The Thing about Prague: How I gave it all up for a new life in Europe's most eccentric city

by Rachael Weiss

'I'd like to say that my decision to move to Prague permanently was based on something grand and noble - a desire to trace my roots, a sense of adventure, my literary heart yearning to burst into flower in the sweet soil of Old Europe - but I can't. The truth is that I had nothing better to do.'When Rachael Weiss left a good job, Thelma the cat and a normal life in Sydney for the romantic dream of being a writer in Prague she intended to stay forever. She lasted just three years, exasperated by the eccentricities of her ancestral city and the mind-boggling bureaucracy and customs of a country that values beer and potatoes above everything else.In this surprising and generous memoir full of warmth and unstoppable sociability, Rachael attempts to write her great novel, buy an apartment (any apartment!), dodge unscrupulous employers, and perhaps find love. She gets lost in the woods with a Kyrgyzstani software engineer who wants to eat humans, finds herself leading services at the Spanish synagogue with no real idea of what she was doing and spends long nights drinking beer with a colourful cast of crazy, warm and slightly mad locals and expats.Rich in absurdities and gentle humour, The Thing About Pragueis rife with insight, culture clashes, friendships and above all charm.

Genres: Travel, Nonfiction, Biography, Memoir

378 pages, Kindle Edition

First published September 1, 2014

About the author

Rachael Weiss is an Australian author, living and writing in Dublin. She considers her greatest achievement to be her fourth place in the New South Wales Scrabble tournament. Her first two books are Me, Myself and Prague (Allen & Unwin 2008), and Are We There Yet? (Allen & Unwin 2005). -from author's website

Reviews

[Klára Vaňková · Rating 4 out of 5]

At the very beginning I have to say that I like books about people moving into different countries. I’ve read Almost French, Merde and some more. However, this book was different for me – being Czech and living in Prague, I have a pretty good insight of the background Weiss was living in. :)

In general, I must say I enjoyed the book very much. It is well written, engaging, entertaining and for me also very interesting for the reasons stated above.
But… I kept getting annoyed by the author‘s constant complaints about everything and also the way she generalizes her own personal experience into universally valid facts about the Czech republic. The way she blames the communist era for just about anything she doesn’t like is just ludicrous, especially in situations like paying taxes - sorry that the government wants people to do that regularly and not once in 10 years. The visa situation was also kind of debatable – at first she didn’t want to be bothered with it and deputed a clearly incompeten co-worker to take care of it. Then she’s surprised that something went wrong…

I just couldn’t understand why she wants to keep living in a city and country that she hates so much and why she decided to move here in the first place. She - herself - chose the life of an expat over a “cosy” life in her homeland, but it seemed to me as if she didn’t want to accept the expat life at all.

I don’t want to look like an offended Czech. Believe me, I know we are not the nicest and most sympathetic people out there. But I would still recommend reading this book rather AFTER you visit Prague, not before that. :) It might discourage you from your visit and that would not be fair to both Prague and the Czechs. :)

[Johanna Breen · Rating 2 out of 5]

I read Rachel Weiss's 'Me, Myself and Prague' in my first few months of a two year spell of living in Prague. At times when I was reading it I was able to feel smug and self-satisfied about her falling into pitfalls I had avoided. Meanwhile at other times I picked up some great tips about places to go, things to do (the continually moving lift somewhere near the Lucerna was a great one) and various coping strategies.

This book therefore showed great promise, particularly as the three years the author spent there coincided with my own time in the country. Imagine my disappointment to find her pretty much exclusively hanging out with expats and not really telling us much about Prague life at all (except for the bit about her flat in Žižkov, which was way cool and the bit about the synagogue, which is super boring, oh, and all the moaning about bureaucracy too).

Weiss pitches up and lounges around in her Dad's flat for several months before she gets a job and a flat of her own. How many real people have that luxury? She also seems to think that because she's an Aussie she can turn up in a foreign country with only the basics of the language and demand a premium for her services. 'I might be living in Prague but there was no way I was going to live on Czech wages' she says . Why not? The Czechs have to do it. Oh yes, and the EU and Shengen were created with the sole purpose of making life difficult for Aussies and Americans in Prague and should be done away with d'you hear?

Ha! Maybe I'm just bitter because my Czech experience consisted of working in a soul-destroying job at a multinational. Still, I enjoyed every minute of my free time in this amazing country and the people were fantastic. Weiss is a fine writer and her prose is super-engaging, but the portrait she paints of the Czech Republic is bleak and she doesn't exactly cover herself with glory here either.

If you're hoping to move to Prague, for God's sake, don't read this book, read her other one!

