Czech Update

Ostrava: Former coal-mining town sees boom in IT

Dominik Lukeš — Tue, 18 Mar 2008 19:32:14 +0000

Prague has been such a dominant presence in Czech life so it's nice to see the regions pick up pace. read more »

Dictionary of Czech culture

Dominik Lukeš — Sat, 15 Sep 2007 21:56:48 +0100

The Amazon reviewer got it right! read more »

Burčák came early this year

Dominik Lukeš — Fri, 07 Sep 2007 00:02:13 +0100

Burčák the young wine (stum) popular in the Czech lands in the early autumn came earlier this year appearing in early August. Burčák sales in Prague kiosks around September and October is one of the joys of the Czech 'babí léto' and reminds Bohemians to remember how good it is to have Moravians part of the nation.
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The simple pleasures of non-Prague

Dominik Lukeš — Fri, 24 Aug 2007 23:29:00 +0100

A visit to Třeboň, a small picturesque town (malebné městečko) in Southern Bohemia elicited justified outbursts of lyricism from a Seattle columnists. And he's right. The individual personality of small Czech towns is something to be experienced through a leisurely journey rather than a hectic 'been there, done that' trip. read more »

Most Czechs won't trade base for visas

Dominik Lukeš — Wed, 07 Feb 2007 16:44:57 +0000

Češi zrušení víz za radar nevymění, ukázal průzkum - iDNES.cz Čechům nestojí zrušení víz do USA za to, aby souhlasili s umístěním amerického radaru v Brdech. Podle průzkumu RCA Research má takový názor 48,6 % lidí. Výměnu za víza by bralo 31,4 %. Radar nejčastěji odmítají Jihočeši a lidé bez maturity.

Two of the most significant sticking points in Czech American relations are the continued requirement for visas for Czechs visiting the US and now also the suggested military base with a Star Wars-like radar. read more »

More women politicians in Prague (and rest o CR)

Dominik Lukeš — Wed, 10 Jan 2007 17:15:04 +0000

Političek v Praze přibývá - www.lidovky.cz PRAHA 10. ledna 2007 | 14:54 Karlovy Vary, Zlín, Havířov, Chomutov. Tam všude sedí v primátorském křesle ženy. Praha zatím nikdy svou primátorku neměla. Podle stoupajícího počtu žen v zastupitelstvu i podle přání veřejnosti se ale možná hlavní město v nedaleké budoucnosti své ženy v čele dočká.

Four important Czech municipalities (two in Bohemia and two in Moravia) are headed by a woman holding the post of primátor (mayor) or in their case primátorka. And there is a good chance that in the future Prague could join them. read more »

Sex scandal and gender equality for Czech third church

Dominik Lukeš — Mon, 08 Jan 2007 09:58:16 +0000

Czech Hussites rocked by sexual scandal - press "New patriarch Tomas Butta, Bishop Stepan Klasek, Petr Sandera and I have asked Bican to consider his resignation," Bishop Jana Šilerová from Olomouc, North Moravia, told the paper. ... MfD writes that the Hussite church is the third most populous church in the Czech Republic and now it is celebrating 87 years since its establishment.

What can we learn form this story? Gay priests having affairs? Nothing new or surprising here. However, a female bishop? Certainly a point of interest. The Czechoslovak Hussite Church not only allows women priests, they number almost half of the total 300 clergy. It should also be noted that the most populous church by far is the Catholic from which the Hussites split during the early years of the Czech Republic over ordination of women and other issues. The Hussites are not really a protestant denomination of the Lutheran tradition (they're closer to Anglicans) and having Jan Hus in their title is more a matter of national pride than ideology. They're one of the more tolerant churches out there but they were also one of the more willing to do the communist regime's bidding (although that has to be taken in the context of its time). read more »

Czechs drink more wine

Dominik Lukeš — Tue, 12 Dec 2006 17:43:28 +0000

Češi pijí více vína, i dražšího - iDNES.cz Lidé mají větší zájem především o prestižní kategorie vín nad 130 korun. Jedná se především o značky Bohemia Sekt Prestige, Chateau Radyně a Chateau Bzenec a Louis Girardot.

Most of Czech wine comes out of Moravia. Some important labels of cultural importance are Frankovka, Müller-Thurgau a Veltlínské zelené. That, however, is changing and now Czechs demand more expensive prestigious wines priced over 130 Kč (about 6 US dollars). read more »

Slivovice exhibit in South Korea

Dominik Lukeš — Sun, 03 Dec 2006 12:37:14 +0000

The Korea Times : Slivovitz Czech’s Spirit If there is soju for Koreans and whiskey for Scottish people, there is slivovitz for Czechs. The Embassy of the Czech Republic in Seoul last Monday hosted ``Slivovitz and its Soul,’’ an exhibition on the history of the drink, at the new Czech restaurant, Castle Praha, near Hongik University.

