Babak Jalali’s American film Fremont wowed audiences at the Sundance Film Festival and the Karlovy Vary International Film Festival, where it took home the Crystal Globe for Best Director. The tender comedy follows the life of a young girl, Dunia, who works in a fortune cookie factory and decides to chase her own luck by hiding a daring message in one of the cookies. The main role of the quirky Dunia is played by debutant actress Anaita Wali Zada, alongside Jeremy Allen White, known to viewers from the popular kitchen nightmare series The Bear. Jalali’s distinctive humour and charming atmosphere have earned the film rave reviews, which are not afraid to compare the British director with Iranian roots to the big names of world cinema. Artforum magazine describes the film as “an extraordinary comedy with a calm detachment reminiscent of Kaurismäki and Jarmusch,” while Harper’s Bazaar calls it “an ode to the beauty and restless appeal of human connection.” The film will be released by Aerofilms on September 14. The right to a better life Jalali’s goal was to make a story that could easily slide into a dark social drama as a sweet, light comedy. “Showing humor in grim...
The Czech Republic welcomed over 5.7 million visitors during the second quarter of this year, including the period between April and June. According to VisitCzechia, a figure of 2.5 million foreign tourists visited, marking an increase of 32 per cent compared to last year. Most foreign tourists came from neighbouring countries, with Germany, Slovakia, and Poland leading the list, followed by the United States and the United Kingdom. As for the average length of stay for these tourists within the borders of the Czech Republic, it was 3.4 days. Meanwhile, among the preferred destinations, Prague emerged as the leading destination, followed by other countries such as South Moravia and South Bohemia. In the second quarter of 2023, 58,864 tourists from the Netherlands travelled to the Czech Republic. This figure represents a significant increase of 7,300 tourists compared to the same period a year ago. “The month of June proved particularly successful, as no less than 21,000 Dutch people visited the Czech capital. 68 per cent of all Dutch tourists have visited Prague. This can be explained on the one hand by the good flight connection from Amsterdam Schiphol (KLM and Easyjet) and Eindhoven (Transavia) to Prague,” the press release points...
The average price of a half-litre of 12-degree beer in restaurants and pubs in Prague in July was CZK 64, compared to CZK 59 a year earlier, representing a rise of 9 percent, the national Association of Small and Medium Enterprises said. Across the nation, the mean beer price reached CZK 54 in July, a contrast to CZK 49.80 during the same period the previous year, indicating an increase of over eight percent. As part of its economic recovery strategy, the government intends to shift draught beer from the 10 percent VAT rate to the standard 21 percent rate. Consequently, if the average prices of July persist, the new year could usher in an approximate national average of CZK 59 per pint post-VAT increase on draught beer. Czech breweries wield significant influence over beer pricing, often making adjustments during the autumn. In the past year, Plzeňský Prazdroj, Staropramen, and Budějovický Budvar all raised draft beer prices, primarily attributing these changes to escalating energy costs. The director of the Association of Small and Medium Enterprises in Czechia Luboš Kastner, also raised concerns about the government’s decision not to impose excise duty on still wines. Due to these beer-related VAT shifts, which significantly affect...
With a takeaway place that opened some four months ago in Malá Strana, as well as an online store, Malá Argenta offers a selection of genuine Argentinian flavors and more. Prague Morning spoke to Santiago Pérez. Santiago is one of the four owners of Malá Argenta, all of whom are from Argentina. “I’ve been in Prague for the past five years. I started the business three and a half years ago with three of my Argentinian friends. We were all tired of working our regular day jobs, so we decided to try something new,” says Santiago. Two of Santiago’s colleagues are chefs and it only made sense for them to try something related to food, according to Santiago. They made a large batch of empanadas that they debuted at a food festival at Ctěnice Castle. The initial response from the locals was overwhelmingly positive, which prompted them to give their idea a serious shot. At first, the business operated exclusively as an online delivery service of frozen empanadas. With time, it started growing and the Malá Argenta team opened their first physical location four months ago in Újezd 454/46. “We never wanted a big restaurant, but a smaller takeaway place...
