czechia Archives – Page 10 of 25

The Czechs have many bizarre and unusual traditions: the Christmas carp in the bathtub, and whipping the women in their lives in exchange for shots of alcohol at Easter, just to name a few.

On December 5^th is possibly the Czech Republic’s most bizarre, and terrifying tradition: St Nicholas Day.

There are a few legends about him, the most known is probably that one, which says how he saved there poor young sisters.

Their father had no money, so the girls were about to become prostitutes to make their living. Nicholas heard of it, and at night, when no one could have seen him, threw three purses filled with gold coins into the house, so the sisters were saved. Nicholas inherited a lot of money from his rich parents and thus he gave many other anonymous gifts to the poorest people.

Later it was found, that the benefactor was he, and after his death, rich people were anonymously gifting the poor ones in his honor.

On the evening before his svátek (name day) on December 6, squares in villages, towns, and cities around the Czech Republic come alive for a pre-Christmas celebration that is almost as big a deal, at least for children, as the full-blown Christmas holiday on December 24.

You will notice people walking around in groups of three, wearing eccentric costumes: Angel, devil, and Mikuláš go to see the kids! They usually ring on the door, parents bring the kids to the doorstep, St. Nicholas asks the kids whether they behaved well during the last year.

Children who have been well-behaved during the year will be rewarded with sweets or a small gift. The more impressive their song or poem is, the bigger this reward will be. Those unfortunate children who have not behaved well during the year will be thrust into the devil’s sack and… carried to hell!

With this in mind, small children are understandably worried by the presence of the Devil. So when St. Nicholas and his entourage approach, the children sing their song or recite their poem with great gusto.

Needless to say, Mikulas acts as a strong incentive to be good throughout the year!

Preschools usually teach children a poem to recite, and sometimes they let the children go in pairs to ease stage fright and perhaps to speed up the process.

So if you are in Prague on the 5th of December, it is worth it to take a walk in the city after the sunset. You can admire wonderful masks of Nicholas, beautiful angels and scary devils. Traditionally, the biggest meeting of them takes place in Old Town Square every year.

Czechs really know how to make the most of the holiday season. Christmas in Prague is a fairy-tale mix of twinkle lights, majestic trees, Christmas markets, smell of hot wine and sweets. So get out and enjoy the unique atmosphere.

November 30
First lighting of Christmas tree and opening of the Christmas market at Old Town Square
When: on Saturday at 4:30 p.m.
other days every hour starting from 4:30 p.m., last lighting at 9:30 p.m.

Lighting of Christmas tree at Břevnov monastery
When: starting at 5 p.m
Where: Bělohorská 150

November 30 – December 1
Mint market
Design market with original Czech fashion, jewellery, accessories and delicacies.
Where: Pražská tržnice, hall 11&17
Free entry, pets allowed

November 30 – December 1
Dyzajn market winter
Buy an original xmas present at Dyzajn market where you can find original Czech artwork and design pieces.
There will be also creative workshops, theatre shows for kids, live music, good food & hot wine.
Where: Václav Havel square
When: from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m.
Free entry

November 30
“Plný Block”
Enjoy xmas atmosphere at Vnitroblock. You will find here stands with local design products, creative xmas workshops, live music, DJs, special xmas drinks and sweets.
Where: Tusarova 31, Prague 7
When: 9 a.m till 11:59 p.m.

November 30 – December 1
“Mikulášské jízdy Prahou”
Special St. Nicolas rides with a steam train.
Where: Smíchov train station
For more info see www.cd.cz

November 30
Opening of ice skating rink at Letná
When: 4 p.m. – 9 p.m.
Free entrance

December 1
Opening of the ice skating rink under Zizkov TV Tower.
Entrance fee: 120 CZK for 2 hours

November 29 – November 30
Prague beer fest at Pragovka
You can taste winter and xmas beers of 30 Czech and foreign brewers and sample new gastronomic specialities matched to beers.
Tickets online on goout.net or on the festival. (100CZK or 150 CZK)
When: noon – 10 p.m.
Where: Kolbenova 34a

December 1
Charity bazaar with Czech bloggers
When: 2 p.m.- 7 p.m.
Where: Sochařská 8, Letná

November 30 – December 22
Advent on the Lucerna rooftop.
When: only advent weekends
Entry 100CZK, kids for free

December 5
St. Nicolas day at Old Town Square and Karlín market

December 6
“Dva kohouti” celebrates 1st birthday
When: 4:30 p.m. – 2:30 a.m.
Where: Sokolovská 55

Follow Expatsbuddy on Instagram for more useful tips in Prague!

