Photo of the week- The sun sets behind Istanbul

On a ferry across the Bosphorus Sea between Europe and Asia is the place to be at sunset. Shadowed minarets from countless mosques dramatically pierce the sky and compose an impressive scene- the perfect precursor to an unforgettable night.

Sparta Praha + Slavia Praha= FIRE!

I've been to one European football match before (flashback to my Olympique Lyonnais experience) but Czech football is in a league of its own. A friend scored us some tickets to one of the largest rival games in the Czech Republic- Sparta Praha vs Slavia Praha (3rd row for only 220 CZK- that's about $11)! We were in for quite an experience- surely one I will never forget.

Sparta Praha fans

Slavia Praha fans

This match wasn't actually about football, it was about fans. The fans were on fire... literally! First we saw flares then fire. My American and Northern Irish friends who were with me felt uncomfortable and prepared to evacuate. The fires seemed to be out of control! Hardly. According to our Czech friends it is completely normal. It is what the "Ultra" fans normally do to rile up the other team's "Ultra" fans. These hooligans are separated from other spectators by a high security metal railing fence with an anti-climb curved top. Conclusion: these guys challenge each other to the biggest fire in the stadium while at the same time being unable to escape quickly if something goes wrong. What does security do? They make an announcement "Please refrain from using pyrotechnics inside the stadium." So we drank our beers and ate our sausages while watching a football match illuminated by fire and engulfed in a stadium of smoke. Sparta Praha won 2-0. What a night!

Photo of the Week- Prague Botanic Gardens

Naked vines soak in the early spring rays at Botanická zahrada Praha. It's a matter of weeks before the the botanic blooms!

Celebrating St. Mathew athiest style.

There's always something new to see when wandering around Prague. This weekend my stroll around town led me to the Prague Exhibition grounds- only because I was wondering where the thumping music was coming from. What I found was the annual St Mathew's Fair. According to the Prague Experience website, it is one of the most popular fairs in the Czech Republic.

Photos of the neon-colored rides don't do justice to the sensory overload. Blaring electronic music from each attraction competed with the blaring electronic music from the neighboring attraction. Spray-painted images of half-naked females were the backdrop of most rides. People of all ages were enjoying the questionable and overpriced roller coasters. I was swept away by the moment and even enjoyed one myself. But one was enough and I'm glad to still be intact after that experience. Needless to say, it is one of the most interesting ways I've ever "celebrated" the life of a Christian saint.

Central Europe Reading List

It's become a habit of mine to read a couple books at a time. I don't recommend it, but I can recommend some great books especially on the topic of Central Europe. There are great authors from Central Europe and luckily many of their books have been translated into English. I've already mentioned the one of the most obvious authors from Prague- Franz Kafka in an earlier post about the Franz Kafka Museum. 


Another excellent author is Milan Kundera, He is of Czech origin but he calls France home after leaving Czechoslovakia in exile. His original work is translated from French. His books, like The Unbearable Lightness of Being, The Book of Laughter and Forgetting, and The Joke (my favorite) give excruciating detail into the minds of Czechs during communism. Although he is considered less than a saint by many Czechs, he nevertheless is a brilliant and internationally renowned author. Why do Czechs disapprove? That's a great question for our next author.


Do you want to get into the mind of a Czech? Get all the answers in one place with Terje B. Englund's book called The Czechs in a Nutshell. He reviews everything alphebetically from the history of Jan Hus, to little Czech quirks like "Socks and Sandals". I've read books like this before but nothing as all-encompassing and fun to read as this one.


For a non-traditional architectural and historical view of Prague I recommend a book by Hilary A. James and Jiří P. Musil. This book, called Prague, My Love: An unusual guide book to the hidden corners of Prague, is great for it's cute illustrations and little facts about buildings that locals pass everyday without acknowledging. Included is a map to help readers find each building or site that is mentioned in the book. A side note about this book: I recommend this book only for its historical content. The story line pretty terrible and the (lack of) editing might do your head in.


For a powerful and heavy read, try Night by Holocaust survivor Elie Wiesel. In this novel, the Nobel Peace Prize winning author describes his life leading up to and during his imprisonment and the dehumanizing effect of Nazi concentration camps during the Holocaust.


