CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa — Aside from gusty winds that played havoc with cash and sheet music, the weather could not have been more picture-perfect for the comeback of a long-running festival that was sidelined last year by the coronavirus pandemic and Iowa’s hurricane-strength derecho. Czech Goulash Day, celebrated in various forms for the past 99 […]
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Cedar Rapids parish works to overcome de...
CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa — St. Wenceslaus Catholic Church is preparing a post-derecho comeback by hosting its popular festival, Czech Goulash Day, on Sunday, Sept. 26, 2021, after a one-year absence. Like many places in Cedar Rapids, the church sustained damage during the August 2020 derecho, including a severe hit to its Glovik Parish Center. The […]
Czech, Slovak culture celebrated as muse...
CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa — The National Czech & Slovak Museum & Library celebrated the belated 25th anniversary of a monumental event with a weekend full of activities. On a chilly day on Oct. 21, 1995, U.S. President Bill Clinton, Czech President Václav Havel and Slovak President Michal Kováč visited Cedar Rapids to dedicate the museum’s […]
Czech Three Kings lore warns gardeners o...
Temperatures that soared into the upper 80s in Iowa and elsewhere in the Midwest this weekend are giving way to overnight lows in the 30s. While a hard freeze isn’t predicted, at least for now, it’s not unheard of to have a late-season frost in Iowa. Czech lore, brought to the United States by immigrants, […]
Czech gardening legend of the Three Froz...
When temperatures climb in early spring, gardeners can be tempted to get everything in the ground, but in the Midwest, it’s best to heed a warning brought here generations ago by Czech immigrants. Known under various names, including the Three Frozen Kings, the three icemen – tři ledovi muži – or Three Ice Saints, Three […]
Piecing together a faux Bohemian kroj
Buying a kroj wasn’t on my radar when I visited the Czech Republic several years ago. The traditional folk costumes, with elaborate designs worn in years past for weddings and other celebrations, are now uncommon in the Czech Republic and Slovakia, outside of dance troupes or folk festivals. Being involved in Czech-American organizations, we’re occasionally […]
CzechFest and Goulash Day offer double d...
CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa — Two festivals have joined forces to provide a day of Czech family fun, with the St. Wenceslaus Church Goulash Day and CzechFest in Czech Village, both on Sunday. Sept. 22, 2019. While the two still operate independently, free hayrack rides across the Bridge of Lions will allow visitors to easily participate […]
Quaint Iowa town hosts vibrant Czech cel...
Like many small Iowa towns, Clutier helps keep its community alive with an annual celebration. With a population of just over 200 people, Clutier is located in east-central Iowa, in an area fondly dubbed the “Bohemian Alps” and more formally as the Scenic Czech Trail. Related: Find three cultures along the Iowa Valley Scenic Byway […]
St. Ludmila volunteers bake thousands of...
By Cindy Hadish CEDAR RAPIDS – Even as kolache sales kick off early this Friday for the St. Ludmila Kolach Festival, Karen Billick can be assured there will be customers waiting even earlier. Drive-up kolache sales run 6-9 a.m. that day, but, “they’ll be here in line at 5 a.m.,” said Billick, who oversees the […]
Old and new: Photographer creates unique...
CEDAR RAPIDS — Slovak photographer Monika Klučiarová has long been passionate about taking photos of newborns, and had always held a fascination with Slovakian folk costumes, called kroje. Combining the two created a unique art form “that merges the innocent beauty of newborns with the treasured works of our ancestors,” Klučiarová said during the opening […]