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Dobry den...for the last time I guess
I can't believe that my semester here is basically over! I'm having really mixed emotions about it right now. I am going to miss Praha a ton, and I'm sure I won't even realize most of the things that I'll miss about it until I don't have them anymore. There are 2 or 3 friends who I'm really really going to miss too, but that will hardly compare to how much I've missed everyone at home! I am ready to move on from my study abroad group as a whole though. I have backpacking to look forward to starting next Friday, which is great because I don't think I'm quite ready to leave Europe. And when I get home, I have amazing roommates, fantastic friends/family, my first-choice job, a great house, an Italian exchange student (at home), and all sorts of other things to look forward to. I get home on July 3, and I'll be in Lawrence starting July 5 for summer school, so let me know if you'll be in the area!
So anyway, I guess the point of emailing you all is to keep you posted on what I've been up to here. And since I've put this off for over six weeks (possibly my new record?), I'll give you the bullet point-ish version of my experiences...
~Visits from Annie McEnroe, Kristin Kennalley, Kristi Charlson, and my mom. Each time was so wonderful to see someone from home! I haven't really had a whole lot of time to get lonely here!
~Cesky Krumlov/Ceské Budìjovice: These are 2 little medievalish towns in southern Bohemia, and I went with my study abroad group. I finally saw a castle that looks the way a castle should look! We played red rover in the Ceské Budìjovice town square and got plenty of interesting stares. My friend Rich and I took a miniature night hike up to a deserted monastery that overlooked the whole town and had a great view of the stars (you can't see them in Praha).
~Spring break in Sevilla: I was supposed to fly to Madrid, spend the night in a hostel, and catch a 6 hour bus to meet Dan in Sevilla the next day. I got to Madrid and was tired and not too excited to have to wander around an unfamiliar city alone late at night...and when i walked out from the baggage claim to find my way to the metro, Dan was there! He completely surprised me! We're talking a 12 hour round trip bus ride here...I'm so spoiled! Other highlights of the week included a tour of a sherry bodega, a visit to the beach in Cadiz, almost not having a place to stay in Cadiz, seeing a bull flip himself over after getting his horns stuck in the ground at a bullfight, exploring the beautiful mountain town of Aracena, having the most amazing dinner ever (a huge juicy amazing perfectly cooked pork steak...mmmm....), and many other things. But I was not very good about journaling that week so I'm sure I'm forgetting lots too!
~Krakow with my mom: What a great city! Its not that small (750,000) but it feels cozy. I loved it because you could just feel the strength of the faith that the people have there. I saw some of the most amazing churches ever, and there were always people praying in them. There was also tons of JP2 stuff there which was really cool. Thanks to my moms usually annoying over assertiveness, we met some interesting people. First, a group of, well, tipsy (to say the least) Swiss 17 year olds. One of them proposed to me. But he didn't understand the whole gender thing in English...he kept saying that because I have a girlfriend, he would just be my sister. The next night we ended up sharing a table with three men from Holland in a crowded restaurant. It was lots of fun! And we met a couple nuns who were originally from the states and talked with them one night, and then saw them two days later in the town square. The second meeting led to a 3 hour tour of the museum of the Felician sisters. They were very sweet, but it was just a bit long...
We also went to Auschwitz. It was...I don't know, its hard to pick a word that describes Auschwitz. But I'm glad I went, and if you have the chance, you should go too.
~Velehrad: My friend Justin and I went on a trip with people from the English speaking church that we've been going to all semester. Velehrad is a town in Moravia (Eastern Czech Republic) where Sts. Cyril and Methodius first brought Christianity to the area. We had a great weekend, and met some really cool people. Lots of Canadians...I felt at home  I just wish that the trip had been at the beginning of the semester instead of at the end because it would have been nice to have met everyone when we had more than 2 weeks left here. We visited a castle on a hilltop that overlooked the beautiful countryside, a few gardens, and a beautiful church. I got to feed a peacock too which was cool.
Dan comes this afternoon, and my dad comes on Sunday. I have a few little papers left to write and one final left to take, and then its all over. So, thank you for your thoughts and prayers this semester. I've had an amazing experience, and like I said, it'll be hard to say goodbye to Praha, but I can't wait to come home and see everyone!
