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National Park closes Edmundsklamm for another three years
The popular Edmund Gorge (Edmundova soutěska) in Bohemian Switzerland will remain closed for significantly longer than previously known. The Bohemian Switzerland National Park announced that it will not carry out any tree felling work in and above the Edmundsklamm until 2027. The same applies to the Gabrielensteig (Gabrielina stezka) from Mezní Louka (Rainwiese) to Prebischtor (Pravčická brána). This means that the popular paths remain closed for safety reasons.
According to the national park administration, the area around the two paths should be left to its own devices for three years. “It has been shown that we can reopen the paths as quickly as possible if we give nature some time to regenerate,” explains national park director Pavel Kříž. As part of studies, a test felling was carried out above the Edmundsklamm. The intervention showed that felling on a large scale would destroy the nature around the paths and at the same time safety would not be guaranteed. “The felling would disturb the thin layer of soil,” says director Kříž. Stones and boulders could come loose. In addition, the felling itself is not without danger and involves high costs.
According to Kříž, simply leaving the burned stumps has other advantages. They store moisture and ensure sustainable drainage of rainwater into soil layers. At the same time, the tree stumps are food for insects, which in turn keep birds in the area as food. Some species of birds and bats also use the dead trees as nesting places. In addition, the burned trees scattered thousands of seeds that sprouted last year. Logging would also destroy this natural reforestation. A video commissioned by the national park shows what it looks like on the Gabrielensteig and above the Edmundsklamm and what consequences an impact would have.
The lockdown until 2027 is a hard blow. In an initial statement, the municipality of Hřensko, which owns the Edmundsklamm and runs the barge trips, was particularly disappointed. “The problem is that we largely take over the tasks of the state. We finance a fire department that not only takes care of fire protection on the front line, but also the mountain rescue service. We spend a lot of money on local police, who in many ways replace the absent state police. That costs a lot of money and we are sorely missing the income from the Edmundsklamm,” said deputy mayor Robert Mareš in an initial reaction to the daily newspaper Mladá fronta Dnes.
Děčín Zoo is car-free for three months
Anyone who wants to visit the zoo in Děčín in the coming months will have to be prepared for a short walk. Due to construction work, the only access road to the zoo, Žižkova Street, has been closed since Monday. The road should be open again from June 9th, before the start of the main season. But until then, visitors with fitness are required, as the zoo is located above the Shepherd's Wall (Pastýřská stěna). The road is only closed between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. during the week. But times can still change and outside of construction work times, passage is only possible for cars.
Either way, the Děčín magistrate recommends leaving the car in the parking lot on Práce Street between the railway tracks and the Elbe and using the footpath over the Jahn Lookout (named after gymnastics father Friedrich Ludwig Jahn) and further uphill to the zoo. At 670 meters, this would also be the shortest route to the zoo. This option is also easily accessible from the main train station. As a second option, the red-marked hiking trail from the Tyrš Bridge over the Puchmayerova Street up to the Schäferwand is recommended. The car could then be parked at the parking lot below the Tyrš Bridge. This route is a little longer at just under a kilometer.
The closure comes at an inopportune time for the zoo, as it is celebrating its 75th anniversary this year. In an initial reaction, he quickly moved one of his anniversary events from May to August. Now the zoo is calling on its fans on August 31st to come to the zoo with a bear Nicki. The Siberian brown bear Bruno is the zoo's mascot and by far the most popular animal. The zoo wants to set a new record with as many Nicki bearers as possible.
The Czech Republic celebrates 25 years of NATO membership
Three JAS-39 Gripen fighters, two Eurofighter Typhoon fighters and an A-400MS Atlas transport from Germany flew just 200 meters over the Czech capital on March 12. With this symbolic formation, the Czech Republic celebrated 25 years of membership in NATO. In March 1999, Poland and Hungary became the first former Eastern Bloc states to join the transatlantic defense alliance.
The then US President Bill Clinton took part in the celebrations in Prague as a guest of honor. His visit brought back memories, especially since the Czech President and former highest-ranking NATO general Petr Pavel gave his guest a visit to the legendary Reduta jazz club. Former President Václav Havel took him there in 1993. Clinton was not only enthusiastic, but was also persuaded to do a saxophone solo.
He left the music-making to others that evening, but he recalled that it was he who appointed the Czech-born Madeleine Albright first as UN ambassador and later as foreign minister. Albright, Havel's good friend, vehemently supported his efforts to get the Czech Republic into NATO as quickly as possible. Havel put all his foreign policy weight behind this, and it is indicative of the priorities in the neighboring country that the Czech Republic first joined NATO and then the European Union.
