I'm moving to Troja: That district gave me the space to live as I want - in the city, but without the city.
You can get there not only by car and public transport, but also by ferry, and anyone who wants to live in a Prague district that resembles one big city park, probably already knows where to go. Direction Troja, exactly where Helena recently settled.
Paradise for Walks
Meeting with Helena is a bit hectic, she is almost continually on the move. In front of her, she is also pushing a stroller, but she certainly doesn’t look like she wants to sit somewhere and chat over coffee. "I'm not into that, I need to walk, and especially look, the conditions here are really excellent," she waves her hand over her head and points to Troja Castle. "It's a pity that it's winter now and they have gardens open for less time, luckily there is a zoo here and I can walk year-round," rejoices the action young woman, who has considered herself a proud inhabitant of Prague Troja for several months now. Before we have time to start discussing what her life is like here, Helena comes up with another idea of what we can do. "Let's go on a villa walk! " she suggests a popular route.
"I haven't explored all of them yet, I've been living here for a short time, but so far Schückova villa is leading," she says. The functionalist building with a distinctive character, which once became the home of President Gustav Husák and is currently used as a residence of the Korean Republic, makes Helena stop for a moment and ponder. "Troja is incredibly diverse in this respect, there are villas from the first republic as well as ultra-modern buildings," she recalls. She is right, especially that every house is an original and has its own story.
Here you will find at first glance an "ordinary" little house, built by the famous athlete Emil Zátopek, and a little further on you will see ostentatious and often slightly bizarre millionaire's villas - like the one built by influential official and underworld king of the 70s and 80s of the last century, JUDr. Jan Urbánek. Precisely the one who is described in Kment's book Kmotr Mrázek as a man whose "star rose in the money-changer sky after several very successful actions with the staff of the Soviet Union's diplomatic corps." Then you can again calm down a bit while admiring the place where director Věra Chytilová lived until her death. In her time, the luxurious property set into sloping terrain was occupied by the artist with her own and her husband's parents and she also helped with the building. "I like that, we did a bit of reconstruction and I helped," smiles Helena and takes the opportunity to reveal why she and her husband actually chose to live in Troja, Prague.
Nothing but water
"My husband is a native of Prague, he grew up near Charles Bridge. It's hard to compete with that. But with a small child, it just isn't it in the center. We with the little one are always lounging around somewhere, just aimlessly or to the playground, but you just don't want to push through the crowds of wandering tourists every day. So I insisted on moving at home," she explains. However, they were looking for a new location for quite a long time and could not agree.
"The fact that my husband has a soft spot for water sports eventually brought us to this district. The Troja canal convinced my husband, he is already looking forward to the modernization," Helena casually remembers one of the local rarities. Troja is a direct symbol of Czech canoe slalom and there is currently a lot of talk about a project called Park of Water Sports Prague. Its construction should start in 2026, if everything goes according to plan, it should be completed in 2028.
"It's far more than just a sports complex for representatives, but a place that will be accessible to the general public. Prague Water Sports Park will become a space for Praguers, where top sports, leisure recreation and nature meet. Rescue system components will also train here,"
said Petr Hlaváček, deputy mayor of the city of Prague, in the November magazine of the Prague Troja city district.
Hidden piece of luxury
"I think we chose a good place to live. It's hard to describe, but when I look around, I perceive that I am far from the city noise and chaos. Yet I don't feel like I'm on the outskirts, it’s also not far to the center. There is space and tranquility, but certainly not boredom," describes Helena and admits that sometimes she and her husband visit Trojský Brewery or Salabka restaurant, although she is more interested in children's events suitable for her daughter in the vicinity. However, she prefers to be outdoors with her. "I enjoy the Vltava River, the botanical garden and the vineyards, practically everything. It all seems to be naturally incorporated into the terrain, at first glance these places don't look like tourist attractions, even though they might be. But certainly not as many people will discover them as discover the Old Town Square," hopes Helena. After all, she wants to claim a piece of that elegant green paradise for herself, which is understandable.
Source: author's text, own questioning, mctroja.cz