Prague is one of the most up and coming holiday destinations at the moment. People of all ages are beginning to recognise the many attractions that the Czech Republic capital has to offer.

If the closest you’ve ever got to visit this amazing part of the world is one of the online betting sites in Czech Republic, it’s time to think about planning your first trip. While the cultural sights are among the top things to see when tourists arrive in Prague, another major draw of this party city is its many pubs and bars. With food and drink being so affordable here, it isn’t too surprising that visitors from all over the world flock here to experience the city’s nightlife.

For those who enjoy nothing more than sitting back and relaxing with a drink, there’s no shortage of bars in the Czech capital, however, some of the most popular are those which show live sports. For any sports fan, there’s nothing better than hanging out in a sports bar, enjoying the atmosphere of the energetic crowd while you watch your favourite sports on the big screen. Whatever type of sports you love, here are five of the top spots to visit in Prague to get your fill.

1. The Dutch Pub

One of the top places in Prague to watching sports whole you enjoy some food and drink is the Dutch Pub. This stylish restaurant is right in the centre of the city’s historic heart and it’s the perfect place to grab a burger or a steak. Its interior is decorated in the traditional Dutch style, while if you’re keen to get away from the noise for a little while, the garden is a peaceful haven. You can watch the Europa League, the Champions League and more on two huge screens.

2. The James Joyce Irish Pub

James Joyce is the oldest and first pub of its kind in the city, and it brings a taste of true Ireland to this quiet part of Prague. Located just a five-minute stroll away from the Old Town Square, this traditional pub has a casual atmosphere and offers a hearty, warm welcome as well as some of Prague’s freshest Guinness. You’ll find TV coverage of all the major sporting occasions here, and with its calm setting, you might be able to really focus on the action here!

3. McCarthy’s Irish Pub

This venue is the first one of its kind in the Czech Republic’s capital city, with extra-long opening hours so you can dance to your heart’s content. Located between Wenceslas Square the Old Town Square, this Irish Pub and Disco has a traditional Irish feel, and offers a great blend of a lively atmosphere, fantastic drinks and on-screen coverage of all your favourite sports. Even better, its basement is home to a disco where you can boogie until dawn!

4. Jama Restaurant

This American-style venue is known for its great choice of beers, all from local microbreweries, and its tasty burger menu. Popular with locals as well as tourists, Jama Restaurant has a pub-like environment with a screen that shows favourite American sports like baseball, hockey and football. Located near Wenceslas Square, this venue has a lively atmosphere that is sure to delight.

5. WingHaus Sports Bar

This restaurant and sports bar claims that it has the city’s best burgers, salads and chicken wings – claims that it can truly substantiate. This venue has two bars on two floors as well as a projector screen and ten televisions so it’s the perfect place to go to catch any major sporting event.

Exploring Prague’s Bar Life

If you’re a sports fan who also loves to relax over a drink, Prague has plenty of great places to visit during your stay in the city. Why not take the time to discover some of the capital’s top tourist attractions before heading to one of these bars and restaurants to watch your favourite sporting events over a glass of cold beer? It all adds up to the ideal vacation!

Ready to live an interactive experience? Image yourself in a historical abandoned building from the 17th century. This space will come to life and allow you to feel and see the synergy between music and art. It’s an experience and event that you don’t want to miss on, the Katarze’s First Encounter.

On Saturday, December 7^th, the music and art world will mesh at Katarze’s first encounter in the abandoned Nuselský Pivovar. Historical fun fact: it was once of the largest and most visited industrial breweries in Central Europe. This might be the last time to get the privilege to experience the inside of this building.

