Language
The official language of the Czech Republic is Czech, a highly complex western Slav tongue. English is now widely spoken in hotels and restaurants, although less so in shops and museums. Any attempt to speak Czech will be much appreciated, although if you’re intent on learning a little, you’ll come across what one student called ‘a traffic jam of consonants’ such as the tongue-twister strc prst skrz krk (stick your finger down your neck). The following phrases are not so tricky: Mluvite anglicky? (mloo-vee-te ang-glits-ki … Do you speak English?); Rozumite? (ro-zoo-mee-te … do you understand?); Diky (dyee-kil … thanks).
Currency And Tipping
The Czechs use the Crown or koruna ceska (Kc), which is divided into 100 relatively worthless hellers or halire. Despite the numerous prices quoted in Euros all over Prague, the Czechs have not adopted the Euro yet. However, a few of the places that quote Euro prices will accept that currency at a pretty fair rate. Tipping is normal practice in cafes, bars, restaurants and taxis, though this is done usually by rounding up the total. For example, if a waiter tots up the bill and asks you for 74Kc, you could hand him a 100Kc note and say ‘take 80Kc.’
Dress Code
Lying at the heart of Europe, Prague has a continental climate: winters can be pretty cold, summers correspondingly scorching, so dress accordingly. The best times to visit, in terms of weather, are late spring and early autumn. If you don’t mind the cold, the city can look beautiful in the snowy winter months, though it can fall prey to ‘inversions,’ which blanket Prague in a grey smog for a week or more. The most exclusive Prague restaurants prefer their clients to be formally dressed, but elsewhere, the smart casual look is quite acceptable.
Safety
Prague has experienced a dramatic rise in crime since 1989, but you shouldn’t be unduly paranoid: the crime rate is still very low compared with most European or North American cities. Pickpockets are the biggest hassle, especially in summer around the most popular tourist sights and on the trams and metro. Sensible precautions include making photocopies of your passport, leaving valuables in the hotel safe and keeping cameras, i-pods etc. away from public view and zipped up.
Travel
The centre of Prague, where most of the city’s sights are concentrated, is reasonably small and best explored on foot. Many travel companies organise interesting walking tours. At some point, however, in order to cross the city quickly or reach some of the more widely dispersed attractions, you’ll need to use the city’s cheap and efficient public transport system. It comprises the metro (subway) and a network of trams and buses. To get a clearer picture, it’s wise to invest in a city map which marks all the tram, bus and metro lines. You can buy a travel pass (casova jizdenka) for 24 hours, three days, seven days or fifteen days. No photos or ID are required, although you must write your name and date of birth on the reverse of the ticket and punch it to validate when you first use it. They can be bought at offices of the Prague Information Service, newsagents, tobacconists and anywhere displaying the yellow DP sign of the Prague Public Transport Company. If you are intending to buy a single or return ticket, there are machines at all metro stations and some bus and tram stops, but be warned that they are complicated to figure out.
