iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Mark Baker @markbakerprague.bsky.social · 17/09/2026

Old Czechoslovak secret police photos preserve an unexpected view of everyday Prague. I've written a new post on the stories behind a few of those images — and the odd experience of having been photographed by the StB myself. Link here: markbakerprague.com/street-photo...

markbakerprague.com

Street Photography by the Secret Police | Mark Baker | Travel Writer in Prague

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Mark Baker @markbakerprague.bsky.social · 10/09/2026

Twenty-five years after 9/11, I’ve written about watching the attacks unfold from the RFE/RL newsroom in Prague -- and how later reporting assignments in Afghanistan and the Netherlands showed me some of their profound and lasting consequences. markbakerprague.com/september-11...

markbakerprague.com

September 11, Twenty-Five Years Later | Mark Baker | Travel Writer in Prague

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Mark Baker @markbakerprague.bsky.social · 21/08/2026

I recently finished a big project for Lonely Planet and have time to write for my blog. This first article is about one of my favorite Prague buildings: the Hotel International. There’s even a 21 August 1968 hook for this anniversary of the Warsaw Pact invasion. markbakerprague.com/pragues-mesm...

markbakerprague.com

Prague’s Mesmerizing Monument to Stalinism | Mark Baker | Travel Writer in Prague

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Mark Baker @markbakerprague.bsky.social · 17/06/2026

I lived in Vienna from 1986 to 1991. On a recent return, I went looking not for imperial Vienna, but for the postwar city I remembered: retro-futuristic design, faded grandeur, and lingering Cold War memories. markbakerprague.com/searching-fo...

markbakerprague.com

Searching for the Vienna I Remember | Mark Baker | Travel Writer in Prague

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Mark Baker @markbakerprague.bsky.social · 12/05/2026

This blog post traces one of my favorite Prague bike rides: a 2–3 hour urban loop linking riverbanks, parks, railway corridors, industrial neighborhoods, hidden trails, and some of the city’s best views. Click to see a different side of Prague on two wheels. markbakerprague.com/my-favorite-...

markbakerprague.com

My Favorite Prague Bike Ride | Mark Baker | Travel Writer in Prague

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Mark Baker @markbakerprague.bsky.social · 30/04/2026

A few weeks ago, I wrote a series on Prague's expat media from the '90s. A striking Jáma Revue '95 cover always stuck with me, but the model was never named. Thirty years later, she found the post and wrote me. A cool story about the internet's power to connect: markbakerprague.com/the-woman-on...

markbakerprague.com

The Woman on the Cover of ‘Jáma Revue’ | Mark Baker | Travel Writer in Prague

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Mark Baker @markbakerprague.bsky.social · 21/04/2026

Shortly before the Velvet Revolution, I checked into Bratislava’s Hotel Devín with no idea the secret police planned to use it in an operation to compromise me. This week, while updating a guidebook, I returned for the first time since 1989 - and closed a circle. markbakerprague.com/revisiting-b...

markbakerprague.com

Revisiting Bratislava’s Hotel Devín | Mark Baker | Travel Writer in Prague

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Mark Baker @markbakerprague.bsky.social · 14/04/2026

This week in my blog, I stay in the Prague of the 1990s, with its colorful clubs and characters. American expat Robert Carrithers was the house photographer at the dance club Radost FX in the early part of the decade. I've posted here some of his amazing photos: markbakerprague.com/prague-throu...

markbakerprague.com

Prague Through the Lens of Robert Carrithers | Mark Baker | Travel Writer in Prague

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Mark Baker @markbakerprague.bsky.social · 09/04/2026

For a relatively brief moment in the 1990s, Prague was awash in English-language newspapers, magazines, and literary experiments. Most of them now gone without a trace. I’ve tried to piece that world back together on my blog. Here's the first of three posts: 1️⃣ markbakerprague.com/the-lost-wor...

markbakerprague.com

Part 1: The Lost World of Prague’s Expat Press | Mark Baker | Travel Writer in Prague

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Mark Baker @markbakerprague.bsky.social · 18/11/2025

For the past three weeks, I’ve been taking readers of my blog around early post-Velvet Revolution Czechoslovakia as I tell the story of writing Fodor’s Czechoslovakia. This week, we go to Prague and the former Nazi-run Jewish ghetto at Terezín. Click here to read: markbakerprague.com/part-3-xxxx/

markbakerprague.com

Part 3: A Visit to Prague and Terezín | Mark Baker | Travel Writer in Prague

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Mark Baker @markbakerprague.bsky.social · 04/11/2025

Thirty five years ago, I (along with my girlfriend back then) got a commission from Fodor’s to write a travel guidebook on Czechoslovakia. The book would be the first big English guide on the country since the Velvet Revolution. Here's how it came together: markbakerprague.com/part-1-a-pos...

