Pavel F., Author at Prague Morning

Article published in cooperation with The Prague Review

From Tuesday 11th May 2021, everyone over 45 years old, with Czech health insurance, can register to receive a Covid vaccination.

The process is relatively straightforward – the most important part is choosing a centre that has a short waiting list.

What you’ll need:

Your Czech health insurance card.
Your name and address.
A mobile phone.
An email address.
If under 45, a special code that proves you’re eligible to receive a vaccine early; healthcare, police, teachers, those with chronic illness etc.
An empty washing-up detergent bottle, some paper/card, adhesive tape and coloured marker pens.

Items 6 are only required if you also plan to build a model rocket ship with your kids!

Find the best vaccination centre as follows

Visit this website – all screenshots and instructions are from an automatic English translation in Google Chrome.

Choose your region and observe that the page updates to show vaccination centres in your area – the example below is Prague.

Look for a centre near to your address, that has the best scores in both ‘Waiting…’ and ‘Inoculation…’ columns. For example, this is the place I booked.

Register for a vaccination

Visit this website – all screenshots and instructions are from an automatic English translation in Google Chrome.

Enter your phone number, check the ‘I agree…’ box, and click Send. A 4-digit PIN arrives on your mobile. Page changes to allow a PIN to be entered.

Enter the PIN. Page changes to allow your details to be entered. Example shows when it was for over 50s – now 45.

Complete the form with your details. Select the vaccination centre that you chose earlier. If you choose anything other than ‘Based on age…’ you’ll be prompted to enter a special code supplied by your employer or Doctor.

Page changes to show your request was succesful.

Wait for the PIN 2 code. If you chose a centre with a short wait time, this code could arrive within a few hours, but could also be several days.

PIN 2 Code Arrives

PIN 2 is a six-digit code. Visit this website

Page changes to show vaccination booking dates and times for your selected location.

Choose your appointment time. Page updates to confirm your appointment – you’ll see all the details, not just the header shown below. You’ll also see the date of your second appointment, assuming that your vaccine requires two jabs,

Go for your vaccination!

Article published in cooperation with The Prague Review

Start-up carrier PRAGUSA.ONE has announced plans to operate nonstop flights from both Dubrovnik and Prague to the US and Asia.

The first flights from Dubrovnik to New York and Los Angeles are due to commence in late June 2021 – although tickets aren’t on sale yet.

The company says that tickets will be on sale from May 24th and both routes are initially set to operate until the end of October 2021. Flights to New York will be on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Saturdays, while services to LA will be on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Sundays.

The website, currently just a simple holding page, shows ambitious route plans.

You may think that the PRAGUSA name was inspired by plans for flights between Prague and the USA. Not so, the name is actually a portmanteau of the words ‘Prague’ and ‘Ragusa’ the old name for Dubrovnik.

The company plans to order four Airbus A350-900 aircraft in a single-class configuration with 251 premium economy seats. The deliveries of these A350s would take place in 2024.

Dubrovnik and Prague would each receive two of these A359s. Prior to delivery, they will wet-lease two Airbus A350-900 and two A330-330 aircraft from another airline.

Wet lease means that another airline provides the aircraft and crew, probably catering and even fuel. So these leased aircraft are unlikely to be fitted as all premium economy.

Managing director Kresimir Budinski is quoted as saying: “We worked hard since summer 2020 to create this unique product for avid travellers that are ready and steady to fly abroad. Point-to-point flight operations bundled with a full travel package and premium in-flight service are key success factors for the ultimate travel experience in the future. The US market represents one of the focus markets for Pragusa.one.”

Let’s hope this airline gets off the ground and offers reliable, comfortable, and good-value flights.

The Coronavirus lockdown is having a devastating impact on Prague’s bars and restaurants. But how far would you go to ensure your favourite local bar or restaurant survives?

There are a number of ways that you can support your local. How many of the following would you consider?

