The Un-Prague-Like Aristocracy and Randomness of Troja
Although lots of people probably associate Troja solely with Prague’s Zoo, the neighborhood — located around its main attraction — offers much more. For starters, there are some fourteen hundred residents living there, so that’s that. Most of them hail from the panel housings…
The Old-Timey Vibe of Střešovice, Ořechovka & Petřiny
Let’s say this bluntly: Prague is basically a huge patchwork of dozens of small towns mashed together at once. Basically, no matter where on the map you’re standing, you can just walk any way you want and the world around you will change within half an hour. This phenomenon isn’t just…
The Rocky Reality of Life in Vysočany and Hloubětín
The yellow (B) line of Prague’s subway system is lined in a way that’s almost instinctive: around the central stations, stuff is happening, but the farther to the edges you go, the lesser the fun. That’s the popular opinion, anyway. There are denizens of Prague who’ve been living…
The Chaotic Rhythm of Prague's Busiest Crossroad
Have you ever wondered how could it feel to live right around the busiest public transport hub in Prague? The I. P. Pavlova metro station (abbreviated IPP), built in 1974, serves the most people of all; in reality, though, it’s less Local Piccadilly Circus and more Violently Random Beehive. The…
The Inimitable Charm of Prague's Little Hanoi
When you look at Google Maps, there’s a little spot on the southern outskirts of Prague called Little Hanoi. This means exactly what it says: Little Hanoi, or, officially, Sapa, is basically Prague’s only distinctively ethnic neighborhood, a Vietnamese Town of sorts. Given the sheer number…
The Irrevocable Genius Loci of Žižkov's Main Street
Žižkov is a neighborhood of many different faces. The more polished one, located on a steep hill just behind the Main Railway Station, profits from its proximity to Prague’s center, which means that the place is now full of art galleries, trendy bars, and people who have willingly chosen fixed…
The Ingenious Anarchy of Nightlife in Smíchov
The etymology of some neighborhoods' names in Prague can be funny sometimes. Take ‘Palmovka’, which literally means ‘A Place of Palm Trees’ but looks more like a Junkie Hobbiton, some sort of a Soviet junkyard where the sun never shines. It might be the single biggest misnomer…
The Hidden Gems of the 'Roxy Area'
Twenty five years is a long time. For human beings, it is around that age that we usually start slowly realizing we’re not gonna stay young forever; for music clubs, however, to live past 25 marks a Mr. Yoda-esque level of longevity . In Prague, this privilege belongs to Roxy, located in a rather…
The Complete Guide to Life at Letná
At some point, this simply had to happen. When you’re writing a series about the unique micro-world that are Prague’s neighborhoods, Letná is the first thing that comes across your mind. This is that part of the city everybody’s got an opinion on, no matter what they call it —…
The Industrial Ethos of (Soon-To-Be-Hip) Holešovice
"You might be writing an article about Holešovice, but I’m from Letná." Those were the words of Czech novelist David Zábranský when we asked for his local tips on account of him living in Prague’s seventh district. The reaction says it all: Praha 7 might not take up much space, but the distinction…
The Two-Faced Miracle of Karlín
Fifteen years ago, the riverside district of Karlín got hit by a flood so massive it almost completely vanished. The rebuilding process was swift and impressive, but locals — those who remember the old Karlín well — are still torn about their feelings of the new one. In the cold language…
The Unkempt Beauty of Working Man's Vršovice
Look, we’ll be frank — when we first started pitching the articles for this series, we completely forgot about lower Vršovice . There’s the infamous hipster hivemind known as Krymská St, of course, but else…? The tangled clusters of streets under Vinohrady, where the metro doesn’…
The Double-Edged Legacy of Náplavka's Ascent into Mainstream
The summer of 2017 is in full swing now, which in Prague means that for a few precious months, people swap theaters and clubs for hanging outside . Few years ago, it almost felt like a reflex: as soon as June kicked in, swarms of art students, indie enthusiasts, and/or those omnipresent followers of…
The Unbearable Lightness of Living in Břevnov
Among the neighborhoods further away from the city center, Břevnov is definitely one of the more famous. The first thing you’ll notice when looking at a map is that it’s quite large : it starts at the border with the infamous Lesser Town and spreads all the way to Bílá Hora, a huge park…
The Seductive Serenity of Prague's Prettiest Village
To define where the center of Prague begins and ends is a thankless task . No matter what opinion you land on, there’s always gonna be somebody deeply offended, because the coolest parts of cities always end just around the corner from where I’M living, god dammit! Nevertheless, the popular…
The Inseparable Dance of Dejvice's Highs and Lows
The word ‘Dejvice’ literally means ‘give more’. Needless to say, this neighborhood does not lack ambition. And, sure enough, there’s little more Dejvice could possibly give you: it’s not that far away from the city center, yet still far enough to be unaffected by…
The Hectic Scenery of Underground Libeň
Palmovka, the focal point of the neighborhood of Libeň, translates roughly to ‘A Place of Palm Trees’, but nothing could be further away from reality. It consists of a bizarre bus station, a hellish crossroad where trams regularly encircle swaths of jaywalking junkies, a metro station (of…
The Insurmountable Coolness of Upper Vinohrady
The current trend dictates that of most (aspiring) artists residing in Prague, half of them live at Letná and the other half in Vinohrady. Two of the city’s most artsy boroughs share somewhat of a rivalry — it’s more cute than anything else, but still, you don’t simply switch…
The Unique Cosmos of Life at Charles Square
Most city squares serve as logical meeting points, anchors in the ever-changing cityscapes, places everyone knows how to get to and navigate around. And then, there is Prague’s Charles Square. Which, frankly, is more of a universe on its own. Charles Square, colloquially known as Karlák, owes…
The Schizophrenic Vibe of Prague's Most Famous Street
Národní třída. The National Avenue. Just writing those words evokes a feeling of something noble, something of historical value, something deeply traditional: a source of national pride and identity. Sure enough, during the Velvet Revolution in 1989, Národní třída played a key role. Nowadays, it serves…
The Undeniable Swagger of Life in Upper Žižkov
They say Prague is a city of a thousand towers — which is true, but it should be added that it’s also a city of a ten thousand hills . Case in point: The part of Žižkov leading all the way up from the football stadium to Jiřího z Poděbrad square is no longer than a kilometer, but if you…
The Inescapable Rise and Fall of Krymská
Three years ago, Krymská street was the big thing. Either you embraced it – the street-wide carnivals, cafes, vegan restaurants, everything – or you were expelled from hipsterhood . But how have the place changed since? When you visit a bookstore anywhere abroad, pick up the first Prague city guide…
The Infamous Bar Scene of Dlouhá (As Seen While Sober)
There are places you feel you know almost intimately, despite never even having been to them. You’ve heard stories so vivid and colorful they seem like actual memories. Dlouhá street, famous for its vibrant, Ibiza-esque nightlife, is one of those spots. So, naturally, we ventured there to cross-examine…
The Impeccable Reality Show of Nusle
So they say the next gentrification wave will hit the district of Nusle . Like, really, really hard. Especially the part between Folimanka park and Synkovo náměstí. Naturally, we went out to explore what’s really happening there. First, we had to map out the actual area we wanted to cover. Nusle isn…