Prague is set to host its annual Prague Pride from August 5 to 11, 2024. This event, marking its place as a significant celebration of the LGBTQ+ community, promises a week filled with activities and events. The Context of Prague Pride Prague Pride takes on special importance this year, as it serves as a protest against the Czech Republic’s recent changes to same-sex partnership laws. After seven years of waiting, the new legislation only offers a minor change, renaming “registered partnerships” to “partnerships,” without providing any substantial rights or recognition, such as legal acknowledgment of a partner’s non-biological child. Key Events and Highlights Friday, August 9 – Sunday, August 11: The pinnacle of the Pride week kicks off on Friday night with various parties and events. Visitors can start their weekend with a dinner by the Vltava River or in the historical alleys of Prague’s old town. Saturday, August 10: The main event, the Pride Parade, begins at noon in Wenceslas Square. Participants will march through significant landmarks, including the Astronomical Clock in Old Town Square and Pariszka Street, concluding in Letná Park. The celebration continues in Pride Park with multiple music stages, drag performances, picnic areas, and a VIP...
Starting next year, Prague City will significantly increase the number of vehicles towed from the streets. According to Deputy Mayor for Transport Zdeněk Hřib (Pirates), the number of towed cars is expected to jump from 12,000 in 2022 to 25,000 in 2025. Prague faces a severe shortage of parking spaces, with more permits issued for blue zones than available spots. This leads residents and visitors alike to park illegally out of necessity. Consequently, the chance of your car being towed for parking violations will rise considerably next year. Prague City towed 68,000 cars in 2009, but the number dropped to 48,000 the following year and has remained relatively stable since. The lowest figures were recorded in 2019 and 2022, with only 12,000 cars towed each year. However, this number is projected to more than double in 2025, reaching at least 25,000 towed vehicles, according to Hřib’s statement on X. “If a driver cannot park properly, we will tow the car to the Services Administration lot,” Hřib stated on social media. Zdeněk Lokaj, a traffic expert from the Czech Technical University, partially supports the increased towing. “It’s a step in the right direction, but we also need to enforce and increase...
Few artists influenced music as much as Louis Armstrong did. When the jazz legend arrived in Prague in March 1965, he was known as a worldwide star who was preparing for his big return to the charts. He was even ahead of such greats as the Beatles in popularity. The genius trumpeter spent ten days in Prague, while his concert in Prague’s Lucerna was moderated by the legendary pair Suchý-Šlitr. The jazz legend in Prague Nowadays, it is quite common for some of the world’s biggest stars to make appearances in the Czech Republic, but in 1965 this was not the case. This is one of the reasons why the world-famous jazz trumpeter and singer Louis Armstrong came to Czechoslovakia in March of that year. Louis Daniel Armstrong arrived in the heart of Europe with his band All Stars to spend a total of ten days here. Music journalist Lubomír Dorůžka became his interpreter and a guide around Prague. At that time, Armstrong stopped in Prague as part of a tour of Eastern Europe and the Federal Republic of Germany, while our capital was his first and the longest stop of the entire tour. He spent a quarter of his...
A new exhibition, titled “Franz Kafka: A Man of His and Our Time,” opened on August 1, 2024, at Mariánské Square, in front of the New Town Hall. Organized by the city of Prague in collaboration with the Czech Centres, this exhibition commemorates the 100th anniversary of Franz Kafka’s death. It will be open to the public until the end of August. “I’m pleased that the city continues to support projects related to the 100th anniversary of Franz Kafka’s death. Visitors can learn basic information about Kafka’s life, as well as intriguing facts that are less well-known. For instance, Kafka was a vegetarian, which highlights that concerns for animal welfare are not solely modern issues but have long historical roots,” said Jiří Pospíšil, Deputy Mayor of Prague. Jitka Pánek Jurková, Director General of the Czech Centres, remarked, “This year is dedicated to Franz Kafka not only in Prague but globally. We aim to share his remarkable legacy worldwide through this exhibition, which has been translated into many languages and is touring various continents, including Latin America, Europe, and Asia.” The exhibition consists of ten double-sided panels, offering insights into Kafka’s life, his environment, and the influences on his work that...
