Museum of Communism

It’s difficult to think of a more ironic site for a museum of communism – it occupies part of an 18th-century aristocrat’s palace, stuck between a casino on one side and a McDonald’s burger restaurant on the other. Put together by an American expat and his Czech partner, the museum tells the story of Czechoslovakia’s years behind the Iron Curtain in photos, words and a fascinating and varied collection of…well, stuff. The empty shops, corruption, fear and double-speak of life in socialist Czechoslovakia are well conveyed, and there are rare photos of the Stalin monument that once stood on Letná terrace – and its spectacular destruction. Be sure to watch the video about protests leading up to the Velvet Revolution: you’ll never think of it as a pushover again.