It was also significant that this week of all days the Czech Republic was able to report that it had collected enough money to purchase 800,000 rounds of artillery ammunition from third countries in order to quickly solve the ammunition shortage in Ukraine. Britain's The Telegraph could not praise this initiative highly enough. "If it's true that artillery is the king of war, then this small Eastern European country is the kingmaker..." Apart from the fact that Czechs see themselves more as Central Europeans, many people in the Czech Republic will be able to agree with this sentence.
Trouble between Prague and Bratislava
Where otherwise no leaf can fit between them, there is currently a cool distance: the two neighboring countries Czech Republic and Slovakia, which separated from Czechoslovakia into two independent states in an exemplary manner over 30 years ago, are currently divided over how to deal with Russian aggression in Ukraine. At the beginning of March, the Czech government decided to suspend regular government consultations.
It was only in the fall, after the left-wing populist Robert Fico took over as head of government in Bratislava, that both sides agreed to continue consultations. The summit of the Visegrád states, i.e. between Hungary, Poland, Slovakia and the Czech Republic, also ended on a conciliatory note in Prague at the end of February. The views on Russia and Ukraine couldn't be more different. On one side are the Pole Donald Tusk and the Czech Petr Fiala, both clear allies of Ukraine and staunch transatlanticists. On the other hand, Viktor Orbán is the eternal troublemaker in the EU, who doesn't want to give up his admiration for Putin. Robert Fico may have other motives, but in his pro-Russian stance he has nothing to do with Orbán.
But this meant that a red line had now been crossed for Prague. The Czechs have just successfully forged a coalition to supply ammunition to Ukraine. Fico's refusal to provide military support to Ukraine is an affront. How long the new ice age will last and whether and when consultations will resume is not yet known.
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The creation of this newsletter is co-financed by tax revenue based on the budget approved by the Saxon state parliament.
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On March 4, 2024, circulation procedure No. 1 took place in the Elbe/Labe Euroregion. 1 project has been confirmed, the total amount is EUR 19,928.00.
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Vorerst keine RegioJet-Züge nach Prag
Das tschechische Eisenbahnunternehmen RegioJet startet vorerst keine regelmäßigen Zugverbindungen zwischen Prag und Berlin. Ursprünglich sollten auf der Strecke Prag-Dresden-Berlin ab 20. März täglich drei Zugpaare pendeln. Wie das Unternehmen mitteilte, hätte die Deutsche Bahn als Netzbetreiber keine ausreichende Streckenkapazität zur Verfügung gestellt. Auf Nachfrage von saechsische.de antwortete die Deutsche Bahn allerdings, dass RegioJet Kapazitäten erhalten hatte. Allerdings hätten sich die Fahrtzeiten aufgrund von Bauarbeiten verändert. Das sei für RegioJet offenbar nicht mehr attraktiv gewesen. "Die Slots waren nicht gut", wird RegioJet-Sprecherin Alexandra Janoušek Kostřicová von saechsische.de zitiert, und meint damit die von Deutsche Bahn angebotenen Fahrzeiten. RegioJet startet dagegen in Österreich und Ungarn durch. So wird die Zahl der Zugverbindungen zwischen den Hauptstädten Wien und Budapest aufgrund der hohen Nachfrage ab 4. April auf acht verdoppelt. Auch zwischen Prag und Brno kommt in den Morgen- und Abendstunden jeweils ein Zugpaar hinzu. Zwischen Prag und Dresden sowie Berlin bietet RegioJet aber wie gehabt Fernbusse an.
Kleiner Trost für die Strecke Berlin-Dresden-Prag ist die Verlängerung der Nachtzugverbindung European Sleeper aus Brüssel und Amsterdam nach Berlin weiter über Dresden in die Moldaustadt. Damit ergibt sich immer dienstags, donnerstags und samstags morgens eine weitere Direktverbindung aus Dresden und Bad Schandau. Der Zug fährt ab Dresden 8.24 Uhr (Neustadt) bzw. 8.31 (Hauptbahnhof) sowie ab Bad Schandau (8.58 Uhr).
Von Prag aus kommt (18.04 Uhr ab Hauptbahnhof) jeweils Dienstag, Donnerstag und Sonntag eine zusätzliche Verbindung am Abend hinzu.
Bischofsweihe in Litoměřice
Am 2. März wurde der erst 52-jährige Stanislav Přibyl zum neuen Bischof des Bistums Litoměřice (Leitmeritz) geweiht. Der Weihe in der bis auf den letzten Platz besetzten Stephans-Kathedrale wohnten zahlreiche geistliche Würdenträger auch aus dem Bistum Meißen bei. Gleichzeitig bedeutete die Weihe den Abschied des scheidenden Bischofs Jan Baxant, der sein Amt aus Altersgründen nach 15 Jahren niederlegte.
