Somewhere in Germany: The bus I took from Girona, Catalonia to Prague, Czech Republic. 24 hours of hell across the highways of France and Germany sitting next to a nice Czech fellow who spent his summer holiday in Morocco, and I don't think he bathed in weeks. Really, I'd never had a bus ride that long before and by the time my friend and I arrived in Prague I needed a chiropractor. Instead I had delicious Czech beer.
I was running out of money in Spain so I escaped to Prague for 2 weeks while I waited for a deposit to be made in my bank at home.
Tags: 1994 me film
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Ahh- Prague, and memories of my lovely Czech girlfriend. I can't begin to tell you about the romantic evenings strolling the streets with this beauty. We were speaking of marriage, and a life together, and, and...
Oh, wait. Actually I have to admit, I've never seen this girl before. See, I'd been in a hostel for my first week, when a girl I knew in Prague connected me with someone who had this room to stay for ten bucks a night. When I got back to the States and developed the film, this portrait was on there. :-)
It was probably a friend of the homeowner's daughter or son. But I do wish we had been formally introduced, BEFORE I left Prague.
Tags: Prague 1994 film
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He was really bizarre- a true character. I think I gave this guy a couple thousand crowns over the course of a couple weeks.
He died some years back, here is the text of a sword swallower hall of fame entry:
Czech sword swallower Emil Ondracek taught himself sword swallowing in 1989 after the Czech "Velvet Revolution" when cut-backs were made on Czech state employees. Because Ondracek was disabled after one of his legs was amputated above the knee, he wore a prosthetic leg and found it difficult to find work after the cutbacks. After teaching himself sword swallowing in 1989, he became a well-known sight at Prague's Wenceslsa Square where he performed sword swallowing and human blockhead for tourists while seated wearing a Metallica T-shirt. According to a 1996 article, he said: "I saw this number being performed before I learned to do it myself. I thought if somebody else can swallow swords, I can do it too. And I'm an invalid, and I needed to make some money - that was at the time of the political changes in 1989. I trained hard for a month, using a plastic pipe, which I had sort of adapted myself. Of course there was some injury when I was training, but that healed up a long time ago. As for the tourists who watch me, the Germans laugh, the Chinese like it, but the Japanese run away when they see me swallowing swords. Most likely they're afraid I'd attack them or something. The Scots...the Scots clap, they take photos and film me, but really, a Scot who would actually throw me some money is a real rarity. The Poles are the most suspicious - they always want to check my swords, to see if they're real. After the floods, and with the metro system out of order, it's not just restaurants and bars that are hit, it's services like me too - my business is down around 70 percent. Why do I wear a Metallica t-shirt? Well, I bought it more for the picture, not because I'm a fan." In 1992, Ondracek set his own personal record by swallowing 8 swords at once, which was included in a Czech book of records. In 2001, Ondracek developed serious back problems with his spine, and was hospitalized for a long period after surgery in 2003. The surgery was unsuccessful, and Ondracek relied heavily on pain killers. He died in 2003 from an overdose of drugs. His grave is in Prague, Czech Republic.
Sword Swallow dot com
(they actually used this photo on that site)
Tags: Slayer Sword Swallower Prague Czech 1994 Emil Ondracek film
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Tags: film
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