Prague, Czechoslovakia 1991. The Soviets were leaving and the communist economic structure was disappearing with them. The economies were converting to Capitalism, but nobody really knew how to do it. People were frightened. They weren’t sure how they would feed themselves. I saw this woman coming down the street and she reminded me of the mood of so many of the people that I met there.
The Soviet army was supposed to be out of the country by June. The problem was there was no place in Russia for the soldiers to go once they left. Russian soldiers were selling their uniforms to tourists to raise money. The first converts to Capitalism.
Budapest, Hungary 1991. I stayed with a family in Budapest during the spring of 1991. Hidden inside a closet door was this popular poster celebrating the departure of the the Russians. It translates, “Comrade – it’s over.”
Pannonhalma Archabbey, Hungary 1991. I was staying with Kristof and his family in Budapest. Kristof took me to the Pannonhalma Archabbey where his mother had sent him as a boy in 1956 to protect him during the Hungarian revolution. ……….. A monk walking down a hall, nearing the end of his journey.