Order takeaway food and collect direct from the restaurant. All the money goes to the restaurant, but this really only works if you live nearby.
Order food for delivery using a service such as Wolt, Bolt, or Dáme jídlo. The restaurant has to pay a hefty percentage to the delivery service, but at least make some money.
Purchase a discounted voucher for future use, for example, pay 1500 Kč for a 2000 Kč voucher. The place gets an injection of cash but eventually has to allow redemption of a voucher purchased for less than face value. You get a discount but take the risk that the place doesn’t close down before you can redeem the voucher.
Purchase a voucher at face value. The place gets an injection of cash and doesn’t lose anything. You take the risk that the place doesn’t close down before you can redeem the voucher.
Donate to using a site such as GoFundMe. The place gets an injection of cash. You receive nothing, except good karma and a thank you.
Purchase shares, for example, you agree to pay 10 000 Kč for a 0.5% stake in the bar or restaurant. You’ll also be required to pay 0.5% of the bills until the place turns a profit, but then you’ll receive 0.5% of the profits. You may receive shareholder discount but won’t have any say in the running of the place and could still lose the lot if the place doesn’t survive.
Purchase shares, for example, you agree to pay 100 000 Kč for a 5% stake in the bar or restaurant. You’ll also be required to pay 5% of the bills until the place turns a profit, but then you’ll receive 5% of the profits. Shareholder discount and you’ll likely have some say in the running of the place but could still lose the lot if the place doesn’t survive.

I would assume that everyone would agree with Option 1 and that is available to everyone.

I’m regularly using Option 2 and wrote about my experiences.

I’d be open to Option 3 but not Option 4 as that’s just a risky loan without any benefit – there don’t seem to be that many places offering discounted vouchers.

I don’t agree with Option 5 at all – much as I don’t want to see places go under, they are still a business and not a charity.

Option 6 has some appeal, although I imagine it would be difficult to discover when the place finally turns a profit. I don’t know of any places offering this option – do you?

Option 7 would really only appeal if I had the money to invest, already knew the owner and really believed that the place would survive.

Places Offering Discounted Vouchers

Pubble – 1000 Kč for a 1500 Kč voucher

If you know of a restaurant offering discounted vouchers, please use the form at the end of this article.

Places with Funding Campaigns

Social bistro Strecha

BarFud

Globe Bookstore and Cafe

AnonymouS Bar

California Republic

Bistro 8

Cross Club

Storm Club

Do you remember when you last sent a postcard? For me it was last week when I was asked to send some to our relatives’ kids attending summer camp – they don’t use mobiles there. Luckily there was an app for that.

I first considered a visit to Lokál, where they have a selection of free postcards, that they’ll also post for free if you drop them in their mailbox. However, the cards are mostly beer-related and aren’t really suitable for kids. I definitely didn’t want to go to a shop and/or post office.

I found and downloaded the Pohlednice App by Česká pošta. The app is in English, lets you upload photos, write a message, add a map, address and send all for 29 Kč.

After you choose ‘Create a Postcard’, you can choose the size
Then you choose the layout.
You can press the + button to upload a photo. You can also choose a border.
Write the message and optionally include a map.
After that, you can pay using a credit card. Confirmation is sent to your email address

So if you have kids at camp, elderly relatives without smartphones or just want to go a bit retro, Česká pošta has you covered.

More info here

The Lucerna Palace (Palác Lucerna) is a huge building in central Prague, housing small shops, cafes, a music bar, a concert hall, and a cinema. There is also a paternoster lift that takes you to an amazing rooftop terrace.

The roof is open until the end of October 2020, Saturday to Monday 14.00 to 22.00 and entry is 100 Kč. If you arrive between 14.00 and 16.00 you can have a free drink from the rooftop bar.

The entrance is opposite the Great Hall in the Lucerna passage. A really friendly girl sold us our tickets and a grumpy security guard showed us to the paternoster lift – a chain of open compartments that move slowly in a loop up and down inside a building without stopping.

These things both scare and excite me, as I think I’m going to misjudge the jump into the compartment and be chopped in half – I’m also not good with revolving doors! Hence, I couldn’t start my video until after I was safely aboard.

You’re supposed to jump out at the top floor, but I stayed in the compartment and let it take me over the top and back down again – no you aren’t turned upside down!

At the top, another really friendly girl checked our tickets and we were inside. We wandered around the various rooftop terraces. The space is huge and there is work in progress to expand the terraces. The views are amazing.

I’d previously written to Střecha Lucerny and asked some questions about the space – they didn’t reply. But I found one of the organizers and was able to ask him. My questions and his replies in between each of the following pictures.

Q. How do the rooftop concerts work – is there some program?
A. They are just short 15-minute concerts played at sunset. You can find out more from the Facebook page

Q. There are just a few tables – can I reserve one?
A. Yes, if you call ahead, we’ll do our best. There will be more tables when the reconstruction of the other terraces are complete.