My most recent paperback companion is Flights of Love by Bernard Schlink (also the author of The Reader). It was recommended by one of Schlink's students (a friend of mine who's a law student at Humboldt University in Berlin). It's so captivating that I read at least 50 pages each time I crack it open. Beautiful stories of love, desire, betrayal, and guilt. All with a touch of Central European history and culture. Guaranteed page turner.


Don't worry there's more to come...

Czechs Generalizing Czechs

The assignment for my class: Write some tips for a foreign visitor to your country.

 It was meant to be a lesson about ESL generalizations and social behavior but turned out to be more of a "what not to do" for me as the foreigner. I jotted down a few of the most interesting ones. Again these are straight from Czech students and I don't know if they are always applicable. Feel free to comment on their accuracy. 

• "It is not acceptable for women to pour alcohol at the dinner table." (Whoops!)
• "In general men shouldn't drink beer on a first date."
• "It's normal for young people not to tip at restaurants" (Hence the terrible customer service.)
• "You should never give two flowers as a gift unless it is for a funeral.
• "It is important put down a drink coaster before the waiter brings your beer." (Seriously, they will give you the stink eye if you forget.)
• "It is impolite to drink your beer before saying 'Na Zdraví'."
• "People expect you to give your seat up for children or old people on the bus" (I noticed this immediately.)

Of course there were other interesting tips but not necessarily appropriate to post on the internet-- especially because I don't know if they're true.

České Budějovice and the original Budweiser

Another sunny weekend in the ČR made for a great day trip two hours south of Prague to a smaller city called České Budějovice. It's quite the mouthful, pronounced Chess-kay Boo-day-yo-vitz-say. It is actually quite a large town, bigger than I expected but still easily navigable. It's claim to fame is, you guessed it, the original Budweiser brewery and (completely unrelated) one of Europe's largest market squares named Naměsti Přemysla Otakara II. 

A brief self-guided walking tour revealed the city's many historical treasures that would normally go unnoticed. The key to finding them is to look up. Boroque, Art Nouveau, and Gothic-Renaissance architecture literally towers over the streets simply overlooked by the daily passer-bys. The city is seamed together by the Vltava and Malše Rivers, which are lined with benches and pedestrians- a great place to eat lunch and people-watch. Of all the places I've traveled in the Czech Republic, České Budějovice definitely was the most bike-friendly. At first it took me by surprise. What are those mechanical wheely-things propelling humans forward? Oh yeah: bicycles. It's been far too long since I've seen bicycles in a city setting, not to mention the weather has not allowed cycling for the past few months. Needless to say it was a refreshing day-trip out of the big city and the brewery was just an added bonus.

You might be wondering if Budějovický/Budweiser Budvar is the same as the Anheuser-Busch Budwieser and the answer is a simple no. There's no question that the Czech Budweiser (sold as Czechvar in the states) is the original and, in my opinion, much tastier. I was interesting to visit this brewery, especially after a grand tour of it's Czech rival, Pilsner Urquell. The two breweries and their tours are very different and in their own ways are equally impressive. I think the biggest differences lie in the fact that Pilsner is owned by SABMiller while Budvar remains state-owned since the days of communism. I was absolutely mesmerized by the Bottling Plant and took some video which you can see below.  The tour, tasting, and overall experience was a 10 and was followed up with a delicious brew straight from the tanks at the renowned Masné Krámy Restaurant in the city center. 

Photo of the Week- Bohemian Carnevale Praha

Gathering of the masks in in front of Old Town Hall. 

Soirées! Feasts! Costumes! Bohemian Carnevale has official begun! 

Perspective: Terezín Concentration Camp

Thousand of names of those who died at Terezín.

Terezín is 50 minutes northwest of Prague and provides a different perspective on the horrors of the German occupation of Czechoslovakia. It is by no means easy to get there but thankfully my travel companion Rick Steve's gave perfect instructions.

Terezín was built in the 18th century as a military fortress by the Habsburg Empire and as part of a adjoining garrison town. Later it was transformed into a political prison where Gavrilo Princip, assassin of Archduke of Austria Franz Ferdinand and his wife, was kept until death.

