It was 1998, Prague was emerging from the shadow of Communism, beer was cheaper than bottled water, and I was about to discover the most unusual weather forecast I’d ever seen. Nearly three decades later, people still don’t believe me when I tell this story.
I’ve traveled to more than 50 countries over the years, and if there’s one thing I’ve learned, it’s that the most memorable travel experiences are rarely the ones you plan. Sometimes they happen while wandering down an unfamiliar street, striking up a conversation with a stranger, or, in this particular case, wondering why everyone in a bar suddenly decides to go home.
This story takes place in Prague, Czech Republic, back in 1998, long before I started Mike’s Road Trip, and at a time when the world, and travel itself, looked remarkably different.
It begins, as so many good travel stories do, with a friend, a spontaneous decision, and a plane ticket.
A One-Way Decision with a Round-Trip Ticket
A buddy of mine had met someone from the Czech Republic whose stories about his homeland were so captivating that he decided he had to see Prague for himself.
While visiting, he struck up a conversation with a gentleman in a bar who, as it turned out, was involved at the very highest levels of TV Nova, a relatively new commercial television network that had quickly become the most-watched station in the country.
This was a fascinating period in Czech history. The Velvet Revolution had peacefully ended Communist rule in 1989, and by 1993, Czechoslovakia had separated into the Czech Republic and Slovakia. A new generation was embracing opportunities that had been unimaginable just a decade earlier.
TV Nova was part of that transformation. Launched in 1994, it had rapidly become a broadcasting powerhouse, challenging the conventions of state-run television with an increasingly bold approach to entertainment.
Somehow, my American friend made quite an impression on the gentleman he met. Before long, he was invited to move to Prague and head up programming for the network.
It sounds improbable, I know. But those were extraordinary times, and extraordinary opportunities seemed to emerge from the most unexpected encounters.
My friend took the plunge and moved to Prague.
We kept in touch through email and occasional phone calls. This was long before WhatsApp, FaceTime, or the ability to communicate effortlessly across continents. From our conversations, I got the impression he was feeling a little homesick.
Meanwhile, back in the United States, I had recently started a job at a radio station that I absolutely hated.
One day, I’d simply had enough.
I quit my job, found a round-trip ticket to Prague for the astonishing price of $525, and called my buddy to tell him I’d be arriving in less than a week.
Sometimes the best decisions in life are the ones that make absolutely no sense on paper.
Prague in 1998: A City Coming Alive
I wish I could adequately describe what Prague was like in the late 1990s.
It was electrifying.
The city had emerged from decades of Communist rule, and while its spectacular architecture and centuries-old streets remained beautifully intact, there was an unmistakable energy in the air. New businesses were opening, nightlife was flourishing, and young people seemed eager to embrace the possibilities of a changing world.
Prague was certainly no secret to European travelers by then, but international tourism was still developing compared with what it would become. Americans, in particular, seemed to attract attention wherever we went.
Somehow, people could always tell we were American.
And rather than avoiding us, they often wanted to strike up conversations. We met some of the friendliest, most interesting people imaginable.
One thing that surprised me was how many young Czechs spoke English. After the fall of Communism, English rapidly replaced Russian as a priority in schools, and the younger generation was eager to practice.
For two American guys navigating an unfamiliar city, it made for some wonderful encounters.
And then there were the prices.
Oh, those glorious pre-inflation prices.
A pint of beer at a neighborhood pub might set you back just 25 cents. At a nightclub, perhaps 50 cents. A cocktail could be had for around $2, and an elegant, five-star dining experience might cost $25.
There was a little Italian restaurant we frequented where we could order a bottle of water, a bottle of wine, caprese salad, a margherita pizza, and tiramisu for dessert.
The bill? Around $6 per person.
We ate like kings and spent like college students.
Of course, Prague had its expensive establishments, but compared with prices back home, the city felt like an extraordinary bargain.
And the nightlife was something else entirely.
From intimate pubs tucked away along cobblestone streets to sprawling nightclubs filled with music and dancing, there was always somewhere new to explore.
Remember, this was before smartphones, Google Maps, Yelp, or TripAdvisor. If you wanted to find a great restaurant or the hottest nightclub, you relied on word of mouth, recommendations from locals, or a good old-fashioned guidebook.
We stumbled upon a small guide written by a young man who had meticulously documented Prague’s bars, pubs, and nightclubs. It became our nightlife bible.
We carried it everywhere.
Every evening was an opportunity to discover another corner of this remarkable city.
But after about a week, I began noticing something peculiar.