Q. If I purchase a ticket and visit during the afternoon, can I return with that ticket in the evening?
A. No, you would need to purchase another ticket.

Q. Is food available?
A. Yes, some small bites, like tapas.

Q. What happens when it rains?
A. There is indoor space and we also have umbrellas that you can borrow.

Q. The website looks lovely, but doesn’t show any events or other information about visiting.
A. Yes, we know about that and we are working to resolve it.

We visited the bar. There were three staff working and they were really friendly.

Our first drink was free. The prices looked pretty good for the location; large beer 58 Kč, glass of wine 65 Kč, cappuccino 65 Kč. And we were given real glasses, not plastic cups.

There is an exhibition devoted to the history of the Havel family. The text is in Czech. My basic knowledge is that the palace was built between 1907-1920. The investor, organizer, and constructor was ing. Vácslav Havel, entrepreneur, whose grandson – Václav Havel – later became President.

Everyone working at Střecha Lucerny is friendly. It reminds me of when you visit a stately home run by amateur volunteers – all happy to chat, take your ticket or sell you a piece of homemade cake. It’s a nice atmosphere, but as a business, it’s ridiculously overstaffed and I have no idea how they can make any money – but maybe that isn’t their intention.

Střecha Lucerny
Palác Lucerna, Štěpánská 61, Praha

Many of us may have contracted Coronavirus (Covid-19) and not experienced any symptoms. Was that slight cough you had just a cough or was it Covid-19? Luckily there is a laboratory in Prague that will test for that.

The place I visited is called EUC Laboratories and is on Palackého 5, Prague 1 not far from the Vodičkova Tram Stop. They have a walk-in antibody test clinic, with hours 12 noon to 3 pm Monday to Friday.

They offer two tests; a prick-your-finger instant test, that offers less certainty for 1000 Kč, or a blood-from-your-arm definitive test, with results back in a few days for 1500 Kč. I’ve no idea why anyone would choose the 1000 Kč test.

Finding the Lab

Take the tram to Vodičkova. Walk toward Václavské náměstí, then turn left down Palackého Street. Halfway down, on the right, is an entrance marked Poliklinika. Go in.

As you enter, there is a long corridor.

Keep walking toward the light at the end – starting to sound like Dungeons and Dragons or Poltergeist now!

Go through the doors.

Ahead is Františkánská zahrada – that great hidden garden right in the centre. Turn sharp right into a passage that looks like this:

Ignore the first entrance with the queue barrier – go straight to the end. The entrance to the lab looks like this:

I arrived at 11.45 am and there were already three people waiting. By noon there were around eight people behind me.

Complete the Forms

A nurse in full hazmat gear stepped out from the automatic entrance door and handed out personal details/consent forms – you can ask for a form in English. They offer pens, but you should really bring your own pen to be safe. There isn’t a flat surface where you can rest your form.

The form asks how you would like to receive your result – I chose my email address.

Taking the Test

Only one person is allowed in at a time. Once inside, they check your forms and you have to show some form of ID. None of the staff spoke much English, but I could tell that I was being asked which test I wanted – so I took the easy way out and said ’tisíc pět set’.

I then sat in a chair, rolled up my sleeve, made a fist and the nurse took a phial of blood from my arm. It was painless and the nurse was clearly competent – no issues finding a vein and no big blotchy mark left.

Paying

I paid with a UK credit card. The machine offered a choice of CZK or GBP. As always I chose CZK – never choose GBP as the exchange rate will be rubbish.

Leaving

As you leave, the person waiting outside can enter.

A good experience

This was a good experience. I’d recommend it to anyone who would like to discover if they have the IgG antibodies that signal that you have recovered from Covid-19 – and hopefully have gained a certain degree of immunity to it.

The EUC Laboratories webpage for Covid-19 testing.

The lab also offers walk-in blood tests from 7.30 – 11.30 am. For example, a PSA test, which is a good indication of a healthy prostate, costs 375 Kč. I guess you could ask for all sorts of tests; cholesterol, liver function etc. You can’t have a Covid-19 test in the morning.

There are three main food delivery players in Prague; Dáme jídlo, Wolt, and UberEats. I hadn’t tried any of these services before the restaurants closed – now I’ve tried all three. So which delivery service is best?

