Find a cafe in Prague and crack open a good book

Photo: Steve Woodhall

Read books? Why go all the way to another country to read books?

If you’re a book lover, you’ll understand why. There’s nothing quite like reading a novel set in the place you’re visiting. Sitting in a gorgeous Art Nouveau cafe reading a book slows time right down and makes you feel almost like a local – or at least a leisured expat.

If you’re out on a nice day, you’ll notice young Czech students sitting on park benches, reading. Two expensive but worth-it cafes to try are the Slavia Cafe opposite the National Theatre in Prague and the opulent Obecni Dum (“Municipal House”). 

If you enjoyed the dark and charming (such a Czech combination!) film I Served the King of England, then you’ll want to soak up the atmosphere in such cafes. Recommended novels include Kundera’s Unbearable Lightness of Being (of course); Ivan Klima’s Judge on Trial (an engrossing account of daily life under the communist regime); and Josef Skvorecky’s The Miracle Game.