The Great 10:45 Exodus
We’d be sitting in a bar, enjoying a few beers, conversations flowing, music playing, when suddenly, around 10:45 p.m., people would start leaving.
Not just one or two, but a surprising number of people would get up and head for the door, almost as though someone had announced last call.
Except no one had.
The bars weren’t closing. In many respects, the night was just getting started.
I noticed the same pattern at several establishments, and eventually my curiosity got the better of me.
One evening, I turned to my buddy.
“What’s going on? Why do so many people leave around this time?”
He barely looked up.
“They’re going home to watch the weather.”
I stared at him.
“The weather?”
“Yeah, the weather forecast.”
I thought he was joking.
Surely there was something lost in translation. Perhaps the weather forecast was followed by a popular television show, or maybe some sort of national event was taking place.
But no.
He explained that TV Nova had a nightly weather segment featuring a presenter who appeared on television completely naked and then gradually got dressed according to the next day’s forecast.
I looked at him, waiting for the punchline.
He wasn’t laughing.
“You’re telling me people are leaving the bars to go home and watch someone get dressed?”
“Yep.”
I couldn’t believe what I was hearing.
“Well, we’re leaving too. I have to see this for myself.”
The Most Unusual Weather Forecast I’ve Ever Seen
We returned to his flat, switched on the television, and tuned in to TV Nova.
About ten minutes into the late-night broadcast, the weather segment began.
And there she was.
An attractive Czech woman standing on the television set, completely naked.
Not wearing a swimsuit. Not strategically concealed behind a weather map.
I’m talking the full monty.
I was absolutely dumbfounded.
She began presenting the weather in Czech, and while I couldn’t understand a word she was saying, the concept quickly became clear.
As she continued the forecast, she started putting on clothes.
If the following day called for cold temperatures, she’d bundle up in additional layers. If rain was expected, an umbrella might make an appearance.
The wardrobe was essentially the forecast.
The colder the weather, the more clothing she wore.
It was part meteorology, part striptease in reverse, and unlike anything I’d ever witnessed on American television.
I remember turning to my buddy with an expression that must have been priceless.
“Are you kidding me? This is actually on regular television?”
He just laughed.
Apparently, it was perfectly normal.
What made the whole thing even more amusing was that, according to what I was told at the time, the women handled the forecast five nights a week, while a male presenter took over the other two.
Equal-opportunity weather forecasting, Czech style.
I couldn’t decide what was more astonishing: the program itself or the fact that so many people apparently considered it worth interrupting an evening at the pub.
But there I was, doing exactly the same thing.
And I’d be lying if I said I didn’t tune in again.
It Was Called Počasíčko — And Yes, It Really Existed
For years afterward, this became one of my favorite travel stories.
Whenever the conversation turned to unusual cultural experiences, I’d tell people about the time I was in Prague and discovered that the weather forecast was practically appointment television.
And almost without exception, people thought I was making it up.
I can’t really blame them.
Imagine telling someone that in the late 1990s, a major national television network broadcast a naked weather presenter who got dressed according to the following day’s temperature.
It sounds like a sketch from Saturday Night Live.
But the program was very real.
It was called Počasíčko, a diminutive Czech word meaning something like “Little Weather.”
The show debuted on TV Nova in 1998 and aired late in the evening, generally between 10 and 11 p.m. Episodes lasted only a few minutes, but the concept was certainly memorable.
The original format featured women who began the forecast without clothing and gradually dressed according to the expected conditions. Male presenters were subsequently introduced, reportedly in response to requests from female viewers.
And the program wasn’t some obscure underground broadcast. It aired on the country’s dominant commercial television network.
In fact, when TV Nova celebrated its 20th anniversary, the network itself included Počasíčko among the memorable programs of its early years, describing it as adult-oriented late-night entertainment.
The show continued until the early 2000s and even experienced an internet-only revival in 2007, although the later version reversed the concept, with women removing clothing instead of putting it on.
Apparently, there are only so many ways to reinvent the weather.
Nearly 30 Years Later, I Finally Found the Proof
Recently, I decided to investigate the story again.
After telling it for nearly three decades, I wanted to find something concrete that I could show the skeptics.
What I discovered was even better than I expected.
A Czech television schedule published on March 24, 1999, lists Počasíčko airing on TV Nova at 10:33 p.m.
That’s almost precisely the time I remembered people beginning to head home from the bars.
But the most satisfying discovery came from an American newspaper.
On November 7, 1999, The Washington Post published an article about the cultural changes taking place in Central Europe following the collapse of Communism.
Buried in the discussion of TV Nova’s sensational programming was a reference to its unusual weather presenters, who appeared naked before dressing appropriately for the following day’s weather.