When the Germans came through Czechoslovakia, Terezín was transformed into a concentration camp practically overnight. It wasn't a typical camp like what I found at Dachau outside of Munich.  Instead, Jewish prisoners were held behind these brick walls before being transfered to extermination camps like Auschwitz-Birkenau. There were no gas chambers at Terezín but still thousands died of disease, exposure, malnutrition, excecutions, etc.

"Work will set you free"

Terezín was used in Nazi propaganda, which made concentration camps look like happy Jewish communities. The camp got a facelift before a Red Cross inspection in 1944. Prisoners worked to spruced the whole place up with a café, flowers, fake sanitary facilities, a soccer stadium, etc. Needless to say, the Red Cross was impressed by their 6 hour stay (every minute was performed and scripted to please the guests.) The Museum of the Ghetto shows clips of Der Führer schenkt den Juden eine Stadt (The Führer Gives a City to the Jews). Kurt Gerron, a Terezín prisoner, was forced to make the film showing the camp as a happy Jewish settlement. The soccer games, concerts, and dances depicted in the film were far from reality. This propaganda and trickery that the prisoners were forced to accept must have been just as painful as physical torture. It opened my eyes to a different perspective of the Nazi Final Solution and the atrocities that prisoners suffered in this region of the world during World War II.

Photo of the Week- City of 100 Spires

Prague is "The City of 100 Spires". This is one city that lives up to its nickname.

The spires of Prague from Letná Park.

Photo of the Week- Prague's Beating Heart

The Prague Metronome in Letnà Park towers 75 feet over one of the most scenic overlooks in town. The red needle rocks back and forth, back and forth, back and forth, back and forth until onlookers are hypnotized by the passing of time. It proudly passes the hours, minutes, and seconds since the largest representation of Josef Stalin in the world once stood in its place. With each tick the needle waves goodbye to the past and welcomes the future.

A compilation of some video I took that day:

A trip to the Moo-zaym

My affection towards Prague is no secret. I've seen a lot of this magnificent city in 5 months but I can't get enough. It wasn't until recently that I got around to visiting some of Prague's famous museums. I was careful in choosing which museums to see (museum burnout can be harmful to the tourist experience-- e.g. Berlin's Museum Island). Here's the rundown:

Mucha Museum
You would probably recognize Mucha's (pronouced Moo-kha) style featuring fairy-tale women and art nouveau decorations. His art and life-story are equally beautiful. After visiting the museum and seeing his art around Prague, he's easily become one of my favorite artists.



Franz Kafka Museum

Before going to the museum it may interest you to read one or two of Kafka's famous books. I recommend The Trial. I think it embodies the problems that both Kafka and Czechoslovakia were dealing with in the early 20th century. If you dig Kafka's style (aka Kafkaesque) you may also enjoy The Castle, America, or Metamorphosis. In addition to reading up, I also recommend doing a Kafka tour of Prague either on your own or with a tour group. A quick walk around the Old Town and the Jewish Quarter will reveal many of his dwellings, a plaque, and a statue in his honor. With some knowledge of his books and his Prague life the museum will really bring everything together for you, otherwise you might just find him depressing and/or creepy.

A Modigliani exhibit is showing at Obecní Dum (Municiple House) through 28 February 2011. I love me some Modiggs but I wasn't the only one who thought the show fell short of its hype. However a trip to the Municiple House is a worth it in itself. It was built in the Art Nouveau style by many famous Czech artists, like Mucha in the early 20th century. It's worth taking the building tour- it's the only way to go above ground level.

Photo of the Week- Hungarian Language Barrier

It's not enough for the Hungarian language to sound difficult. It even confuses my eyes. I'll never understand it but I will continue to marvel at it's fascinating intonation and alphabet. 

Photo of the Week- Thermal Springs

Everyone in Karlovy Vary carries around a glass cup to capture a few drops of thermal mineral water from any of the 13 springs in town. It is believed to have health benefits for numerous ailments. The water is hot (between 86°F and 161°F) and salty. In my opinion it wasn't bad nor was it good. If beauty is pain, maybe health is pain too.

