I wanted to describe the impressions, emotions, and attractions of the weekend in Prague freshly but it came out as always and some time has passed since the September visit.
I have never been to Prague or the Czech Republic at a match before. I heard a lot of good things and I'm happy that I was able to experience them personally.
The organizer, sponsor, guide and companion of the trip to Prague was Krzysztof - the Third Wagon of the Pociąg do Futbolu, also known as my partner. My role in this trip was limited to admiring the trip itself.
I will mention that when Krzysztof was not so close to my heart, on a social networking site I looked at photos from his trip to Portugal. Even then I knew that if anyone was to organize a trip that 100% meets my tourism requirements, it is Him.
2019-09-13 Friday
We traveled to Prague by train. Bydgoszcz - Warsaw - Prague route.
I experienced the first Czech charms right after crossing the border when a Czech restaurant wagon was attached to the train. For appetizer a beer, main course 'knedliki' with meat and sauce and for dessert ... Beer :)
We arrived in Prague on Friday, 13.09, before 6 pm. Just in time to check-in at the hotel, leave the luggage and to gently start the Czech weekend, of course with a match.
Prague and the surrounding area are perfectly connected! Large selection of public transport, buses, trams but most of all 3 metro lines. Despite the open gates at all metro stations, communication in Prague is not free. Given the number of transfers and travel comfort, and the cost of the penalty for a possible lack of a ticket, is 1,500 CZK, including 800 CZK to pay on the spot, it is really worth buying a ticket. The cost of a 3-day ticket is 310 CZK.
The first match I watched in the Czech Republic was Sokol Dolní Počernice - Sk Victoria Sterboholy.
We arrived by suburban train to the match at the Dolni Počernice, located just 15 kilometers from the center of Prague. Previously purchased 3-day tickets were valid for that journey.
On the spot, it turned out that we were able to hit the derby and the districts represented by the clubs are separated by a distance of about 2 kilometers.
The first match and immediately a shock! A shock for a regular frequenter at Polish lower leagues matches, which I am.
There were smells from the grill from the entrance to the stadium. There was a bar on site. An electronic scoreboard was on the pitch. A toilet was available.
In the description of the weekend in Prague, admiration for access to the toilet will quite often appear. Most men don't feel the lack of the toilet, especially after drinking beer, as women do. Access to the toilet, and here I mark the toilets and not the toi-toi's, it's incredible psychological comfort. As a woman, I don't have to worry about whether the bushes will be high enough, whether there will be any bushes at all, whether the tick will not get into my rump or how many people will be exposed to the view of my naked butt.
We arrived at the match about half an hour before the kick-off so we calmly went to the bar where, as you can probably guess, we drank beer. Half an hour before the match there were a lot of fans in the stands and at the bar. The match took place in the evening under artificial lighting.
In the ranks of the host team, the doppelganger of Roberto Carlos played, although my Tour Guide stated that he looked more like Aílton Gonçalves da Silva.
In addition to refueling three beers, I also made my debut in the consumption of Czech stadium catering.
The match ended with the result 3:2.
Despite the very long journey that day, noticeable physical fatigue, I returned to the hotel delighted! complemented by fluids and fed up!
"So cool!" - that thought was in my head. A smile on the face with elements of tiredness and beer drinking effects.
2019-09-14 Saturday
My Tour Guide has planned three matches for Saturday!
The first Saturday match was the meeting of the 3rd Czech league, FK Loko Vltavín - TJ Jiskra Domažlice.
First impression? I could stay at this pitch!
My heartbeat from the entrance as strong as when Jacek Krzynówek scored Portugal in 2007!
The admission ticket costs 50 CZK. The price included a very nice, colorful ticket and a match program. It has 16 pages! The program includes tables, fixtures, the report from the previous match, description of the opposing team and even an interview with the goalkeeper, where I was captivated by the question of "fotbalovy sen".
I don't know the Czech language, but it's similar to Polish, so I didn't have much trouble understanding. Like most people, after a few beers, I am a polyglot. In addition, I received advice from Krzysztof regarding speaking Czech:
"Mutilate the Polish language, imagining that Krecik (Mole from the Czech cartoon) would say so."
