The Daily Dozen: 12 things to know about Czechia today

Heart transplant|A man from Brno has celebrated 30 years since receiving a heart transplant, exceeding the average life expectancy of 13 years, ČTK reports. According to Jan Krejčí, head of the cardiology clinic at the St. Anna University Hospital in Brno, Petr (no last name given) from the village of Mokrá-Horákov, aged 57, is one the longest-living heart transplant patients in the Czech Republic.

Motorcycle enthusiasts|The Harley-Davidson Prague dealership organized a motorcycle ride yesterday in honor of Petr Pavel's presidential inauguration, ČTK reports. Pavel is a keen motorcycle driver, who arrived on his bike last week at the Prague Motorcycle Fair, and said he had no plans to give up his hobby even as head of state.

New Town history|Emperor Charles IV established Prague’s New Town on March 8, 1348, some 675 years ago. It's only “new” when compared to Old Town, which has its roots in the ninth century. Its history ties in with Charles IV's grand plans for the city to become a “New Jerusalem,” a holy city that would become a spiritual and pilgrimage center. Read more in our story.

White lion|After 11 years at Hodonín Zoo, an African white lion will move to Bratislava Zoo, where he will (hopefully) breed with an existing female. Hodonín will soon introduce visitors to a pair of Barbary lions, which represent the most endangered species of lions and no longer occur in the wild. The female will arrive from Pilsen Zoo and the male from the German Neuwied Zoo.

Castle visits|A number of Czech castles and chateaus remain open to visitors during the winter season. But the first weeks of spring see a new wave of landmarks open their gates and ramparts to visitors.The majority of castles officially open on Good Friday, an ideal long weekend for exploring some of the country’s 2,000 castles, chateaus, and stately homes of the Czech lands, which you can read more about in our article.

Strong winds|The Czech Hydrometeorological Institute (ČHMÚ) has published an official wind warning applying to the whole of the Czech Republic for today and Saturday. Meteorologists expect gusts of over 100 kilometers per hour in the mountains. Read more in our article.

Birth of a supermodel|On March 10, 1973, Eva Herzigová was born in Litvínov, in then-Czechoslovakia. Her career as a model took off after winning a modeling beauty contest in Prague in 1989. She gained international attention after modeling in an attention-grabbing campaign for Wonderbra in 1994 and graced the covers of numerous fashion magazines since then.

Summer festival|The city’s biggest music festival, Metronome Prague, returns to Výstaviště for four days of music and cultural events this summer from June 21 to 24. In addition to big names as headliners, the festival includes an accompanying program of outdoor art installations, a family-friendly fair, and, for the first time, a rap music stage. Read more in our article.

News quiz|Test your knowledge of this week's most important events in Czechia with our news quiz! When in doubt, you can always skim through articles that we published earlier this week, which were the source of questions featured on the quiz.