On board - and wily - at the Paluba games room
It used to be one night a week in Prague on one of the city's steamboats travelling up and down a stretch of the Vltava River - the Paluba games club - a place to go with friends or to meet new ones to play a wide variety of board games you never had as a kid. But, then, Paluba changed locations: many members wanted a more regular place to visit, and the steamboat was getting expensive. Today, the Paluba games room has docked in Prague's Andel district: a club where people of all ages can get together to match wits.
Speaking to one of Paluba's managers Jakub Tesinsky, a university professor of maths, I asked him what kind of a tradition playing games had among the Czechs - as well as what he thought was the greatest value of playing games in the first place.
"Well, there are many interests in board games, it's not only fun. Many people play games and train their brains, and then... then apply this. The other thing is that games are some kind of simulations and we see that currently the world moves towards virtual things and simulations play a very big role in the world right now."
Do the Czechs like a good game?
"To be honest I think there was quite a poor tradition in the Czech Republic with board games. But, after the revolution here it changed. And, uh, I am proud to say, we helped the change happen."
Paluba is a volunteer, non-profit, organisation - as such it's not expensive to come and play: there is a small entrance fee at the door, or you can even become a regular member. While perhaps not the grandest of spaces, the club does have all the basics - and can be quite cosy with two rooms and low arched ceilings, ten tables or so on which to drink tea and launch various campaigns against one's opponents - strategy classics like chess or the more recent Axis & Allies.
Paluba must have the widest assortment of board games of any venue in the Czech Republic: more than two hundred. Big Deal, Capitol, and Samurai to name just a few: many of them virtually unknown here, or a bit expensive to buy on your own. Another plus: the club's organisers are so very friendly you won't have to worry about digging through a rules manual before you get down to business - the night I visited with my friend Misa, Jakub Tesinksy and his colleagues were happy to explain some of their games - and even to sit down and play.
"The rules are quite simple. We have seven pieces of wood with different colours and a board which is similar to a chess board, and the goal of the game is to acquire four out of seven rings. So, that's the majority of the rings."
"It's really an amazing game. And, you are like a mind reader - you are trying to read the other person's mind."
Well, that was a short and sweet psychological challenge but experiences can run quite different - in fact they can get downright wily. Lawyer Tonda Mocek recalls a marathon match of Diplomacy, a game of conquest in which he played Russia, but was bitterly betrayed.
"I was Russia and I had a solid pact signed with England. All of a sudden, with a poker face he betrayed me and launched an attack with Germany. I didn't stand a chance."
That's the Paluba games room - if you haven't played games in a while or just love the idea of logging off that computer and seeing real people again, it's worth the visit. Tossing those rolling stones, you'll be surprised how gripped with emotion you'll become when you sense victory within your reach. As always, beware. It can always slip through your fingers. All the other smiling faces at the table want to win too, and some of them will have plans that are cleverer than your own.
