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Dornoch by night
by Islay McLeod
Perhaps, in a quiet moment, Mr Vaclav Klaus rises from his presidential desk and wanders, deep in thought, over to the window of his presumably plush office in Prague castle (more of a block of flats than a castle). He may still sense the faint smell of cigarette smoke in the room, the legacy of his illustrious predecessor Vaclav Havel, and he may open the window to feel the fresh autumn air and enjoy the view across the Vltava River to the medieval old town.
Prague is unquestionably one of Europe’s most beautiful cities and in the last few years the city authorities have worked hard to develop their capital as a major tourist destination. However, they struggle to instil warmth and humour in much of the population, as can easily be observed in many of the restaurants and cafes. Mr Klaus, if he has time, will watch the endless procession of people from across the globe slowly crossing the Charles Bridge. It is 500 of the most beguiling metres to be found on earth and a heaven for serial people watchers.
If Mr Klaus has a very keen eye he will see a man dressed in a white sailor’s uniform, including an able seaman’s hat, working the crowds around the Old Town Bridge Tower selling river boat cruises on behalf of a company called Gray Lines. The man’s skin is as black as shoe polish, he is from Senegal in west Africa and his name is Alex.
Alex possesses an incredible range of social skills including the ability to warmly hustle potential clients in superb English, French, Romanian, probably Czech, and who knows what other languages. His fluent Romanian is the biggest surprise but, as he explains, he lived there for a while before finding his way to the Czech Republic.
When you meet a guy like Alex on your travels, in brief encounters that you never forget and often describe to friends or new acquaintances, you find yourself thinking about his story.
He is clearly an experienced traveller, obviously educated and capable of mixing casually with people and putting them instantly at ease – not an easy skill to acquire in west Africa. Perhaps he was in the merchant navy and based himself in Constanta on Romania’s Black Sea coast? Perhaps he was a post-graduate student whose life took a new path? I’ll ask him next time I’m in Prague, if he hasn’t moved on.
However we like to categorise him, Alex and his colleagues are human beings with exceptional character with whom we can share wonderful moments. Maybe Mr Klaus should get out of his castle and take a walk across the Charles Bridge.
Ronnie Smith was born in Largs and now lives in Romania, working as a professional training business consultant and communication coach. He is also a teacher of political science, a political and social commentator and a writer of fiction
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