untapped prague: perusing Pruhonice

So yesterday’s random Czech adventure was a visit to the lovely and relatively nearby village of Pruhonice… home, I had read, to a big park, a fancy castle, a dendrological garden (of all things), and yet another great microbrewery / brewpub — all of which sounded like a Saturday afternoon plan to me!

The brewery in question is U Bezousku, which despite their cheezy looking website is supposed to make some pretty decent beer.

This was definitely more of a schlep than the Richter pub, basically an hour door-to-door from my place in Vinohrady (all on public transport & very easy — metro to a 15-minute bus ride), and super worthwhile.

I was a bit wary going in, as I had no map and no clear idea of where the bus was going to let me off in relation to the pub or the park (which i planned to see first), but all logistical concerns were allayed when it turned out that the bus stop was directly outside the pub! So, of coure I went in to get oriented and see about getting a beer to go, as I had brought a picnic lunch along…

They did not have any pre-filled bottles, so it was fortunate that I decided to bring along a near-empty 1.5 liter bottle of sparkling water, which I was all to happy to have them dump & fill with their very tasty homemade 10 degree lager… Meanwhile, a very friendly guy who seemed to work there in some kind of delivery capacity took it upon himself to make sure that I also tried the 16 degree before deciding on the 10, and then took me on a personal tour of the pub, speaking pretty good English all the way. Very accomodating all around, and went out of his way to give me directions to the Dendrological Garden when I mentioned I was thinking of going there (which was good, bc it was a bit further of a walk than I expected), instead of to the more popular (and i think closer) main park.

So, with my liter and a half of tasty goodness in hand and clear instructions from homeboy, I headed off to what is officially called the Dendrological Garden of the Silva Tarouca Research Institute for Landscape & Ornamental Gardening –having no clear idea of what to expect — and after spending my 40 czk ($2) to enter, found myself walking through wide open fields, orchards, meadows,  hills, ponds, mini-forests, rock sculptures, and amazing flowers… with just about no one else around in this vast space.

After weeks of city living here in Prague, it was so good to be out in the middle of nature, breathing in clean air & soaking up the silence.

Unfortunately, there was more soaking to be done.

So, we’ve been having these days lately where it’s hot and humid all morning, thunderclouds build all day, and then they dump down major rain in the late afternoon / early evening. It didn’t seem like it when I left Prague, but by time I got out to Pruhonice, the clouds were building pretty solidly.

Still, I didn’t really think they’d build up enough to rain in the short time I was gonna be there, so off I went. Deep in. Like at least halfway through its 73 hectares of wide open, shelter-free space. Found a great spot by a pond, sat down for lunch, and by the time I finished eating, I noticed that all of a sudden the calm surface of the pond was now all whitecaps. Wind was picking up. Sky getting dark. Lightning in the distance. Thunder a-rumbling. Rain imminent. Big, big rain. Really really imminent.

So… not exactly ideal circumstances, to say the least. In the last few minutes before the rain started, I decided to do a quick survey of the various groves of trees that were scattered around (this being a dendrological garden, after all), and found that — lo and behold — one of them almost completely concealed a tiny storage shed, which had a roof, which extended over the walls by about maybe 8 inches. This was as close to shelter as I was going to find — and even though the roof was metal, it was lower than most of the surrounding trees and right next to the pond, so I figured it wasn’t THE most likely thing to get hit by lightning… so I slid in alongside the leeward wall, pressed my back up against it, propped my shoulder bag holding my camera & iPhone back behing my legs to keep it as dry as possible, and settled in as the storm began… And what a storm, let me tell you. You know the kind that pounds down like a shower-massage? Like a pissing frat boy? It was one of those.

The first 15 minutes or so werent so bad. I had just enough roof coverage that I could basically watch the rain pour down in teeming sheets and stay pretty much out of it, as long as I kept my back to the wall. Eventually, however, the wind shifted and the drops started finding me… so I pulled out my crappy commuter umbrella that would be of no use at all if I was out in the thick of it, but here it was just enough of an extension to the roof to keep me basically out of the water.

