My Czech Republic Blog

Today is Hromnice, which is an important day for Czech weather-related folklore. It falls on the same day as Groundhog Day because both are based on the same ancient Celtic tradition. Today was sunny and clear in Prague, so we expect winter to linger. See our site for more on Hromnice:...  

The Czech film Fours Suns (Čtyři slunce) directed by Bohdan Sláma has its world premiere today at the Sundance Film Festival in the World Cinema Dramatic Competition. The movie stars Aňa Geislerová, Jaroslav Plesl, Marek Šácha, Karel Roden, Klára Melíšková and Jiří Mádl. It opens in the Czech...  

Thank you all for coming by our blog in 2011. We hope 2012 is a good year for everyone! Šťastný nový rok from us at My Czech Republic! Jeff and Dana  

The two largest Christmas markets in Prague opened over the weekend. The markets at Wenceslas Square (Václavské náměstí) and Old Town Square (Staroměstské náměstí) were crowded over lunch time on Sunday. There were a lot of people buying gifts and enjoying the food selection, including...  

The final preparations were being completed today on the Christmas market on Peace Square (Náměstí Míru) in Prague. The market starts tomorrow and traditionally is the first one in Prague to open for the holiday season. The two largest Christmas markets take place on Old Town Square (Staroměstské...  

Jeff and I tried the new Czech train service called RegioJet. It is operated by Student Agency, a company that started back in 1996 as an au-pair agency, became a successful national and international bus operator and is now the largest travel agency in the Czech Republic. It has distinguished itself on the...  

Vinobraní, the annual Czech wine festival, takes place around the country in September. A semi-fermented young wine called burčák is always one of the big attractions. Here are some pictures I took this year at the popular festival on Náměstí Míru in Prague.  

The world-renowned Prague Zoo first opened its doors on September 28, 1931. This year therefore marks its 80th birthday. A lot of reconstruction has been necessary since the flood of 2002 and new pavilions and expositions are still under construction. One of the biggest projects the zoo has ever undertaken...  

Red Tails, a George Lucas production that was filmed in the Czech Republic, now has a release date of January 20, 2012. You can watch the movie trailer below and read more about the film.   Czech film “Alois Nebel” selected for Venice festival “Lidice” fails to reverse fall of...  

As we’ve written in an older blog post and as we mention on our website, May 1st is the unofficial day of love in the Czech Republic. We went to the Petřín Park to enjoy the spring day. The park was busy with couples strolling, sitting on the grass and visiting the statue of Karel [...]  

The “Hello Boys” Wonderbra ad from 1994 featuring Czech supermodel Eva Herzigová has recently been voted the best poster ad that has appeared on UK streets in the past 50+ years. The poll was run by the Outdoor Media Centre and attracted a lot of attention from the public. Eva Herzigova’s...  

Today is the last day that the 50 Czech Crown (CZK) bill is valid for payment.  As of April 1, only the 50 CZK coin will remain in use due to the much higher cost of keeping the bills in circulation.  The bills can be exchanged free of charge at Czech banks for one year.  [...]  

I was in the Prague district of Karlín today and I stopped by the Church of Saints Cyril and Methodius (Kostel sv. Cyrila a Metoděje) to take some pictures. The construction of the Neo-Romanesque basilica took place between 1854-1863. It was badly damaged in the flood of 2002 and had to be restored.  

I wrote about the Day of Three Kings a few years ago, although my post wasn’t really about the Three Kings tradition per se. I witnessed the custom performed in a Moravian village this year. Three children about five to seven years old (all of them happened to be girls) came by, rang the...  

We would like to wish all our readers a peaceful holiday season and all the best in 2011! Dana & Jeff  

The Prague train station on a Friday evening, November 26, 2010. A little different than you’d expect.  

As every year, the Christmas market at náměstí Míru (Peace Square) in Prague’s Vinohrady district was the first of Prague’s Christmas markets to open this year. It runs from November 20 through December 24 and its 59 stalls are open daily from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. If you decide to visit this...  

It is October 31, the fall colors are fading and November is upon us. The Daylight Saving Time ended today in the Czech Republic and we are now officially on our way to winter. They say it is going to be a harsh one, judging by the early arrival of ravens and, as some Czech [...]  

Earlier this week, the Czech Film and Television Academy announced that the film Kawasaki’s Rose (Kawasakiho růže) would be the Czech submission for Best Foreign Language Film at the Oscars. The Oscar nominations will be announced on January 25, 2011. The movie is written by Petr Jarchovský and...  

We went to Střelecký ostrov and Petřín over the weekend and we were surprised to find the trees turning color and shedding leaves already. With the wind and slight chill in the air, it really felt like fall.  

The European Court of Justice ruled against Anheuser-Busch InBev in a trademark dispute with the Czech brewer Budějovický Budvar. A-B Inbev will not be allowed an EU-wide trademark on the name “Budweiser”. The result is a win for the Czech brewer in a case that started almost 15 years ago....  

Tomorrow, an amendment to the current smoking regulations goes into effect that requires bars and restaurants to place a sticker at the entrance to show whether the establishment allows smoking or not. The bar or restaurant can be completely non-smoking or it can have a non-smoking area in a completely...  

Outdoor grilling is especially popular this time of year. It always draws crowds when it happens on Old Town Square (Staroměstské náměstí). The first two pictures are from last Monday when there was a celebration for the Czech team winning the 2010 Hockey World Championship. The sausage stands on...  

We have a number of Czech tongue twisters on our Czech language learning site Local Lingo. We are in the process of adding audio for all of the tongue twisters and making them easy to listen to. Just press play – no software needed. Here are a few popular tongue twisters with slow and [...]  

The MICHELIN guide Main Cities of Europe 2010 is out and Prague retains a one star restaurant. The Allegro Restaurant at the Four Seasons Hotel defended its one star rating while the other one star restaurant from 2009, Gordon Ramsay’s Maze, closed before the ratings were released in 2009. Divinis and...  

The Olympic games start today in Vancouver, Canada. The Czech Republic has sent a record number of 92 athletes to participate in the games. If you plan to follow the various sporting disciplines, you may hear some Czech names mentioned. We thought we would offer an audio pronunciation of the names of some...  

We have not had any new snow in Prague for a few days, but a lot of it still remains on the ground. More snow is expected next week. The pictures below were taken earlier this week around náměstí Míru in Prague.  

The Czech Republic is digging out after heavy snowfall around the country. Trains and flights were delayed and there were serious problems traveling by road. Border crossings with Germany and Slovakia had to be closed for a few hours for snow clearing. Heavy snow creates problems around the country Main...  

We want to wish all of our blog visitors a happy, healthy, and successful new year.  Thanks for visiting and we hope you stop by in 2010. Jeff and Dana  

It’s that time of the year again. The end of November, a month before Christmas, and that means that the first Prague Christmas market opens at Náměstí Míru. It started on Friday morning and we went to take a look. It was the same market as last year, with the same stalls selling the same...