Christmas traditions

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Christmas traditions

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Christmas in the Czech Republic. Old Town Square at Christmas, Prague, Czech Republic. Richard Semik/ age fotostock

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If you celebrate Christmas in the Czech Republic, you will not eat a turkey roast but carp soup (delicious!) or the same fish battered and fried for the main course. For Christmas Eve dinner, many families also prepare the national dish - "svickova": beef stew in a thick vegetable sauce (potato and carrot) and served with "knedlicky" (steamed slices of bread dough), cranberry sauce and a squirt of whipped cream. The traditional Christmas dessert is not a single dish but multiple: 13 different biscuits are prepared at home or - to save time - bought ready-made from a cake shop. As for the Advent period (from December 1st to 24th), it is one most appreciated both by the Czech and tourists. Christmas markets in every town and city, selling wooden toys, handicraft, puppets, pancakes, waffles and mulled wine. Street performances, concerts in churches and castles, and even a steam train at the weekend linking Prague to Krivoklat Castle.