Czech Republic is quite a small country in central Europe. There live about 10 million people. The capital Prague is famous for its historical landmarks such as Charles' Bridge, Prague Castle, Golden Lane etc. Sometimes it is called "the heart of Europe".

Best-known Czech products: beer (Pilsner Urquell, Budweiser), cars (Škoda)

Best-known Czechs: Václav Havel - former president, Franz Kafka - writer, Jaromír Jágr, Dominik Hašek - both ice-hockey players, Martina Navrátilová, Ivan Lendl - tennis players, Emil Zátopek - athlete, Antonín Dvořák, Bedřich Smetana - composers, Johann Gregor Mendel - biologist

Favourite sports: ice-hockey, football (soccer)

Czech cuisine: click here for recipes for some typical Czech meals

Nymburk is a small town (15 000 inhabitants) on the river Elbe 50 km eastly from Prague.

It was founded in 13th century by the king Přemysl Otakar II. It was fortificated by walls with 50 towers and 4 big gates. You can still see there the rest of this fortification. Other historical landmarks are: St. Jiljí's Church (13th century), Jan of Nepomuk's Chapel (13th century), Turkish Tower (16th century), Town Hall (16th century) and primeval burial-ground (3 500 BC).