Poetry at the Post-Prague: Splendour Falls on Castle Walls

from The Princess: The Splendour Falls on Castle Walls
BY ALFRED, LORD TENNYSON

The splendour falls on castle walls

Prague is medieval opulence mixed with Hapsburg over-the-top.
More than the castle itself, The Castle District is something else.

St. Vitus Cathedral, St. George’s Basilica, The Royal Gardens, and…

I think I like Prague but I can’t figure it out, certainly not
culturally or language-wise but also at the most basic level.

I get lost wherever I go. I ask for help, then end up
somewhere
I did not want to go.

The Castle District. Yes,
it is stunning. Yes,
Hitler spared it. Yes,
it is worth a visit—
despite the crowds.

Yet…yet…
Achingly lovely…
think of the other
99% or perhaps
the other 98.9%
back then.

O love, they die in yon rich sky,
They faint on hill or field or river:
Our echoes roll from soul to soul,
And grow for ever and for ever.