giant Christmas tree lights up the Old Town Square / Staromestske Namesti vita stromeckoveho obra

A traditional 66-foot tall Christmas tree was  lit up today at the Old Town Square in Prague. The tree lights are blinking, moving up and down, changing colors….anything imaginable (you can watch it in action in the video below).  This year the tree is actually being guarded by a special security system so that half of the ornaments does not get stolen like it has happened in the past. The Christmas tree celebration also opened up the old-fashioned Christmas market where the visitors can buy home-made candles, wooden toys, svarak (sweetened hot wine with spices) and other traditional Czech goods. The market stands engulf a little podium which will be hosting many bands from all over the world, such as  from Singapore, South Africa or Germany.

The Jan Hus sculpture (located in the middle of the square) is the center for children’s workshop this year in which kids can make their own Christmas decorations or the devil/angel masks for the upcoming St. Nicholas day. They can also write a letter to Jesus in there! The Christmas markets are also a home of a live nativity scene and a puppet theatre.

The Wenceslas Square will be welcoming its Christmas tree along with the markets this Sunday. Compared to the Old Town Square set up the markets in the Wenceslas Square are supposed to be more modern.

CZ: Dnes se na Staromestskem namesti slavnostne rozzaril vanocni stromecek –  nebo spise strom (meri totiz 20 metru). Bile, pohybujici se zarovky imituji padajici snih, celeho ho zahaluji sampanska svetla a protinaji ho cervene zablesky. Tento rok strom hlida bezpecnostni agentura a to aby z neho ‘zahadne’ nemizely vanocni ozdoby jako se to stalo v letech minulych. Zaroven se otevrely take tradicni vanocni trhy, kde si navstevnici mohou koupit jmeli, vence, svicky, drevene hracky, svarak nebo pecene kastany (mnam). Na mistnim podiu se take chystaji vystupovat zahranicni skupiny ze Singapuru, Jihoafricke republiky, Nemecka a dalsich zemi.

Socha Jana Husa je tento rok cetrem detskych dilnicek, kde si deti mohou vyrobit masky certu a andelu, ruzne ozdoby nebo  napsat samotnemu Jeziskovi. Trhy take nabizi shlednuti ziveho belemu nebo manaskoveho a loutkoveho divadla.

Vanocni stromecek na Vaclavaku se ma slavnostne rosvitit tuto nedeli. Zdejsi trhy maji mit trosku modernejsi vzhled nez tradicnejsi trhy na Staromestskem namesti.

Source:

http://relax.lidovky.cz/staromestske-namesti-tradicne-rozzaril-vanocni-strom-p1b-/ln-zajimavosti.asp?c=A091128_203435_ln-zajimavosti_kim