So there I stood. For 45 minutes. It was very zen, I can tell you that. The other thing I can tell you is that I sure was glad to have that 1.5 liter bottle of tasty microbrew to help me pass the time…

Anyway — so following that little mini-epic, I wandered around & took lots of photos of the whole place all fresh and clean and smelling great with that just-rained feeling. You can see them here, if you like.

After a few hours of dendrology, I was ready to head back to U Bezousku for a little refreshment before heading back to Prague. Sat out in the very quaint patio area, had a nice grilled klobase, and then (as there were literally no other customers there) found myself hanging with the head chef, Pavel.

We started talking beer, and the next thing I know, he was taking me on a special private tour of the brewery, including a visit to the lagering tanks in the basement. I was very encouraged to see him grab 2 glasses along with the keys to the basement, as he told me that while the beer served upstairs was good and all, it was nothing compared to how it tastes downstairs, straight from the tank, before any CO2 has been added to get it to the tap…

And I must say he was right. We tasted both the 10 and the 16, and both were amazingly creamy and delicious — a whole different ball game than the more carbonated versions being served upstairs — and so cool to get to try this special treat!

Obviously, this is not something that you can expect to have happen on your visit — Pavel emphasized that if the brewer found out he took me down there, it would not be so good — but who knows? Show up on another slow day when the staff is bored, and you might get lucky too.

After this, we went back upstairs where Pavel poured me one more taste of the 16 — for comparitive purposes, mind you — and then it was time to step outside and onto the bus back to the city and a different kind of strange reality than the one I discovered in this quiet little village just outside of town.

And I never even made it to the park to see the castle — so obviously I will need to go back there again sometime…

In the meantime, here are some selected photos. To see the full set, as well as some great shots from my still-yet-to-be-blogged-about trips to Rome & Florence, just click here.

untapped prague: rockin’ the Richter brewery

So last Friday night, I decided to finally make the big schlep out to the Richter brewery, which turns out not to be so bad, schlepwise, and totally worthwhile otherwise.

It’s official name is Pivovar U Bulovky (Brewery at Bulovka St.) and you can find more info (in Czech) here.

I had seen it written up in Evan Rail’s beer guidebook and thought it looked interesting, but never motivated to make the  trip, as it is quite a ways from the center, way out in Prague 8. However, it turns out the Bulovka #10 tram stop is only 20  minutes from the stop near my office — so when I found myself with no other plans on Friday, I decided to go for it.

It is actually very easy to find once you get off the tram — just a 2 minute walk down the only street that intersects the main one where the tram lets you off leads to this surprisingly (given the neighborhood) well-appointed, family-run pub.

Anyway, the point of all this is to say that this was easily the coolest microbrewery/pub experience I’ve had in Prague so far. The beer itself is very good — and  the overall vibe is much closer to what I experienced in the smaller brewpubs I visited in Bohemia this spring — which is to say, super chill, friendly, comfortable, and laid back, with surprisingly good food.

It appears that Mr. Richter spent some time brewing beer in Germany, so his beer menu includes a few Bavarian style ales (e.g., Alt, Helles, and Weisse beer) as well as standard Czech lagers. I tried the standard lager, the alt, the wheat, and the half-dark lager — all were quite tasty and definitely worth trying, and both lagers were really quite good indeed.

I was also very impressed with the gulas, which was easily the best I’ve had in Czech, and the pickled hermelin was solid, classic, and very garlicky. Grilled klosbase was also a winner here — and it comes together with 3 potato pancakes for only 95 czk (not something you see often). We also had the spatzle with bacon & cabbage, which was also unusual and most delicious.

So — overall, a very worthwhile experience for anyone seeking a ‘real deal’ beer experience and willing to make the trip out to this excellent microbrewery.

Sadly, no photos this time, but I will head back again & take some snaps…

ok, so…

… so after a lengthy hiatus — both from Prague and from the blog — I’m back in full force. In Prague. In my own awesome apartment. Working with my friend Karen (www.artelglass.com) and generally digging my new life as an expat in what is truly one of the coolest cities around.

As of tomorrow, I’m here 3 weeks, and I’m definitely feeling settled in. My neighborhood is basically the same one that I got to know when I stayed with Karen the last 2 times I was here (way back in 2007 and then again in March), and it is easily one of the best locations in town. I’m in Vinohrady, which is a residential area that is super close to the center, but removed enough to be pretty much tourist-free and very chill.