[Mark Glover · Rating 5 out of 5]

Me, Myself and Prague was a book I stumbled upon in a secondhand bookshop and being very much a fan of the city and having imagined myself undertaking the similarly romantic notion to move there at some stage and write the great novel was immediately captured by the story being told. While the first book was more about someone making tentative progress in a city which still had the ability to enchant, confuse and surprise them, The Thing About Prague is very more about someone coming to terms with being in their 40's having never achieved many of the things that one is expected to have achieved at such an age.Being of a similar age and similar situation I found much to relate to in the book especially with regards the sense of being equally stifled but at the same time contented in the face of denying the expectation. What Weiss does very effectively in this book is highlight the fact that such a compromise is not by its nature a sacrifice but rather a choice and with every choice their are moments when you doubt its validity or feel its weight. Unlike its prequel the book is less of a guide to the city and its people and a lot of the story is fairly episodic but it works simply because you grow to like the narrator and it is infused with humor and healthy dose of sceptic hindsight. It is shame that her books aren't as well known as perhaps Sarah Turnbull's Almost French or Mary Moody's books as they are equally as compelling in offering a view of what it is like to live, love and to be entranced with a foreign culture. In some ways this sequel offers a more realistic view of what it is like to live long term in a different country, the realism that can only be seen once the blinkered romantic view has fallen away and one is faced with the harsh reality of starting again with career, friendships and finding ones place. There is definitely a resonance with Mary Moody's later books in her series about France and it offers the same foot in both camps view that seems to be inevitable when one has the choice. I hope that it gets wider notice than its predecessor as it is well written and a rarity in offering a western view of a city that has entranced and continues to entrance many.

[Jacki (Julia Flyte) · Rating 4 out of 5]

At the age of 41, and experiencing something of a mid life crisis, writer Rachael Weiss decided to leave behind her life in Australia and move permanently to Prague, lured by the thought of "cobbled streets, midnight-blue evenings, snowflakes and cheap beer". In the end she would last three years and the book charts her journey from giddy adoration for all things Prague to disenchantment with the communist bureaucracy, unfriendly locals and her inability to find a well paying job.

Weiss has a chatty writing style and a gift for anecdotes. The first half of the book is particularly strong. It catapults the reader into the Czech capital and is frequently amusing. Gradually over the second half of the book Weiss becomes a little - dare I say it? - whiney and I got tired of hearing about her frustrated libido. But overall it strikes a good a balance between a travelogue and a personal memoir and it definitely had me longing to revisit Prague.

If you've enjoyed this book, I recommend Penelope Green's trilogy about living in Italy (start with When In Rome: Chasing La Dolce Vita and also Sarah Turnbull's story about moving to Paris: Almost French: Love and a New Life in Paris.

I understand that Weiss is now living in Dublin and I hope that there will eventually be a book about her experiences there! She's a fun writer.

[Zdenek Hadascok · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's good but...
But it's not exactly ABOUT Prague. It is about author desperately trying to find a place and work while living in Prague.
She expresses her increasing frustration with Czech (but not only Czech) bureaucracy, unfriendliness, unhelpfullness and rudeness and her desperation to find friends.

It is a very good read for what it is although I was hoping for a style and mood she introduced in her first book "Me, Myself and Prague" which was one of the best books about an expat trying to make it in a strange country.
On the other hand, I totally understand why she wrote it this way because it is true to the core and her experiences are priceless for anybody who's thinking about living in Czech Republic.

[Lysergius · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not quite reflecting the current situation in Czechia/Prague but most of the elements are still here. I suspect that the Foreign Police are a little more organised, but their decisions can still seem somewhat arbitrary and everyone has a horror story to tell. As a retiree living here, life is simpler, I don't have to work so all that hassle goes over my head... Ms Weiss highlights all the good bits too, the beer that is cheaper than water, and the fact that bacon is considered a vegetable. I had a good laugh at some of the characters and situations, though sadly without first hand experience of this lovely city, most of it will be lost on the casual reader, but isn't that always the way of it?

[Chris Couzens · Rating 3 out of 5]

"The Thing about Prague" was as much about the author as it was about Prague.

The book brought back quite a few memories of Prague which I appreciated.

Some of the chapters are better than others. My 2 highlights are the chapter where she gets to be on Czech television and the chapter when she inadvertently goes hiking with a suspected cannibal.

Some of the recurring themes of the book are Kafkaesque bureaucracy, the author's loneliness, the Czech people, impulsiveness and of course Prague.

I was saddened to hear that the Big Ben Bookshop has closed down.

I would only recommend if you have lived or are thinking of living in Prague. Everyone should read chapter 38 (the hike with the cannibal).