markbakerprague.com

Part 1: A Post-Velvet Travel Guide | Mark Baker | Travel Writer in Prague

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Mark Baker @markbakerprague.bsky.social · 01/07/2025

I finally got the chance to tour the newly re-opened Fairmont Golden Prague Hotel (aka the former Intercontinental) a couple weeks ago. I have some history with the hotel going back to the 1980s. I think they nailed it with the renovation. Here are my impressions: markbakerprague.com/brutalist-ic...

markbakerprague.com

Brutalist Icon Gets a Fresh Look | Mark Baker | Travel Writer in Prague

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Mark Baker @markbakerprague.bsky.social · 21/06/2025

Being a travel writer in Prague comes with heavy responsibilities. Once a week or so, I’ll get an email from a friend or acquaintance telling me they’re coming to Prague and could I recommend a good hotel? It’s a fraught situation. Here’s a handy link to save: markbakerprague.com/ten-great-ho...

markbakerprague.com

Ten Great Hotels in Prague | Mark Baker | Travel Writer in Prague

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Mark Baker @markbakerprague.bsky.social · 16/06/2025

I finished writing the second part of the story of how I ended up in Bucharest the same week -- 35 years ago -- that angry miners were ordered onto the street to bash in the heads of pro-democracy demonstrators, and how the episode still has relevance today: markbakerprague.com/part-2-bucha...

markbakerprague.com

Part 2: Bucharest’s Bloody ‘Mineriada’ | Mark Baker | Travel Writer in Prague

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Mark Baker @markbakerprague.bsky.social · 14/06/2025

35 years ago this week miners were called out onto the streets of Bucharest to violently suppress pro-democracy protests. It was chaos. This disgraceful event still has relevance in our modern political moment, when democracy itself still feels endangered. markbakerprague.com/bucharests-b...

markbakerprague.com

Bucharest’s Bloody ‘Mineriada’ | Mark Baker | Travel Writer in Prague

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Mark Baker @markbakerprague.bsky.social · 13/06/2025

I've been getting a few emails about Romania lately, so I figured it was a good time to publish this 'first time' guide to the country. With lots of popular spots in Western Europe increasingly 'overtouristed', Romania is still very happy to welcome tourists. markbakerprague.com/first-time-g...

markbakerprague.com

Travel Tips for Newcomers to Romania | Mark Baker | Travel Writer in Prague

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Mark Baker @markbakerprague.bsky.social · 14/03/2025

Last year, Kinfolk magazine asked me to write about the Vila Volman, a restored functionalist villa near Prague. The edition is now out. Here’s a link to my blog story: markbakerprague.com/touring-the-... Link directly to Kinfolk to for the published version: www.kinfolk.com/stories/home...

markbakerprague.com

Touring the Vila Volman | Mark Baker | Travel Writer in Prague

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Mark Baker @markbakerprague.bsky.social · 08/02/2025

A tease for a feature story on the Vila Volman, near Prague, for Kinfolk Magazine. The photographer, Marina Denisova, did an incredible job. The whole edition looks good. The magazine will be on newsstands in March or pre-order on Amazon: www.amazon.com/Kinfolk-55/d...

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Mark Baker @markbakerprague.bsky.social · 29/01/2025

The biggest hotel news in Prague the past year has been the reopening of the Hotel Evropa on Wenceslas Square. The hotel had been closed for years. I loved the old Evropa and was a café regular in the ‘90s. I was dying to see the new place: markbakerprague.com/a-peek-insid... (Live link in bio)

View of the old cafe. Hotel Evropa, Prague.

Front view of the Prague W Hotel, the former Hotel Evropa.

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Mark Baker @markbakerprague.bsky.social · 25/01/2025

A sneak peek into what will become Prague's second Mucha museum in February. The setting is the restored baroque Savarin Palace. The interiors are beautiful and the collections thoughtfully curated, but the exhibition is relatively small. In 2028, the Slav Epic may find a permanent home here.

The interior of the ‘Mucha Foundation’ museum.

The gift shop of the new ‘Mucha Foundation’ museum in Prague.

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Mark Baker @markbakerprague.bsky.social · 15/01/2025

For my first blog post of 2025, I will pull the blog back into a travel-writing direction. This story was originally commissioned by Lonely Planet and is aimed at readers who are new to the Czech Republic and want to see the highlights or best-known spots. markbakerprague.com/best-places-...

markbakerprague.com

Best Places to Visit in Czechia | Mark Baker | Travel Writer in Prague

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Mark Baker @markbakerprague.bsky.social · 10/01/2025

The air is so clean and the light so clear tonight. Prague‘s Old Town twinkling in the darkness.

