American Czechs and their Religious Beliefs

American Czechs and their Religious Beliefs (1) At the time of the mass migration of Czechs to America, according to the Austrian statistics, 960 Catholics, 22 Protestants, 16 Jews and less than 1 percent of agnostics lived in Bohemia, among 1,000 inhabitants. After they came to America, the statistics looked quite differently. Take for example...

Bohemians, PEOPLE

May 8, 2017

Harsh Beginnings of Czech Settlers in America

At the time of the mass immigration of Czechs to America, in the midst of the 19th century (1), as Tomáš Čapek wrote, the first immigrants, as a rule, settled near seaside cities, near lakes and waterways and, later, also along the railroad lines. Thus, at the shore of the Atlantic Ocean, they formed colonies...

History, NOSTALGIA

May 1, 2017

Celebrating May 1st in Prague

In the Czech Republic May 1st is a national holiday known as Labour day (Czech: Svátek práce). However, most Czechs regard the 1st of May as “love day”. On the 1st of May many couples in Prague gather at the statue of the Czech romantic poet Karel Hynek Mácha located in Petřín Park. They often...

CULTURE, Holidays

April 30, 2017

Night of the Witch Burning on April 30th

After the serious record low freezes in Šumava last week, perhaps it’s best to welcome the final end of a much too long winter this year. And if you’re wondering how that’s done – it’s by burning witches. Night of the witch burning occurs on April 30th in the Czech Republic and is called pálení čarodějnic (literally,...

CULTURE, Holidays

Old_Photos_of_Czech_Children_Tres_Bohemes

April 24, 2017

Czech Children of the Early 20th Century

A captivating collection of early 20th-century photographs of Czech children, possibly dressed for school or church, offers a glimpse into a bygone era. As one browses through these timeless images, a curiosity arises about the life paths these children embarked on. The presence of props and toys in some of the photographs adds an intriguing...

NOSTALGIA, Time Warp

March 24, 2017

The Violin Makers of Luby

Luby is a small town located in the Cheb District of the Czech Republic. It began as a small mining town but later became known as the center of violin making. During the 13th century the mining of cinnabar began in the town of Schönenbach (Modern day Luby) bringing hundreds of miners -and musicians- to...

History, NOSTALGIA

February 18, 2017

The Forgotten Trolleybuses of Prague

In 1972 the last trolleybus drove though the cobblestone streets of Prague. On the following morning, after many years of trolleybus transportation in Prague, the trolleybus traffic finally came to an end. Today, the Czech capital offers various methods of transportation which include metro, tram, and taxi. The trolleybus era, however, is no longer alive....

History, NOSTALGIA

Shrovetide_Procession_Czech_Republic_Tres_Bohemes

February 12, 2017

Shrovetide Procession of Eastern Bohemia

Every year, in the days when winter slowly gives way to spring, something unusual takes place in the Eastern Bohemian Highlands of the Czech Republic. Villages such as Veselý Kopec and Hlinecko hold colourful and merry carnival processions. The Masopustní průvod translates to Shrovetide procession and the merrymakers travel from house to house, delivering joy, health...

CULTURE, Holidays

February 9, 2017

Czechs and Their Billion Dollar Beets

Today we are taking a peek at the history of Czechs and their connection to beets and the sugar that comes from them. The very first mention was written by 16th-century scientist, Olivier de Serres, who discovered a process for preparing sugar syrup from the common red beet. He concluded, The beet-root, when being boiled, yields a...

History, NOSTALGIA

January 6, 2017

Three Kings Swim the Vltava River in Prague to Commemorate Epiphany

Many Christians and Catholics around the world celebrate Epiphany and Theophany, Three Kings Day and Eastern Orthodox Christmas Eve. This is the day when the Three Kings of Orient arrived in Bethlehem to present Jesus with gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh. It also celebrates of the Baptism of Christ by John in the Jordan...

LIFESTYLE

December 31, 2016

Celebrating New Year’s Eve Fireworks in Prague

Once a year on New Year’s Eve, most everyone in Prague gathers at the Charles Bridge, or at Kampa Park, and at other Czech viewpoints to see the brilliant fireworks display being shot upwards over the city by various boats at midnight. When we visited Prague we got there just in time for New Year’s Eve, and thankfully...

CULTURE, Holidays

December 25, 2016

Bohemian Christmas Eve Celebration in the U.S.A.

Merry Christmas everyone! We have backdated this post to see how we spent our Bohemian Christmas Eve. Having Czech roots, but living in the United States, consequently, it is sometimes difficult to find a balance between Czech and American customs, but we think we managed it quite well while creating our Bohemian Christmas Eve celebration...

CULTURE, Holidays

December 24, 2016

Experience A Christmas Evening in Prague

You may have seen our recent posts about Czech Christmas traditions and just all things Czech Christmas. I recently found a video filmed by Metron, a Vimeo user focusing mainly on short travel movies. The short film captures Prague’s Christmas at its best and I just had to share. The video gives you a real life like...

CULTURE, Holidays

December 23, 2016

There’s a Carp In My Bathtub! Czech Christmas Traditions

Czech Christmas traditions are many and this one is deeply embedded into the culture of the Czech people and it includes a bottom dwelling freshwater fish called carp or kapr in Czech. A time-honored tradition of the traditional Czech Christmas feast is to get your carp early which is great because several days before the 24th carp...

CULTURE, Holidays

December 20, 2016

Czech Christmas Fish Chowder for All

Whereas American’s may say “Merry Christmas to all and to all a Good Night”, Czech’s would say “Christmas Fish Chowder for All”. Traditionally served on Christmas Eve, carp fish soup is a Czech tradition. The images that follow are from Kampa which attracted many people in 2014. The pouring and serving of carp fish soup takes place...

Food, LIFESTYLE

December 17, 2016

Czech Christmas Traditions: Mistletoe

Just like here in the United States, mistletoe is a big part of the Czech Christmas traditions. Here mistletoe (called jmelí in Czech) is most known for its infamous reputation as a place where you kiss your loved one when they are caught standing underneath it. Except in the Czech Republic, it is not used so...

CULTURE, Holidays