Mark Baker
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  • On the road
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Mark Baker

Author Archives: Mark Baker

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Think Piece: Is Travel a Political Act?

Posted on 2 April 2018 by Mark Baker
Posted in Diversions | Tagged Russia, Travel, political, cuba, PC, Skift, New York Times, travel writing

FIFA 2018: A World Cup on the Volga

Posted on 26 March 2018 by Mark Baker
Posted in On The Road | Tagged Russia, Volgograd, FIFA, football, Volga, 2018, Kazan, Samara, soccer

The Story of Prague’s Best-Known Bookstore

Posted on 19 March 2018 by Mark Baker
Posted in Life In Prague, Tales From The Past | Tagged Prague, Czech, Globe, The Globe, Bookstore, Coffeehouse, Books, Coffee, 1990s

Elista: Red Pagodas in Russia

Posted on 12 March 2018 by Mark Baker
Posted in On The Road | Tagged Russia, Lonely Planet, Elista, Buddhism, Kalmykia, Volga

Think Piece: Meditation for Travel Writers

Posted on 5 March 2018 by Mark Baker
Posted in Diversions | Tagged Travel, travel writer, mindfulness, meditation, anxiety, psychology, self help, stress, tolle

Ostravaganza 2018!!!

Posted on 26 February 2018 by Mark Baker
Posted in On The Road | Tagged Czech, Czechia, Moravia, Silesia, Ostrava, steeltown, steelworks, Vitkovice, roadtrip

A Piece of ‘Brussels’ in Silesia

Posted on 19 February 2018 by Mark Baker
Posted in Diversions, On The Road | Tagged Architecture, Czechia, retro, Moravia, modern, Brussels, Havirov, Silesia, 1960s, retro-futurism

Editing Out the Holocaust

Posted on 12 February 2018 by Mark Baker
Posted in Diversions, On The Road | Tagged Poland, Jewish, Holocaust, law, censorship, genocide, sobibor

Architecture: Tell Me a Panel Story

Posted on 5 February 2018 by Mark Baker
Posted in Life In Prague, Diversions | Tagged Architecture, communism, Czechoslovakia, history, urbanism, Socialism, museums

‘Nu Ninda-an Ezzateni Watar-ma Ekuteni’

Posted on 29 January 2018 by Mark Baker
Posted in Diversions, On The Road | Tagged history, Hittite, Turkey, Ancient, Civilizations, Ankara, Archeology

Let’s Go: Youngstown!

Posted on 22 January 2018 by Mark Baker
Posted in On The Road | Tagged Christmas, USA, Youngstown, Ohio, hometown, steel, rust, rustbelt

Volgograd: The Nazis Meet ‘Mother Russia’

Posted on 15 January 2018 by Mark Baker
Posted in On The Road | Tagged history, Russia, Volgograd, FIFA, World Cup, football, WWII, war

You Can Check Out Anytime You Like …

Posted on 8 January 2018 by Mark Baker
Posted in Diversions, Tales From The Past | Tagged Prague, Romania, Bulgaria, Czech, Architecture, communism, retro, Poland, hotels

In Romania, Summer Babies Love The Heat

Posted on 1 January 2018 by Mark Baker
Posted in On The Road | Tagged Bucharest, Romania, birthday, Bulgaria

Christmas Food Is Polish Food

Posted on 27 December 2017 by Mark Baker
Posted in Diversions | Tagged Food, Christmas, Polish, pierogi, fish, dinner, holiday, home

The Flight the Lights Went Out (in Georgia)

Posted on 22 December 2017 by Mark Baker
Posted in Diversions, On The Road | Tagged Travel, Christmas, airport, USA, Atlanta, problem

An Extraordinary ‘Everyman’

Posted on 18 December 2017 by Mark Baker
Posted in Life In Prague, Tales From The Past | Tagged Prague, Czech, spy, retro, Czechoslovakia, Vienna, 1980s, espionage, StB

Translator, Fixer, Friend or Foe?

