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Hundreds of thousands of tourists flock to North Bohemia's Krkonose or Giant Mountains and their valleys (55,000 hectares of land) every year to enjoy the best that nature has to offer. But not all of them show respect for the environment and, in their enthusiasm to make extra money, plunder the area, causing serious damage to protected flora and the wildlife.

Ever wonder what animals at the zoo do at night when they think nobody's watching? Whether orangs hang out in the leafy Indonesian pavilion or young wolves go on the prowl? Whether bats bicker over ceiling space? Here's a last chance, this summer, to find out.

With the planned start of accession talks between the EU and Turkey drawing near, opponents of Turkey's accession to the EU are ringing alarm bells across Europe. Opinion surveys have shown that the fear of having Turkey as an EU member state is now present in most EU countries. The results of such a survey here in the Czech Republic indicate that only 37 percent of Czechs would be in favour of Turkey's admission, 51 percent are against.

The case of a Qatari prince convicted in the Czech Republic for sexually abusing young girls appeared close to resolution on Monday, after the Supreme Court in Brno ruled that he may be extradited to his homeland. The decision marks the end of a bitter quarrel between Justice Minister Pavel Nemec and the Supreme State Prosecutor Marie Benesova.

The English football club Aston Villa are set to sign on Czech national Milan Baros, the top-scorer at last year's European Championship. Villa have reportedly offered some 6 million pounds for the Czech striker, who after a very promising start -- and despite periods as Liverpool's top scorer -- had proven something of a disappointment.

Four years ago it was tears of joy for Czech model Diana Kobzanova as she was crowned Miss Czech Republic for 2001. But, the idyll didn't last long: in 2003 Ms Kobzanova, whose life and sweetheart, have since become a staple in the Czech weekly tabloids, posed for a pornographic magazine for 750,000 crowns, the equivalent of around 30,000 US dollars. As a result she lost her title and, until this week, faced a lawsuit by organisers who claimed she had damaged the competition's good name.

There's a new Czech lager on the American market with a centuries old tradition and a highly contentious name: Budweiser Bier. That's beer spelt the German way, b-i-e-r. But it should come as no surprise that Anheuser-Busch of St. Louis -- the world's largest brewer and the maker of Budweiser beer, b-e-e-r, is having none of it. And so, just as the lager known here as Budweiser Budvar must be sold as Czechvar in the States, this relative newcomer to the Budweiser trademark battle will be labelled B.B. Burgerbrau, although marketed as "beer from

Poland's former Communist leader Wojciech Jaruzelski has apologised for the role his country played in the 1968 Soviet-led invasion of Czechoslovakia. General Jaruzelski served as Defence Minister in August 1968, when 26,000 Polish troops joined the huge invasion force which crossed Czechoslovakia's borders.

The historic town of Melnik north of Prague has a lot to offer to visitors. Its history goes back to the 9th century and in the 13th century Melnik along with its castle became a dowry town of Czech queens. During the reign of Emperor Charles IV Melnik became the centre of wine growing in the Czech Lands and there are vineyards to this day. As of next year the town hopes to welcome plenty more tourists from abroad, as a brand new river port is going to be built there, connecting Melnik directly with Germany via the river Elbe.

On Thursday Parliament approved -in its first reading - a bill which would smooth the way for compulsory purchase of land and property from private owners for projects in the public interest, such as the construction of roads and railways. Although this is an accepted practice in most countries and has been going on for years in the Czech Republic under existing legislation, the bill met with opposition from the right wing Civic Democratic Party.