PragueBuzz!

Most of you probably want to shop at stores where you can choose, play and feel your guitar. Also, it’s easier to return the guitar to the shop for repair. Three weeks ago, I started hunting for my first guitar and indeed had a hard time locate shops and online stores. Maybe you did and will too. But worry no more, I have compiled a list of stores and sites.

Stores

* Muziker.cz: You can buy online or at the store too. They have hundreds of guitars for sale together with other instruments and gears. In deed, I bought my SX acoustic guitar there. The guys who work there are very helpful too. Take tram number 5 and get off at “U horou”, 3 stops after Vlatava. Turn left at the street and you will see Meca Club, the store is located in building 5/827. There is no sign, just a name on the building door, so you might miss it.
* Kytary.cz: This is another store where you can buy either online or at the store. They have stores at Nusle and in Chodov Centrum.
* www.harfa.com : Have a small collection of used guitars. I almost bought used guitar there before opted for a new one.
* Liskapiana.cz

Online

* www.aukro.cz : This is similar to Ebay; however, you don’t have to link your bank, credit card because you can pay upon delivery or in person in which you and the seller meet up. But remember, Aukro takes 14 days to verify your account and address, so if you consider this route, please register before hand. You can try to contact the seller and agree on the price without going through the bidding process.
* www.muzikant.cz
* vyhledavani.hyperinzerce.cz : Sold directly by the seller (Czech only).
* www.eorchestr.cz
* www.a-znastroje.cz
* www.music-city.cz
* www.hudebni-dum.cz
* hudba.inzertal.cz (2nd hand)
* www.bachmusik.com : Out of Prague. It’s a guitar maker and distributor. But I think you can get a guitar from them too.
* www.super-bazar.cz : Not a guitar shop, but you can find a few used guitars.
* www.humlmusic.cz
* www.vecerekinstrwuments.com

Bazaar

It’s not easy to find a cheap (money-wise) guitar. I notice that guitars are more expensive sold from Bazaar sites. Additionally, pawn shops are other options.

If you want a guitar lesson, you can try cool American Rob at 420 775 566389

Where to Buy Rice Cookers in Prague

How can one make real Asian dishes without first cooking a quality bowl of rice? And how can one make a quality bowl of rice with a rice cooker? During my first year in this country, I found myself burning over three pots, four plastic utensils, countless of holed rice bags because I forgot to stand by the stove and keep vigilant eyes of my future meals, check water and stir the rice. Even when the rice was done, I would be very lucky if it was cooked properly. Indian curry chicken, Japanese sushi, Chinese kungpao and Vietnamese fried veggie had no chance to turn into real dishes because of their messy rice portion.

I desperately searched many department stores in Prague for a rice cooker in a year, but the closest ones I found were steam pots to make bread and dumplings. Upon discovering this, I turned to my boyfriend and said “Are you guys kidding me? You have pots for making your stupid bread and not my precious rice?” The Vietnamese supermarket at Sapa sells plenty of steam rice cookers, but the prices were around 2000 CZK and without warranty. My typical Asian mother, worrying about my food supply, tries to convince me to let her ship a small rice cooker from the US. Tempted, I almost let her do it before realizing the faulty of this solution: US appliances don’t work with European electric sockets. For this to work, I will need a converter and an adaptor as well.

I did occasionally eat rice by the boxes as Czech and expats do, I bought 10-kg bag of rice from the Vietnamese Sapa market. But worms started getting into the bags because I got lazy cooking my rice, and because nobody wanted to eat nasty burned rice cooked in regular pots.

“Can a girl eat rice with some dignity?” Sometimes I wonder.

And an African dude from Senegal answered my secret prayer. He invited my boyfriend and I over to his new flat for a dinner party eating Senegali curry chicken. I forgot to ask how he made the rice because I was ashamed that some African managed to cook rice better than an Asian who grew up with the damn thing.

Had had enough with his pots and utensils being burned in addition to a smelly kitchen; my boyfriend had bought me a real rice cooker from Daart for only 900 CZK. Yoohoo!  I cooked the first rice on Christmas and ate it with only soy sauce, cucumber and chilly pepper.

Oh holly molly cow coming out of Czech empty heaven, the simple meal was goooooooooood.

On the website, click on Maly dom�c� spot?ebi?e-> Parn� hrnce (Small Home Appliance -> Steam pot)

Note:  The pot might not be available at every store. Call them first to ask. We bought this rice cooker in the store at Zlicin. Czech employees might not know what you are referring to so don’t expect their help too much. Czechs might not know such electric pots for cooking rice exist. My roommate kept complaining that her parents like to eat rice but that they burned it a lot and did not know to cook it properly. Upon seeing our rice cooker, she immediately purchased the same one for her parent’s Christmas present.

[Datart]

Frustrated by the low number of IT females in the Czech Republic, IBM, one of world leaders in IT industry, sets out to encourage, motivate, recruit young girls and women, and arouse their  interests in computer and information technology, a field has long been male-dominated.

According to IBM, “IT is a very dynamic and fast developing area for which the most important precondition is to be willing to learn. One doesn’t have to hold a university diploma of computer science or have years of practice in the field to succeed with technology. Women are usually surprised that IT jobs can also be family-friendly because work from home is possible. Some companies, including IBM Czech Republic, are also starting to open job-share arrangements and opportunities for women to keep in touch with work via smaller projects while on maternity leave. In fact, the IT sector offers better work conditions for women in terms of equal opportunities and work-life balance than other areas of business.”

[via Park Life Oct. newsletter]

The website is in Czech, but you can guess your way around. For rental price list, click Pujcovna -> Lyze a snowboardy (cenik). There are 4 rental categories: weekend (viken celkem), a day during the weekend (viken na 1 den), all week (tyden celkem) and a non-weekend day (tyden na 1 den). You can either deposit in cash (vratná záloha) or by credit cards except Master Card. They charge double for deposit by credit cards.

The rental price is decent, plus the equipments are fairly new.

In addition to selling new merchandise, Harfa Sport has a medium-size underground bazaar of used skis, snowboards, shoes and snowing gears. The prices look reasonable to me. I would probably buy a snowboard there if they had my size.

Harfa Sport
address: Ceskomoravska 41 190 00 Praha 9. Metro B (Vysocanska) + Bus (177, 195 or 136) to Chodov and stop at Nadrazi Liben.
site: www.harfasport.cz
phone: +420 284 811 212