Havel´s Place in Barcelona
On Saturday 15 February, another Havel’s Place memorial site was officially unveiled in the Parc de la Ciutadella in Barcelona, close to the Catalan Parliament. It is a part of the global project initiated by the U.S. Ambassador to the Czech Republic in Prague, Petr Gandalovič, in cooperation with the architect and designer Borek Šípek. The main idea was to create a civil and friendly place in the form of two benches under a linden tree, which you can sit on, reflect, make new contacts, develop a dialogue, or listen to the ideas of others. In addition to the Mayor of Barcelona Xavier Trias, the official unveiling was also attended by the founder of the Václav Havel Library and the former Minister of Foreign Affairs of CR Karel Schwarzenberg, the Chairman of the Václav Havel Library Board Jan Macháček and the Executive Director of the Václav Havel Library Marta Smolíková. The official unveiling was also attended by the Mayor of Prague Tomáš Hudeček, who is preparing to support the installation of Havel benches in Prague as well. Similar memorials – Vaclav Havel’s Place have previously been unveiled in Washington and in Dublin.
Photo: Václav Havel Library