• Eats,  Prague,  South Bohemia,  Summer,  TravelTips

    Summer, Lately + Prague Eats!

    You know it’s summer when it’s stormy and the reality TV shows are back on! I wish I could write here more often, and I hope I will, but writing a post takes so, so many hours of editing and perfecting. Maybe I’ll do more but “imperfect” posts? (says the perfectionist) Ah well. July, one of my absolute favorite months is now fully under way and things are in a much better place for us here. Coming out of May was rough (as you might’ve inferred from the title of this post) but the wrapping up of a school year always makes me so happy, as do celebratory post-school-year trips…

  • Czech Republic,  Prague,  Travel,  TravelTips

    Where to Stay In Prague

    You may know that accommodations are now open again all over the Czech Republic – we’ve even had our first overnight stay (in eight months!!) in nearby Český Krumlov last week which was just luscious. In the spirit of the re-opening of travel, I thought I’d put together this list of recommendable hostels and hotels I’ve stayed in on my many stays in Prague, from super budget to splurge plus some details about why you might want to stay in that specific neighborhood, whether it’s your first time in Prague or tenth. HOTELS The Archibald (Kampa Island, Mala Strana, Prague 1) $$$ What I like about the Archibald is that…

  • Czech Republic,  Prague,  TravelTips,  Winter

    Valentine’s Day in Prague

    Even though this is my eighth winter in the Czech Republic, I still have never spent Valentine’s Day in Prague before. Valentine’s Day isn’t even the traditional Czech “day of love” (that would be the 1st of May) but you can’t deny that it is certainly has completely caught on! I know it’s a divisive day, with the main criticism that it is too commercialized, but my feeling is that it is whatever you want it to be. And who doesn’t love a chance to go celebrate a day of love and togetherness with someone special? After working (even during our half-term break! More on that in the next post…)…

  • Autumn,  Daily Life,  Prague,  South Bohemia

    It’s November (Life Lately)

    Hi friends, happy November! For the first time in awhile, I did not manage to make the annual ‘Spooky Movies to Watch in October’ list. Shame, that. Just for anyone interested, we did continue with our October Movie series and watched in the following order over the course of the month: The Raven (1963) – A Vincent Price classic. Hokey but perfectly Halloweeny, and containing one of the funniest spooky scenes in cinematic history: a magic duel between Price and Boris Karloff (not in a monster role) from thrones. It has to be seen to be believed. ᇫᇫᇫᇫ The Babadook (2014) – Creepy, a bit dystopic, that feeling of losing…

  • Daily Life,  Expat Life,  Prague

    Small Kindnesses in Prague

    On a day early last month after recently having got back from the States, both of us had enough time to make it to Prague for an appointment and an afternoon of rainy cafe-going. It was such a cloudy grey day but as all of our business was to take place in Nové Město (New Town), I took it as a great opportunity to poke around a few places I hadn’t got around to yet, to stroll down some streets that I had never bothered to take. Even though it wasn’t “leisure” that brought me to Prague, I always believe in injecting a bit of leisure in everything. We passed…

  • Czech Republic,  Prague,  Travel,  TravelTips

    So, You’re Going to Prague? (A Mini-Guide of my Favorites)

    prague is now europe’s fifth most visited city as of 2016, surpassed by only london, paris, istanbul, and rome. so chances are, if you haven’t already been, you might be planning on going to prague soon, especially since summer’s coming up. i get a few emails and comments about what to do in prague, and man, that’s a hard question to answer in an email, let alone a comment! so! consider this post my e-mail to you about my favorite things and places to visit in the city.  this is by no means an exhaustive guide (hah) but rather just my favorite places that i’ve been to loads of times and like…

  • Czech Republic,  Life Abroad,  Prague,  Winter

    Prague: The Eternal Winter City

    why am i always in you in the winter, prague? i barely know what a prague summer is like. maybe it’s because i’m busy going other places in the summer. so, prague is a winter city as i know it. the trees are always bare, people bundled up, and what seems like never-ending christmas markets. spent a fantastic first few days of the new year in this city that i love with my mom, who headed to the airport to go back to the U.S. afterwards. the sight and experience of walking along the charles bridge (especially at night) will always be one of my favorite things, even if i…

  • Eats,  Life Abroad,  Prague

    Starbucks Abroad: Prague

    so, i can’t hide it. i’m from the seattle area and i love starbucks. i’ve worked for them for almost four years directly preceding this adventure. in fact, i was a barista trainer, teaching new employees the low down on how to make the perfect cup of coffee or latte. so, love it or hate it, it’s with me now… there’s no getting away from it. and visiting starbucks abroad really makes me feel at home. i can have a cappuccino or a macchiato any old day, but i can rarely get a good cup of christmas blend or a gingerbread latte, so it’s something special these days. recently while…

  • Prague,  Winter

    Prahably

    i sometimes do things on the weekends like walk around charles bridge and take in the amazing lit up architecture of mala strana. drink dark unfiltered beer in some nice friendly pub in hradcanska with friends. going to america bar on america street in vinohrady. explore new streets that used to be unfamiliar to me. refresh my memory of what tram routes go which places.  take a nice foggy morning walk to the starbucks at ip pavlova for a gingerbread latte. i do these things and love life. and this view will never get old. (photos from walking home, last january)

  • Prague,  Winter

    scavenger hunt

    in mid-january, alex’s family asked us to do a scavenger hunt of certain things as part of their family birthday activity back in michigan. we went looking for some of these things in prague, especially since we had a lot of time on our hands then…. here is what we found. the stipulation is that we must appear in each photo to prove we were there. a traffic light a flag as big as a table (hard to tell from this, but it’s true) something(s) yellow a fast food restaurant (that time i actually had a panic episode in the mustek metro station right before this) a bus (this on taken…