When we travel we like to pack light to make room for shopping. When I was in Prague last week I made sure to make my rounds to see some of the Czech fashion. We admit the shop Kebab doesn’t have the most appetizing of names, especially for clothes, the shop does have some great indie fashion brands (nice to see some SupremeBeing) and local Czech clothing all representing a really young and energetic style. The shop is downtown but a couple blocks from the tourist high street shops just to keep its street cred. Have a look at the clothes and mingle with some of the young hip Czechsters.

We like mixing up a bit of modern design culture with the great historic architecture. So when I heard that Hotel Josef just around the corner from Old Town Square in Prague was designed by London (though Czech nationality) architect Eva Jiricna I knew I had to stay there. The hotel had everything you would expect from a four star hotel: very helpful staff, gym, sauna, beautiful bar and breakfast — the typical amenities you can list off any given four star hotel website. But where Hotel Josef rises above the rest is in its attention to details. Beside being designed by one of the great contemporary architects of recent years, they completely cater to creative professionals: WiFi throughout the lounge and bar, high speed Internet and iPod docks in the room, and such progressive design you feel like your staying in a piece of art. If you make it to Prague we highly recommend checking out the Hotel Josef and if you are in the literary scene at all note that the Prague Writer's Festival is hosted by the hotel every year. If Hotel Josef is a little out of your budget, we wrote up the wonderfully beautiful Miss Sophie's Hostel a while back as well.

Check out some more pictures after the jump.

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Prague is known for having that take-your-time-because-life-is-beautiful vibe which translates into three-hour meals. Finding a restaurant called NoStress was no surprise. Aside from your typical fine dinning menu and atmosphere, there is an art gallery with rotating contemporary exhibitions below the restaurant. Perfect for browsing while sipping wine after ordering your first course. We love the merge of fine food and art — that should be obvious by now — but there was a little side quest to my dinner. I've been in search of an Asian dish (other than Sag Paneer in Indian food) that uses cheese. NoStress specializes in French Asian fusion and it gave me a glimpse of the mythical combination of cheese with my Thai chili pesto risotto. It was a fusion dish, so only half credit, but tasty. NoStress is in the center of Prague near the Jewish Quarter.

If you're in Prague and need a Pilsner break, escape to Sedlec's Church of All Saints ossuary to see the amazing but macabre sculptures of 40,000 skeletons, victims of the Bubonic Plague, Hussite Wars and other unfortunate incidents. Apparently, the church grounds were sprinkled with soil from Palestine's Holy land in the 12th century. That's when the trouble started, as every peasant and their mother sought to be laid to rest here. Thousands of bodies and a century or two later, their burial ground was bursting at the buttresses. That's when Frantisek Rint, a local wood carver and artist was hired to create a bit of beauty from the bones. It's quite a site and not for the easily disturbed. Hint: You'll find brochures all over the city. Going on your own is considerably cheaper than a tour. Train to Kutna Hora, then take a local bus two stops outside town. Locals will know what you're talking about.

Apart form the Charles Bridge, Radost FX is the most talked-about evening destination in Praha. There's a café with castle-like upholstery, a restaurant that manages to feature vegetarian selections from Italy, Mexico, China, Thailand and America in one heavy wooden menu, and a club whose widespread cushions seem to be thinking nasty thoughts. Radost means joy in Bulgarian and pleasure in Czech, so you do the math. Local and international DJs. Hip-hop, R & B, the works. Open 10 PM to 5 AM. Free English movies on Mondays. Belehradska Street . Metro A: I.P. Pavlova.

Look familiar? Soul Asylum made this image familiar to all jewel-case-keepers in the early 90's. There's also a photo of a buff guy with a baby that became a permanent fixture in many college dorm rooms. Both compliments of Jan Saudek. You might say this infamous Czech photographer has a lot more up his sleeve, that is, if there were any clothing in his photography. His collection only gets more naked and nympho-maniacal. Nothing is off-limits and there is plenty of knee-shifting from exhibition visitors, due to the combination of sexual, masochistic, sadist and familial images. But this is Jan's style and I appreciated his illumination of our most instinctual, but often unspoken urges. You can catch this retrospective exhibition off the Old Town Square in Prague until June 30th. Check him out at www.saudek.com for his next opening.

If you’re pining to go to Prague, poor enough to seek a hostel, but old enough to seek some peace, head for Miss Sophies. You’ll find thick-as-cherry-pie duvets, deep-as-an-independent-film pillows and sunflower-wide shower heads. There will be a sense, as you read the history on the walls, that you’re delightfully trapped in one of those vintage postcards they sell at Budapest bookstores. Except with housekeepers and DSL. If you’re looking to get laid or loud, forget it. There is no smoking, no spilling and no free beer. They like to call it an experimental hotel. I like to call it a hostelle. There are dorms, private rooms and apartments, plus a community kitchen, free spy maps and a helpful staff. It’s more like a boutique hotel than a hostel! Czech it out. (sorry, I just had to say that).