Czech wines excel at international wine contest
- Southern Moravian wines are winning medals

TV makers give Central Europe high ratings
- LCD and plasma television manufacturing big in Czech Republic and its neighbors

Vivaldi’s long-lost opera returns to Prague after 278 years
- missing manuscript completed and performed at Prague Castle

Fake blog caught promoting bank
The curious case of the phantom blogger
- fake blogs also an issue in the Czech Republic

Oscar dream comes true for young Czech musician Markéta Irglová
Home town of Markéta Irglová celebrates her Oscar success
- Markéto a Glene, gratulujeme!

Czech police seek missing bridge
- How do you hide a four-ton iron bridge? Most likely it has already been recycled.

Lights dimming on gambler’s paradise
- Herna bars are all over our Prague district with two even next door to each other.

Budvar ups exports to record 587,000 hl of beer in 2007
- For those living in South Korea, Brazil or Albania, Budvar is now being distributed to your country.

The American coffeeshop chain Starbucks is finally coming to Prague! And I say, it is about time! No, I am not being ironic and I realize there are many of you who don’t get excited about the “stand in line and get your coffee to go in a paper cup” concept. All you Starbucks haters are probably dreading the moment the American monster opens its polished glass doors in the middle of Malá Strana and its sterile counters, plastic spoons and Wi-Fi slowly overtake our old world. To be honest, I don’t really care one way or another about Starbucks. I don’t mind it, I don’t need it. But there is one thing they make that I can’t get enough of: Mocha Frappuccino! If they bring it to Prague, my list of things to indulge in on my trips to the U.S. will be one item shorter. I know this is going to sound dumb and girly, but I am in fact really excited about having Starbucks’ heavenly, chocolatey concoction a tram ride away.

And here’s another piece of news. The first Starbucks location is to open in the space that has been used by Square restaurant on Malostranské náměstí. Looks like Square will have to find another square to move to. Too bad, but at least I won’t have far to go for coffee after I’m finished with my Subway sandwich.

Starbucks uvaří první kávu v Česku na konci ledna
Kavárny Starbucks budou mít v lednu premiéru v Praze
Cukrárna se přemění na první český Starbucks

Here’s an update: Czech Republic’s first Starbucks opened on January 18, 2008

I bought a sandwich at the hip Bio Cafes on Americká a few days ago. I give the place credit for trying to be different. The interior looks cool, bright and very clean, the restaurant is non-smoking and all the food and drinks they sell are organic, or bio as we say here in the Czech Republic. I had bought sandwiches there a couple of times before and never found them very exciting, but I was hungry and I was passing by, so I thought I’d give the place another chance. I chose the prepackaged Roma sandwich, which was described as focaccia with basil pesto, lettuce, tomatoes, mozzarella and another type of cheese the name of which escapes me. When I got home, I unwrapped it and took a bite. I found myself chewing nothing but day old bread. I opened up the sandwich to discover its tired contents, apparently put on by a very tired employee. I wasn’t sure if I should feel frustrated or amused. In the end, I laughed and took a picture. I proceeded to take two more bites, gave up and threw the rest into the garbage.

So, guys, the bio idea’s good. Now all you need to do is teach your people how to make a sandwich.

P.S. To be fair, I must admit the soups are excellent.

Here’s an October 10 update: I went back and got the 119 CZK menu of spinach soup, bean salad and freshly squeezed vegetable juice. It was all very enjoyable. It’s just the sandwiches that are a bit… iffy.

I think it is safe to say that mushroom picking is a Czech national leisure activity. The mushroom season usually lasts from June/July through October. Last year’s harvests were especially generous thanks to the rains and cool temperatures. On our weekend trips from Prague, we would see people returning from forests with baskets full of gorgeous suchohřiby, křemenáče, bedly and other mouthwatering varieties. As we sat in our train compartment, we went by people’s yards and caught glimpses of piles of fresh mushrooms being cleaned in preparation for dinner or to be sliced up and dried. From the bus windows, we watched rows of colorful holubinky line the road.

We haven’t been taking very many trips this summer but I hear that this is another good year for mushrooming. Even rare kinds of mushrooms, ones that can be seen just a few times in a lifetime, can supposedly be found in the Vysočina (Bohemian-Moravian Highlands) region where the weather has been just right.

When we were in Italy last fall, we marvelled at the abundance of fresh forest mushrooms that were sold at outdoor produce markets. I was jealous and wondered why forest mushrooms aren’t sold anywhere in the Czech Republic, a country that is so devoted to mushrooming. Is it because people are expected to pick their own mushrooms?

There’s a good article on mushrooming on the Radio Praha website.