This one of the more bizzare exhibits of Czech culture you can think of. But the interesting question is whether it is accurate. I suspect that most Bohemian Czechs think of slivovice (plum brandy) as a Moravian thing. read more »

28. říjen - October 28 - Day of many memories

Dominik Lukeš — Sat, 28 Oct 2006 01:41:50 +0100

28. říjen - Wikipedie, otevřená encyklopedie # Státní svátek: Den vzniku samostatného československého státu # Socialistický kalendář: * Vyhlášení samostatnosti Čechů a Slováků (1918) * Den znárodnění (1945) – významný den Československé socialistické republiky * Schválení zákona o československé federaci (1968)

As this short extract from Czech Wikipedia shows, the 28th of October has played a significant role in recent Czech history. These days it is a státní svátek - meaning a day off work (unless it falls on a weekend) - in memory of the 1918 founding of Czechoslovakia (dissolved in 1939 and then again in 1993) and gaining independence of the crumbling Austrian Hungarian Empire (perceived partly as German). read more »

Lactalis lured by Czech cheese growth (or on Czech Cheeses)

Dominik Lukeš — Fri, 21 Apr 2006 03:38:54 +0100

Lactalis lured by Czech cheese growth French dairy giant Lactalis has enhanced its position in the growing cheese market of the Czech Republic by signing a deal to buy local firm Promil. ... It [the report] said cheese was an area ripe for investment. ... Euromonitor says quality has become increasingly important on the Czech cheese market, and has greatly improved in the last few years. Czech consumers, it adds, are very demanding: “The have many [cheeses] to choose from. They do not come back to products they were not satisfied with.” read more »

Czech unemployment high despite strong economy

Dominik Lukeš — Thu, 05 Jan 2006 10:41:54 +0000

Nezaměstnanost neklesá - www.lidovky.cz PRAHA Ani fakt, že se české ekonomice nebývale daří, nenapomáhá to snižování nezaměstnanosti. I v období, kdy hrubý domácí produkt rychle roste a ekonomika vykazuje výborné výsledky, měla země skoro osm a půl procenta nezaměstnaných. Jak je tedy možné, že u nás ani přes velké sliby vlády lidí bez práce příliš neubývá?

This is a partner news to the previous post. Despite fast GDP growth unemployment remains at 8.5%. How is this possible, the Lidové Noviny article asks. Some of the reasons listed are: read more »

Czechs lead the world in beer consumption

Dominik Lukeš — Sat, 17 Dec 2005 20:35:13 +0000

www.lidovky.cz - Piju, piješ, pijeme Obliba piva, již nám naši předkové dali do vínku, vedla až k tomu, že dnes jsou Češi s asi 157,9 litru na hlavu za rok mistři světa v jeho konzumaci. Co se týče výroby, jsme 17. na světě. Podle zprávy Chmel ministerstva zemědělství z roku 2005 se Česká republika podílí 1,2 procenta na světové výrobě piva. Největšími producenty jsou přitom Čína, USA, Německo, Brazílie a Rusko. V Česku je 53 průmyslových pivovarů, což není na zemi o 10 milionech obyvatel špatné.

Czech traditions and German influence

Dominik Lukeš — Fri, 16 Dec 2005 13:23:47 +0000

The Prague Post Online Experts agree that proper Olomouc cheese, or Olomoucké tvarůžky, should be moist and slightly sticky, with a lustrous, translucent layer on the outside. The inside, by contrast, should be firm but not tough, its color somewhere between light beige and creamy white. And then there is the characteristic smell. ... But is it authentically Czech? On that point hangs a debate stirring up the EP [European Parliament]. Tvarůžky and another of the country's favorite products — thin, sweet wafers from Karlovy Vary known as oplatky — are at the center of an argument between Czech, German and Austrian members of the EP. read more »

Battle reenactment near Slavkov claims 8 injuries

Dominik Lukeš — Sun, 04 Dec 2005 22:18:49 +0000

www.lidovky.cz - U Slavkova se zranilo osm lidí Osm zranění si vyžádala sobotní rekonstrukce bitvy tří císařů v Tvarožné na Brněnsku. Většinu poraněných odváželi zdravotníci přímo z bitevního pole, řekl primář jihomoravské zdravotnické záchranné služby Pavel Urbánek.

Eight people were injured (some fairly seriously) during Saturday's reenactment of the 1805 battle of Austerlitz (or Slavkov in Czech located near the Moravian capital Brno), also known as the battle of Three Emperors and one of Napoleon's great victories. read more »