A new app called Prague Castle Archaeology will guide visitors through five significant areas of Prague Castle, including its hidden underground sections that are usually inaccessible to the public. The app provides detailed historical insights and showcases how these spaces have evolved over the centuries. Beneath the reinforced concrete structures of Prague Castle lie the remains of buildings dating back to the ninth and tenth centuries, extending over several thousand square meters. Many visitors are unaware of these ancient structures, but the new app changes that by offering a virtual tour of these hidden gems. The app highlights five key archaeological sites: the Chapel of the Virgin Mary, the Third Courtyard’s Great and Small Excavations, the crypt of St. Vitus Cathedral, and the Monastery and Basilica of St. George. Users can explore these sites in detail using 3D scans and a timeline feature that illustrates the changes and research history of these buildings. Experts from the Institute of Archaeology of the Academy of Sciences, in collaboration with the Department of Historic Preservation of the Office of the President of the Republic, spent four years developing this application. It serves as a guide for visitors to Prague Castle and can also...
A tragic incident occurred on Thursday afternoon at Lake Wolfgangsee in St. Gilgen, Austria. A 41-year-old Czech man drowned while trying to assist his children amid an approaching storm. According to salzburg24.at, divers later recovered his body from a depth of eight meters. The children from two families were on a paddleboard when strong winds and a storm began to develop. The father of one family and a friend swam out to bring them to safety. Once the children reached the shore, there was no sign of the man. A large-scale search operation was quickly organized, involving over 100 rescuers. In total, 40 divers participated in the search. After several hours, the man’s body was discovered at a depth of about eight meters, roughly 15 meters from the shore. The cause of his drowning remains unclear. Would you like us to write about your business? Find out more
For the first time, the Tesla Cybertruck is available for sale in the Czech Republic, and it comes with a staggering price tag. The Tesla Cybertruck, known for its futuristic design, turns heads wherever it goes. Although it cannot be officially sold in Europe due to its sharp edges, independent importers have found a way to bring it here. This particular vehicle is being offered by a Czech representative of the luxury tuning company Mansory, known for its exclusive modifications. Details about this specific Cybertruck are sparse, but it is described as a nearly new car with just 738 kilometers on the odometer. The vehicle in question is the mid-range variant featuring dual electric motors for all-wheel drive. It boasts a combined system output of 450 kW (612 hp) and 1008 Newton meters of torque. With a maximum range of up to 550 kilometers per charge, it accelerates from 0 to 100 km/h in 4.1 seconds and reaches a top speed of 180 km/h. Standard features include 20-inch wheels, a panoramic roof, air suspension, and a rear axle that can swivel. The car is currently in Prague, and the dealer is preparing Czech registration for it, which involves the same...
The Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs Marian Jurečka has officially distanced itself from Prague Pride, an event that supports LGBT+ minorities, including lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer individuals. According to Deník N, the ministry recently requested the removal of its logo from the Prague Pride website after the Alliance for the Family publicly questioned its support for the event pointing out that Christian Democrat Marian Jurečka leads the ministry. Eliška Černá, the spokesperson for Prague Pride, confirmed, “On Wednesday, we received a call from a Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs employee asking us to remove the logo because the ministry no longer supports the association.” The ministry stated that any previous financial support for Prague Pride occurred under a different administration. “Since there has been no support from the ministry for several years, the logo on the Prague Pride website was a leftover from the past administration, which the organizers forgot to remove,” the ministry clarified in a press release. The ministry’s statement comes amid heightened security measures for the upcoming Prague Pride festival. The Czech police have increased security due to concerns over a potential attack, similar to an incident at a recent event in Bratislava....
