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CHI Home >> Work & Travel Abroad >> Teach in Czech Republic | |
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Czech Republic
Programs Available: Overseas English Tutor
Overview | Culture | History | Sightseeing | Getting Around | Expenses | Support | Map Overview:Part of Czechoslovakia until January 1993, the Czech Republic has a rich cultural heritage represented by classical composers such as Dvorak and writers like Kafka. The country possesses an immense number of fascinating castles, churches and other architectural gems. It has always been known for its musicians, and there are an enormous number of all types of concerts and festivals to choose from. The Czech Republic is situated in central Europe, sharing borders with Germany, Poland, the Slovak
Republic Climate May to September is a good period to visit, with average daily highs in the mid 70's) and cool nights (47-57 degrees). Rainfall is fairly regular throughout the year, with just a bit more in spring and autumn and the occasional summer thunderstorm. Czech winters are cold and grey. Population: 10.5 million (growth rate 0.5%) Culture:Architecture Stunning architecture is not limited to Prague - there are plenty of Gothic, Food and Drink Food is often based on Austro-Hungarian dishes. Although Czech cuisine is not the best choice for vegetarians, there are a variety of must-try dishes. It may be the potato soup, the traditional roast pork with dumplings and sauerkraut, the fruit filled dumplings, or the apple strudel. Czech cooking and eating habits have been shifting in the general direction of a healthier lifestyle, but traditional Czech recipes are still extremely popular - and those tend to be high in calories, fat and sugar. Sauces and condiments are popular. There is a wide selection of restaurants, beer taverns and wine cellars.
Literature The most famous Czech writer is undoubtedly Franz Kafka, who, with a circle of other German-speaking Jewish writers in Prague, played a major role in the literary scene at the beginning of this century. Internationally renowned 'modern' Czech novelists include Milan Kundera, Ivan Klima and Josef Skvorecky. Much less well-known is the Czech poet Jaroslav Siefert, who was awarded the Nobel Prize in 1984. Music The Czech nation is one of the most musical in Central Europe. Throughout the year there are many occasions to enjoy music in concert halls, theatres, stately homes and churches. Regular music festivals and concert cycles also take place. Most towns have their own folk festivals, with dancing, local costumes and food. These tend to be in the summer months leading up to the harvest festivals in September. Apprentice butcher Antonin Dvorak is generally regarded as the most popular Czech composer. Czech jazz musicians were at the forefront of European jazz after WW II but this came to an end with the communist putsch. Since the Velvet Revolution, the jazz scene in Prague has been especially lively. The grim industrial north, particularly Teplice, is the hub of the Czech Republic's punk movement. People The Czechs are a plain-spoken, even-tempered people, revealing a spectrum of cultural, religious and political influences that is surprisingly broad for such a small country - German and Austrian to Polish and Hungarian, liberal to deeply traditional, global-thinking to fiercely nationalistic. The largest church is the Roman Catholic Church, though in 1991 fewer than 40% of Czechs called themselves Catholics, and even fewer attend church regularly. Prague has the largest Jewish community in the republic, with about 6000 members; smaller enclaves are in Ostrava and Brno. History:Pre-1800 Prague Castle was founded in the 870s by Prince Borivoj as the main seat of the Premysl dynasty, though the Premysls failed to unite the squabbling Czech tribes until 993. In 950, the German King Otto I conquered Bohemia and incorporated it into his Holy Roman Empire. In 1212, the pope granted the Premsyl prince Otakar I the right to rule as king. His son and successor Otakar II tried to claim the title of Holy Roman Emperor as well as king of the Czechs, but the imperial crown went to Rudolph Hapsburg. Strong rule under the Hapsburgs brought with it Bohemia's Golden Age. Prague grew into one of Europe's largest and most important cities, and was ornamented with fine Gothic landmarks. The late 14th and early 15th centuries witnessed an influential Church-reform movement, the Hussite Revolution, led by the Czech Jan Zizka who was inspired by the teachings of Jan Hus. The spread of Hussitism had threatened the Catholic status quo all over Europe. In 1420 combined Hussite forces successfully defended Prague against the first of a series of anti-Hussite crusades, which had been launched by authority of the pope. Though they were up against larger and better equipped forces, the Hussites repeatedly went on the offensive and raided deep into Germany, Poland and Austria. In 1526 the Czech kingdom again came under control of the Catholic Hapsburgs. On May 23, 1618, the Bohemian Estates, protesting against both the Hapsburgs' failure to deliver on promises of religious tolerance and the loss of their own privileges, ejected two Hapsburg counselors from an upper window of Prague Castle. This famous 'defenestration' sparked off the Thirty Years' War. The Czechs lost their rights and property, and almost their national identity, through forced Catholicization and Germanization. 1800-1945 In the 19th century, Bohemia and Moravia were swept by nationalistic sentiments. The Czech lands joined in the 1848 revolutions sweeping Europe, and Prague was the first city in the Austrian Empire to rise in favor of reform. The dream of an independent state began to be realized during WW I. Eventually Czechs and Slovaks agreed to form a single federal state of two equal republics. The First Republic initially experienced an industrial boom. However, slow development, the Great Depression, an influx of Czech bureaucrats and the breaking of a promise of a Slovak federal state, generated calls for Slovak autonomy. Czechoslovakia was not left to solve its problems in peace. Most of Bohemia's three million German speakers fell for the dream of a greater Germany, Hitler demanded (and got) the Sudetenland in the infamous Munich agreement of 1938 and the Czechs prepared for war. Although Bohemia and Moravia suffered little material damage in the war, many of the Czech intelligentsia were killed and the Germans managed to wipe out most of the Czech underground. Tens of thousands of Czech and Slovak