The pros: It’s American sized, if a little sloppy—especially with the creamy mayonnaise topping, which tends to funnel down the edges of the lettuce—and comes with mushrooms, a rather Czech addition to a ground beef patty.

The cons: it’s never going to emerge from the kitchen anywhere near medium rare. Sorry.

In short, Mozaika is still worth a visit for those hungering for a slab of beef in Prague—think of it as burger outsourcing.

Good news for fans of SmartWings (EuroCheapo readers may remember it as the LCC operating out of Prague that isn’t SkyEurope). the carrier is set to triple in size. Icelandair recently signed a letter of intent to buy the carrier and the company that operates it, Travel Service. The process is meant to be complete by the end of the summer, when Icelandair will acquire 50 percent of the company.

SmartWings lags behind SkyEurope in the region, though it has more of a presence in Prague’s Ruzyne airport—it’s second only to CSA there. The purchase is an encouraging sign for both SmartWings and the airport itself, which has suffered as Prague has fallen by the wayside for some carriers as a budget destination in favor of the eternally cheaper Bratislava. Perhaps LCC flights between Iceland and Prague are in the cards as well?

On that day, 650 years ago, several odd numbers came into alignment: The year was 1357. It was also the 9th day of the seventh month. The first stone was placed at exactly 5:31. As a result, the sequence of numbers occurs as 1, 3, 5, 7, 9, 7, 5, 3, 1. Moreover, the timing also had significant astrological importance, as all the known planets were on the horizon while the Sun, Mercury and Saturn were mutually conjoined, disrupting the latter planet’s unfavorable influence.

Fancy! If the construction of the metro extension to Ruzyne was half as well organized, it might already be built by now.

Good news for travelers planning to visit Prague’s ever expanding airport. The authorities at Ruzyne have begun posting a timetable of flights. Updated every ten seconds, the listing also allows users to search by airline, destination, and even a specific window of time. It’s a pretty snazzy tool.

It’s perfect for those making a last-minute switch in flights through Ruzyne, or for passengers who don’t want to spend time perusing the wide selection of sausages and pickles at the Duty-Free in hopes of grabbing an earlier flight. According to Prague airport officials, Ruzyne is the third airport to offer this service after Copenhagen and Amsterdam.

What’s in store for lovers in Prague today? For the ladies, it’s essential that they be kissed under a blossoming cherry tree. As you might expect in one of the least religious countries in Europe, this pagan tradition has more to do with encouraging fertility in the coming year than anything else.

On the plus side for the ladies, getting kissed under a tree sure beats that other quasi-religious Czech tradition, namely, getting whacked with a stick on Easter Monday.

What’s the flip side to this statistic? A recent study surprise—that Czech men are, on average, the second fattest in Europe, only surpassed by the Germans. According to the study, 73% of Czech men are either overweight or obese.

One solution: Ask for a malé pivo (small beer) the next time you’re out on the town in the Czech Republic.

Ah, Prague’s bad old days of dining. There was a long period in the 1990s when yes, the food was cheap, but it was also a lot more…questionable. Put it this way: asking for a green salad would get you a quizzical look—and that’s assuming you could find a waiter in the first place.

While it’s doubtful anyone misses that era in Czech culinary history, it’s amusing to see that the city isn’t completely rid of that type of establishment. In a review in the Prague Post last week, the paper’s restaurant critic makes clear that this culinary tradition is alive and well at a place called The Brother’s in Vinohrady:

Something I translated as “old Czech soup” batters your palate with incoherent strokes of garlic and salt. Clumps of vacuous white cheese bob under the surface, perhaps in the vain hope that the congealed curd will absorb a little of the briny, bitter sting. Or maybe folks brought up in more difficult times considered flavorless, caulky substances nutritious and filling.

While the prices at The Brother’s also hew to that older style (i.e. you get what you pay for), let’s be the first to recommend the wide variety of sausages available at kiosks throughout the city. Complex flavors may not be the culinary strength in Prague, but pork products most certainly are.

How do they keep underage drinkers away? By scanning passports and identification cards. The machines recognize ID cards issued by European Union states. If the prospective buyer’s ID indicates that he or she is underage, the money is returned and the vending machine voids the sale of the ice-cold brew. With the scanner, machines cost around $7500. Beer prices should undercut those at 24-hour stores in Prague, which charge something of a premium. What’s more, different machines will carry different types of Pilsner Urquell beer, depending on the location.

Now, if only they would only start installing the machines in offices…

Good news for Cheapos on the tourist path in Central Europe.

From April 5 onwards, admission to Prague’s famed St. Vitus Cathedral will be free. Until recently, entrance set visitors back CZK100 (€3.60; $4.80). That’s at least three crisp, cold Czech beers—if you choose your watering hole wisely.

Ownership of the cathedral is transferring from the Catholic Church to the Office of the President, whose office is inside the Prague Castle complex. The church has argued that the Communist state’s failure to officially nationalize St. Vitus back in the 1950s means that the church has always been the cathedral’s rightful owner; accordingly, the church filed suit to maintain ownership 14 years ago. A decision reached last week gives the Czech state outright ownership of the cathedral and divides caretaking obligations between church and state.

Because of the dispute the Cathedral had been absent from tours of the Castle since September of last year.