The Czech Republic

13.02.2011 18:54

The Czech Republic

Questions: 1 Do you think that the Czech Republic is a good place for living? Why?

                  2 Are you interested in politics? Are Czech politicians good politicians?

                  3  What would you show to a tourist visiting our republic?

  • population: 10 mil. (The population of the Czech Republic is about 10mil people)
  • area: 78,866 sq km
  • capital: Prague  (the capital city of the CR is Prague – give some info about Prague)
  • other cities: Brno, Ostrava, Hradec Králové, Plzeň, Zlín (give us some info about these cities)
  • three main parts: Bohemia, Moravia and Silesia (There are three  main parts// The CR consists of three parts// Our republic is divided into three parts)
  • official language: Czech (the official language of CR is Czech)
  • member of EU (European Union), NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organisation)

 

Geography, climate

  • location: inland country in central Europe
  • bordered by Germany, Poland, Slovakia and Austria
  • it's surrounded by mountains along borders
  • highest point// mountain: Sněžka 1603 m
  • mountain ranges:
    • the Giant mountains
    • the Bohemian forest in Bohemia
    • the Jeseníky mountains                  
    • the Beskydy mountains in Moravia 
    • the Ore mountains
  • the largest river is the Elbe which flows through Germany and empties into the North Sea
  • other: Vltava with numerous dams (Lipno, Slapy), Morava river which empties into the Danube and finaly into the Black Sea
  • humid continental climate with cold winters and warm summers
  • natural resources of coal (Ostrava), lignite (Chomutov, Most, Teplice)

 

Government

  • parliamentary democracy
  • Parlament has got two parts:
    • Chamber of Deputies (lower house, 200)- members of Parliament
    • Senate (upper house, 81)
  • head of government: Prime Minister Petr Nečas
  • president: Václav Klaus
  • main parties: ODS, ČSSD, VV, TOP 09

Economy

  • the CR is both industrial and agricultural country
  • we grow wheat,  potatoes, sugar beet, rye
  • we produce wood, paper, chemicals, steel, glass, machines (motor cars, trams, buses etc), guns

 

History

  • in the 4th century BC Celtic tribes settled in area of today's ČR and named it "Bohemia"
  • in the 7th century Frankish merchant Samo became the ruler of the new Slavic state called Great Moravia
  • by the end of 9th century Czech state was unified by the Přemyslids
  • during Middle Ages it was part of the Holy Roman Empire (Charel IV., a Czech king became the Holy Roman Emperor (1355)
  • in the 16th century country came under the Habsburg reign
  • country was devastated during Hussite Wars and after the Thirty Years War (1618-1648)
    • Germanisation
  • Czech National Revival - cultural movement in 18th and 19th centuries
  • Czechoslovakia (1918) after collapse of Austro-Hungarian Empire at the end of WW I.
  • during WW II. Czech state was occupied by the Germans (Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia), Slovakia broke away
  • 1948-1989 - communist era with influence of Soviet Union
  • in 1989 freedom after the Velvet Revolution
  • in 2003 Czech republic was founded
  • 2004 - Czech republic joined the EU

 

Famous Czech people

  • Tomáš Garrigue Masaryk (first president of Czechoslovakia)
  • Václav Havel (first spokesmen for Charter 77, leading figure of the Velvet Revolution, first Czech president)
  • Emil Zátopek (famous runner, three gold medals at the summer Olympics in Helsinki)
  • Jaromír Jágr, Dominik Hašek - hockey players
  • Jan Železný, Roman Šebrle - athletics
  • Matina Návratilová - tennis
  • Karel Čapek - R.U.R. - robot
  • Antonín Dvořák, Bedřich Smetana – composers

 

Nobel prize winners:

  • Jaroslav Heyrovský (chemistry - invention of the polarographic method
  • Jaroslav Seifet (literature)

 

Symbols

  • flag
    • The Czech flag first appeared in 1918 as the flag of Czechoslovakia
    • consist of a horizontal white band above a red band (traditional colours of Bohemia and Moravia) and a blue triangle on the left side (originally represented Slovakia but it was kept away after the split of Czechoslovakia)
  • anthem
    • Where is My Home?
    • written by the composer František Škroup and the playwright Josef Kajetán Tyl as a part of the comedy Fidlovačka aneb Žádný hněv a žádná rvačka
  • the national colors
    • The Bohemian national colors are white and red. The colors of Moravia are gold and red and the national colors of Silesia are gold and black.
    • The national colours of CR are red, white and blue.
  • the large and small national emblem
    • originally, the emblem used by Czech kings was a silver single-tailed lion on a red background, later on double-tailed
    • the large national emblem
      • individual fields symbolize the historical lands - Bohemia, Moravia and Silesia
      • two lions (Bohemia) and two eagles (for Moravia and Silesia)  in the national colors
  • the flag of the president of the republic

 

Prague

  • biggest and oldest city in the CR, also a capital city
  • seat of president, government, parliament
  • more than 1.2 mil. people
  • best views of Prague are from Petřín hill where is also an observation tower and a cableway
  • the Old town is from 13th century, first settled in 5th century

 

Czech cuisine

  • pickled sausage with onions
  • pickled cheese with peppers
  • svíčková ­- pieces of beef in sweet creamy sauce served with dumplings, and sometimes with cranberry sauce
  • goulash
    • beef and onions cooked with spices and served with dumplings
  • roasted pork - national dish
    • served with sauerkraut and dumplings
  • řízek
    • slice of pork or chicken meat breaded and fried
    • served usually with potatoes
  • beer
    • cheaper than mineral water in restaurants

 

Czech attractions : many castles (Karlštejn) and chateaus (Hluboká) , spa towns in the west (Karlovy vary, Mariánské lázně)

  

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