Jews perished in concentration camps. On May 5, 1945, the population of Prague rose against the German forces as the Red Army approached from the east. The Germans, granted free passage out of the city by the victorious Czech resistance, began pulling out 3 days later. Most of Prague was liberated before Soviet forces arrived the following day. 1946-1989 Czechoslovakia was re-established as an independent state. Attempts to consolidate its cultural identity - and punish its oppressors - included large scale deportations of German and Hungarian inhabitants. In the 1946 elections, the Communists became the largest party, with 36% of the popular vote. The 1950s was an era of harsh repression and decline as the Communist economic policies nearly bankrupted the country. Many people were imprisoned, and hundreds were executed or died in labor camps, often for little more than a belief in democracy. In the 1960s, Czechoslovakia enjoyed a gradual liberalization. A new president, the former Slovak party leader Alexander Dubcek, represented a popular desire for full democracy and an end to censorship - 'socialism with a human face'. Soviet leaders, unable to face the thought of a democratic society within the Soviet bloc, crushed the short-lived 'Prague Spring' of 1968 with an invasion of Warsaw Pact troops on the night of August 20th. By the end of the next day, 58 people had died. In 1969, Dubcek was replaced and exiled to the Slovak forestry department. Around 14,000 party functionaries and 500,000 members who refused to renounce their belief in 'socialism with a human face' were expelled from the Party and lost their jobs. Totalitarian rule was re-established and dissidents were routinely imprisoned. 'The Velvet Revolution' of 1989 The Communist regime remained in control after the fall of the Berlin Wall in late 1989.
1990-current Voices for autonomy in Slovakia were getting stronger, and a vocal minority was demanding independence. Finally, it was decided by prime ministers of both republics and other leading politicians that splitting the country was the best solution. Many people, including President Havel, called for a referendum, but even a petition signed by a million Czechoslovaks was not enough for the federal parliament to agree on how to arrange it. In the end, Havel resigned from his post, as after repeated attempts by the new parliament he was not re-elected as president. Thus, on 1 January 1993, Czechoslovakia ceased to exist for the second time this century. Prague became the capital of the new Czech Republic, and Havel was promptly elected its first president. Compared to most other former-communist Eastern European countries, however, the Czech transformation to Western-style has been relatively smooth. The Czech Republic joined NATO in 1999 and the European Union on May 1, 2004. Czechs continue to use the Czech Crown (Ceska Koruna) as the national currency, however. It is not yet known when the Euro will be introduced. Sightseeing:Karlstejn Castle The Czech Republic's star castle, Karlstejn lives up to the highest expectations. Overlooking the Berounka river, this cluster of turrets, high walls and looming towers is as immaculately maintained as it is powerfully evocative. Kladruby A Benedictine abbey was founded here in 1115 and, following repeated plundering in the Thirty Years' War, received a major facelift by prominent Bohemian artists Giovanni Santini and Kilian Ignatz Dientzenhofer. The main attraction is the Abbey Church of the Holy Virgin, rebuilt between 1712 and 1726 by Santini in an extraordinary 'baroque Gothic' style. Koneprusy Caves Human bones, the remains of a woolly rhino and a 15th-century forge for counterfeiting coins are some of the oddities to be found in the guts of these impressively deep limestone caves. Take a jacket though: it's chilly, and you'll be down there for 45 to 60 minutes. Moravske Slovacko Region This region's flavor arises not only from a mild climate but also from the character and temperament of the people - passionate, jovial and relaxed. It's one of central Europe's richest repositories of traditional folk culture and one of the most delightful places to stay in the republic. An extraordinary reservoir of colorful traditions in speech, dress, building and decorating styles, there are annual festivals all over the place, at which singing, dancing and music are the norm, and traditional food is washed down with ample supplies of local wine. Maticka Praha - 'little mother Prague' - was largely undamaged by WWII, and the cityscape is stunning. Its compact medieval centre remains an evocative maze of cobbled lanes, ancient courtyards, dark passages and churches beyond number, all watched over by an 1100-year-old castle. Plzen Southwest of Prague, Plzen boasts eclectic architecture from the Gothic to Art Nouveau, interesting museums and galleries like the Brewery Museum and the Zapadoceske Galerie (one of the best art galleries outside Prague), and the world-famous Pilsner beer to which the town has given its name; beer had been brewed since the town's foundation in 1295 but it was only in 1842 that the Pilsner style was established. Prague Prague has become one of Europe's most popular tourist destinations. Sumava For large, tranquil forests, unpolluted and undamaged by acid rain, you can't go past the Sumava Mountains, which stretch along the border with Austria and Germany. The only wildlife left behind by past hunting are birds, though deer have been re-introduced. Wildflowers abound throughout the range. The oldest mountains in the Czech Republic, the Sumava are ideal for walking or trekking, and although the mountainous terrain rules out cycling on most hiking trails, the many dirt roads are good for an adventurous and challenging ride. Zlata Koruna At little Zlata Koruna above the Vltava you'll find one of the country's best preserved Gothic structures - a Cistercian Monastery, founded in 1263 by Premysl Otakar II to demonstrate his power in the region. The village's main square is actually built inside the monastery. Originally called the Saintly Crown of Thorns, in later wealthier days the monastery was renamed the Gold Crown (hence the town's name). In 1420 it was damaged by the Hussites, and later restored. The Monastery Cathedral, completed at the end of the 13th century, is clearly Gothic despite its facelift. Getting Around:There are regular flights between Prague and other reasonably sized Czech cities, even more regular (and
reasonably cheap) train services courtesy of Czech Railways, and a low-cost but highly dependable long-distance bus network.