Wolt

My first app download was Wolt. I chose Wolt because they seemed to deliver from several quality restaurants that I liked to visit when open – wasn’t just focussed on existing takeaways. It was pretty easy to set up my details – the app was in English and I liked that I could use Apple Pay so I didn’t have to enter my credit card details again.

My first order experience was perfect. The menu was automatically translated and I was able to add items to the cart, add a tip (you can revoke later if needed), checkout and immediately see the progress of my order. The progress was updated until it showed that my order had been collected. I could see the progress of the courier on a map and delivery time, so I was at the door just as they arrived. The food handover was easy and the courier was friendly.

UberEats

I already had the Uber taxi app and so I used that for my first order. I would have used Wolt except that I wanted a McDonalds Bacon Big Tasty and Wolt don’t deliver McDonald’s. I subsequently downloaded the full Uber Eats app and found it slightly better, although both are very similar. The app is in English and I was able to set Apple Pay as a payment option.

My first order experience was very good. Automatic translations of the menu weren’t available, but it wasn’t difficult to figure out what I needed – especially as this was just McDonalds! I was able to add items to the cart, add a tip (you can revoke later if needed), checkout and immediately see the progress of my order. The progress was updated until it showed that my order had been collected. I could see the progress of the courier on a map and delivery time, so I was at the door just as they arrived. The food handover was easy and the courier was friendly.

Dáme jídlo

I probably wouldn’t have bothered to install the Dáme jídlo app, except that I wanted to order from Café Buddha and they didn’t appear on either of the other two apps. The app is in English but it was difficult to set up my details and there was no option to set up a payment type.

I chose the items I wanted from Café Buddha and was taken to a payment screen where I had to manually enter all my credit card details (many apps offer a scan option using the camera). I clicked pay and the app just sat for a few minutes until I was prompted to enter a verification code. I entered the code and the payment failed. I had to repeat the process a second time and then it worked.

The app showed delivery in one hour – that seemed like a long time but I assumed the restaurant was busy. The app didn’t show any updates, but I did receive an email with an ‘Order Status’ button. That opened the Dáme jídlo website, with ‘Order not found’ but then the order shown underneath.

I clicked to open the Dáme jídlo app – it opened but my order wasn’t shown at all.

At 7.25 pm, the delivery driver called to say that he’d arrive in four minutes. I was actually pleased that I didn’t have to wait until the time shown, but also irritated that the progress didn’t show ‘order on its way’, nor a map to show the driver progress.

The food handover was easy and the courier was friendly.

I checked the order status to see if it had been updated. It did show ‘food has been collected’ but still showed a delivery time of 7.49 pm.

I believe Dáme jídlo were the first to offer a food delivery service in Prague. But it looks like they’ve become complacent. All I can hope is that they take less commission from the restaurants they serve – that would be the only reason I would consider using them again.

Delivery Fees

In my experience, all three services charged a similar delivery fee. The average was 49Kč.

Contactless Delivery

All three delivery services offer ‘contactless delivery’ – your order is left on your doorstep. I didn’t choose this option as it didn’t seem very practical when living on the 6th floor of the building. With or without ‘contact’ the courier will handle your bag. I always wore a face mask when meeting the courier – more to reassure them than protect myself.

So which delivery service is best?

Wolt has been consistently the best delivery service app for me. They have the best user interface and offer many of the restaurants that I’d normally visit to dine in.

UberEats is a close second and I’ll continue to use them when I need to junk out on a Big Tasty burger.

Dáme jídlo really need to improve their app or they could find themselves in fourth place following the launch of Bolt, formerly known as Taxify, who just entered the Prague delivery food market.

Why you should stop using these apps when the current restrictions are lifted

All of these food delivery operators take a hefty percentage from the restaurants they serve. You often see platitudes from them that mention how they are ‘glad to support businesses during these trying times‘.

If these operators really wanted to support restaurants, they’d offer free restaurant registration and halve the commission fee they charge on each order – I’ve read that can be 30-40%. If you’re a restaurant owner, please let me know the fees you pay and I’ll update the summary table below.

When restaurants do open, please support them by visiting and dining in the restaurant. Not only will they save the commission fee, you’ll enjoy nicely-plated, hot food, delivered to your table by a lovely waitress, while you enjoy a glass of wine within the ambience of the restaurant.