Love,
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| Čau!
Spring is finally on its way! And a lot has happened since my
last email (a bit over 3 weeks ago...I guess theres no hope for
improvement at this point!). So here is the extremely abbreviated
version of my last three weeks. I figured you all will appreciate me
keeping it short because Dan probably has another email going out soon
too, and I don't know about you, but at this point, I'm still only
about three fourths of the way through his last one
March 16 and 17 my roommate Polina and I decided to take a 1 night
trip to Olomouc, a city in Moravia, the eastern half of the Czech
Republic. Its kind of like a mini version of Praha with no
tourists...it was a nice relaxing break from everything going on in
Praha. We met a fun Australian guy who was running our hostel, and I'm
finally starting to be able to distinguish between British and
Australian accents! We had some amazing food and spent hours
wandering around the curvy narrow streets...lots of fun!
Then on Sunday, March 18, my sister Amy and her roommate Katie
arrived for their spring break. At which point, I started to do the
tourist thing all over again with them. Its fun to have people in town
because I do things that I don't do day to day while living here. We
shopped lots, went to some fun restaurants, kavarnas, and bars, and saw
lots of Prague. Dan and 3 of his Sevilla friends joined us on Thursday
night. We all went to the Praha Castle together on Friday. It was
cool to see it again because the first time I went was my second day
here and I was so tired and overwhelmed that it was hard to take it all
in. On Saturday we went to the ballet to see Sleeping Beauty. It was
really awesome, but it was basically sold out so we had to buy standing
tickets. So I got pretty tired of standing after 2 hours, but for
$1.50 per ticket, I guess I can't complain too much! I also finally
got to walk over the Charles Bridge at night with Dan...its so
beautiful, and even better with him there! Everyone left on Sunday.
It was really sad, but I was so exhausted from the week that I don't
think I could have had them stay longer.
The following weekend we had a girls weekend in Budapest,
Hungary. I went with 4 other girls. We took the night train, which
was great because we went to sleep and when we woke up in the morning
we were there! Unfortunately, we also had to wake up to get our
passports checked at the borders in the middle of the night, but it was
pretty quick and painless. Budapest was really cool! Its actually
really similar to Praha with its architecture and its setup. Praha is
divided by the Vltava river, while Budapest has the Danube. Praha
has a more compact feel which is nice, but the people were nicer in
Budapest. Anyway, we had a couple adventures worth noting. On
Saturday we were walking up Andrassy street, a really famous street I
guess, to get to the bathhouse. As we walked, we got more and more
into the thick of a huge crowd. They all had balloons and flags and
signs. So we got our Hungarian flags and walked along with them
towards the huge stage set up with live music. Along the way, we
figured out that we were taking part in a political rally for the
socialist party. Hmm. It was really random! We eventually made it to
the bath house. I guess I should explain that. The city of Budapest
has all sorts of natural spas and hot springs running under it. So
there are lots of bath houses that have incorporated the spas into
resort like pools and hot tubs. The place we went to had outdoor
pools, and it was beautiful weather, and it was all lots of fun! The
springs have also formed a whole system of caves that run underneath
the city, so we ended up in probably the most touristified one of
all...the labrynth. It was fun because we made it fun, but it was
pretty dorky. We went to Mass on Sunday at the huge basilica there,
which was really cool! I had a great trip!
And then one random story: I went with a couple friends to get
some dessert and we each ordered a brownie and a glass of milk.
Apparently that's not standard here. As we took big gulps out of our
large glasses of "milk", we realized that they had brought us all
glasses of half-and-half! I felt pretty guilty drinking all those
calories, but I can't say it didn't taste good!
I'm going to Cesky Krumlov on Saturday and Sunday, Kristin
Kennalley comes on Monday, and I leave on Thursday for spring break
in Sevilla with Dan! Needless to say, I'm sooo excited for all of
that! I hope all is well at home...I miss you all! Keep me posted for
whats going on there too! You're all in my thoughts and prayers!
Love,
Kelly | | |
| Polina and I went to Olomouc, a little town in the eastern part of the
Czech Republic in the region called Moravia on Thursday and Friday, and
I figured the fun/random occurances surrounding that deserved to get
posted.
