechoslovakia's most prominent dissidents under Communist rule – and the president after the Velvet Revolution, making him a key player in European politics. Here we see first-hand the challenges of creating a new government, tempered with Havel's revealing insights into the difficulties posed by an era of increased globalization and conflict. He discusses not only the situation in his own country, but also such pressing issues as the future of the European Union, the war in Iraq, and the role of the United States in contemporary affairs. Written with an eye towards both the political and the personal and a witty, well-honed eloquence, To the Castle and Back is a rare glimpse into the minds of one of the most important political figures of modern times.

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Stop, shake hands, and have a friendly conversation with everyone—that in itself is not a great art—but because it doesn’t throw them off or distract them in the slightest from what they have to focus on, such as an upcoming improvised speech. Whom do you most regret not having time for? Hard to say. Many friends have died, many are living in seclusion or abroad. Apart from my oldest friends—and I include that most rare man, Zdeněk Urbánek, or the actors Jan Tříska or Pavel Landovský—I miss.

Ocher using the same base color (which has been used on an important part of the Lány château) for the whole complex. (For the time being, of course, only the agricultural building is at issue.) On two occasions they expressed general agreement with my opinion, only to turn around and decide the exact opposite. So in the end I showed up in person for an “oversight day,” and we had a friendly discussion about it. We completely agreed! I didn’t force anything on anyone—I expressed my opinion.

More stable environment for the preparations for membership in the European Union. But you could also argue from the other side: who knows whether the more cautious and more self-centered European Union would have been willing to expand at all if NATO had not expanded first, and if its expansion had not been preceded by the security guarantee that the EU itself was unable to provide? The main trailblazer and the guarantor of the new order at the time was clearly the United States. We felt this.

And, obviously, the most paradoxical paradox of my life: I suspect that somewhere deep down I find this paradoxical life of mine terribly entertaining.” And now, with this old prediction and suspicion of mine, I can only conclude as well this conversation of ours. Because what else can I add to it, except to say that today I am older and thus—I hope—more modest. Prague, January 5, 2006 This year did not begin well either, at least for our family. Dáša is ill, and what’s worse, it’s at a time.

Never exchange my old computer for a new one or put new programs on it. This always involves more work, and there are always more and more things to remember. I’m not the kind of person who can endlessly play with a machine and take pleasure in how complex it is. Fortunately, the complexity of my computer—unlike the complexity of the Temelín nuclear reactor—is not a danger to anyone. By the way, the more advanced my computer is, the more easy it is for me to wipe everything out. I’m not saying.

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