Přibyl ist der jüngste Bischof der katholischen Kirche in Tschechien. In Litoměřice ist er kein Unbekannter. Der gebürtige Prager diente von 2009 bis 2016 im Bistum als Generalvikar. Wenn es seine Zeit zulässt, spielt Přibyl Orgel. Er spricht mehrere Sprachen, darunter auch Deutsch.
Tschechien stärkt Deutsch als Minderheitensprache
Das tschechische Parlament hat einer Erweiterung des Deutschen als Minderheitensprache zugestimmt. Damit wird Deutsch auf eine neue Stufe gehoben. Der Beschluss trat zu Ende Februar dieses Jahres in Kraft.
Die neuen Bestimmungen beziehen sich auf die Europäische Charta der Minderheitensprachen, die Tschechien bereits im Jahr 2006 verabschiedet hat. Sie besteht aus verschiedenen Stufen je nachdem, wie stark die Minderheitensprache geschützt wird. Deutsch wurde mit dem Beschluss nun in die dritte und höchste Stufe aufgenommen. Das gilt in den Regionen, in denen die deutsche Minderheit am stärksten vertreten ist. Neben drei Kreisen in Mährisch-Schlesien und Südböhmen sind das vor allem Kreise in Nordböhmen nahe der Grenze zu Sachsen wie Cheb, Sokolov, Karlovy Vary, Ústí und Liberec.
Für diese Kreise gelten neu 35 Förderbestimmungen. Dazu gehören unter anderem zweisprachige Schulen und Kindergärten, ein verstärkter Deutsch-Unterricht, aber auch die Möglichkeit, Deutsch bei Gericht sowie bei Behörden zu gebrauchen oder Rechtsurkunden auf Deutsch auszustellen. Auch außerhalb der acht Kreise soll Deutsch verstärkt gefördert werden. Das betrifft zum Beispiel den Unterricht in der Geschichte und Kultur der Deutschen in Tschechien sowie eine Förderung des Deutsch-Unterrichts.
Sowjetdenkmal muss weichen
Die Abgeordneten der Stadt Litoměřice haben beschlossen, das Denkmal des Sowjetsoldaten aus dem Jirásek-Park zu entfernen. Die Abgeordneten reagierten damit auf eine Petition, die zu einer Beseitigung des Denkmals aufgerufen hatte. Sie verabschiedeten aber einen Kompromissvorschlag. Demnach soll das Denkmal, das 1975 errichtet wurde, nicht ganz beseitigt, sondern an einen alternativen Ort verlegt werden. Autor des Denkmals ist der Künstler Otakar Petroš. Die Enthüllung erfolgte aus Anlass des 30. Jahrestages, an dem Tschechien von den Alliierten befreit wurde.
Der jetzige Standort im Jirásek-Park ist sehr prominent. Das Denkmal war in der Vergangenheit schon mehrfach beschmiert worden. Allein seit dem Überfall Russlands auf die Ukraine war es zu zwei neuen Farbanschlägen gekommen. Nach dem zweiten Farbanschlag hatte ein weiterer Unbekannter die Farbe teils wieder beseitigt und auf die ukrainischen Soldaten verwiesen, die in den Reihen der Roten Armee an der Befreiung Tschechiens beteiligt waren.
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With direct bus from Schmilka to Prebischtor
With the start of the excursion season, the transport connection from Saxony to Bohemian Switzerland is improving. The new bus route 435 will run every hour on weekends and public holidays from Schmilka, parking lot via Hřensko, Mezní Louka to Mezná. It also stops at the Tři prameny stop, where the footpath to Pravčická brána begins.
Line 435 already existed. The course has changed. She also travels much more frequently on an hourly basis. It begins operations on Good Friday (March 29th) and runs all year round until November 3rd. In the two summer months of July and August the bus even runs daily.
For tourists from Saxony there are two boarding options: one in Schmilka and one in Hřensko, where the ferry takes you from the Schöna S-Bahn station. What the exact connections will be remains to be seen, as the timetable will not be approved by the Ústí District Council until March 20th. “A connection to the S-Bahn and the ferry was not primarily our issue,” says Magdalena Fraňková, spokeswoman for the Ústí district. “In connection with line 438, which comes from Děčín and also goes to Mezná with a half-hour delay, there is an interesting half-hourly service from Hřensko to Mezná,” Fraňková continued.
The 435 buses also stop near the Schöna ferry, which makes it easier to change. In addition, the version of the timetable that has yet to be approved provides a transfer option to line 434 at the next stop Hřensko střed (Center), with which you can continue to Jetřichovice (Dittersbach) and Krásná Lípa (Schönlinde). Buses 438 continue to stop at Hřensko, nábřeží.
