Dana – Page 33

They’re for Poop, Not for Lunch

December 6, 2005 By Dana Leave a Comment

Back in October, there was a discussion on the My Czech Republic message boards about Czechs and their dogs. It didn’t take long and the topic turned to dog owners leaving their animal friends’ poop unattended on the sidewalks.

The city of Prague is trying to do good. It is now a common sight to see special doggie garbage cans that include a dispenser of complimentary paper bags that people can use to pick up after their dogs. It is however less common to see the dispensers actually contain any paper bags. On the boards, Viktor may have explained why by posting his story about having witnessed two Czech women happily removing all the bags from one of the dispensers to take them home and use them as lunch bags. We had a laugh and at the same time I sighed and thought to myself how hard it is to change certain things in this country when people’s thinking remains tainted by the communist conception that everything belongs to everybody and public property is up for grabs.

I was reminded of the dog poop discussion today as I was walking down Národní. My eyes fell on a doggie garbage can. It had a dispenser and the dispenser contained paper bags. The paper bags looked different from those I had seen before. There was a printed note on them saying that the bags are not meant for storing foodstuffs. Word about the alternate use of the bags must have arrived at the city hall, and the city hall responded.

The city of Prague is trying to do good and is persisting despite the fact that its efforts are being undermined by some of its own residents who won’t spend 20 Kč for a package of lunch bags at Tesco. I wonder if these people would rather continue to dodge piles of dog poop, stepping into them every so often and smearing them along the sidewalks with their shoes. I also wonder how long the city of Prague is going to keep up their attempts to do good. It may be only a matter of time until the complimentary paper bags disappear from the streets altogether because those who have been putting them there will finally give up.

Happy Mikuláš!

December 5, 2005 By Dana 1 Comment

It’s St. Nicholas Day tomorrow, so Jeff and I went to look at the Old Town Square to see the Mikuláš processions (you can read more about the tradition here). It was more fun than I expected. We got there a little after 5 p.m. and things were slowly getting going. The first groups of Mikuláš, Angel and Devil were starting to appear, causing all the kids to stare with curiosity and wide-eyed awe. The best Mikuláš and Devil we saw came all the way from the town of Telč and stationed themselves in front of the regioninfo office to promote their Highlands region, hand out koláče and impress the kids. Their costumes were really top notch!

After dinner at Kolkovna, we came back to the square around 6:30 p.m. and the action was in full swing. Small groups consisting of various renditions of St. Nicholas with his beard and cane, the Devil with his chain and sack, and the occasional winged Angel were surrounded by families and onlookers. The children obediently recited poems and bashfully accepted candy for their efforts. Foreign tourists watched with interest and took pictures. Everyone seemed in a good mood.

We made an interesting observation. There were far more Devils than Angels on the streets. Does this say anything about the Czech character? 🙂

St. Nicholas Tradition on the Old Town Square in Prague St. Nicholas, the Angel and the Devils with the Old Town Hall in the Background

The Christmas Tree Is Up!

November 22, 2005 By Dana 2 Comments

The Christmas tree that is going to adorn Prague’s Old Town Square this year was transported to Prague yesterday. It started its journey in Rudolph’s Valley in the Krkonoše Mountains in Eastern Bohemia and arrived at the outskirts of Prague in the afternoon. The 20-meter tall tree was installed on the Old Town Square last night and was being decorated when we dropped by there this evening. Other work was going on in setting up the annual Christmas market that is scheduled to open this Saturday. The Old Town Square had an unusual look tonight – that of a construction site almost devoid of the typical mix of tourists and locals returning from work.

The Christmas tree will be lit at 6 p.m. this Sunday, November 27, by the mayor of Prague Pavel Bém.

Wenceslas Square will not have a real tree this year. A 15-meter tall artificial tree will be used instead.

Christmas Tree on Old Town Square, Nov. 22, 2005

Thumbs Up for Prague Wine

November 12, 2005 By Dana Leave a Comment

Just got back from a most enjoyable lunch/dinner at U Grébovky in Prague-Vršovice (you can read about them on our Prague Restaurants page on My Czech Republic). The food and dessert were delicious as usual and I finally got to try the wine from the Grébovka vineyard, i.e. wine produced from the grapes that are grown right here in Prague, in the Havlíčkovy Sady park on the border of Vršovice and Vinohrady. I didn’t expect much, but all three of us who shared the bottle and who are more or less spoiled by French and Napa Valley wines were impressed with it. It’s too bad that the vineyard has recently decided to keep all their wine to themselves and the restaurant is not going to carry it anymore. Oh well, we’ll just have to try one of their South Moravian selections next.

(Inside info: The Grébovka wine that’s going to be sold AT the vineyard has supposedly been commercialized and made into a boring table wine. I guess the only way to verify it is to go and try it.)

« Previous Page