On this night, lose yourself in the sounds of two up-and-coming artists from Hamburg, Germany: Jonez and Fathia. Be a part of giving both of them a warm welcome, as they will be playing in the Czech Republic for the first time. Fathia’s love and connection to the German sounds has led her to be invited to play with world-respected DJ Adam Bayer, and has recently released two new track releases, Encoding/ Decoding.

Along with Jonez and Fathia and Czech DJ Vilem will be performing a LIVE set in this space enriched with art installations by Czech artists: Míra Macík, Karolína Vorlíková, Jana Mercogliano, Marek Vavřinec, and Sabina Falcmanová.

The combination of true culture, innovative art pieces, and underground music will bring the audience to a new state of reality. All the artist’s projects will have a huge impact in revealing an exciting and creative atmosphere.

Don’t come with any expectations, just want to wander around and explore different perspectives from the diverse installations. There will also be live art done during the event, glass structures illuminated with neon lights inside, and through all of this, you will also have the chance to end your path to a musical stage.

The mind behind this event is Katarze, a name that comes from the Greek word Katharsis, which means purification, cleansing, or clarification. The aim is to share love, inspiration, and respect for techno music, leading to the purification of emotions through art or the change in feelings to renewal and restoration. The goal is to confront emotions such as pity and fear, creating an atmosphere and an area where the attendees can forget about their burdens and leave feeling at peace and renewed.

Be one of the first to witness this event live for the first time. Remember that places and moments can never be recreated, take part in a movement that is state-of-the-art.

The first art machine in the Czech Republic launched on Tuesday.

Located in the upper part of Krymská Street in Prague 10, Artmat is made from an old cigarette machine that has a new look and function. Every box that falls out of the machine hides a small piece of art from students or graduates of art schools, but also from renowned Czech artists.

The aim of the project is mainly to introduce young artists (students and recent graduates). The form of selling art in old vending machines is inspired by other countries, particularly Germany, where similar vending machines are popular places to obtain an original souvenir.

In this old cigarette vending machine, those interested will now find boxes with small works of art such as graphic prints and illustrations, which are always accompanied by a text. “It is an original opportunity to spread quality art to the wider public, to support the work of young artists and to enrich the public space,” said Artmat founders Petra Widžová and Josefína Frýbová.

They have been following the burgeoning art scene for a long time, selecting interesting and quality artists and designers.

The unusual, playful form and location of the vending machine in the public space is therefore accessible to anyone, including foreigners, who can buy an original souvenir from a Czech artist.

Among the presented artists, the illustrator and graphic designer Martin Kyjovský, who has created a collector’s edition of playing cards for the Artmat, the illustrative group Nýbrž, the painter Martin Salajka and his limited edition of colour linocuts, Barbora Idesová with his mini serigraphy and Jakub Mikuláštík with a series dedicated to Czech birds.

Artists will gradually increase.

Photo: Facebook Artmat – automat na umění

Photo: Facebook Artmat – automat na umění

Photo: Facebook Artmat – automat na umění

Photo: Facebook Artmat – automat na umění

Rossiya Airlines increases the number of its flights between Prague and St. Petersburg, Russia.

From 30 March 2020, the carrier will add four weekly flights, on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Sunday, to the existing daily service. Rossiya Airlines will fly between the two destinations twice a day.

Airbus A320 for 128 passengers will be used to operate all flights on the route, including the new frequencies.

Based on Prague Airport’s estimates, the four added flights have the potential to attract up to twenty thousand passengers in both directions during the declared period of operation.

In addition to Rossiya Airlines, also Smartwings fly on the route between Prague and the second largest city of Russia.

Prague Airport experienced a 6% increase in the number of passengers handled during the peak summer season, that is, from July to September. In absolute terms, a total of 5,812,597 passengers passed through the gates of Václav Havel Airport Prague.

Although it was August that was the busiest month, Prague Airport saw the highest year-to-year increase in passenger numbers in September.

