A Dog and a Bar

The beer is cheaper than water.

Don’t worry about lunch, the beer is liquid bread.

When I first heard it, I thought it was a joke; something to justify their alcohol consumption. To be fair, they do drink 161 liters of beer per person a year. That is the most beer consumption per person in the world. We have heard this statistic a million times in the two weeks we have been here, but it really sinks in when experiencing the nightlife scene.

The drinking culture is casual here, nothing like the craziness back home. Alcohol here is a means of socializing, not for binge drinking. People love meeting friends outside at the beer garden to enjoy the beautiful weather together and going to their neighborhood bar to hang out after their long day. They drink with their meals, and instead of their meals in some cases. Here, no one walks around with their Camelbaks attached to their backpack to stay hydrated.

While there is plenty of nightlife around most nights of the week, I am always surprised that there are no restaurants open late. Besides Burrito Loco and KFC of course, there are few options other than the small snacks served in the bars themselves. In Austin, possibly because it is a college town, there are plenty of options for dinner past 10. Besides Kerbey Lane and the many fast food options, we always have coffee shops and ice cream places open late.

For better or worse, the drinking age shapes the nightlife in a city. Here it gives Prague a youthful vibe with something to do at any time.