After more than nine months in prison, American RFE/RL journalist Alsu Kurmasheva has been released as part of a large-scale prisoner exchange between the United States and Russia. The deal included Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich, who was detained by the Kremlin for 16 months, and former US Marine Paul Whelan, following the biggest prisoner exchange between Russia and the West since the Cold War. Kurmasheva, a mother of two, was detained by the Russian authorities on a visit to her parents last October and sentenced to six-and-a-half years in jail for failing to register as a foreign agent. She was eventually fined 10,000 rubles ($103) for failure to register her U.S. passport with Russian authorities. However, before she could pay the fine, she was detained again on Oct. 18, 2023. In December, Russian authorities launched a third investigation against her for “spreading false information” about Russia’s military. She was convicted following a “rapid and secret trial” that lasted only two days, according to the Associated Press. Her husband Pavel Butorin previously said she was arrested over a book published last year, which was a collection of stories about Russians opposed to the war in Ukraine. Kurmasheva landed back...
Security at Prague Pride, the annual festival celebrating sexual minorities, will be significantly increased this year. The festival, taking place from August 5 to 11, will have more police officers on duty than usual, following a foiled attack on a similar event in Bratislava. “Prague police are preparing security measures for Prague Pride 2024. We are assessing the current situation and risks not only in the Czech Republic but also internationally,” stated the police. Following information from the Slovak National Crime Agency about a planned terrorist attack at a recent event in Slovakia, Prague police have heightened security requirements. More officers will be deployed to monitor the rallies closely. The security team will include the Conflict Prevention at Mass Events team, patrol officers with ballistic protection, and specialists from the Extremism and Terrorism Department, among others. A police helicopter and a special forces team will also be on standby. Police will monitor both the week-long festival events and the main parade on Saturday, August 10. The parade will start at noon in Wenceslas Square and end in Letna. Tens of thousands of participants are expected, and the police are committed to ensuring the event runs smoothly. Additionally, on the day...
Imagine spending your summer break extracting DNA from ticks, unraveling the secrets of plant photosynthesis at the nano level, or decoding the chemical mysteries hidden in your favorite soda. Sounds like science fiction? Not at the Czech University of Life Sciences Prague! Ranked 53rd worldwide in agricultural sciences, this prestigious university is throwing open its lab doors to high school students for an unforgettable scientific adventure. But hurry – only a handful of spots remain for the “Hands-on Science” program running August 12-15, 2024. “We’re not talking about your typical summer school here,” grins Martin Opatrný, the program coordinator. “This is a chance to get your hands dirty – sometimes literally – with real, cutting-edge science. Our students will be doing things most people don’t get to try until graduate school!” Picture yourself: Trekking through Prague’s nature reserves, hunting for ticks (don’t worry, we provide repellent!) Using a portable PCR machine that looks straight out of a sci-fi movie to detect pathogens Playing “plant detective” on the university farm, uncovering the hidden diversity in what others might call weeds Becoming a food chemist for a day, analyzing the secret formulas of popular sodas But it’s not all work and no...
The management of Prague 1 district is implementing a new regulation to tackle street noise. Following a recent nighttime car ban, the district now aims to prohibit organized pub crawls between 10 pm and 6 am. This proposal has received approval from the Ministry of Industry and Trade. Businesses in central Prague attract many tourists, who often join commercial pub crawls. These events involve groups moving from one bar to another, consuming alcohol and creating significant noise. Residents of Prague 1 have frequently complained about the disturbances. “They disrupt the peace, increase noise levels, and leave behind considerable litter and disorder,” said Karel Grabein Procházka (ANO), Prague 1 councillor for trade and services, in a press release. The district’s management has therefore urged the city to amend market regulations to ban such events during nighttime hours. Besides the noise issue, there are concerns about the impact of alcohol consumption. Giancarlo Lamberti (TOP 09) highlighted that such activities also contribute to fights, vandalism, and drunk driving. “These issues negatively affect how residents, tourists, and potential investors view the city,” remarked Mayor Terezie Radoměřská (TOP 09). Lamberti also noted that organized pub crawls can undermine the efforts of local bars, which are...
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