Vinohrady summertime

Sunday, June 22, 2014

Where do we live? We've nested on the edge of Prague's Vinohrady neighborhood, named for the fact it was blanketed by the vineyards of King Charles IV in the 14th century. You can get there in just a couple of tram or metro stops from all of the major tourist sites.
Map of the center of Prague from Smichovhotels.com
Its hallmark is its grand architecture and it's known as an expat hotspot, but the only time we really notice English is outside of Western entities like Starbucks or at events like World Cup festivities. Anyhow, the 'hood is a superb summertime hangout, and here are our most recent 3 reasons:

World Cup mania is in full-swing, meaning that Vinohrady's Riegerovy Sady beer garden, with its two big projection screens, is packed to the gills. So much so that our Scottish friend about went mental on the people who'd stand smack in front of our table, blocking the view: "Big mahn in tha gleen shehrt- out ma way ya tossehr!" This is one place where you can find dozens of languages being spoken as people from all over the planet come to cheer on their teams. 

Patios are sprouting outside of cafés and restaurants, which are plentiful. We recently found A+ spring rolls and pho in Vinohrady, at Ha Noi. Authentic Vietnamese food is something we've really missed since leaving the U.S. and this does a decent job of filling the void. 

Finally, it seems that festivals are always popping up in this area. Here's a Taste of Slovenia event we stumbled upon on a cool summer evening in Jiřího z Poděbrad Square. We collected a pile of info about traveling there; Ljubljana is high on our list.

Ahhh...summer... This post is part of the #SundayTraveler blog linkup hosted by PackMeTo.com!

10 comments

  1. I love the concept of beer gardens and I wish America/Russia took that tradition more to heart. There's nothing better than sitting outside in the lovely weather with fellow city-dwellers!

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    1. I sooooo agree! Completely missed opportunity in America and Russia. Some of my favorite hours have been spent in beer gardens - with or without beer!

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  2. Hahaha! I was looking at the picture of him in front of the noodle soup and was like "something doesn't look right" and then I noticed the dog face. It looks longing.

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    1. She was begging for some soup! Positive: Dogs are allowed in restaurants in Prague. Negative: Our little pup is a total mooch during restaurant meals :)

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  3. you guys are so much fun! sounds like you're enjoying summer perfectly. yes, yes, yes to ljubljana! we loved it!

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    1. Oh, I'm glad you did! We have a cousin who studied abroad there and fell in love with it. Happy to get positive feedback on the place!

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  4. Wow how random that there is a good Vietnamese restaurant! I hope you get a chance to visit Ljubljana. I love Slovenia. It's such a gorgeous country!

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    1. That's what I keep hearing about Slovenia! It just hasn't been on my radar until recently. Glad for the recommendation :)

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  5. With the number of Vietnamese who live in the Czech Republic - 83,000 according to the 2011 census, it really ought not to be too difficult to find good Vietnamese food here.

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    1. Yes, you'd think so, but I've had more than a couple really bad bowls of pho and the like around the city. Nothing that can hold a candle to what my Vietnamese students' parents made back in the U.S. I think it's partly to do with the availability of ingredients here. Or maybe I've just gone to subpar places!

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