> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://www.czechish.cz/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # How do you raise a British-Irish family in Prague? Find a babička and a chalupa - URL: https://www.czechish.cz/how-do-you-raise-a-british-irish-family-in-prague-find-a-babicka-and-a-chalupa/ - Published: 2026-11-14T16:30:00.000Z - Updated: 2026-11-14T18:32:19.000Z - Description: Karina Bolan's children were born and raised in Prague, speak Czech and have absorbed the country's habits. But ask the British-Irish family whether they feel Czech, and the answer is complicated. - Author: Elizabeth Zahradnicek Haas - Tags: People, #Wave 1 – Design The moment Karina Bolan knew her children were more Czech than she'd ever be was when her older son walked into an Alzabox pickup point wearing socks and house slippers. It's one of those distinctly Czech habits Karina has no intention of adopting herself. But she's delighted by how naturally her two boys have taken to growing up in Czechia. Much of this she credits to their Czech babysitter, who has helped raise them since they were born, including weekends at the chalupa, the ultimate Czech experience. ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/87/f2/87f245f6-8af6-48c6-923d-c9d54587f7c7/content/images/2026/11/IMG-20200515-WA0032_1.jpg) The Bolan boys at their Babi's cottage. Photo: Bolan family archive “Now she is like our babička, a family friend,” the [Vinohrady-based yoga instructor ](https://www.karina.yoga/?ref=czechish.cz)says. For a British-Irish family raising children in Prague without grandparents nearby, the relationship has become particularly important. The babysitter has taught the boys aspects of Czech culture, Karina says, “in a way we never could.” They know exactly when their name days are, happily eat a rohlík with a slice of ham draped over it, and think nothing of a 15-kilometer hike if a Kofola and a řízek are waiting at the end. They're also perfectly comfortable in *funkční kalhoty*, the functional outdoor trousers that seem to be part of the Czech national uniform. ## A family between cultures Karina is British, although her own family history is more complicated. Her parents have German and Armenian roots, and she left the UK at 22 to spend nine years in Moscow. There she met her Irish husband, Michael, before they moved to Prague in 2009\. Their children were born here in 2011 and 2013, carry Irish passports and spend plenty of time with family in the UK. “So our UK identity is... complicated,” she says. The decision to raise their family in Prague came when Karina became pregnant. She was impressed by the maternity care available here, which she felt offered better support than she would have received in the UK. Prague also seemed remarkably family-friendly. ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/87/f2/87f245f6-8af6-48c6-923d-c9d54587f7c7/content/images/2026/11/IMG_20201117_155733.jpg) Karina Bolan. Photo: Bolan family archive “Those two things pretty much sealed the deal, even though it's not always been easy without family support close by.” Karina and Michael have always aimed to be “interchangeable parents,” equally capable of feeding, washing, comforting and looking after their children. In Czechia, she says, that hasn't always been understood. When their older son was hospitalized with pneumonia at two, Michael stayed overnight. According to Karina, the nurses repeatedly insisted that the child needed a parent to stay with him, apparently not considering his father an acceptable substitute. “The nurses really didn't know what to make of that!” Karina sees similarities between Czech and British parenting, particularly in humor and the ability to laugh at oneself. But she believes Czechia still has some catching up to do when it comes to sharing parenting responsibilities equally. She's also learned to advocate for herself and challenge authority. She questions doctors' recommendations, talks back to rude or hierarchical hospital staff, and, she jokes, "is prone to knocking on doors clearly marked NEKLEPAT (do not knock)." ## A better life in Britain? One question she hears repeatedly from Czechs is whether life wouldn't be better back in Britain. Her answer is emphatic. “Definitely not! Especially post-Brexit.” She enjoys pointing out the advantages of raising a family here, particularly when it surprises the people asking. Despite rising prices, Karina says Prague has given her family a lifestyle they might not have afforded in Britain. She values the healthcare, public transport and the way children are welcomed everywhere, along with the family's ability to afford regular babysitting, ski trips, after-school clubs and summer camps. ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/87/f2/87f245f6-8af6-48c6-923d-c9d54587f7c7/content/images/2026/11/IMG_20200513_142757.jpg) More fun at the chalupa. Photo: Bolan family archive Those extras, she says, “would seem like luxuries in the UK.” Her children have been traveling across Prague alone by public transport since they were 10, which she notes is relatively late by Czech standards. “This just doesn't happen in the UK and affords them a tremendous sense of responsibility and independence.” She thinks foreigners in Prague often make friends more proactively than they might in their home countries. Karina now teaches yoga to a predominantly international clientele. Around 90 percent of her students are foreigners, which she attributes largely to the language of her classes. She doesn't consider herself a community organizer (though her students and anyone who knows her would say otherwise) but says friendships have grown naturally out of her classes and the [weekend yoga retreats](https://karina.yoga/?ref=czechish.cz) she hosts in the Czech countryside. “Our yoga practice very quickly converts into brunching and socializing,” she adds. ## A secret gossiping language Ask Karina whether her children feel Czech, and the answer depends on their mood. Most days, they'd probably say British or Irish. At home, English reigns supreme, with word games, grammar nerding and plenty of sarcasm. But when the family travels, Czech becomes the children's “special secret gossiping language.” There's plenty of Marmite at home, but the boys have also acquired a taste for a very Czech pleasure: roasting a buřt over an open fire. It's one of those things, Karina admits, that they understand better than she does. ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/87/f2/87f245f6-8af6-48c6-923d-c9d54587f7c7/content/images/2026/11/image-14.png) Buřt over an open fire. Photo: Bolan family archive She expects her children will always feel connected to Czechia, whether or not they ever call themselves Czech. If they eventually leave Prague, she hopes they'll remember a childhood where “they felt free, loved and had fun.” **Meet Karina:* Interested in trying one of her yoga classes? You can also join her upcoming* [*Yoga and Festive Treat*](https://karina.yoga/?ref=czechish.cz)*s, a holiday workshop on Sunday, December 6, at Zen Den Yoga Studio in Prague 3, with sweet treats, mulled wine, and support for Friendship Prague.*