For more information, visit the carrier’s website

Domino’s Pizza is continuing its global growth momentum with the opening of its first store in the Czech Republic. Residents of Brno can now enjoy hot, made-to-order pizza in-store or delivered to their doorstep by Domino’s, through a partnership with master franchisee Daufood Czech Republic S.R.O.

“I am so proud of the team that helped bring the global Domino’s brand to the Czech Republic,” said Jose Marti, chief executive officer of Daufood. “We look forward to sharing our delicious products, excellent customer service and prompt delivery with the citizens of Brno.”

The first location is in the Vinohrady area of Brno (Lidická 629/39) and features the new pizza theater design, a refreshing and inviting interior, stylish seating, as well as a front-row seat to watch all the action of pizza-making. A second location will be opening in Brno’s city center, with additional locations planned for next year.

“Establishing ourselves in the Czech Republic provides an excellent opportunity for our brand to continue its global momentum,” said Joe Jordan, Domino’s executive vice president of international. “With a terrific, proven master franchisee like Daufood, we are confident that Domino’s will be able to establish itself as the pizza delivery brand of choice in Brno.”

Domino’s now operates in more than 85 markets worldwide, with more than half of its global retail sales coming from international stores.

About Domino’s PizzaFounded in 1960, Domino’s Pizza is the largest pizza company in the world based on retail sales, with a significant business in both delivery and carryout pizza. It ranks among the world’s top public restaurant brands with a global enterprise of more than 16,500 stores in over 85 markets.

In late 2017, Domino’s began an industry-first test of self-driving vehicle delivery, and inJune 2019 announced a partnership with Nuro, furthering its exploration and testing of autonomous pizza delivery.

Prague ranks 13th in a new index of the world’s 113 cities in terms of economic and social inclusivity, topped by Zurich in Switzerland.

The first-ever Prosperity & Inclusion City Seal and Awards (PICSA) Index, released in the Basque Country capital of Bilbao in northern Spain on Thursday evening, is designed to showcase not only the quantity of economic growth of a city but also its quality and distribution across populations.

“As the first-ever non-commercial ranking index, PICSA provides a new measure of economic productivity that goes beyond GDP to provide a holistic account of how well people are doing in the economy and which have the populations that are most empowered to contribute to its economy and share in its benefits,” explained Asier Alea Castanos, Director of Strategic Programmes at the Regional Council of Biscay, in reference to the index launch.

“There is increasing recognition in governments and also the private sector that success needs to be judged in new ways: factors like health, housing affordability and quality of life need to be put alongside jobs, skills, and incomes when measuring prosperity,” he said.

Commissioned by Basque institutions and compiled by D&L Partners, the PICSA Index measures factors such as the affordability of housing and access to education and healthcare, besides GDP per capita.

It marks the first time that the world’s major cities have been ranked not just by the size and health of their economy, but for their efforts to build inclusive and prosperous environments for all its citizens.

Zurich, as the number one, scores strongly across all measures, particularly on the quality of life, work, housing, leisure, safety, and education – with the Swiss higher education system attaining an especially high score.

Vienna scores close to top marks on healthcare. Copenhagen, Luxembourg, and Helsinki complete the top five.

The higher end of the list is dominated by European cities, with 15 of the top 20, joined by four North American cities (Ottawa in 8th place; Washington DC ranked 11th; Seattle in 14th and Boston in 16th) and Taipei, which is the only Asian city to make it into the top 20 at 6th place.

Dr. Bruno Lanvin, Founder, and CEO at D&L Partners, said: “Without equity and inclusion, economic growth is not sustainable. Without growth, equity is about redistributing poverty.

For the index, the cities were assessed on comparable data from the main focus areas by a jury of experts and business leaders. These assessments then produced an overall score for each city’s inclusive prosperity, allowing them to be ranked based on a wide range of measures.

Food quality is an increasingly discussed topic in Czech society because Czechs are becoming more interested in and aware about what they eat.

