This Sunday, the Jewish Museum in Prague is hosting a celebration at the Spanish Synagogue, to mark 30 years since the museum was put back into the care of the Czech Jewish community. Beginning at 2 pm, the event will include musical and theatrical entertainment for the whole family. From Polish 1930s jazz to Czech-German cabaret, this free event will celebrate both the museum and Jewish contributions to the art, music and life of Central Europe.

Czechia is bracing for potential severe flooding due to heavy rainfall which started on Thursday and is predicted to last for the next couple of days. Environment Minister Petr Hladík has likened the weather forecast to the years 1997 and 2002, when Czechia was hit by devastating floods. I asked hydrogeologist Jan Ďaňhelka if the situation is really that serious:

One of the winners of this year’s Most Beautiful Czech Books of the Year Award is Birds of Prague 1800-2020, published by the Czech Ornithological Society and Revolver Revue. It follows up on the work of the pioneering Czechoslovak ornithologist Veleslav Wahl, who was executed in 1951 by the Communist regime for alleged treason. The impressive volume contains not only the original book from 1944. It also includes Wahl’s biography and maps the development of bird communities in the city over the last decades. I discussed the book with Petr Voříšek from the Czech Ornithological Society, who initiated its creation.

The Crown of St. Wenceslas made for the coronation of Charles IV has a magic attraction. It is rarely put on display and people cue up for hours to see it. Few people know that there is a replica of it at Barrandov film studios that anyone can borrow.

Today marks the centenary of the birth of Rudolf Vrba, a Czechoslovak and Jewish biochemist, who escaped from the Auschwitz concentration camp in 1942 together with fellow prisoner Alfréd Wetzler. Together they published the Vrba–Wetzler report. This eyewitness description is credited with waking the world up to the full horrors happening at Auschwitz.

Labor market conditions in Czechia have deteriorated for the third consecutive year and are now ranked as the tenth worst in the EU, primarily due to low flexibility and significant gender pay disparities. Despite having the lowest unemployment rate in the EU, Czechia is struggling to create favorable conditions for workers. I spoke to Lukáš Kovanda, Chief Economist at Trinity Bank, to find out what is contributing to the worsening labor market conditions.

Antonín Dvořák is one of the greatest musicians that Czechia has given to the world. Throughout his life, he remained firmly rooted in his native region of Central Bohemia.

Chilli peppers may not always be as spicy as the label says. According to experts, manufacturers often do not even know how to measure the spiciness of their products correctly and sometimes quote values twice as high as the real strength. Chemists from the Brno University of Technology have therefore started testing chillis and trying to find out the exact value of their hotness.

As the election campaign heats up in Czechia, tensions are high and some parties have resorted to controversial tactics. A racist billboard in Prague has sparked outrage and lawsuits.

According to the Distillers' Union, the distilling season in Czechia will be particularly bad this year. Fruit distillate production is expected to fall to about one fifth of last year's level – which was already bad. Between 20 and 30 percent of distilleries will not reopen because they are no longer profitable, the Distillers' Union has warned. As a result, the black market has also seen surges.