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Mark Baker @markbakerprague.bsky.social · 08/01/2025

Finally got my hands on this latest edition of Lonely Planet guide to Romania & Bulgaria (they sent the copies to my Ohio address and not to Prague). This was a monster update. If you're planning a trip this year to either RO or BG (both highly recommended), this guide will help to see you through.

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Mark Baker @markbakerprague.bsky.social · 06/01/2025

As an author, I try not to read my reviews. And when I do succumb to the temptation, I read with a little trepidation. I was really happy to see this review of 'Čas proměn' on Goodreads from a reviewer named 'Kent'. Thank you. www.goodreads.com/book/show/58...

goodreads.com

Čas proměn

Vzpomínky Američana na jedinečný „čas proměn“ v Praze, …

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Mark Baker @markbakerprague.bsky.social · 05/01/2025

@drichterova.bsky.social I was wondering as I was listening to your interviews if you'd gotten into the Charles Jordan disappearance/killing in your research? I'd like to write about it sometime for the blog.

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Mark Baker @markbakerprague.bsky.social · 04/01/2025

1) My first post for 2025 will be a podcast/book recommendation. I really enjoyed the discussions with Daniela Richterová on Prague’s clandestine role during the Cold War as a haven for Middle Eastern and international terrorists. Find a link to Cold War Conversations here: coldwarconversations.com

coldwarconversations.com

Cold War Conversations Podcast

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Mark Baker @markbakerprague.bsky.social · 04/01/2025

@drichterova.bsky.social Well done! I really enjoyed your interviews with Ian Sanders and Ian Willoughby. Looking forward now to reading your book.

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Mark Baker @markbakerprague.bsky.social · 03/12/2024

In September, I spent two weeks at a Czech medical spa - the ‘Beethoven’ in Teplice - to help recover from an muscle illness. It was fun and weird in equal measure. If you’ve thought about a spa stay or think this might someday be in your future, give this a read: markbakerprague.com/beethoven-an...

markbakerprague.com

Beethoven and Me | Mark Baker | Travel Writer in Prague

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Mark Baker @markbakerprague.bsky.social · 01/12/2024

Happy National Day to my Romanian friends. I like this map because the regions correspond almost to what we call them in our Lonely Planet guide. 🙂 💙 💛❤️

Map of Romania showing the different regions and major cities. The source is Romania Tourism.

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Mark Baker @markbakerprague.bsky.social · 30/11/2024

A few weeks ago, Lonely Planet asked me to sketch out a list of Czech towns and cities that would appeal to first time visitors. If you were thinking of going, this is a good place to start: www.lonelyplanet.com/articles/bes...

lonelyplanet.com

Czechia: best places to visit

Architecture, history, natural beauty, urban life and more.

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Mark Baker @markbakerprague.bsky.social · 26/11/2024

Just when I vowed to keep this Blue Sky account non-political, Romania has the craziest (scariest) first round of presidential elections since the fall of communism: www.politico.eu/article/coul...

politico.eu

Romania’s far-right, pro-Russian lurch spells big trouble for EU and NATO

The victory of ultranationalist Călin Georgescu is sparking fear that Romania could slide into the growing pro-Moscow camp.

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Mark Baker @markbakerprague.bsky.social · 25/11/2024

Some context on my trdelnik post a little earlier. I'm fascinated by the growth in popularity of these chimney cakes in Prague and even wrote my own parody history. Turns out maybe the parody isn't total BS (and maybe there's a glimmer of Czech 'tradition' here): markbakerprague.com/the-history-...

markbakerprague.com

The History of the ‘Trdelník*‘ | Mark Baker | Travel Writer in Prague

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Mark Baker @markbakerprague.bsky.social · 25/11/2024

Before yesterday I had never even heard of this guy.

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Mark Baker @markbakerprague.bsky.social · 24/11/2024

If you are into Central Europe, Prague, Slovenia, Romania, travel, travel-writing, history, Cold War stuff, film, architecture, I’m your guy.

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Mark Baker @markbakerprague.bsky.social · 24/11/2024

New to this space. Any tips on building up contacts (or better yet, rebuilding that great community we used to have on Twitter)?

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Mark Baker @markbakerprague.bsky.social · 24/11/2024

I’ve admired Vít Pohanka’s ‘Czechast’ podcast for a while now. I felt honored to be interviewed for his episode on the 35th anniversary of the Velvet Revolution. We talked about Prague before and after the fall of communism and lots of other things. Listen by following this link: bit.ly/3OdNJ9M

bit.ly

Czechast with Mark Baker: Prague before and after 1989

Thirty-five years ago the Communist regime in Czechoslovakia started to crumble. Czechast brings you a perspective of Prague both before and after the fall of Communism.

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