The Czech Republic ranked #32 one in the newest Good Country Index, which seeks to measure “what each country on earth contributes to the good of humanity.” The Good Country Index takes stock of 35 measurements that show countries’ contributions in seven different categories: science and technology; culture; peace and security; world order; planet and climate; prosperity and equality; and health and wellbeing. In addition, and perhaps most importantly, the Good Country Index is all about what nations do for the rest of the world, not about what happens within their own borders. Simon Anholt founded the Anholt Nation Brands Index in 2005 and the Good Country Index in 2014. “Pretty much every single one of [the other indexes] looks at countries’ internal performance in one way or another,” says Anholt. “Consequently, [they] treat the world as if it were made of entirely separate independent islands of humanity that have nothing to do with each other.” While the Good Country Index gathers an immense amount of data, he characterises it as “a toe in the water;” it has limitations. “Reducing a country’s impact on the world to 35 data sets is obviously just a hint,” he says. The authors rated the...
The National Gallery in Prague celebrates 223rd anniversary of its establishment on February 2–3. On these days, admission to all permanent exhibitions of the National Gallery in Prague is free. 1) The Convent of St. Agnes of Bohemia Not many people know about this hidden gem. Housed within one of the city’s oldest gothic buildings, this gallery offers a well-thought-out tour of medieval and early renaissance Czech art. 2) The Kinsky Palace The Kinsky Palace, located on Old Town Square, is one of the National Gallery’s most visited attractions. It is home to a permanent exhibition called “The Art of Asia”. It contains paintings, graphic art, ceramics, bronze ware, pottery and metalwork from Japan, China, Korea, Tibet, South and Southeast Asia. 3) The Trade Fair Palace This huge building currently contains 5 temporary and 2 permanent exhibitions and is a must visit for connoisseurs of modern art. You can take a stroll through the development of Czech art from the mid 19th century to modern day. You can also explore the international art scene of the 19th, 20th and 21st centuries. This collection contains work by Vincent Van Gogh, Paul Cezanne and Pablo Picasso amongst others. Other National Gallery Locations, where you will find free exhibitions this weekend are: The Sternberg Palace Hradčanské náměstí 15, Prague 1...
Petra Kvitova has reached the first grand slam final of what she is calling her “second career” after defeating Danielle Collins at the Australian Open. In what was an eventful match, with play suspended and the Rod Laver Arena closed during the first set because of extreme heat, Kvitova triumphed over the unseeded American 7-6 (7-2), 6-0. The eighth-seeded Kvitova will face US Open champion Naomi Osaka in Saturday night’s final, with the winner to be crowned the women’s world number one. In 2016, the Czech player’s career was derailed when a man attacked her with a knife in her own home, causing serious injuries to her hand. Kvitova was told she only had 10% chance of playing at an elite level again, but is now poised to add to her two majors and become the world No 1. Doctors feared Kvitova would never play tennis again but she made her return at the French Open the following year and is now in her first major final since winning her second Wimbledon title in 2014. “I think not very many people believe that I can do that again, to stand on the court and play tennis and kind of play on this...
The Sports #MeetUp is open to everyone who wants to enjoy both outside and inside activities while meeting up with new people. On February 16, from 13:00 to 16:00, the Winter Sports Meet-up will be held at FactoryPro (Nádražní 762/32, 150 00 Praha-Smíchov). Open to anyone who wants to enjoy outdoor and indoor fitness activities as well as meeting and training with new, like-minded people. It doesn’t matter if you’re a semi-professional athlete or a complete fitness novice, you can come along and join the hour-long yoga session, conditioning, and cardio session, foam rolling, and functional training session, and running session, all for free! You’ll be pushed to your limits in a fun and friendly environment, coached by seasoned professionals. Come along with your friends for an afternoon of fitness fun. Don’t be deterred by the cold weather – it will all be taken care of! PROGRAM: 13.00 – 13.45 1st session / FUNCTIONAL TRAINING*break, refreshments* 14.00 – 14.45 2nd session / CONDITIONING TRAINING*break, refreshments* 15.00 – 15.45 3rd session / YOGA SESSION*break, refreshments* The event is organised by GoFit.io and Foreigners Prague in cooperation with FactoryPro, yogAlive and Moose Power. Author: red
From just a few photos on their social networks, it is clear to most that this place offers something quite different from what we may be accustomed to in Prague. Is it a club, café or restaurant? Swim has solved this problem on its own – it’s all at the same time. A place where excellent cuisine meets a chic club space. In the very centre of Prague, just a short walk from Wenceslas Square, a new establishment with an original gastro-cultural concept has been created. “Club meets kitchen” is not only the concept but also the motto of this restaurant, bar and club in one. Swim connects two different aesthetics. Upstairs you will find a restaurant, at the bottom is a dance club. Both parts are not completely separate. There is an interesting synergy between them. “This concept is exceptional in the Czech environment. We did not look for inspiration only in Berlin and London, but also in ourselves and in Prague – in what it lacks,” say two of the three owners, Jakub Sedlák and Vojtěch Růžek. “We do not want to be a trendsetter. We simply felt that there was not yet a business in Prague where...
As the annual World Economic Forum meeting in Davos, Switzerland continues, Apple CEO Tim Cook today met with Czech Republic Prime Minister Andrej Babiš. Amidst discussion of progress in the Czech economy and advancements in artificial intelligence, the Prime Minister suggested Apple establish an official retail location in the country’s capital of Prague. Apple doesn’t currently operate first-party retail stores in the Czech Republic. While Apple expanded its online store to the country back in 2011, locals must still rely on a network of Apple Premium Resellers for brick and mortar sales and service. Babiš noted that Cook was “absolutely enthusiastic” that the country has more than 500 scientists working on artificial intelligence before stating that he offered Apple to build a store in Prague. Bizarrely, Babiš claims that Cook immediately agreed and began coordinating plans to do just that. “Tim Cook responded immediately, and a co-ordination team was set up to prepare a new Apple Store in Prague,” Babiš tweeted. If true, the news would be exciting for the economy in Prague and for Apple fans throughout the country. But the claims as described sound suspiciously out of character for Apple. Apple stores currently operate in eleven European countries: Austria, Belgium, France,...
