Czechmatediary

One of you guys discovered this great video presentation on the transformation of Czechoslovakia since the end of the Cold War and its impact on international business. The presentation is done by a professor (Peter Petrik) who was born and raised in Czechoslovakia (today Slovakia) and who not only knows his history very well but can also give you some personal insight on it.

CZ: Jeden z vas, ctenaru, objevil vyborne video zabyvajici se transformaci byvaleho Ceskoslovenska od konce studene valky a jaky tato transformace mela efekt na mezinarodni obchod.

From Behind the Iron Curtain to Membership in the European Union from Slovak on Vimeo.

My friend  came across this article in a local newspaper. It releases medical study results about children’s Tylenol done in the Czech Republic. It’s pretty interesting – especially if you have small kids:

(PS: click on the article to enlarge the size of the letters)
CZ: Tento clanek nasla moje kamaradka v mistnich novinach. Lekarska studie o detskem Tylenolu byla provedena v Ceske Republice a vysledky ukazuji, ze tato droga muze snizit efekty ockovani, jestlize ho date svym detem bud hned pred nebo hned po one injekci.

(PS: kliknete na clanek, aby bylo pismo citelene)
[continue reading…]

I’ve got to tell you this story because it’s just too funny (or sad?) not to tell. So, the other day I have been working on the Lemon-n-lime jewelry piece that one of you  ordered and this is how it went down:

I start stringing those Czech beads on a string and everything is going well. Hahna is taking her nap, I am sipping on a cup of good coffee and listening to some calming classical music. My strand is done in about 20 minutes and I lay it down on the table to take a sip of my beverage. As I am picking the bead strand again I realize that I have not closed it on one side yet but it was too late……..all of those beads spilled out into my half-empty coffee mug!!!! “Great, now I have to start over AND wash these coffee-stained beads AND dry them!” [continue reading…]

Karen’s blog Empty Nest Expat led me today to a very nice article commemorating today’s date – November 17th. On this date – exactly 20 years ago – Velvet Revolution broke us free of communism. I was there, on my dad’s shoulders, but besides the shouting crowds and people shaking their keys, I don’t remember much. Tomas Etzler on the other hand, the CNN producer now based in Benjing, remembers  this historical event very well and narrates it to his readers  in a very entertaining tone. Enjoy (click here for the article)!

CZ: Karenin blog zvany Empty Nest Expat me dnes privedl k velmi zajimavemu clanku o vyroci sametove revoulce (17. listopadu 1989). Ja jsem na Vaclavaku v ten den sice byla, ale  jeste jako docela maly prcek, bazlive sedici na tatovych ramenou. Nic moc si z demonstrace nepamatuji, jen ten zastup napumpovanych lidi a zvoneni klicu. Tomas Etzler, ktery v soucasne dobe pracuje pro CNN, si toho pamatuje mnohem vic. V jeho clanku ctenarum shrnuje historii teto doby a to ve velmi zabavne podobe (clanek si prectete zde).

My friend Kristina is such an awesome artist. She makes these amazing hand-carved silhouettes that allow the shadows of the Prague past to illuminate our life in the present. Take a look for yourself – you cannot help but fall in love with them.

Once again, this would be a great, very ORIGINAL Christmas present for your loved ones. If you decide to purchase one (like I did), you have 2 options:
A. You can buy an unframed 9 x 7 silhouette for $29.99 (plus tax)

B. You can buy the silhouette in a 8 x 10 frame for $39.99 (plus tax)

– email subscribers get a 10% discount!

– in both cases shipping and handling is not included. [continue reading…]

With the occasion of the 20th anniversary of the Velvet Revolution the local research agency conducted a poll on Czech pride. The results are quite uplifting:

• 78% of Czechs are proud of their nationality
• 17% of Czechs are not too proud of their nationality
• 5% of Czechs are not proud of their nationality at all

(Total of 1,270 voters)

More such prideful Czechs can be found among the student population and among the elders. The least prideful Czechs are among the those people who belong to the communist party (KSCM) and among those who did not vote and do not associate themselves with any kind of political party at all.

The STEM research agency have been conducting the same poll ever since the 1990’s.

CZ: Pri prilezitosti 20ti leteho vyroci sametove revoluce se pruzkumni agentura STEM zeptala 1 270 Cechu, jestli jsou hrdi na to, ze jsou Cesi. Vysledy jsou velmi optimisticke:

• 78% dotazanych tuto hrdost pocituje
• 17% spise na sve obcanstvi hrdi nejsou
• 5% na sve obcanstvi hrdi nejsou vubec

[continue reading…]

No comment/ Bez komentare

Now that you guys know my husband and I actually got through the security check point, let me tell you the details on how it went inside the embassy and how I got to meet the president.

We entered a room filled with about 200 people which led to yet another large room which was filled with about 300 anxious visitors. You could feel the excitement in the air and you could also smell some good Czech cookin’. A few minutes after we surveyed our new surroundings we saw a little commotion in the other room – the president was already giving a speech!! Could we see him? No. Could we hear what was he saying? No. But I am sure it was to the point. Since it was a day after the president had signed the Lisbon treaty  he probably touched on that amazing milestone as well in his speech, but once again, I can only guess, since I did not hear a word. [continue reading…]

Speaking of Washington, did you know that this city will be  soon a new home to 3 brand new Czech trams? The Inecon Group company in Ostrava is going to get 24 milion dollars in return. The same company delivered few trams to Seattle and to Portland as well. In Washington it will be proudly carying travelers from the south-east part of the city to the heart of Washington where the Department of Homeland Security is located. Check out the following YouTube video for a sneak preview: [continue reading…]