So like I said I arrived here in early June and here it is almost July — and seeing as my last post from Prague was way at the beginning of March we’ve got some catching up to do, don’t we?

For those of you who may just be joining us, a quick synopsis of what I was doing in Czech in March in the first place goes like this: In January, my aforementioned friend Karen invited me out to help her work on a new edition of her amazing guidebook to Prague (Prague: Artel Style), since I had done some editing and wrote the index on the original. Based on this, I planned  an exciting 2-week Bohemian beer tour for the end of February, which you can read about in the posts below. However, soon before my planned departure, Karen decided that she really needed to focus on her glass business and store, and put the book project on hold. Although I breifly considered canceling altogether, I was unemployed with lots of time on my hands and a fully planned trip to beer Mecca all mapped out, so I decided to go ahead and come over anyway — stopping along the way for a 5 day visit to Amsterdam, which you can also read about in the posts below.  Good times all around. And that basically brings us to my last post in early March…

Following that last post, I spent another 3 1/2 weeks in Prague, working with Karen on a variety of projects that made enough of a positive difference in the operational efficiency of the organization that she decided she wanted me to stay through the summer. Which I was all to eager to do — except that by this time I had applied for a job in NYC and had been invited back for an interview…

So — with an understanding that if I didn’t get the job, I would be coming back to Prague to continue working with Karen on the business, as well as going ahead with our initial plan to research and publish an updated edition of the guidebook — I came back to NYC on April 3 and had my interview 3 days later.

From then until about 6 weeks later, like the 3rd week in May, my world was one of pretty comprehensive uncertainty about the future… I kinda wanted the job, so that I’d have a job and all of the security and whatnot that entails — but I also kinda really wanted to come back to Prague and see how that works out — and everything was contingent on whether they actually offered me the job or not — and that took weeks to find out. Kind of a surreal time, but really no more so than the previous few months had been.

In any case, needless to say, I did not get the gig — so my decision was made, and less than 3 weeks later I was on a plane heading east. And now here I am. It still kinda amazes me, 3 weeks later, to look around me and have it sink in that I am a temporary resident of this groovy old city, and that I have so much time available to really experience it even more thoroughly than before.

Adding to the amazingness was the fact that, on the way over, I was able to spend 3 incredible days in Italy! Holy crap! I spent 2 days in Rome and 1 day in Florence. It was so totally worth it, even for such a short time — and those of you who know me know that visiting Italy has been a dream of mine forever, so I was so psyched to finally be able to get there.

For maximum user-friendliness, I think I will post separate entries about my time in Italia. After that, I’ll throw in a few highlights from the past 3 weeks here in Prague, and then we’ll really be up to date.

In the meantime, I highly encourage you to check out my photos from Italy by clicking here. I will select some for further commentary when I post the details of my trip, but for now these will give you a taste of how freaking beautiful it is over there…

Going forward, I will try to post more often — I should mention that one of my roles in working on the new edition of the guidebook is that I am now in charge of researching and writing a section on Czech beer and Prague pubs / beergardens — so this blog will soon include some of the findings of my exhaustive research efforts for your edification and amusement…

Like for example, you will definitely be reading more about the wonders of my new favorite local pub, Hrom do Police, and the 6 varieties of delicious beer they serve, which cannot be found elsewhere in Prague — and where I’m about to go to meet Karen for a few Sunday evening beers.

So — that’s it for the intro to Untapped Goodness, Mark II.

Stay tuned for more, coming soon…

untapped bohemia, days 11-12 & beyond: Harrachov & Prague

howdy friends,

so — for those of you who have not already heard, i am actually still here in the czech republic, and very pleased to be here.

i was supposed to go home on monday morning, but Karen has asked me to stay & lend a hand with some work for Artel, and i was only too happy to stay… so here i am.

the past few days have been great, but the main point of this post is to inform you about the adventurous end of my bohemian journey in Harrachov a few days ago… this place was surprisingly great, and i must say that despite some initial misgivings about whether the lengthy train ride would be worth it, i wound up thoroughly enjoying myself.