There it was.
In black and white.
The story I’d been telling all these years, documented in one of America’s most respected newspapers.
I also discovered that humorist Dave Barry had written about the phenomenon in 1999, after hearing about the broadcasts from an American living in the Czech Republic.
Apparently, I wasn’t the only American who found the concept utterly astonishing.
What I haven’t been able to track down is a complete original broadcast. There are references, articles, and fragments of archival material, but surprisingly little surviving video readily available online.
Perhaps somewhere in the Czech Republic, someone still has an old VHS recording tucked away in a closet.
If so, I’d love to see it.
The Travel Experiences You Never Forget
Looking back on that month in Prague, what strikes me most isn’t simply how inexpensive everything was or how vibrant the nightlife had become. It’s how different the experience of traveling was before the internet put the entire world in our pockets.
There were no online reviews telling us which bars to visit, no social media influencers pointing us toward the latest attractions, and no smartphones providing instant explanations for the curious things we encountered.
We explored. We talked to people. We followed recommendations from strangers. We occasionally got lost. And sometimes, we stumbled into experiences so peculiar and unexpected that they stayed with us for the rest of our lives.
That spontaneous $525 plane ticket turned into one of the most memorable trips I’ve ever taken, years before I imagined I’d eventually build a career around travel storytelling.
I’ve returned to the Czech Republic several times since that first visit in 1998, including numerous trips to Prague. Over the decades, I’ve watched this extraordinary city evolve from a relatively undiscovered European capital into one of the continent’s most popular tourist destinations.
And for good reason.
Prague is a magnificent city. Its Gothic spires, Baroque architecture, medieval streets, vibrant entertainment scene, remarkable history, and wonderful food make it one of Europe’s most captivating destinations. The Czech Republic remains one of my favorite countries in Europe, and I never tire of returning.
But with popularity comes change, and not all of it has been positive.
Unfortunately, Prague’s enormous tourism success has also attracted its share of opportunists. From questionable currency exchanges and inflated taxi fares to elaborate tourist scams, certain parts of the city have developed an underbelly that reminds me of Paris, where visitors have long had to contend with pickpockets, petty crime, and assorted schemes designed to separate unsuspecting tourists from their money.
I don’t mention this to discourage anyone from visiting. Quite the opposite. Prague is absolutely worth experiencing. I just think travelers should arrive with their eyes open.
One resource I highly recommend is the YouTube channel Honest Guide. Run by two Czech locals, Janek and Honza, the channel does a remarkable job of exposing tourist scams, calling out unscrupulous operators, and helping visitors discover the authentic side of Prague.
I actually had the pleasure of meeting these two gentlemen in 2019 at a travel conference in Ostrava, in the eastern part of the country. I was already familiar with their work and appreciated their commitment to making Prague a better place for visitors. If you’re planning a trip, spend some time watching their videos before you go. You’ll be much better prepared, and probably save yourself some money and frustration.
I’d also encourage travelers to venture beyond Prague.
One city that deserves far more attention is Brno, the Czech Republic’s second-largest city. It offers much of the architectural beauty, history, lively café culture, and wonderful atmosphere that make Prague so appealing, but with fewer tourists and generally lower prices. It has a charm all its own, and it’s well worth including on a Czech itinerary.
Beyond the cities, there’s a whole country of picturesque towns, medieval castles, beautiful countryside, and fascinating cultural traditions waiting to be explored. Limiting a visit to Prague alone would be missing much of what makes the Czech Republic so special.
As for that first visit back in 1998, I’ve since traveled to more than 50 countries, experienced extraordinary landscapes, encountered fascinating cultures, and collected more stories than I could possibly recount.
Yet some of my most vivid travel memories have nothing to do with famous landmarks or bucket-list experiences.
Sometimes, they’re born from the simple curiosity of wondering why everyone is leaving a bar at 10:45 at night.
And I don’t think I’ll ever forget sitting in that Prague flat, staring at the television in utter disbelief, watching a naked woman slowly get dressed while explaining the weather forecast in a language I couldn’t understand.
Nearly three decades later, the memory still makes me laugh.
And to everyone who ever doubted my story, I can finally say:
I told you so.
Now, if anyone happens to have an original recording of Počasíčko from the late 1990s, please get in touch. I’d love to see that particular forecast again.
Because after all these years, I’ve come to appreciate something about travel: The places may change, the prices may rise, and the experiences we once took for granted may disappear entirely.
But the best travel stories never really get old.
And sometimes, all it takes is a little curiosity about the weather.