They could have been skeptical about certain foods entering their bodies, but they never knew for sure. And that was the biggest problem: there was no such database in which to find detailed information about most foods. Then came along Petr Václavek and his latest, innovative application— Foodgroot.

Foodgroot has become the gateway in helping customers figure out from a wide range of products what is exactly in them. The app is able to learn your habits and help you choose according to what foods you just want or needs to eat, and while shopping at a store it then immediately recommends which foods are suitable for you.

Moreover, it determines the overall quality, origin(s) of the food, and their impact on the environment or effect on your health. In the app, you scan the bar code of the selected food which then runs the information about its quality, origin, or environmental impact. All in maximum detail. The app rates products on over 70 parameters.

Photo: Foodgroot

“What Google did to the internet, we’re doing for the food market,” Václavek said about Foodgroot in an interview with Brian Kenety in November 2018. “Food is a basic, essential part of our lives, and we should know [what’s in it].”

Václavek and his team worked on the platform for months, testing it with several hundred users this year and is now seeing the light at the end of the tunnel from launching Foodgroot among the users. Tomáš Čupr and his biggest Czech online supermarket, Rohlik.cz, has become partner with future development.

“From the outset, our goal was to find a strong strategic partner, because integrating our solution into online platforms is an essential tool for the rapid growth of our platform. In parallel, of course, we are also preparing a stand-alone application covering the whole market,” said the Foodgroot founder.

Tomáš Čupr and his online grocery store will use the Czech application for comparison of food quality in his shop. The integration of Foodgroot into Rohlík will take place in the coming weeks or months.

Power of smart purchasing

Foodgroot is a free app and knowing this brings in the question of how Václavek will make a profit. Václavek stated he is not too worried, for he plans to install in-app purchases on the app, where users and customers alike can buy their (healthy) goods and needs right from there. He also wishes to extend this new food app to the EU nations. This is a smart way to bring in profit and benefit from his own business, as well as the app be beneficial to Czech society. For the time being, however, Václavek will let Foodgroot flourish into the large platform it is soon yet to become.

Combining business and fun for one’s enjoyment can now become more common thanks to Endorfin— a company whose main focus is in satisfying and delighting their customers to a high degree, providing a “space where [one] can do business, have fun, and have some more fun on top of that!”

Inside Endorfin are two main areas for venues and hosted events: one main hall, and bar lounge. The halls are for business-related events specifically, but all three areas are oriented for any social event. Banquets or other private events also apply, including offered catering. One must book in advance!

Our exciting escape rooms games—for grown-ups and kids—include themes from ‘Titanic’, ‘Star Wars’, ‘Freddy Krueger’, ‘The Morgue’, ‘The Morgue 2’ and ‘Saw’ (team games are ‘Mad Head’ and ‘Push & Play’).

For those unfamiliar with the term, escape rooms are where a group of players are in a confined space from which they must escape in due time with the help of their ingenuity, logic, and imagination. Combining marvelous stage sets with modern technology will transform any event into a special one.

Endorfin is equipped with modern facilities and a bar and an escape game to make one’s event more thrilling. Additionally, it has collaborated with big-name brands such as Honeywell, Coca Cola, and L’Oréal for throwing events. One may go along with the establishment’s entertainment or their own. Regardless of the decision, Endorfin is ready to offer people a great time.

Come bridge business activities with some amusement!

Contacts:

Petrohradská 216/3, Prague 10 – Vrsovice, 101 00
+420 725 944 311
info@endorfin.cz

Photo: Endorfin

Photo: Endorfin

Photo: Endorfin

This year, more streets will be festively decorated in Prague. The municipality is investing almost four million CZK in the lighting, and in the past years, it spent around two million CZK on decorations. Residents of Prague 9 will also see Christmas decorations in some of their streets this year.

The capital will have Christmas trees in Na Příkopě Street, and a small park in the Old Town Square, as well as lighting on them, told Prague City Council spokesman Vit Hofman. “Starting this year, the lighting of the city will be much more extensive, in more streets,” he added.