the journey was indeed adventurous, including a total of 5 trains and some transfers in very random locations, and when i got to Harachov it was clear that we were way up north (only 4 km from the Polish border), as there was a ton of snow on the ground. this was clearly ski country, and as such it was the only place i visited where it was actually high season.

anyhow, i arrived & caught the bus to the brewery/beer spa/ hotel where i would be staying, with about an hour to spare before my scheduled beer bath and massage… both of which were FAR superior to the nightmare i experienced in Chodova Plana.

i’m a bit exhausted at the moment so i will save more of the details on Harrachov for later — but basically you should know that the spa deal was great, the beer was outstanding, the food was decent, and the live music (2 guys, 1 on synthesizer and 1 on guitar) was amazing in so many ways…

oh, and the next morning i took a tour of the glass factory that really is the reason for both the brewery and the beer spa hotel, and that was fairly interesting…

ok, so for now i am just posting the pics from day 11, and i will provide more details on all of the above, as well as the past few days living as a local here in praha.

untapped bohemia, day 11: on the train from Kutna Hora to Harrachov

Well here I am on the train (one of several I will be taking today) from Kutna Hora to Harrachov.

At the moment, we are stopped on the tracks for no apparent reason, and we are in the middle of a beautiful bohemian forest. No leaves on the trees to speak of, but no snow either – it’s shaping up to be another beautiful sunny day, which is a welcome change from yesterday’s cold rainy crappiness – although the weather yesterday was perfectly suited to the day’s main activity, which was visiting the Sedlec Ossuary (the Bone Church) and the cemetery right next door… as you can see from the photos below.

Anyway, so the bone church was basically as expected – cold, creepy, poorly lit, and full of bones. Lots and lots of bones. More than you’ve even seen in one place, and even if you have seen that many (maybe you’re a butcher?), I’m quite sure you’ve never seen them arranged in so many decorative ways… I mean, chandeliers, sconces, ceiling ornamentations, coats of arms – this place had ‘em all, and all made from the bones of approximately 40,000 victims of the plague a few hundred years ago. Pretty damn amazing, and definitely something you don’t see every day.

(Wow, we just passed a beautiful green field with one big tree in the middle and a few big rabbits just chilling out nearby… the landscape around here is just gorgeous… Now I am seeing a little village perched just on the other side of the river we are traveling alongside of. Good stuff, all around.)

However, in all honesty I must say that, beside the bone church, there was not much of interest in Kutna Hora – and in fact it was really not all that sweet of a place to be. Now, mind you, this may be partly due to the fact that I came here from Cesky Krumlov, which is easily one of the more beautiful places in the whole world I have visited, so the contrast between it and the very-average-Czech-city feel of KH was even more exaggerated.

Some of this may also have to do with my accommodations at U Kata, which were totally adequate but very generic. The place is located on a very run-down street that looked out onto a dirty alley, and was just generally WAY less sweet than the luxurious goodness of the Dilettante’s Hangout…

It’s also worth noting that the Bone Church itself is located in a really very unattractive part of town and is a bit of a hassle to get to – you take a train from KH Mesto to the main train station (only 6 minutes) and then it’s a rather depressing walk of a few hundred meters, past a huge Philip Morris factory, to the church, where there is really nothing else around… so you need to be sure to plan your visit around the return trains to the center, which run about once an hour.

Once back in the center, there are some more old churches and the usual cobblestone streets and old buildings, but really nothing worth going out of your way for. The cathedral of Santa Barbara is a pretty amazing place with spectacular architecture – very similar to the big cathedral at the Prague Castle, and with beautiful stained glass windows, etc., but ultimately, once you’ve seen a few of these big old churches around Europe, they kinda all look the same and are not hugely exciting…

But, to be fair, it was cold and rainy and depressing out, and I had just come from the bone church and still kinda mentally recovering from that, so my impressions of the place must be taken with that in mind – if you showed up on a nice sunny day and saw the old town first and THEN went to the bone church, you might walk away with a more positive view of Kutna Hora than I did…

Oh, and I should also mention that I went to the Daicicky pub that is recommended in Evan’s book and really does seem to be the closest thing to a decent pub in town, but it was totally empty and dead when I was there (around 2-3pm) — though they did have Primator wheat beer on tap in addition to the also-not-that-impressive local Kutna Hora beer, and they also serve a tasty goulash… I could see it being a good spot when it’s a bit more rocking…