In addition to advice, I also received a warning not to search for anything ("sukać") because this polish word in Czech simply means "fuck". As it happens in my life, the more I tried not to say the word the more I was searching for something, and Krzysztof, which warned me himself, was loudly searching for sugar during breakfast at the hotel.
At the FK Loko Stadium, despite the construction works related to the development of the housing estate, all the elements that amazed me were present! Foodtruck, where you could buy grilled sausage, including white one and of course beer, tables with umbrellas and of course the toilet! You can drink a beer without worrying about a full bladder!
Fortunately, I'm not a gentleman, the match started at 10:15 and I already had a second beer.
We watched the Loko match in the company of Kibic Rafał, who runs the blog "footballsightseeing", who also spent the weekend in Prague. Rafał meets an incredible amount of incredible stories from forgetting tickets for a foreign match to hitchhiking in Iran.
I don't know if it's admiration for access to grilled dishes, the drink of the gods and of course the toilet, or maybe the charm of the place itself, but from the first second of the match, I knew that I was in love. I told my companions that Loko will be "my team", that it is the most beautiful place and I will stay here!
The match ended with the win of the home team 1:0.
Looped "So cool!" boomed louder and more often in my head.
The second Saturday match was the meeting of TJ Sokol Stodůlky - Cechie Smichov.
The match was preceded by the ceremony of presenting the new turf in the field and the accompanying attractions. We got to the end of the children's soccer tournament.
Interesting and certainly eye-catching is the "decoration" of football shoes hanging on a cord above the entrance gate to the stadium.
In the pub on the shelves a lot of trophies and gadgets such as old-school ball.
According to the principle "there is no sleeping on trips", I tried bravely to keep pace with the consumption of beer with Krzysztof, although I must admit that my face was getting more vaguer.
We also did not refuse to eat grilled sausages.
During the break in the stands, the match program could be purchased. Not as extensive as the one from Loko, but also interesting, especially since it is numbered. After the match gadgets were drawn. Unfortunately, I do not know what and if by chance Krzysztof did win something because right after the last whistle we did the transfer to the third match.
At the match, we witnessed a bare-footed shot. Bare because as a result of a clash with the opponent the player lost his shoe.
The match ended with the result 1:2.
To see more pictures from the TJ Sokol Stodůlky - Cechie Smichov match press the link.
Transfer to the third match without major adventures. Apart from a small logistical misunderstanding and chasing me up the devil's stairs, only to get back to the bus stop after all. Running up the stairs helped my body get a bit fresher after topping up myself with three glasses of beer. We went to the match by bus, 4 stops.
Entry to the match of the fifteenth and sixteenth team of the sixth league, FK Reporyje - 1999 Praha, was not ticketed. There were also no match programs, but it was possible to buy club gadgets.
We had a grilled marinated cheese - hermelin. Brilliant and tasty!
An attraction for kids in the form of an inflatable minion. There was a working scoreboard on site.
The match ended in a 1:1 draw, and to my unfortunate, no penalties.
In some Czech leagues, the match ended in a draw, does not end with a division of points, one to one. After the match there is a series of penalty kicks, where the winning team gets 2 and the losing team gets 1 point.
Until the end, we were not sure whether the draw would guarantee us additional entertainment, but it turned out not this time.
On the way back from Saturday matches, we completed a mandatory visit to Prague on the Charles Bridge and a walk around the city. On the way to the hotel, a beer stop in a pub located in the backyard of the tenement house.
2019-09-15 Sunday
Sunday was very sunny. My Tour Guide has planned for us to watch two matches in the Žižkov district on the right bank of the Vltava River.
The first match was FK Viktoria Žižkov - FC HRADEC KRÁLOVÉ.
I was a little worried if I would be let in with the backpack in which I wore my camera. I asked if there were a lot of people going to the matches of the second league, but Krzysztof, who had a visit to the stadium of Victoria Zizkov already made on previous visits to Prague, said that not necessarily. For sure that it is a stadium that must be seen in Prague.
