Low-Brow Wine-Cellar Hopping in Moravia

by Iva Skoch on

Getting away from cities. Folks in costumes. Plenty of cheap wine to go around. If this concept frightens you already, you might as well stop reading now.

Most people visiting the Czech Republic–some 8 million annually–come only to Prague. For those trying to get away from all those tourists, I suggest heading to the south eastern part of the country: the wine growing region of Moravia. September is a great month to go because the wine harvest is in full-swing and wine-tastings readily available.

I am not going to lie to you. Don’t expect Napa Valley or Bordeaux. Don’t even bother with the red wines. Too cold for them. The whites, however, range from Pinot Blancs to Rieslings, and are generally very good. Above all, the wine cellars are all different and their owners tend to be generous, eclectic types.

You can also do a bicycle tour of Czech/Moravian wineries. Just remember as of last year, you can actually get a ticket when riding your bicycle drunk in the Czech Republic. Thankfully, no “open container” laws, yet.

Mushroom Pickers Unite!

by Iva Skoch on

Well, it’s that time of year again in the Czech Republic. Time for those atavistic hunter-gatherer instincts to be unleashed. Thousands of Europeans with crazed looks in their darting eyes, trembling fingers clutching baskets, socks rolled over their pant legs (ticks!), marching, probing, snooping, we stumble through the forests like zombies. We guard our secret spots, we spy on others for their secret spots, we come home lucky, or we come home dejected.

Yes, it’s mushroom-picking time.

With Czechs and Slovaks, at least, it’s an obsession. I’ve heard claims that 80% of us do it at least occasionally. And this is the time of year. A certain combination of weather conditions (usually rain then heat) makes these buggers sprout up, filling the forests. And collect them, we do. It’s a family affair, taking up our weekends. The fuller the basket, the better. They are sauteed, made into soups, dried for the winter.

The kind we hunt is called the “hrib,” also known as the boletus or porcini mushroom (pictured above).

Americans can’t seem to understand this custom, although there is ‘gold in them thar hills’: one need only read a recent New Yorker article about the fortunes made mushroom-picking in the woods of Oregon, for example. Wikipedia, in a well down article, lays mushroom picking down as a Slavic custom, only for those braving poisoning, using knowledge passed down for generations.

Savvy Traveler: Let Czechoslovakia Die, Please

by Iva Skoch on

It has been 14 painful years for me since Czechoslovakia broke up in what they called a “Velvet Divorce“. Not so velvet for me.

Since January 1, 1993, I have been trying to patiently teach everyone outside the country to learn to love the sound of “Czech Republic” and “Slovak Republic”. I know, I know. It doesn’t quite come out as easily but please, don’t make me suffer any longer.

See what I have to go through on a daily basis:

“I can detect an accent. Where are you from?”

“Czech Republic.”

“Ah, Czechoslovakia.”

“Well, it’s actually the Czech and Slovakia now. The country split up in 1993.”

“Oh, I see. So, in Czechoslovakia, do you have indoor plumbing?”

Well, OK. It’s not quite that bad but it often comes close. Sometimes, when I travel I just tell people I am from Iceland so I don’t have to put up with the whole routine of “Czechoslovakia” any more. Please, let the nonexistent country die a velvet death.

Where on Earth Week 20: Adršpach-Teplice Rocks – Czech Republic

by Brett Atkinson on

Well done neil_metblogs. You covered absolutely all the bases to give a correct answer. The “Rock Towns” of Adršpach and Teplice in Northern Bohemia aren’t as well known as the similar sandstone formations further west in the Cesky Raj region of the Czech Republic, but for my money they’re actually more spectacular.

While researching the latest edition of Lonely Planet’s Czech & Slovak Republics book I had the chance to check both regions out. Despite it being April, there was still a lot of snow on the ground – especially when I trekked the 3km trail along Wolf Gorge that joins the Adršpach and Teplice regions.

Lucky I could dive into the Pension Skaly for beer and schnitzel. Sometimes the simple things in life are the best.

Prague Pub Crawl: 4 Blocks, 20 Pubs, 20 Beers, $20 Spent

by Iva Skoch on

In the last few years, much of Prague’s nightlife has shifted from the center (too expensive, too many tourists) to the neighborhood of Zizkov in the Prague 3 working class district. Consequently, Zizkov is my favorite neighborhood for going out. Let me be clear, there ain’t many martini bars to be found here, although a few have popped up. Rather, you will find old school pubs still selling beer for less than $1.

The main artery of pub life in Zizkov is Borivojova street. Its 4-block stretch from Lipanska street to Riegrovy sady has some 20-30 drinking establishments. Weekend after weekend, seasoned drinkers come here to try to accomplish the impossible: stop at each pub and have a beer. We are talking half-liters, too. According to the Prague Post, nobody has been able to do it yet.

Even in a country with universal health care, there cannot be enough liver transplants to go around.