Despite starting in Schmilka, the 435 will run entirely under the Czech DÚK tariff (Ustí District Transport Association), so that no cross-border tariff will apply. This makes the connection interesting for Germany ticket holders as well as for those excursionists who come by car. They could then conveniently leave it in Schmilka. "For example, the ticket from Schmilka to the Prebischtor junction at Tři prameny costs 20 crowns (0.80 euros), the ticket to Mezná costs 31 crowns (1.24 euros). Payment is made on the buses either in cash in crowns or with a credit card The Elbe-Labe ticket is of course also valid on the bus.
By the way, shortly before Easter, the construction-related restrictions on the German side between Bad Schandau and Schmilka will no longer apply. From March 20th the S-Bahn will run again to Schöna. The National Park Railway is also running regularly again.
This year too, holidaymakers who stay at least two nights in Bohemian Switzerland, the Czech Elbe Sandstone Mountains or in the Schwenauer Zipfel can use public transport free of charge. The vouchers for this are issued electronically in the hotels and guesthouses. However, since this does not always happen automatically, it is advisable to ask if necessary.
Elbe shipyard near Děčín is insolvent
One of the last Elbe shipyards is insolvent. The district court in Ústí nad Labem (Aussig) approved the bankruptcy application of 30 employees of the České loděnice company. The company with a shipyard in the Křešice district of Děčín owes its employees over one million crowns (around 40,000 euros) in outstanding salary payments. This meant that the employees anticipated an application from the company itself. It talks about liabilities amounting to 60 million crowns (2.4 million euros). But that's not all. Other creditors are encouraged to come forward. At the same time, the company has already prepared a template for the reorganization of the company. The creditors' committee must approve this in the first half of May.
The shipyard's problems began with the Covid pandemic in 2020 and intensified with rising energy prices the following year and generally high inflation, which accelerated with Russian aggression in Ukraine. In addition, there was slow payment behavior from the shipyard's customers. The uncertain navigability of the Elbe was also a permanent problem for the shipyard. In some years it took months before finished ships could be transported to the clients in the Netherlands or Germany.
The tradition of shipbuilding in the Křešice shipyard dates back to the 19th century. In recent years, ship hulls for large freight ships in particular have been launched, which were then transported in a convoy to Germany or the Netherlands and then fully assembled on site. You can see the shipyard clearly from the train.
The future of the shipyard now lies in the hands of the creditors. If a majority of them agree to the restructuring in May, shipbuilding in Děčín can continue. If they reject the proposed plan, it will no longer be possible to prevent the end of the 150-year history of shipbuilding in Děčín.
Average income in the Czech Republic is around 10,700 euros
The average income in the Czech Republic in 2022 was 259,900 crowns (equivalent to approximately 10,700 euros at the end of 2022) per person per year. This means that it has increased by 7.7 percent compared to the previous year. However, due to very high inflation – one of the highest in Europe – real incomes fell by 6.5 percent. This was announced this week by the Czech Statistical Office (ČSÚ), which surveys 11,500 households every year.
The number of people living below the poverty line fell from 10.2 to 9.8 percent in 2023. The poverty line in the Czech Republic was an income of 16,774 crowns (approx. 661 euros at the current exchange rate) per month for a single person. In the EU statistics, so-called material and social deprivation is also considered with regard to poverty. This is accepted if people cannot afford 5 of 13 selected products ( more on this at the Federal Statistical Office ). This affected 6.3 percent of people in the Czech Republic last year, compared to 4.8 percent the previous year.
Small ski areas are drawing a line
The small ski resorts in the Ústí district have declared the winter season over. Some still had the hope of making snow again if the temperatures fell below zero. But now that spring break is almost over in the Czech Republic and school is back in session in Germany and the weather has gotten even warmer, it's no longer worth it. The lifts are only still running at Klínovec or Ještěd and in the Giant Mountains.
For most of the ski resorts in the Ústí district, it was a winter to forget. Thanks to the early snow in November, they had as many lift days as in a normal season. But already in January the weather was rather rainy, which is why few visitors came. Only in Klíny were they satisfied with the number of visitors.
Parliament rejects “marriage for all”.
A proposed law for “marriage for all” failed to find a majority in the Czech parliament. On Wednesday, however, the MPs approved a compromise draft with a clear majority of 123 votes to 53, according to which the rights of same-sex couples will be significantly strengthened in the future. The partners can now enter into a registered partnership in which one partner can adopt the other's biological child. One partner is also now entitled to a widow's or widower's pension if the other partner dies.
The creation of this newsletter is co-financed by tax revenue based on the budget approved by the Saxon state parliament.
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On Friday, February 2, 2024, the first meeting of the KPF EEL took place in Ústí nad Labem. A total of 5 projects were approved, the funding totals €38,144.00.
Overview of approved projects
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