Expenses:Costs in the biggest tourist centers - Prague especially, but also the Bohemian spas - are higher than elsewhere, though things are still fairly cheap for Western visitors. The big exception is accommodation in Prague, for which tourist prices are in line with those across Western Europe. Travelers' checks are easily cashed throughout the Czech Republic. American dollars, American Express, Visa or MasterCard and sometimes Diners Club are commonly accepted in urban centers. Don't bother exchanging money on the black market: the usual rate is barely above the bank rate and there are plenty of scammers ripping off tourists with discontinued old crown notes or worthless Polish zlotys. A tip of 5-10% is appreciated in any tourist restaurant with table service. The usual protocol is for them to tell you the total food bill and for you, as you hand over the money, to say how much you are paying with the tip included.
Support During Your Placement:We will be available to give you any support, advice, or guidance you may need with any issues. There will always be an emergency number for you to contact. Our aim is to ensure that you have a happy and successful experience during your stay in Czech Republic.
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and Austria. Only
about one-quarter of the size of the British Isles, the republic is hilly and picturesque, with historic castles, romantic
valleys and lakes. Prague, the capital of both the Czech Republic and Bohemia, sits along the Vltava River. The eastern
part, the rich agricultural area of Moravia offers a variety of wooded highlands, vineyards, folk art and castles. The Czech
Republic has a beautiful and diverse landscape with plenty of mountains, gentle highlands, lowlands, caves, canyons, broad
fields, bogs, lakes, ponds and dams. The further north you go, the worse the air pollution and high-altitude acid-rain
damage gets.
Renaissance and Baroque facades in
other towns. Among the richest are Kutna Hora in Central Bohemia; Cheb, Loket and Domazlice in western Bohemia; Olomouc in
northern Moravia; and Telc and Kromeriz in southern Moravia.
But on November
17th, Prague's Communist youth movement organized a demonstration in memory of nine students executed by Nazis in 1939. A
peaceful crowd of 50,000 were cornered, some 500 were beaten by the police and about 100 arrested. The following days saw
constant demonstrations, and leading dissidents, with Vaclav Havel at the forefront, formed an anti-Communist coalition which
negotiated the government's resignation December 3rd. A 'Government of National Understanding' was formed, with the
Communists as minority members. Havel was elected president on December 29th and Dubcek was elected speaker of the national
assembly. The days after the November 17th demonstration have become known as the 'Velvet Revolution' because there were no
casualties.
Its traditional pubs and eateries have been augmented by a wave
of gourmet restaurants, cocktail bars and trendy cafes. Unlike the rest of the country, Prague caters for visitors all year
round. Periods when the tourist crush is especially oppressive include the Easter and Christmas/New Year holidays, as well
as May and June. Many Czechs go on holiday in July and August, during which time the supply of bottom-end accommodation
actually increases, as student hostels are opened to visitors. If you can put up with the cold and the periodic smog alerts
during weather inversions, hotel space is plentiful in winter (outside Christmas/New Year), and Prague is gorgeous under a
mantle of snow.
The road network
is good, but drive defensively to counter the local addiction to excessive speeding. Be aware that statistically, Czech
drivers are some of the worst in Europe. Excessive speed and passing on blind corners are the main problems. Czech Railways
provides clean, efficient train service to almost every part of the country. Travel is cheap by Western standards.
Long-distance coach connections tend to be faster, more frequent and marginally cheaper than train connections, and remoter
locations require fewer transfers. The Czech Republic is covered by a network of generally good roads, though they often follow
old routes through villages and small towns. There are hundreds of miles of European-style motorways.