Alternative Christmas Shopping

Are your friends and relatives getting tired of receiving Prague picture-books and wooden bowls every time Christmas rolls around?



We can help. Perhaps.



We may not have something for everyone but we've certainly got something for someone.



If all you want for Christmas is something a little bit out of the ordinary, check out a few of our suggestions.




Beer

Czech beer is justifiably world renowned for its quality but, until recently, anyone wanting to give the gift of "pivo" had to make do with the limited offerings in their local supermarket. That all changes with Beer Shop, near Charles Bridge, which offers a wide range of bottled Czech beers plus mini-kegs and branded glassware. Now if only they sold gift baskets…




Football Jerseys

Find something for the soccer fanatic in your life at Calcio CZ, a small shop near Karlové náměstí that stocks a range of official Czech national team, Slavia Praha, Viktoria Žižkov and Bohemians Praha merchandise. Fans of Czech champs Sparta Praha, meanwhile, are served by the official shop at the club's Toyota Arena stadium.





Cool Clothes

There's more to clothes shopping in Prague than chain stores, Likvidace shops and mannequins with pointy nipples. For hip clubwear, check out Devátá vlna; For more retro styling, visit Mýrnyx Tyrnyx. Fans of skateboarding and snowboarding fashions, meanwhile, should check out homegrown brands such as Horsefeathers and Salebra in streetwear shops across town.




Suggestive Sausages

Back in more innocent times, the logo of smoked-meat manufacturer Kostelecké uzeniny probably brought to mind nothing more than a hungry man tucking into a tasty sausage. These days, however, there's more than an element of sexual innuendo to the KU logo, which makes their products an unintentionally (?) humorous Christmas gift. The official website lists stores in Prague that stock a wide selection of KU goods, but tinned KU sausages are available from most Prague supermarkets.




Cheap Stuff

If you're short on cash, long on time or can't resist a bargain, the Levné knihy KMA discount bookstore chain makes addictive browsing. While most of the books on offer are in Czech, there's a bewildering and ever-changing range of other stuff on offer – anything from Dundee United Football Club calendars to cheesy German techno compilations to near-obsolete PC games. Leaving without buying something, if only for yourself, is near impossible.




Decent Music

If you're fed up with Bonton megastore's prehistoric music selection, take a spin around a few of Prague's specialist record stores. Maximum Underground casts a wide net, covering punk, dance and hip-hop at its Old Town shop and via its mail-order business. Radost FX's record store covers a similar beat, and also takes in world music and jazz. Keep the vinyl junkie in your life sated at Disko Duck (mainly house) or Phonotic (mainly drum 'n' bass). For metal, seek out Hell's Bells in Anděl. And for a taste of the local alternative music scene try Periferie, a Prague 8 shop run by Czech indie Black Point Records.




Ethnic Instruments

Make someone happy - and make their next-door neighbors very unhappy – by giving them a didgeridoo this Christmas. Walter Ramundo's small Old Town shop, Kahya Senegalensis sells instruments from around the world, including African "djembe" drums, along with other ethnic knick-knacks.





Juggling Balls

And not just balls. For the enthusiastic tosser in your life, Prague 9's Happy End Juggling Shop offers all kinds of batons, sticks, and diablos, including flammable equipment for juggling with fire. For the less showy and more safety conscious, there's also a fine selection of yo-yos.