Litomysl If you are driving in the east of the country like you are going from Prague to Krakow or you are visiting the Czech city of Olomouc then Litomyšl (sounds like lito-mishl) is a nice break. It’s approximately 2 hours drive from the centre of Prague or allow 3 hours in peak driving times. … Read More
Kiwanis Dolls In 1915 an organisation formed in Detroit, USA, with the name “Supreme Lodge Benevolent Order of Brothers”. A year later they changed it to “Kiwanis International”. The Native American Indian Algonquian language translates Kiwanis as “we build”. It is a benevolent organisation focused on serving children. I’m not going to go into all … Read More
The Gate of Infinity On March 9th 2015 Czech sculptor/artist Aleš Veselý unveiled a piece of work called, in Czech, “Brána nenávratna”. It literally translates as The Gate of No Return but it seems to be widely known as The Gate of Infinity. On this post I’ll tell you where it is, the inspiration behind … Read More
The Naked Lady – Lilith A short tram or metro ride from the centre of town to the far side of Karlin will bring you to an area called Invalidovna. You’ll find some sculpture work here by David Cerny often referred to as the naked lady but has the official name Lilith. Lilith Construction Unveiled … Read More
Holešovice Market Holešovice Market (pronounced like hol-lesh-oh-vitser), the site of a former royal slaughterhouse, celebrates 130 years in 2025. As well as the history there are some good reasons to visit for both locals and tourists alike. It contains a wide range of commercial activities including parcel pickup, self-storage, cooking lessons, DIY shop, garden centre, … Read More
Famous Czechs – Olbram Zoubek Olbram Zoubek is not a name that will crop up in many guidebooks. He has certainly left his mark on the country and one town specifically (and it’s not Prague) but tourists will wander past at least two of his public works in Prague without realising. Olbram Zoubek was born … Read More
Prague Cubism Museum – House at the Black Madonna When you buy your ticket at the ground floor office you’ll be told to go directly to the 4th floor and work your way down to third and second. You should really have some background knowledge of Czech Cubism before coming here at least to understand … Read More
Mucha Museum – Alfons Mucha Anybody that knows me will be aware of my interests in art and architecture. On the “art” side I’ve written about Alfons Mucha as a person, his impact on the Municipal House, a 5-post breakdown of his most famous work, the Slav Epic. I’ve seen the entire Slav Epic exhibited … Read More
Spitfire Butterflies On August 20th 1940 when Winston Churchill said “never in the field of human conflict was so much owed by so many to so few” he was of course referring to all of those pilots who fought in the Battle of Britain the same year. Strange how, 84 years later, I stood outside … Read More
The Winged Lion On one side of the Lesser Town is an area called Klárov. It has a small open area of ground with two monuments dedicated to World War Two. One of them is the Winged Lion. The Winged Lion is specifically dedicated to 2513 Czechs and Slovaks who fought as pilots and air … Read More