From October 2, Czech Airlines will resume its Prague-Yerevan-Prague flights. These flights will be operated on Mondays and Thursdays, the “Armenia” International Airports CJSC reported. “The demand for flights from Armenia to Europe, including the Czech Republic, tends to grow, so we decided to resume the Prague-Yerevan route after five years. In recent years, the popularity of Transcaucasian destinations has increased among Czech travelers as well, so we are sure that they will be happy to receive this news,” said Jan Toth, Commercial Director of the company. The flight from Prague will be a night flight, departing at 01:45 and arriving in Yerevan at 07:20 local time. Return travelers will depart at 08:05 and arrive in the Czech capital at 10:15. Tickets are already on sale. The cost of a one-way flight starts from 6,000 CZK. This is more than double the price of WizzAir, which has been flying from Prague to Yerevan for the past two months. However, a few weeks ago, the Hungarian low-cost carrier announced that it had decided to abandon the route and the September 15th flight would be its last. For the availability of the respective airline tickets, their acquisition, and other details, please visit...
Air carrier Smartwings is adding a new destination to its autumn offering. On November 1, the airline is launching direct scheduled flights from Prague to Cairo, the capital of Egypt. The service will be operated twice a week. Cairo is the seventh Smartwings destination in Egypt, in addition to Hurghada, Marsa Alam, Sharm Al Sheikh, Al Alamain, Taba, and Marsa Matrouh. Flight tickets to Cairo are already available on Smartwings and Czech Airlines websites (under a code-share agreement) and from flight ticket vendors. Flight will depart from Prague Airport every Wednesday and Saturday night at 22:50 with arrival in Cairo at 3:40 local time. The return flight from Cairo to Prague is scheduled to depart from Cairo on Thursday and Sunday at 4:30 local time, with arrival at Prague Airport at 7:35. “We are happy to be able to offer our customers direct flights between Prague and Cairo, Egypt, for the first time ever. We are also planning to increase the capacity and frequency of flights to this attractive destination for the summer flight schedule,” says Petr Šujan, Smartwings Sales Director. Smartwings will offer direct flights from Czech airports to more than two dozen destinations under the winter schedule. Smartwings...
Stationed in front of Thai massage establishments, rickshaws are causing complications for both Prague’s residents and its visitors. Their positioning violates city regulations and mars the aesthetic appeal of the area. City officials, along with representatives from the Municipal Police, have recently reached a consensus on this matter. They are now seeking a lawful solution for their removal and intend to pursue a modification in legislation. On Monday, August 28, Prague Mayor Bohuslav Svoboda and Councillor for property, legislation and transparency Adam Zábranský convened with the Municipal Police representatives. Mayor Bohuslav Svoboda remarked, “The presence of rickshaws on the sidewalks is not only a stain on Prague’s reputation but also a disruption to everyday pedestrian traffic. They essentially function as nothing more than oversized advertising banners. I am optimistic that a solution is on the horizon.” Councillor Adam Zábranský affirmed, “We have exhausted all available measures to eradicate the rickshaws from the city center. We have attempted various strategies.” “One of the city’s long-unsolved and problematic issues is illegally placed advertising, including various objects from entrepreneurs who are trying to make their establishments more attractive. An example is the infamous rickshaws on Wenceslas Square and Old Town Square, as well...
Czechia fully supports the 10-point peace plan presented by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and is ready to help with its implementation, said Czech Foreign Minister Jan Lipavský. Lipavský spoke about the Czech role in the plan’s enforcement on the occasion of Monday’s meeting of the Czech head of embassies. On the same day, he also met with his Ukrainian counterpart Dmytro Kuleba in Prague. “We stand fully behind President Zelenskyy’s peace plan. It remains the only way out of the biggest war on European soil since the end of the Second World War,” Lipavský said. Zelenskyy outlined a 10-point peace plan last autumn. The plan envisages – among others – nuclear safety, protection food and energy security, restoration of Ukraine’s territorial integrity and total withdrawal of Russian troops. Czechia will be actively involved particularly in the first point – nuclear and radiation safety. “Together with France, we have been selected as co-chairs of the first group on nuclear and radiation safety. This is an achievement, it is an appreciation of our role. It is also a responsibility that we must live up to,” Lipavský said. According to Lipavský, the fact that Czechia will co-chair the nuclear safety group is a...