So, what I think I am saying here is that while I might recommend KH as a day trip from Prague, I’m not so sure I would call it an essential part of an extended Bohemian journey. Especially if you are coming from Cesky Krumlov, where you need to go through Prague anyway to get there (and that leg takes about 4 ½ hours as it is, with KH being another hour more), I would say you’re probably better off staying in Prague and then thinking long and hard about how much you really like bones before deciding to plan a trip there…

Ok, I am tired of writing on the train and am missing out on some killer scenery here, so I will stop now & post this when I get to Harrachov…

untapped bohemia, day 9: Cesky Krumlov… now with color!

Ok, so after a rather lengthy commute (including an slight logistical hiccup right at the end there),  I am in my not-so-fancy room at the not-so-fabulous Pension U Kata in what appears to be the so-far-not-very attractive part of Kutna Hora.. but I’m quite sure there’s plenty of goodness awaiting tomorrow.

So, I am pleased to say that today was the first official sunny day of the trip (the previous hint of sun having been a false alarm & gone by time I got outside), so I spent my last few hours in Cesky Krumlov just soaking up the sun and revisiting some spots from yesterday to shoot actual color photos (see below).

This place really is just spectacularly beautiful — the pictures hardly do it justice — although ironically, now that i have seen it in  the sunshine, I have to say that there was something extra beautiful about it in the foggy misty winter cold… the empty cobblestone streets all wet and shiny, the air cold & crisp, the smell of woodsmoke coming from across the river — there is something extra-eastern-european, and extra-medieval about how the town looks in that weather (as you can see in yesterday’s pics)… Still, a little sunshine most certainly did not suck.

In general, I am thinking that the off-season really might be the ideal time to come here… ok, so maybe no earlier than I got here, bc any colder would probably kinda detract, whereas so far it’s really been manageable — and only if you are seriously seeking a quiet, reflectively chill vibe, as opposed to what I understand are the crowds of tourists that descend on Plzen, Ceske Budejovice, and Cesky Krumlov in the warmer months…

Oh and when you come you really need to stay at the Dilettante’s Hangout… It was so perfect in so many ways — the right location, just outside of the old town, in this great old house with Matya (who is exactly as you would expect after seeing her website) and her kids — with the fireplace going & candles & incense burning, and the guitars, percussion, and organ set up in the living room, and the old skeleton key to the very comfortable room with the king size canopy bed, exotic furniture, and sweet bathroom with tub and disco beads as a doorway, and Matya’s very, um, intense acrylic paintings of nude women all over the place — the whole scene is WAY more Oregon or Santa Cruz than it is former Soviet Bloc, but that comes as a very welcome change after a week of much more traditional lodging scenarios.

Plus, she only charged me HALF of what we had originally agreed, since it was a double room & I was there alone. Bonus! Seriously, you must stay here if you come to CK — but be sure to book ahead in the high season, since she’s only got the 3 rooms…

Anyway, so after the taxi to the train station (which is basically mandatory as it is a 2km uphill schlep from the town center), it was the 5 1/2 hour trainfest to Kutna Hora, which was made a bit longer by my crucial last-minute error of getting off at the main station instead of the next one (Kutna Hora MESTO), which is closer to town. Oops. Anyway, a taxi was arranged & that was actually fine, as I was really in no mood to find my way here in the dark.

Ok then, I think that’s all for today… On to the photos, and be sure to tune in tomorrow, when I will be posting fresh photos from the sure-to-be-completely-creepy Bone Church!

untapped bohemia, days 7-8: Cesky Krumlov-ing it…

Ok, so I am back in the luxurious splendor of the Boudoir and am actually quite exhausted from the day’s activities, which basically involved exploring this incredibly beautiful place & taking about a zillion photos, and of course stopping for refreshments along the way. I will provide more written details tomorrow during my 5 1/2 hour train ride to Kutna Hora, but in the meantime, here are some (ok, many) images from the day:

untapped bohemia, days 6-7: Ceske Budejovice

Ok, so all I can really tell you about Ceske Budejovice is that it is very beautiful and worth a visit just to wander the old streets & see the beautiful buildings — which is basically all I did in my brief 24-hour stay, since most of the sights (the church, the tower, the Budvar brewery, etc.) were not open while I was there… but no big whoop, its worth going just to be there for a bit — you can feel the history on every street, and it’s all very quiet & lovely.