~when I went to the bus station to get the tickets, I was completely
lost, so I asked some cops where to go. They only spoke a little
english, so they actually walked me to the ticket place and one of them
went to the info window to figure out exactly what I needed to
do. People just aren't nice like that here in general so I
figured they deserve some credit back in KS.
~we ate at a hospoda where I had pork knuckle and tripe soup, neither
of which i would normally order, especially because i later found
out that tripe is the lining of a cow's stomach. but they were
delicious!
~the guy running the fabulous hostel we stayed at (for like 12
dollars!) was an awesome Australian guy named Paul. We went out
with him Thursday night to a couple bars. One of his buddies who
came too had lived in Prague for the last year. here is our
conversation....
us: where did you live in prague?
ezra (the guy): vinohrady
us: ooh cool us too. we live on luzicka. where were you?
ezra: crazy...me too. number 14.
us: are you kidding?
ezra: you live in my apartment
us: no way.
ezra: number 6?
us: ...
yeah so we met the guy who used to live in our apartment during a one
night visit to a town three and half hours away! crazy!
~when we left, paul gave us 6 8X11 color photos that he had taken of
random things/animals in australia that are really awesome! so we
now have decorations for our room!
~i got my second massage ever, and it was a million times better than
the first one i got, which was in a spa town the other week. this
time was an hour and the woman was awesome. and it was only 400 crowns
which is less than 20 dollars.
that's all for now!
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Dobry Den!
Once again, its been forever since my last email. I really can't believe how quickly time has been going by! I've been here for six weeks and I still feel like I just got here, but at the same time I feel like I've been here forever. Its really hard to explain. But I guess all that really matters is that I'm still having an amazing time here. I'm feeling more comfortable with everything in general. I fully understand the transportation system, I can buy groceries and eat in a restaurant with minimal language problems, I can say some of the Czech Mass responses, and in general I'm feeling like I actually belong here. Its a really nice feeling. Anyway I'll try to catch you up on what I've been up to here.
I went to Spain February 23-27. I met Dan in Madrid and we spent some time there and also in Toledo. I was expecting a more...tropical weekend, so I was a bit disappointed when I had to bundle up in my sweaters and my coat, but it was wonderful nevertheless. We spent a lot of time just wandering around Toledo, which is a really cool town! Its up on a hill and all surrounded by a wall, and the windy narrow streets were great for exploring. We went to the cathedral, which was huge and really pretty. While we were there, we tagged along with a group of US high school students for an English tour, where we found out about a town party that was happening that night. The Archbishop of Toledo had just been "promoted" to Cardinal by Pope Benedict, so the town was having a party for him. Unfortunately it rained really hard so the official part of the event didn't happen, but the rain didn't stop hundreds of people from parading into the town square in all sorts of completely random costumes. It was really cool to see! Unfortunately, I had to go home after only a few days there, but Dan is coming here next week, so it was easier to leave knowing that.
The day I got home, I found out that I would have to move the next day. I got a call from my resident director about a week before to letting me know that our landlord was selling the flat because he was having financial problems, and that we'd have to move somewhere sometime. That sometime happened to be the day after I got home. So that night I quickly packed, and the next day we moved between my classes. Things definitely work out for the best, because my new apartment is amazing! Its much bigger and much less communist style than the old one. Plus the move makes for another thing to talk about, and my roommates and I have fun talking nostalgically about our first Prague apartment. My mailing address is the same (hint hint ) because mail all comes to my school.
Other random experiences I've had...
~Being serenaded by 3 tipsy 65 year old men in a cocktail bar...Frere Jacques in rounds!
~Figuring out that the bar by our new apartment that looked very expensive/exclusive/secretive was actually just a gay bar, and getting plenty of weird looks when we were the only girls there
~Experiencing a Czech hockey game...they get so into it! Lots of fun!
~Getting a tour of the Pilsner Urquell brewery from a hilarious 85 year old woman who wears high heels and drinks at least a beer a day
~Spending more time with my new non-American friends (yay!), particularly an awesome Czech girl named Veronika, a crazy Siberian named Evgeny, and my roommate's boyfriend Arran, who we refer to as the Small British Man
~Going to see the ballet "Mozart? Mozart!" followed by coffee in a kavarna with live piano and a walk over the Charles Bridge at night...absolutely beautiful!
