The Daily Dozen: 12 things to know about Czechia today

A meeting today between Czech President Miloš Zeman and Qatari Emir Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani resulted in an agreement on economic cooperation, ČTK reports. Another topic on the meeting agenda was the establishment of a Qatari Embassy in the Czech Republic. "Along with a direct air connection between Prague and Doha, there is a prospect that an Embassy of Qatar will be established in the Czech Republic in a fairly short time," Zeman said.

The Qatari ambassador in charge of the Czech Republic is currently located in Berlin. This is the first official Czech Republic visit of a Qatari emir in the history of the two countries.

The headquarters of the Ukrainian Embassy in Prague were sprayed with red paint last night. Police spokesman Jan Rybanský told ČTK that the police have been dealing with the case of the embassy's defaced building in Prague 6. Similar incidents took place in February when demonstrators sprayed the Russian Embassy in Prague with red paint to protest the launch of the war in Ukraine.

Increases in energy prices will affect the price of certain alcoholic beverages, which are affected by higher sugar costs, according to Seznam Zprávy. These include domestic brandy, real rum, plum wine, vodka, Becherovka, and peppermint liqueur, but not fruit schnapps and fernet. "The increase in the price of alcohol production will be dramatically reflected in cheap alcohol, such as rum and vodka," Jíří Štětina, the CEO of Mast-Jaegermeister CZ and SK, said.

An internet prank calling for Czechia to hold a referendum to annex the Russian exclave of Kaliningrad is going increasingly viral, with even the U.S. Embassy and Czech Interior Ministry both acknowledging the joke. A new website using the same font and colors that state agency CzechTourism uses already welcomes people to visit the coastal area, renamed “Královec.”

The U.S. Embassy asked if Czechia might not want to buy a ship to go with its fighter jets, and the Interior Ministry said it is looking for an expert on maritime borders.

A new, interactive map shows users all the places in the Czech Republic where they can pick walnuts. Prague, for instance, has 810 locations where walnuts are ripe for picking, while the total for the country is currently 1,463.

The Na ovoce project, which includes maps for other fruits, such as cherries, "serves as a community platform for people who want to responsibly use natural resources in the form of free-growing fruit trees, shrubs or herbs."

The Czech ruling coalition Spolu announced that it will not be backing a specific candidate in the upcoming presidential elections, the first round of which is scheduled for Jan. 13–14, 2023. But the government will be mounting a campaign to encourage people not to vote for extremists and populists. Prime Minster Petr Fiala named Senator Pavel Fischer, former university rector Danuše Nerudová, and General Petr Pavel as suitable presidential candidates.

In the most recent poll, Pavel and former Prime Minister Andrej Babiš neck and neck at around 20 percent each. Babiš, who is currently on trial for subsidy fraud, has not yet formally announced his run.

First Thursdays’ gallery tours are back with their 10th annual event. This gallery tour, which is the biggest event to date, is a joint event bringing together contemporary art galleries in the Prague neighborhoods of Žižkov and Karlín. The tour includes a guided walk through all participating galleries’ exhibitions – the AVU Pop-Up Gallery, Nau Gallery, Atrium Gallery in Žižkov, hunt kastner, Nevan Contempo, Hidden gallery, Galerie 35m2, Vi Per Gallery, and Garage Gallery.

The guided tour starts on Oct. 6 at 5:45 p.m. at the entrance to the Švehl dormitory at Slavíková 22 in Žižkov and takes place in any weather. Make sure to reserve your spot.

A newly launched, Brno-based institute will focus on the role of influencers and other social media actors, according to ČTK. The National Institute for Research on Socioeconomic Impacts of Diseases and Systemic Risks will study various topics related to social media, such as disinformation. Experts believe this might help avoid any future crises in the media sphere and stop the spread of conspiracy theories.

For instance, the institute will launch a study focusing specifically on political influencers, anthropologist Marie Heřmanová said in a press release. One of the benefits of the internet, she adds, is that it connects people with a similar worldview who would probably not meet offline.

Prague is preparing to host one of the most visible events of its EU Council presidency. The Prague Summit will take place on Oct. 6 and 7, with the first day dedicated to the European Political Community (EPC), and the second to the Informal European Council.

On a local level, this will result in traffic disruptions in the area of Prague Castle, which is the location of the summit and which has been closed to visitors since Tuesday. The Castle will remain closed to tourists until Saturday during the summit but the area around the Castle will still be open.

The first batch of Pilsner-style beer was brewed in Plzeň on Oct. 5, 1842. The batch was actually a bit of a mistake, as German brewmeister Joseph Groll was attempting to make a dark Bavarian-style beer, but used Žatec hops plus a new English method of making malt. The resulting beer came out light in color. While people were reluctant to drink it at first, its sharper flavor was an instant hit.

Czech Petr Jákl, who directed "Medieval" (also called "Jan Žižka"), is now producing a film in Australia. "Land of Bad" will star Russell Crowe and Liam Hemsworth. The director is Will Eubank, who also co-wrote the screenplay. The modern-day story involves a Delta Force team trapped without weapons on a mission in the Philippines. Jákl is no stranger to Australia. He competed in judo at the Sydney Olympics.

He has been busy as a producer on other projects, such as "57 Seconds" with Morgan Freeman, "Savage Salvation" with Robert De Niro and John Malkovich, and the horror film "The Inhabitant," based on the Lizzie Borden story. "I've been living in the Middle Ages for almost 11 years now. At least figuratively speaking. Now that 'Jan Žižka' is finally in cinemas, I can move on," he said in a press release.

Former President Václav Havel would have celebrated his 86th birthday on Oct. 5. The playwright turned politician was born in Prague in 1936 and lived until Dec. 18, 2011, when he passed away in his country home in Hrádeček at age 75. The general public first learned of his birthday in 1989, when a small personal ad appeared in the newspaper Rudé právo extending greetings to "Ferdinand Vaňek," the name of one of his literary characters. The woman at Rudé právo who accepted the ad lost her job, according to news server iDnes.