The one thing you must do is visit Male Pivovar, the Budvar pub on Karl IV street, where you can sample the different types of Budvar, including the very delicious yeast beer that is only available here and in a very few other pubs… also, the food here was great.

Other  than that, I will go ahead & let the photos tell the story — and then it’s off to explore Cesky Krumlov!

untapped bohemia: cool pubs in Plzen

Ok, so I am now at the fabulous Dilletante’s Hangout in the staggeringly beautiful town of Cesky Krumlov, drinking espresso in the cozy living room by the fireplace, after a very relaxing night in the Nirvana Boudoir… but before I go into any details on this place, I want to take a moment to add in some details that I promised earlier about the pubs (& the pivovar) in Plzen. I will also need to throw in some stuff on my whirlwhind 24-hour stay in Ceske Budejovice, and then we’ll be all caught up. Alrighty? Let’s proceed.

Uncle Vanya’s
I’m pretty sure  I got the name right (it’s Uncle someone), and I’m pretty sure it’s located on Veleslavinova street between Perlova & Rooseveltova, but it might be on the next block. Look for the sign out front for Bernard beer (it’s the only pub in town serving this brand). Anyway, this was a pleasant surprise & a little taste of Amsterdam – a super chill little café pub playing old-school reggae & full of local college students smoking spliffs, drinking beers, and eating little HotPocket-like filled pastry things that seemed decent & cheap (like 25 czk), though I did not sample one myself. A very nice alternative to your standard traditional Czech pub.

Zach’s Pub
This is another popular student hangout with a great, festive vibe, good beer, and decent music. Another good alternative to the traditional scene, this is about as hip as it gets in Plzen. My only word of advice is to WATCH YOUR STUFF, as my camera was stolen here… However, I was assured by the very friendly group of kids that I was hanging out with that this is a fairly rare occurrence – they were all very embarrassed that this happened at “their” pub, and bought me beers and tried to make it up to me. I really hold myself responsible for not paying more attention to what were, in retrospect, clear warning signs – as I know exactly who did it and how… but I won’t go into those painfuldetails at the moment. Suffice to say that this IS a very cool place & you should not let my unfortunate incident dissuade you from checking it out — just be mindful of your stuff & you’ll be fine (just like in good old NYC).

U Rytire Lochoty
Holy shit, this place kicked ass! This place is actually a brewpub (pivovar) and it was EXACTLY the kind of thing I was hoping for on this trip. Totally local (outside the center in a residential neighborhood), with a great vibe, decent food, and fantastic homebrewed beer. I mean, really really good,

They just make one kind — a yeast beer (the technical Czech name of which can be found in Evan’s book) — and it is truly unique and amazing. Oh, I think they also made a dark version, but no one was drinking it so I stuck with what seemed to be the popular local choice.

Anyway, if you care about good beer and real Czech cultural goodness, you owe it to yourself to make this place a priority when you are in Plzen.

It was so cool to get off the tram in the middle of nowhere, then wander in the dark down the road to this place, which has no light on its sign and would be VERY easy to miss if you didn’t know it was there…but don’t worry, you’ll find it, as there ain’t nothing else around.

So, I came in and it was right out of that scene in An American Werewolf in London – I was SO not from there. And when the guy asked if I had a reservation & I told him no, it did not look so good – but then I guess he decided I was ok & said I could share a table with this group of 3 guys. So I sat down, ordered my heavenly pivo, and got to work trying to decipher the menu – actually learned a fair bit about Czech food words in the process – and wound up just ordering the standard meatplate & a fantastic pickled Hermeiln (maybe the best ever).

Eventually, my tablemates  started a conversation (or at least the older guy, who spoke the most English, did) and we wound up having a grand old time in exactly the way I had hoped for on this trip – really connecting with local people in their environment – and it was just great. I learned that they all worked together (father, son, and coworker) at a company that does wrought-iron fences & gates, locksmithing, welding, etc.  I saw pictures of kids & grandchildren, shared my phrasebook with the one guy who spoke no English (and then he tried speaking some with me), told them about NYC, etc. Just really really fun. I am SOOOO pissed that the camera was stolen before I could save the pictures I took of us. Total bummer.