Photo of the Week- Charles Bridge

 

If you've ever been to Prague you have walked across Karlův Most- Charles Bridge. During certain months of the year it may take up to an hour in the crowds to cross, but today it was a breeze. Prague is cold and treacherously icy in January but the tourist crowds have subsided (for now). Charles Bridge was pleasurable at sunset with minimal crowds and even a small Czech assembly marched across singing with brass accompaniment.

2011 To Dos

It's the dawn of the new year and I just got around to thinking about resolutions. A resolution... a firm decision to do or not to do something. I prefer to do something. Lots of things, in fact. I have made an extensive list of things to do. In Prague, in the Czech Republic, and in Central/ Eastern Europe. This list is private. I don't expect to complete the list by any means but it is a reminder and encouragement to make the most of my last 6 months living in Prague. And after I do these to dos I will write about them here- to reflect, to share, and to remember in the future.

Requirements Fulfilled

Today is the last day of the winter semester at the Czech university where I teach. The school system is different to say the least. For the past week I have spent my class time calling each student to my desk and signing their student index (a book which resembles a passport) if they passed my class. Započteno- requirements fulfilled. About 275 times.

I'm proud of most of my students. Most of them tried hard to learn English. And I tried my best to teach them English. Therefore their success is mine. 275 signatures in their indexes. Započteno to my students and započteno to me.

Photo of the Week- Happy Holidays from Prague!

The Christmas Markets are closing up shop. Who wants to work on Christmas?! It's been a magical Christmas season in Prague. Happy Holidays to my readers!

The video below does an amazing job of capturing the mood of Prague at Christmas time. Watch and enjoy:

Bathing in Beer: The Ultimate Relaxation

Maybe you've heard that the Czech Republic has the highest beer consumption per capita in the world. After living here for 5 months I can vouch that it is indeed true. Czechs love beer. They love it so much that they bathe in it.

Since I'm here for the culture why not do as the Czechs do! So I journeyed 3 hours by train to the western most region of Bohemia to Chodová Planá home of the Chodovar Brewery. When the tag line for a company is "Your beer wellness land" you know it's going to be good.


The Pravé pivní lázně or Original Beer Spa is one of their specialties. Picture this:  warm mineral water mixed with beer and beer ingredients- hops, yeast, and barley. And what could be better than bathing in beer? Bathing in beer and drinking a beer! Take it from me, this is one hangover cure that you need to experience to believe!

Kold in Kraków

How should I describe Kraków, Poland? On the particular weekend of our visit it was COLD. A cold that burns your face and calls for a double layer of socks, pants, and scarves. Snow swirling in the atmosphere enveloped the city in an eerie haze, concealing the tip tops of Corpus Christi Church and the Wawel Castle. About every 20 minutes we popped into Ciasteczka z Krakowa, which became our favorite café, to thaw out and caffeine up.

Despite the snow and cold, people were out and about as on a beautiful spring day. Older women and men stood behind Polish bagel stands all day looking unfazed, and rather preserved.  The Christmas market was bustling with tourists and AMAZING FOOD- pierogi, potatoes, kielbasa, hot wine, and other warm Polish staples.

We spend a lot of time in the Kazimierz area, or the Krakow Jewish Quarter. There's something cool to see in every alleyway and square. It seemed to be a great place to find Polish nightlife. The ambiance and people found here reminded me of the Kreuzberg neighborhood in Berlin- young, chic, and willingly changing with the times. Pubs are around ever corner and Polish wódka or VODKA is a promising way to forget about the cold. I don't usually like vodka but I really enjoyed the famous honey vodka... and the herb vodka... and the mint vodka...

Moving right along. RELIGION was much more present than in Prague, even though both were communist for a time. Pope John Paul II, the first and only Slavic pope, has had a big influence especially in the southern region near his hometown. I willingly payed 6zl ($2) to take a peek inside what I think is the most beautiful church I've ever seen: St. Mary's Basilica. The inside isn't the usual concrete drab, it's an explosion of blue, red, and gold. At the time we went there might have even been more people praying than there were touring.

The Polish are serious about religion. There is a famous salt mine nearby where miners built an underground cathedral. Everything in the cathedral is made of (black) salt right down to the chandelier. This is somewhere I'd like to visit if I return in a warmer month. Yes, in the spring I would definitely consider returning for a longer visit in Poland to soak up a bit more culture in this large country bordering the CR to the north.