I Understand Why Kafka Stayed

A distinct smell of old smoke
lingers between the yellows, tans, browns, and grays
of Mala Strana.
Graffitied bricks hidden around corners,
underground shops and restaurants almost invisible
to the narrow cobblestone roads.
Crossing the Vltava via Charles Bridge, which boasts Medieval sculptures,
Stone knights stand guard.

There are no menacingly large skyscrapers
vying for attention and praise.
Simple housing bordering clean streets
With a small, humble monument
To commemorate perhaps the greatest achievement
of the 20th century:
a revolution without violence, an incredible feat,
relatively unnoticed.
It is not a Janus city, like it’s northern sister tucked in England,
the pinnacle of assimilated patchwork between modernity and history.
But neither is she untouched by the spark of invention and change,
She openly embraces progress with country-style simplicity.