Article submitted by Lucia Brozmannová, Patricia Cîrtog, Bálint Dömötör, Szuszan Stepanyan Hotels, restaurants and pubs in Central Europe’s most popular tourist destination are crying out for waiters, chefs, bartenders and kitchen staff in a labor crisis. Nearly one-third of the positions are vacant at the height of the tourist season in Prague. “Month to month, we are hiring everyone we can find”, Michael Sito, the manager of The Globe Bookstore and Cafe says. “Since Covid, there has been a huge shortage of employees in this sector. So we have been constantly hiring for the last two and a half years”. Nela is a 21-year-old waitress at one of the most frequented parts of the Czech capital. She is unskilled and only works part-time, still she is irreplaceable for JK Gastro House, a fancy restaurant and bar close to Wenceslas Square. “If I go home to Ostrava, the restaurant would shut down”, she says. Since she started working at the restaurant 18 months ago, almost the whole staff have been replaced. The situation is very similar at other restaurants. “A lot of people working here are students who don’t speak Czech and they work a part-time job”, Michael Sito says. “Every...
Paris will this week become one of the only cities in Europe with an outright ban on rented e-scooters — as operators plan to ramp up their e-bike fleets to replace them ahead of the 2024 Olympics. Despite previously expressing hopes for a last-minute reprieve, the three firms with e-scooter operating licenses in the French capital, Lime, Dott and Tier, all confirmed that they will have removed their scooters, or trottinettes, by the Sept. 1 deadline. They had a combined fleet of roughly 15,000 e-scooters in the city. A referendum held in April gave Parisians two choices regarding the rental scooters: for or against. Numerous urban areas have already imposed restrictions on e-scooters, primarily entailing controls on speed limits and penalties for improper parking. Nevertheless, some major cities, such as Prague, still permit riding without helmets on sidewalks and bustling thoroughfares. Additionally, riders often engage in two-abreast riding or operate the scooters under the influence of alcohol. Consequently, the City Council of Prague is engaged in discussions to tighten traffic regulations and oversee these potential traffic hazards. However, a comprehensive ban does not appear to be under consideration. In Europe, Madrid this year reversed a prior ban to allow rental...
The Czech Republic will support Ukraine on the path towards achieving peace which is possible only on Ukrainian terms and principles of international law. “A peaceful solution can be achieved only with the participation of Ukraine and according to its rules. The Czech Republic supports Ukraine’s 10-point peace plan. We also offered help in filling it,” Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Czech Republic Jan Lipavský said at a joint press conference with his Ukrainian counterpart Dmytro Kuleba in Prague. Lipavský assured his colleague that the Czech Republic would continue to support and provide assistance to Ukraine until its victory in the war unleashed by Russia. He emphasized that it is impossible to make any concessions, if this would mean a violation of international law, it is impossible to exchange peace for any part of the sovereign territory of Ukraine. “Our only defense against Russian imperialism is active support for Ukraine, support for its accession to NATO and the EU,” said the head of the Czech diplomacy, adding that Ukraine must fulfill the necessary conditions and carry out the necessary reforms to join the EU. The ministers discussed the situation in Ukraine, the possibilities of ending the war, and coordinated...
Prague 6 is offering university students a chance to live in retirement home apartments for a monthly rent of 5,000 CZK. The residents must meet specific criteria, including interacting with the elderly residents in the facility. For the last three years, Prague 6 has been running a multi-generational housing initiative, mainly at the Šlejnická Street nursing home and in Libocy. They are currently searching for new occupants for the Šlejnická Street location. The Deputy Mayor, Marián Hošek, stated that the apartment is similar in size and layout to those of the elderly residents. The apartment also has a balcony overlooking the garden. The selected student will pay 5,000 CZK monthly rent and cover electricity costs, along with meeting other conditions. This opportunity is open to full-time students of higher education institutions in Prague. Lucie Trnkova, the director of Prague 6’s care service, emphasized that an ideal student should have a background in social or medical fields and be skilled in communicating with elderly individuals. The student must volunteer for at least 10 hours per month. Interested applicants should outline their project ideas, which aim to enhance residents’ lives and promote social integration through activities like games, technological assistance, reading, walks,...
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