My Dear Madeleine, Sweet little round daughter with beautiful eyes and constant smile. By the time you can make sense of this note it will be the 21st century. You were born in New York, in the New World, and surely you wil be wondering one day where your father came from. This book is to explain just that. You might never speak Czech. You may prefer other parts of this beautiful planet-blue seas, green islands, bustling metropolises. You are free. However, one day you will enter Prague, the place I grew up, in your silent slippers soft as cat's paws, and you will look for the keys. Maybe. If you find the keys, unlock the mystery of Prague very, very slowly. I could give you dates, I could give you history, but only you will decide if you want to know. You might find some of my lost marbles I played with. You will hear the same bells I listened to in my childhood. Prague is a magic place if you take time! Rainer Maria Rilke wrote: "I know my little mother Prague to her very heart, to her very heart...the heart always keeps the deepest secrets, and there are many secrets in these old houses." By the way, don't be afraid of the old black cats...they might just be hobgoblins in cat's clothing... Kiss Kiss Peter