After reaching the destination, it turned out that there was a queue for tickets. Rafał joined us in the queue, he was unhappy that we are not standing closer.
100 CZK a ticket. There were no programs left, maybe because they were so colorful and looked interesting.
Stadium catering offering, in addition to standard grill dishes, scrambled eggs! Rafał's adventures after a few of his stories ceased to surprise me, hence I was not surprised that the scrambled eggs ended up just on the client standing in line in front of Rafał. Unfortunately, there will be no scrambled eggs review. We ate sausage.
Supporting groups were active at the Viktoria Stadium. Increasing doping with the increase of consumed beer. To the extent that with the third beer we drank, we were already sitting with Viktoria's fans in their sector.
The match ended with a 1:2 result and I started to wonder if I liked Loko or Viktoria more!
To see more pictures from the FK Viktoria Žižkov - FC HRADEC KRÁLOVÉ match press the link.
After breakfast at the stadium in Zizkov, we had to burn some calories. The route to the next match led up the stairs. Calorie loss climbing but in beautiful scenery!
The name of the district comes from Jan Žižka and the battle of Vitkov Hill fought by him in 1420. On the way from Viktoria's match, we passed the Jan Zizka statue on Vitkov Hill. It is reportedly the largest equestrian bronze statue in the world, and certainly one of the largest. From the hill, you can admire the district, steep narrow and winding streets and compact buildings consisting of beautiful tenement houses from the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries.
AFK Union Žižkov - Ambassadors Football Czech Republic, finally the eighth league!
It was worth climbing to this match, not only for beautiful views reasons. The atmosphere of the bar-shop resembled the atmosphere of Polish small gastronomy from the 80s. Even the lady who poured us beer as if extracted from those times.
The main referee was a very sporty figure person. As assistants - gentlemen from the staffs of both teams. Here, Professionals, they switched sides after a half to be fair.
It was a show of one of the home team players without a doubt. Taking advantage of the beautiful weather, he was exposing a tattoo on his back. Real angel! Maybe a fallen angel a bit, because before the match, after the match and also during the match he was refilling fluids and reducing the capacity of the lungs by smoking the electronic cigarette.
It's fair to say that he has more talent than equipment because his shoe was stuck together with packing tape.
During all matches in Prague, I noticed that the style of play is different than in Poland. Despite the uncompromising game, I did not notice "playing Neymar". Fouled players did not make any screams or moans, they did not roll on the pitch. They got up and continued playing.
Medical help also surprised me. In Prague, instead of the freezer known and used for all injuries in Poland, water was used.
The player poured with water returned to the game.
The freezer was use only as a last resort.
"Oh, look. It MUST be serious. They used the freezer." noticed in the last match Krzysztof.
The match ended with a 1:2 result, and the match of the penultimate and last team in the table was just as I expected. Stunning!
To see more pictures from the AFK Union Žižkov - Ambassadors Football Czech Republic match press the link.
I was satisfied with football!
We closed the Czech football weekend with six matches!
It is noteworthy that in the stands a lot of beautiful women. It is not surprising that the majority of porn actresses come from the Czech Republic. Although we met none of the actresses.
We ended the Sunday afternoon with dinner, with typical, traditional Czech dishes, so as to completely clog the veins with cholesterol.
Although none of us have an Instagram, we turned into Insta-tourists so I can present my Czech dinner.
Garlic soup with croutons and a kilo of cheese floating in it. Marinated cheese and a very fat marinated sausage for an appetizer. Fries and fried cheese, which defeated me, just as the fries-and-kebab in a bun served at my local bar at Mrs. Ola in Łabiszyn.
Believe me, I regret to this day that I did not have even a millimeter of space to eat it to the end!
Prague's football, culinary, logistical and landscape wonders!
I can say without a doubt that it is a paradise for stadium tourists.
This was my first visit and I'm sure it's not the last.
If you haven't been to Prague yet and you like football, Czech beer, and grilled dishes - don't wait! Go to Prague.
Thank you soo much Krzysztof for that trip! For showing me that what I love for so many years can be even more interesting.
well written, I wish you many equally successful football trips in the future! :D
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