[Kirsten Hivon · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was good, but wow was it repetitive! So many of her friends seemed exactly the same with the same lives and even tastes in furniture, it was hard to keep them straight. No wonder I felt this book dragged a bit, and I struggled to keep interested at times. I did have one thing I didn't get at all though, why would somebody who by her own admission didn't believe in God, or creationism, join a synagogue? Am I the only one with this question or did I just display my complete ignorance of the Jewish faith? I would appreciate and answer to this question if people wouldn't mind.

[NoirBlogger · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read this book in Prague and I did indeed buy it at the Shakespeare bookshop. I left it in the hotel as it seemed fitting to pass on to someone else enjoying Prague. Very good read. Slightly saddened by the fact that the author seemed a bit disillusioned with the city at the end. I did sympathise though as lovely as it was I can see that living there would be a trial for a non Czech person. I really hope the person who booked the room after us reads and enjoys it

[Sallyann Van leeuwen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Having just been to Prague I was keen to read this and be entranced by the secretst of the city. I had google maps open and was keen to plot the sites mentioned on the map. This only lasted for the first third of the book, as it then became a story of her loneliness and libido, not what I wanted to read about. I finished it, but i was disappointed with the direction it took.

[Lukas B. · Rating 5 out of 5]

As a fellow co-aussie living in Prague, I can relate to how well Rachael Weiss put to paper the soul and bustling business of its life, spent mostly in beer-gardens and being harassed by the terrible waiters, :D An amazing book, had me reading it in one go. Definitely an uplifting must for anyone thinking of spending along time overseas from home. Thanks.

[Rachael Sage · Rating 2 out of 5]

Good God, I am relieved to be finished with this tedious book. I picked it up after a trip to Prague, having once lived in Sweden for about the same amount of time and thinking I might find some relatable insights here, or at least entertaining thoughts on culture clashing– Ms. Weiss being Australian and me being American and both of us having moved to relatively cold and quiet northern cultures.

This book is devoid of valuable insight and reads, instead, like the author's bitter journal pages from a time in her life that she loathes. Writing such pages to process and vent is one thing– publishing them into a book about "living in Prague" is wholly different. There are a couple of interesting stories here but, unfortunately, there is little editing (despite the fact that the author goes on and on about being an editor), and so stories seldom connect to the reader or back to the original theme of the book as laid out on the back cover.

At times (too many times) it feels like you're out for drinks with that one acquaintance who never stops talking about themselves, who complains about EVERYTHING, and who is not remotely above bad-mouthing everyone she's ever met in order to make herself feel superior.

Skip it. Read a book about the history of Prague and the Prague Spring instead. Or screw it– just read Kafka.

[Sarah · Rating 3 out of 5]

A light and entertaining account of a very justified attempt to escape mediocrity. I don't think the author gives her self enough credit for succeeding with her book publishing contract. Some great observations of Czech culture post communism through the prism of battles with the immigration authorities, trials in the secondary labour market and interactions with the locals.

[Leanne · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the humorous & thoroughly entertaining sequel to Me, Myself & Prague. Written by forty-something Rachel Weiss who throws in her going-nowhere existence in Sydney to move permanently to Prague to advance her creative juices & succeed as a best-selling novelist. It's a light read that details the zanier side of living in Prague as an ex-pat, desperately trying to fit in.

[Talva Burnette · Rating 4 out of 5]

Funny and well written. However, being an expat in Prague currently it was hard to read when she bad talked this beautiful city that I have fallen so deeply in love with. Everyone's experience is different and for the most part I enjoyed reading about hers.

[Michelle · Rating 4 out of 5]

Picked this up on a whim on a visit to Stanford's (swoon) to buy a guide to Prague. This was very light, cute, and relatable in a 'Bridget Jones' sort of way. I only found her a bit stubborn and bratty in two instances, but mostly I was highly amused at the situations she often found herself in.

[Bronwyn · Rating 3 out of 5]

I love books where the author has chosen to live in another country, especially when the author is an Australian. This book was good, her life interesting but it seemed less exotic and more drudgery. However, it was written well and I would read her other works.

[Shel · Rating 5 out of 5]

Light, entertaining, but not very thought provoking. A fun, quick read.

[Toria · Rating 3 out of 5]

An entertaining, well-written book that brings a beautiful city to life.

[Ruth Gilbert · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book. Thanks Graham Dann for sending it too me. Plus I know someone mentioned in the book.

[Sue Odlin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wish I'd read this before visiting Prague.

[Pace · Rating 5 out of 5]

Having visited Prague I had to read this. Rachel Weiss is so funny with her tale of life there. Read and you will enjoy.

[Pace Lockwood-davis · Rating 5 out of 5]

So very funny.