The municipality will provide Christmas decorations in the city center, for example on Mariánské náměstí, Old Town and Wenceslas Square, Smetana, and Dvořák Embankments, Evropská and Na Příkopě streets.

Unlike in previous years, Christmas decorations will also sparkle Prague 9 this year. “You will see lights in Vysočany, Sokolovská Street, from Balabenka to UN Square and Freyova Street,” said City Hall spokeswoman Marie Kurková. Some streets in Prosek will also be decorated, where there will be a Christmas tree in the Friendship Park (Park Přátelství).

According to Jana Hamrníka, the City Hall of Prague 10 will pay 917,000 CZK for Christmas decorations this year. In addition to the main Christmas tree on Kubánské Square, there will be 33 small trees for kindergartens and elementary schools, and another eight trees will be decorated within the areas of the city district.

This year’s Prague 5 decoration will cost 1.5 million CZK, said Jitka Drmolová on behalf of the city district, stating that it is preparing a new illuminated LED decors. The Modřany Town Hall will pay almost 300,000 CZK for Christmas decorations.

The streets of Prague will start lighting next week, and on the weekend of November 30 and December 1, the festive lighting of Christmas trees will take place. The decoration in the city will remain mostly until January 6.

ICON Communication Centres s.r.o. (ICON) received a 2019 ABSL (Association of Business Service Leaders) Czech Republic Diamond Award for ‘Customer Initiative’ at a gala awards ceremony in Brno.

This category focused on rewarding a services sector business that had produced an innovative initiative to significantly improve customer satisfaction and deliver superior services. The ABSL Czech Republic recognized the technology transformation ICON made to the customer care processes of its client, a leading provider of payment services to a global network of car park operators.

ICON provides a 24/7 365 multilingual customer care solution that assists car park users struggling to use the client’s automated payment system. The award-winning outsourcing solution devised and deployed by ICON, unified disparate systems under a suite of new technologies that streamlined the management of incoming customer inquiries across thousands of parking sites worldwide. To demonstrate the significant improvement to the ABSL Czech Republic judging panel, ICON presented key metrics that resulted from its initiative –

the cost per customer service interaction was reduced to less than 25% of the cost prior to the solution implementation
the average handle time (AHT) of incoming customer calls was reduced from 3-4 minutes to less than 1 minute
email response times were reduced from 1-2 days down to 4-5 business hours

“This BPO solution was driven entirely by ICON’s Operations and Customer Success teams. They identified how technology integrated with talented colleagues could provide a vastly improved customer experience for our client, and they had the expertise to implement it whilst maintaining costs. This initiative demonstrates the added consultative value ICON brings to every client relationship by actively seeking opportunities for business transformation to maximise client return on investment (ROI).”
Helen Hickin – CEO – ICON Communication Centres

The client’s fixed budget meant that ICON absorbed the entire cost of the technology outlay. Highly accurate forecasting ensured confidence in the solution outcome, which ultimately resulted in the client being able to achieve more within their budget whilst vastly improving their customer experience. ICON moved its client from an unstructured system and a lack of business intelligence to having 100% visibility across all customer care costs and location costs. The big data now available significantly improves the client’s ability to confidently scale their business. ICON’s entire customer care transformation took just weeks from conception to delivery.

“This project brings a whole new life to the phrase – ‘going the extra mile for the client.’ In this case, the client was a successful global parking operator struggling to scale their operations. ICON recognised the client challenge and took a significant gamble to devote their time and resources to explore and solve the multiple issues holding back their clients growth. By deploying their own customer service and IT teams on the client, ICON were able to implement an end-to-end transformation of the client systems, combined with innovative new digital tools. All of this was achieved without ‘ the client lifting a finger’!”
John Appleton – Managing Director – ABSL Czech Republic

The Association of Business Service Leaders in the Czech Republic (ABSL) is the leading member organization representing the business services sector in the Czech Republic. Its members include companies that conduct business in the area of Shared Services Centre (SSC), Business Process Outsourcing (BPO), Information Technology Outsourcing (ITO), Research and Development (R&D) and companies contributing to the sector’s growth.

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