“How would they like it if Czech tourists could not look inside monuments abroad?.” In this spirit, the reactions of a number of Prague citizens on social networks have been taking place in recent days. There was a photo of a sign with the inscription ‘Stop Tourists’, which someone had taken in the Basilica of St. James church in the Old Town. At a time when foreign visitors are experiencing a similarly negative attitude from local people, in cities such as Amsterdam or Venice, there is some hint of a similar trend in Prague’s centre. “We would have liked it if there was a warning that visitors would behave silently during the masses. And praying that they should go elsewhere plus a thank you. In short, the form is not good,” commented the Facebook page @prahazdarma with a pictogram crossed out by tourists. The production of the sign, nor its location in the church of St. James, is not the initiative of the Prague 1 City Hall. Similarly, social media revealed that the city’s district spokeswoman, Kateřina Písačková thinks “it is probably the work of local clergy.” The reporter of the Metro daily in Malá Štupartská Street, where the church is...
The Czech Parliament’s lower house has approved a government plan to guarantee the near-term rights of British citizens in the event of a “no-deal” Brexit. The plan means the roughly 8,000 Britons currently living in the country would retain their rights in the immediate aftermath of Brexit even if Britain crashes out of the EU in March with no deal. They would retain basically the same rights as the citizens of EU countries for a transitional period until Dec. 31, 2020. The upper house, the Senate, is also expected to approve it. Britain is due to leave the EU on March 29. After the British lawmakers rejected the divorce agreement Prime Minister Theresa May negotiated with the bloc, the prospect of a “no-deal” Brexit has been raised. Author: red
The Czech Parliament’s lower house approved a proposal drafted by Communist lawmakers to tax the compensation that the country’s churches receive for property seized by the former Communist regime. After the Communists seized power in Czechoslovakia in 1948, they confiscated all the property owned by churches, which were allowed to function only under strict state control. According to a 2012 law, the nation’s churches, including the Roman Catholic Church and the Jewish community, are to receive around 75 billion crowns over 30 years to compensate for property seized by the state. A power-sharing deal that Babiš, signed with the maverick Communists last year gave them a role in governing for the first time since the country’s 1989 anti-communist Velvet Revolution. The taxation was one of the Communists’ key conditions. Babiš argues that the compensation is too generous and needs correction. The upper house, which is controlled by the opposition, is expected to reject the Communist plan. But the Communists and the coalition formed by Babiš’ centrist ANO movement and the leftist Social Democrats hold a majority in the 200-seat lower house and can override such a veto. The anti-migrant, populist Freedom and Direct Democracy party also joined forces with the Communists....
Prague City Hall plans to make the city’s public transport and bike share system free on the smoggiest days in a bid to drive down pollution levels and meet EU air quality regulations. The idea is to encourage more people to use public transport. Formally, the decision has not yet been made. The city council will discuss it at the next meeting, but since the initiative comes from the ruling coalition itself, its approval is almost a resolved matter. A smog emergency is declared when a concentration of PM10 airborne particles exceed the limit of 100 micrograms per cubic meter for longer than twelve hours and do not fall below that limit for 24 hours. Research shows that the more space you give to cars, the more cars you attract. Indeed, most car-friendly cities are also the most congested. By giving backspace to pedestrians and cyclists, cities can create places where people meet and connect. In the coming months, Prague City Hall also intends to conduct an advertising campaign aimed at informing citizens about air pollution levels and risks. Author: red
This year the Prague City Hall will have a project to repair the Charles Bridge. At the same time, the city is looking to obtain a stone from a suitable quarry so as to begin repairs. Journalists were told by Mayor’s Deputy Adam Scheinherr that it is unclear as to how much work will go into the repairs and when they will begin. The surface of the bridge consists of roughly 66,000 blocks. According to Scheinherr, the city will find a suitable stone to replace the irreversibly damaged stone parts of the bridge. The exact schedule of the work schedule or the cost of the reconstruction will come from the project documentation. The poor condition of the arch moves the Charles Bridge into the classification of the Technical Communications Administration into a worse category than it would be if it was a good condition. On a scale of one to seven, when seven is a state of emergency, it is now classified in the sixth category. The construction of the bridge began on July 9, 1357, at the instigation of Charles IV. stone master Otlín, who gained experience in building an older stone bridge in Roudnice nad Labem. The founder...
The house is definitely not just a café, it is so much more. The memorial-protected half-timbered cottage in Stromovka is home to the community centre for the elderly, Domus Vitae. It is a place where friends, mums with children, young and old meet in the picturesque garden, just everybody, regardless of age, to relax for a while and enjoy the beauty around (and have a cake or ice cream whilst at it). When the weather isn’t pleasant, you can hide inside, where you will find seating between old photographs. You will also find a play area, books, and a computer. Internet café and everything else is here for you, so do not be afraid to use it all. The non-profit company Domus Vitae was founded in 2015 and its founders are Kateřina Čihařová and Ivan Dvořák. Both who have extensive experience both in health and social care, but also in the preparation and implementation of projects funded by national and international grant programs. Kateřina Čihařová had always had a dream of opening a place that would be pleasant and safe space for seniors and their loved ones. But when the former Stromovka railroad house was offered to her by the...
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