GENERAL INFORMATION ABOUT THE CZECH REPUBLIC
| Total area: | 78 866 sq. km |
| Population: | 10 280 000 |
| Capital: | Praha (Prague) |
| Population of Prague: | 1 181 000 |
| Currency: | 1 koruna (Kč) – Czech Crown (CZK) , 1 Kč = 100 halíř (hellers) |
| Bank notes come in: | 50, 100, 200, 500, 1000, 2000, 5000 Kč |
| Coins come in: | 50 hellers, 1 Kč, 2 Kč, 5 Kč, 10 Kč, 20 Kč, 50 Kč |
| Country phone code: | +420 |
| Time: | GMT plus one hour |
Climate:
The Czech Republic has a mild continental climate. The average annual temperature in Prague is 9° C, with an average summer temperature of 19° C and an average winter low of - 0,9°C below zero. July is the hottest month of the year while January is the coldest.
| Borders: | |
| Austria | 62 km |
| Germany | 646 km |
| Poland | 658 km |
| Slovakia | 215 km |
| Nationality: | |
| Noun | Czech(s) |
| Adjective | Czech |
| Language | Czech |
| Religion: | |
| Atheist | 39.8 % |
| Roman Catholic | 39.2 % |
| Protestant | 4.6 % |
| Orthodox | 3.0 % |
| Other | 13.4 % |
| Ethnic groups: | |
| Czech | 94 % |
| Slovak | 2 % |
| Other | 4 % |
Politics:
The Czech Republic is a parliamentary democracy, with separate legislative, executive and judicial powers. Parliament is bicameral.
The president is elected to office by Parliament for a five-year term. Václav Klaus was reelected as the president of the Czech Republic on February 15th 2008. The Czech Republic will also be taking assuming the rotating presidency of the European Union in 2009.
International relations:
The Czech Republic is a member of a number of international organizations:
United Nations
World Trade Organization
IMF
International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD)
European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD)
Central European Free Trade Association (CEFTA)
NATO
European Union (EU)
Major Czech Cities (Population in 2006)
Praha (1 181 000), Brno (368 000), Ostrava (311 000), Plzeň (163 000), Olomouc (101 000), Liberec (98 000), České Budějovice (95 000), Hradec Králové (95 000), Ústí nad Labem (94 000), Pardubice (88 000).
Sites on UNESCO World Heritage List in the Czech Republic:
Prague, Kutná Hora, Český Krumlov, Telč, the Lednice-Valtice area, Zelená Hora – Church of St. John Nepomuk, the castle and gardens of Kroměříž, Holašovice, Litomyšl castle, Holy Trinity Column in Olomouc, Tugendhat Villa in Brno, the Jewish Quarter and St. Procopius' Basilica in Třebíč.
National holidays:
January 1 – Establishment Day, celebrating the creation of the Czech Republic
Easter - Monday
May 1 – Labor Day
May 8 – Liberation Day, celebrating the end of World War II
July 5 – Constantin and Methodius Day, celebrating the first Christian missionaries in the Czech Republic
July 6 – Jan Hus Day, celebrating the religious reformer who was burned at the stake in 1415
September 28 – St. Wenceslas Day, celebrating the patron of the Czech State
October 28 – Czechoslovakian Statehood Day, establishment of democratic Czechoslovakia in 1918
November 17 – Freedom and Democracy Day, commemorating the anti-Nazi student demonstrations of 1939 and the anti-Communist demonstrations of 1989
December 24 - Christmas Eve
December 25 and 26 – Christmas Holidays