Letter from Prague | All stories

When they give a bagful of Academy Awards to some load of epic rubbish, as they seem to so often do, it merely confirms my belief that the Academy is made up of sentimental Hollywood insiders lobbied to within an inch of their lives. But when they give an Oscar to a director/actor/film I admire I instantly (and stupidly) attach value to the award and am really pleased. At least you got it right this time, I think.

With nearly all of my friends meeting on Facebook and chatting over Skype, I was starting to feel somewhat left out and decided to “get connected” as well. I got on the phone to order the Internet, assuming it would be a routine process, but I quickly discovered I was wrong. In the age of modern technologies, communication seems to be as complicated as ever.

It has repeatedly made its way into my conversation this winter how much Czechs love heating their homes. Now, you have every right to ask 'who doesn't?' – but I can furnish you with a definitive answer - us stoic, northern, British types – at least not as much as our, in many cases long-suffering, in some cases utterly scandalised, Czech neighbours.

In this week’s Letter From Prague, Dominik Jun describes an unusual encounter that ended up bridging a communicational divide.

Take a tram in the centre of Prague these days and you are very likely to hear a prerecorded message: the transport authority and the police would like to draw your attention to the fact you are in an area with a high incidence of pickpocketing: please watch your belongings. Actually, that’s a translation. The warning is in Czech and Czech only. Which is of course utterly useless if you’re a foreign visitor to the city and don’t speak the lingo.

Anyone who remembers the Czech presidential election five years ago will know it took not three rounds but three attempts to elect Václav Klaus, the former head of the right-of-centre Civic Democratic Party, as the country’s president. But he did win in the end. Following dissident and playwright Václav Havel, Mr Klaus brought a pragmatic no-nonsense style, to the Castle, promising to remain above partisan politics but not pulling any punches when it came to issues such as global warming and European integration. Now Mr Klaus’s term is at an end.

New Year’s Day – a day just like any other. Yet, I am always under the impression that the turn of the year is something special and that I have to spend it in an exceptional and memorable way. As we say “Jak na nový rok, tak po celý rok” in other words “How you spend New Year’s Day, is an indication of what the whole year will be like.” Although I am not very superstitious, I still try to abide by that saying. After all, the next twelve months of my life are at stake.

I never understand how it is that Czech girls can look so good at this time of year. We are in the depths of the bleak midwinter, and most normal people are looking flaky, and blotchy, with chapped lips. This look is in many cases set off by a cold sore. My skin almost goes translucent, it gets so pale.

In the Czech Republic Christmas is a mixture of pagan and religious traditions. The gifts are brought by baby Jesus, but it is a mixture of pre-Christian pagan rituals that ensure health and happiness in the coming year – like cutting an apple in half, floating candles or putting a fish scale under your plate on Christmas Day. Now Christmas has also become a matter of fashion.

There was something in the paper during the week about how the Czech Republic has one of the worst records in Europe when it comes to combating smoking. Out of 30 European states surveyed, it came 25th. The fact this country came near the bottom was in no way surprising. After all, many bars and cafes here can be eye-wateringly smoky, and stinking sweaters and even hair are often the price you pay for going out. But the results did provoke the thought, can there really be five countries in Europe where things are even worse in this regard?