[Noa McDonald]

It was great and a nice, light and easy read - especially as a new 20 year old Dutch/British expat in Prague. My kind Czech neighbour lent it to me and my family to read and we fell in love with the authentic humour and experiences that felt all too real and is if you were right there with Rachael Weiss (and yes not Rachel Weisz, the Mummy and Oz the Great and Powerful actress).

I especially loved (or was definitely worried and low-key scared) of the unfortunate experience where Rachael was hiking with beer-bellied Kyrgyzstani Igor, who kept making unsuitable remarks that would refer to both cannibalism, eating dogs and murder - and how Rachael coped affirmatively and with dignity to the situation. The way she dealt with it with humour, calm and collectedness was admirable to say the last.

Furthermore, I also loved the experience where Rachael was found on Czech TV and her experiences behind the scenes and how they were somewhat surprised that she wasn't Rachel Weisz, and that she realised in that moment that there may be many moments of confusion where people may confuse her with the '90s actress. I also, at first, made an ode in that same light to that Rachel Weisz, as my first comment of the book and upon seeing the name of the author.

All in all, a lovely read and hope that Rachael is doing well now in London and would love to catch up with her in the next book and see how she's doing in London, since I too, one day, hope to move to London for university after my Covid-transition period in Prague, Czechia. Thanks a lot Rachael :)!!!

[Lexi · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book was horrible. The author lost me when she abandoned her pet, but beyond that she was patronising, judgmental, rude and spoiled. It's not interesting to write about being lonely when it's so blatantly obvious why you're lonely. What a nasty person. All problems were someone else's fault. She couldn't cope with culture shock, and expected the Czechs to bend to her expectations. She thought she was far too good to do anything Czechs would do, despite not speaking the language, not really appreciating Czech people or culture at all (the book isn't really about Prague, it's about an expat in an expat community in Prague, where other expats don't seem to like her much). We were there at the same time, I am pleased not to have encountered her. She wanted the fantasy of cobblestoned streets, not the reality of life in Eastern Europe. For a person who continually writes 'I have a degree' as a refrain to justify why she is too good to help out colleagues, she's not intelligent enough to know moving somewhere without the language is of course going to be difficult.
Waste of time, complete drivel. Unfortunately one of my flaws is that I always finish books. Don't read.

[Mmh · Rating 1 out of 5]

I found it awful. Dreadful. Appalling. The introduction sucked me right in, but the rest was like watching a train wreck. I couldn't believe how the content went from bad to worse, and how shamelessly the author is putting down everyone around her in a self-proclaimed effort to save herself for better. For example, ''Stereotyped-qualificator Person is a project manager although I find that hard to believe as she is never doing any work'' First off, I really hope this is fiction because I cannot imagine this acquaintance finding this out from casually reading your book, and secondly, isn't this constant person-trashing too juvenile to be published in a book?
Lovely writing skills, but why so much disdain for your peers and family?

[Arlene · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a very enjoyable account of what sounds like an absolute mad time in the writer's life. She describes, with charm and good humour, her attempts to build a new life in Prague; working for a eccentric (to put it politely) hotel owner; making friends in the expat and synagogue communities; briefly being something of a literary star; attempting to see the dawn on the Charles Bridge on what may or may not have been the summer solstice; hiking with an aspiring cannibal; and an endless battle with exasperating bureaucracy.

(We're flying out to Prague tomorrow. I hope the shopkeepers aren't quite as grumpy as she describes them.)

[Christy · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is easily in my top five favorite books ever. The ease and comfort of reading this prose.. the humor.. the heartfelt desire to travel and to find something different out of life. I related to all of it, and I loved this book so much. I spent over a year reading it, savoring one chapter at a time, because I didn't want it to be over too quickly. A year later, and it still feels like it flew by.

What a freaking awesome memoir.

[Mark Farley · Rating 2 out of 5]

I was drawn to this book in order to research for a future trip, so it had me intrigued to hear about another person's attempt to get a feel of the place.

It's a bit confusing towards the start of the book, as we are made to believe that this is a random all or nothing, life-changing "Eat Pray Love-esque" decision to move from Australia to discover a new life and culture, until we get to Prague and we discover that not only has she lived there before in the past but her Czech family has a place there, which she duly takes advantage of.

Thus ensuses a mild-mannered travelogue of no great importance, but there are a few witty anecdotes and musings about the general character and mannerisms of the Czech people as a whole, but it was a bit of a slog to finish really. There were a few good tips for my future visit to the city, but I mainly came across clichés. It made me miss my cat also.

[Abraham Marín-Pérez · Rating 1 out of 5]

So full of cliches, stereotypes, and biases and most of the anecdotes seem made up. I was so annoyed that I had to give up when the “Ukrainian plumbers who need their wives to teach them how to clean” started work in the bathroom.