Posted on 11 December 2017 by Mark Baker
Posted in Life In Prague, Tales From The Past | Tagged Prague, Czech, spy, communist, Vienna, 1980s, espionage

Cloak-and-Dagger Stuff from the ’80s

Posted on 4 December 2017 by Mark Baker
Posted in Life In Prague, Tales From The Past | Tagged Prague, Czech, communism, spy, Vienna, Czechoslovak, Cold War

Anarchist Christmas Cookies

Posted on 30 November 2017 by Mark Baker
Posted in Life In Prague, Diversions | Tagged Prague, Czech, Czechia, kotva, modern, art, contemporary art, diversions, humor, Christmas, cookies

Prague’s Kotva: Carbuncles and Communist Memory

Posted on 27 November 2017 by Mark Baker
Posted in Life In Prague, Diversions | Tagged Prague, Czech, Architecture, communism, retro, kotva, Czechoslovakia, history, modern, brutalism, 1970s

The Girl By The Lake

Posted on 20 November 2017 by Mark Baker
Posted in On The Road | Tagged Bucharest, Romania, Snagov, Lithuania, Nida, Dracula, Lonely Planet, Vilnius, Curonian Spit

Room Service at the ‘Interconti’

Posted on 13 November 2017 by Mark Baker
Posted in Life In Prague, Tales From The Past | Tagged Prague, Czech, Intercontinental, communism, spies, retro, history, hotels, Vienna

My Weekend With The Miners

Posted on 3 November 2017 by Mark Baker
Posted in On The Road, Tales From The Past | Tagged Bucharest, Romania, miners, mineriada, Timisoara, revolution, 1989

The Case of the Missing Roommate

Posted on 1 November 2017 by Mark Baker
Posted in Life In Prague, Tales From The Past | Tagged Prague, Czechia, communist, retro, Poland, Krakow, Columbia, Czechoslovakia, Solidarita, Solidarity

(Refugee) Crisis at the Doorstep

Posted on 31 October 2017 by Mark Baker
Posted in On The Road | Tagged Syria, Austria, Rotary, Feldbach, refugees, refugee crisis, Rotary Club

The Story of Lodz: the ‘First Jewish State’

Posted on 29 October 2017 by Mark Baker
Posted in On The Road | Tagged Poland, Krakow, history, Jewish, Lodz, Holocaust, Ghetto, Warsaw, Nazi, German, Auschwitz

Setting the Stage for Romania’s Revival

Posted on 28 October 2017 by Mark Baker
Posted in On The Road, Tales From The Past | Tagged Romania, Architecture, history, Sibiu, EU, European Union, culture, 2007, Transylvania

Built in Brno: When Empire Met Modern

Posted on 27 October 2017 by Mark Baker
Posted in Diversions, On The Road | Tagged Czech, Architecture, Czechia, history, Brno, Moravia, functionalism, Bauhaus, modern

When Bad Things Happen, Good Things Happen

Posted on 3 October 2017 by Mark Baker
Posted in On The Road | Tagged Romania, hospital, Iasi, Danube Delta, hospitals, Travel, Lonely Planet, Tulcea, travel writer, guidebook, Danube
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About the author

Mark Baker

I’m an independent journalist, travel writer and author who’s lived in Central Europe for nearly three decades. I love the history, literature, culture and mystery of this often-overlooked corner of Europe, and I make my living writing articles and guidebooks about the region. Much of what I write eventually finds its way into commercial print or digital outlets, but a lot of it does not.

And that’s my aim with this website: to find a space for stories and experiences that fall outside the publishing mainstream.

My Book: ‘Čas Proměn’

In 2021, I published “Čas Proměn” (“Time of Changes”), my first book of historical nonfiction. The book, written in Czech, is a collection of stories about Central and Eastern Europe in the 1980s and early ‘90s, including memories of the thrilling anti-communist revolutions of 1989. The idea for the book and many of the tales I tell there were directly inspired by this blog. Czech readers, find a link to purchase the book here. I hope you enjoy.

Buy now
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  • On the road
  • Inspiration
  • Tales from the past
  • Life in Prague
  • Diversions
  • Články v češtině
  • Čas proměn
  • About Mark
Twitter
Instagram

Contact

I am always open to new projects. If you'd like to hire me as a writer or editor, or simply wish to find out more, please contact me directly.
Email me
© 2026 Mark Baker
Site by Tom Brickman
  • On the road
  • Inspiration
  • Tales from the past
  • Life in Prague
  • Diversions
  • Články v češtině
  • Čas proměn
  • About Mark
Twitter
Instagram

Contact

I am always open to new projects. If you'd like to hire me as a writer or editor, or simply wish to find out more, please contact me directly.
Email me
© 2026 Mark Baker
Site by Tom Brickman
Tales of Travel & Adventure in Central Europe
Mark Baker
Mark Baker