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Beyond Prague - Žďár Nad Sázavou

9/30/2020

Prelate's residence at the monastery in Zdar nad Sazavou

If you’ve been following my blog, you’ll know that this summer I spent a lot more time traveling than I usually do. As a tour guide, my summers are usually spent working – a lot – so the tourist season is normally not that for me! Sadly, due to the Coronavirus, my tour business was virtually nonexistent this year, so I decided to hit the road. But the pandemic also made travel outside of one’s country a bit difficult or impossible – so I did something I hadn’t done since I first moved to Prague: I traveled around the Czech Republic.

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Český Krumlov – a Southern Bohemian Fairy tale

8/18/2020

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View from the castle in Český Krumlov

I mentioned in my last blog post that I’ve been using my free time - resulting from (sadly) the lack of tourists - to travel around the Czech Republic. My first stop was Hluboka Chateau, next was the fairy tale-like town of Český Krumlov.

Český Krumlov is one of my favorite places – not just in the Czech Republic, but in the world. In fact, though it had been more than a decade since my last visit, I realized that this was my 11th visit to the town, and with the exception of one business trip, all were for pleasure. It’s a great weekend escape from Prague.

Austrian charm

Located in Southern Bohemia near the Austrian border, you’ll notice an Austrian feel in Český Krumlov (Krumlau in German). With a castle that sits atop a bluff overlooking a hairpin turn in the Vltava river, sloping medieval rooftops and a Rumpelstiltskin tower, this medieval town is dripping with charm. And the views from the castle are simply stunning. No matter where you’re perched on it, each view offers a picture-perfect photo op – or plein air site for the artists among you.

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Prague day trips - hluboka chateau

7/17/2020

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Hluboka Chateau in South Bohemia

There are many places in the Czech Republic beyond Prague that are well worth a visit. And due to the Coronavirus and related travel restrictions, I don't have a lot of tour clients at the moment, unfortunately. But that means I have a lot more time on my hands in the summer than I usually do, so once we eased restrictions earlier this month, I hit the road!

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prague castle for locals

6/8/2020

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The View from Prague Castle

While Prague continues to open up from its strict Coronavirus lockdown, it still has not fully opened to foreign travel – for either visitors coming in or Czechs wishing to go abroad. So for the first time since the days of communism, really, locals are having their city to themselves.

In efforts to promote domestic travel & tourism, hotels & tourists sites are offering all manner of discounts & coupons, with some luxury brands that previously catered almost solely to foreigners, such as the Four Seasons, offering special packages to suit a local budget. The government has also issued coupons for hotels to give to guests that provide reduced entry into various sites.

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Prague is Opening Up!

5/26/2020

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After two months in COVID lockdown, Prague is opening up!

And things are happening quickly.

Just this month we’ve seen:

Movie theaters open on May 11th (with a max of two people together & a seat between viewers),
Outdoor gatherings up to 10 people allowed,
Restaurants serving food at outdoor tables only from May 5th with 6 feet between tables (previously only take away from a window or delivery was allowed),
Restaurants serving customers indoors from yesterday, and
The BIG NEWS: the ability to go outdoors without a mask!

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Czech republic continues to ease coronavirus restrictions

4/23/2020

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In my last blog post, I reported that the Czech Republic had begun to ease Coronavirus restrictions. This decision was made after we had good results from a five-week strict lockdown.

So Far, so good

Naturally, there was some concern about whether easing too soon might tempt people to let down their guard completely, given that we had all been indoors isolating for so long and the spring weather was beautiful.

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Czech Republic Eases Covid restrictions

4/15/2020

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Masks are still required, and even the TV anchors wear them!

If you’ve been following my blog, you know that I’ve been documenting the Czech Republic’s response to the Coronavirus outbreak. You will also know that the results have been pretty good, and that continues to be the case.

For more on the steps that have been taken since the beginning of the outbreak, see my earlier blog posts:

March 4, 2020
March 9, 2020
March 12, 2020
March 13, 2020
March 16, 2020
March 20, 2020
March 23, 2020
March 31, 2020

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Prague coronavirus news

3/31/2020

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I’d like to give you another update on the Coronavirus outbreak in the Czech Republic.

The Results Continue to be Positive

As I reported in my last post, the strict measures that were enacted by the Czech government when it realized that: a) Italy’s infection rates were exploding and its hospitals were overwhelmed, and b) lots of Czechs were in Italy on skiing holidays for the winter school break have been paying off.

From our first three cases diagnosed on March 2nd to March 30th, we now have 3,001 confirmed cases of COVID in the Czech Republic. Although that's a big increase, we've not seen exponential growth, and our hospitals still have the capacity to treat the sick.

Sadly, since my last post, we’ve now had our first deaths – the number is now 23. Almost all deaths were people over 70 and/or with underlying health issues. Twenty-five people have recovered from the disease.

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add this to your reading list during coronavirus quarantine

3/24/2020

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Finally! ... A coherent narrative about the origins of the Great War.

Many of you know that I have written several guidebooks about Prague. But you might not know that last year I participated in the publication of a book in a different way. I had the pleasure of helping friend and fellow author, Maggie Ledford Lawson, format and publish her great work, Passage to Byzantium: The Romanov-Habsburg Feud that Led to World War I.

A life's work

This book is a life's work for Maggie, who spend most of her career as a journalist in Washington, DC, and later Prague. She spent more than a decade researching for this book.

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Prague's Quarantine Extended

3/23/2020

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strict measures appear to be paying off

As you know if you've followed my recent posts, the Czech Government has enacted strict measures in an attempt to "flatten the curve" (a phrase we are all very familiar with now) of the Coronavirus outbreak here. And I'm happy to say that it appears that it might be paying off.

On Sunday we passed the 1,000 mark in terms of the number of infected people, but so far, we have had NO deaths due to the disease, and 6 people have recovered. That is certainly wonderful news!

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Beyond Prague - Žďár Nad Sázavou

Český Krumlov – a Southern Bohemian Fairy tale

Austrian charm

Prague day trips - hluboka chateau

prague castle for locals

Prague is Opening Up!

After two months in COVID lockdown, Prague is opening up!

Czech republic continues to ease coronavirus restrictions

So Far, so good

Czech Republic Eases Covid restrictions

Prague coronavirus news

The Results Continue to be Positive

add this to your reading list during coronavirus quarantine

A life's work

Prague's Quarantine Extended

strict measures appear to be paying off

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