Anyhoo, to get there you do NOT need a taxi as Evan says in his book – it’s actually really easy to get to by tram. Here’s what you do: take the #4 tram towards Kosutka, and get off at Solokvska. I got on the tram at V Sadech Petraticantniku (which is right on a main street near the center and very easy to find), and from there it was 5 stops (8 minutes exactly). Get off the tram and walk back in the direction you came for maybe 200 yards or so and you will see it on the right. BE SURE TO TAKE NOTE OF WHAT TIME THE LAST TRAM  LEAVES FOR THE CENTER – when I was there on a Friday evening, the last tram was at 11:42pm. Super easy & so worthwhile. Oh, and I really wish I had a photo of that one waiter’s mullet. Way too amazing. Wow.

Podlesi
This place was another CLASSIC score, and I must give props to my friends from Zach’s for suggesting it to me, as it is WAY off the tourist radar. It is not a pivovar, but just a SUPER local pub and according to my friends, it has the best beer in Plzen simply because they keep it super-fresh & keep the pipes super-clean, and I do have to say I think they were right – it was noticeably better than the Pilsner Urquells I’ve had elsewhere. Good food, too. But the main reason to go is to have another totally real, authentic local experience – and for that, this place is priceless.

Walked in just as a guy was leaving with a ceramic to-go pitcher. The tables were filled with groups of older men, families with their kids (including another great mullet-eer who was wearing shorts!), and young couples and groups of friends. Super super chill. Translated the menu, ordered some decent pork, and generally had a great time. Also noteworthy are the amazing murals on the walls & the random paper mache goblins that were perched near the ceiling. Just amazing, all around.

Getting  there is a bit tricky, but really not so bad. You need to take the number 10 trolleybus (direction: Dobrovka) to the very last stop (Doubrovka) – I got on at Anglicke Mabrezi, and from there it was 6 stops in 12 minutes. When you get out, walk 1 block back in the direction you came to a roundabout; turn right onto Mohylova and go one block, and you will see the pub on the right. Again, be sure to check the times for your return trip. When you return to Anglicke Mabrezi, you are close to the one strip club in town (Pamela), if you’re up for that kind of thing, as well as Zach’s, so it’s easy to make a night of it.

Ok then, there ya have it… Enjoy!

untapped bohemia, days 5-6: Plzen & Ceske Budejovice

Howdy campers!

I am very pleased to be here in Ceske Budejovice after a very eventful past 2 days in Plzen… It’s late and I have been enjoying lots of the delicious local brew, so this will be short and I will fill in more details later.

The main things you need to know are as follows:

• Plzen turned out to be amazing (with one unfortunate exception).
• The unfortunate exception was that my camera got stolen. Ugh.
• Luckily, the next morning I was able to find exact replacements for both camera and case for basically the same cost if not a bit less than in the US… still, this was pretty sizable dent in my limited budget. What a drag.
• Unfortunately, the camera disappearance means I have no photos from the lame beer spa (no huge loss), or the video I shot at the deserted train stations along the way…
• Most sadly of all, it also means that I do not have photos of me with the new friends I made at the incredible family-run microbrewery I visited just before the pub where my camera got pinched. Holy shit this place was great… I will post more details later.
• Yesterday I toured the Pilsner Urquell brewery, which was fairly interesting if a bit spendy… one nice feature is that you can taste the malted barley and hops they use, as well sample beer aged in the old-school wooden casks — tasty!
• More interestingly, I went last night to a really great pub that is way outside of town, on a tip from one of the  friends I made following my  camera theft the previous night. This place is reputed to have the freshest beer & the cleanest pipes in town, and I must say that the Pilsner Urquell there was the best I’ve had anywhere — and the vibe could not have been more classically local. Again, more details later.
• Arrived in CB early this afternoon and am very pleasantly surprised by how damn beautiful it is here! And the various Budvar varieties have all been highly recommendable…

Ok, so those are the highlights to bring us more or less up to date. Here are some images from Plzen; I will post CB pics separately, so c’mon back soon & take a look…