~Multiple late night quests for smazeny syr....basically a mozzarella stick sandwich...they're absolutely amazing...I'm feeling hungry just thinking about them...
~An excursion to the spa town of Marianske Lazne where I got my first massage ever...Its also the place where they make spa wafers, which are basically ten inch communion wafers but a bit crispier and with a layer of sugar in the middle....they're the other staple of my diet here.
I'm taking an overnight trip to Olomouc, a city in Moravia, the eastern part of the Czech Republic on Thursday. Amy and her roommate Katie are coming in this Sunday for their spring break...I'm so excited! Then Dan will get here next Thursday, and they all leave on Sunday. It should be a great week!
I'm sure its been a tough week for you all in Lawrence...I saw all the pics at the Kansan website. I'm so glad that no one got hurt though and I'll continue to keep you all in my prayers! Good news about KU basketball though...apparently they've turned things around since I left! Keep me posted on what all is going on at home...I don't want to be too behind when I come back! I miss you all a lot, and I'm constantly thinking about you and praying for you! Na Shledanou for now!
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| Hello Everyone!
First off, I'm sorry, I knew I'd be bad at this whole email thing. I guess I wrote 2 weeks ago today...so a lot has happened. I'll keep it short anyway.
I'm living in an apartment in Vinohrady, which is a more affluent town, but I guess that just means that its safer, because I certainly would not call my apartment nice. I guess its all part of the experience though! I have two roommates from Michigan and Pittsburgh. They're really cool! There are 14 people total on the program, and I really do like everyone so far.
I had orientation on Feb. 3-5. Friday morning we our first meeting and afterwards I went to Mass for the first time here. I went to a huge cathedral called St. Ludmila. It is really close to my apartment. It was weird because it was a 4:30 Friday Mass and the bishop was the celebrant. There were like 5 other priests too, and the church was standing room only (although that's not saying much...there are very few pews). I don't know what was going on though because it was all in Czech. On Saturday we went as a group to the Prague castle which has a great view of the city. Spring here will be amazing! I went with Justin (a guy from the program) to the church that houses the Infant Jesus of Prague. It was a really neat church, and it actually had a prayerful attitude unlike the really tourisy attractiony churches. I went to mass again at St Ludmilas. I had a conversation in a combo of Czech and English with a little old lady which was exciting. For our last day of orientation we went to Kutna Hora, an old silver mining town. We visited a church there that was decorated with the bones of 40,000 people. It was really weird!
Classes started on February 7. They're really different from home. They're all soo small, and they each meet one day a week for three hours. Its nice because I did finally get my schedule figured out so that I only have classes on Tuesdays and Wednesdays, but those are going to be long days! I'm taking Czech, Art History, Organizational Behavior, Marketing, and a European film class. I don't think any of them should be too difficult. I have my classes with Czech students too, but I haven't gotten much of a chance to get to know any of them yet. Hopefully I will as the semester goes on.
I've been going to Mass as often as I can. There are so many amazing churches here! I've gone to about 6 different churches so far. I was excited to find a list that a friend had told me about that has every Catholic Church in Prague and all of the Mass times. My goal is to go to as many as possible (all?) while I'm here. We'll see how that goes. I love going to Mass though because it really is my best link to home. Even when I can't understand a single word, I know exactly what is going on, and its one of the only places where the elderly Czech people (most of whom really don't like Americans or young people) are happy to see me.
I've also probably gone out more nights in the past two weeks than I have during my whole college experience so far. We generally go to a pub or lounge type place and just hang out. Its lots of fun! I had my first beer the other night...Budvar, AKA Czech Budweiser. It is actually pretty good! Don't worry though...I'm still almost always the "mom" for the group. We're generally out till sometime between 1 and 3, and since we dont have classes many days, we've been doing this pretty often. Its definitely a change of lifestyle, but its fun for now at least.
Once again, I have to run to make it to Mass on time (a new church again...yay!). Next weekend I'm going to Madrid and Toledo with Dan, so I'll probably try to write after that. Have a splendid week!
Love,
Kelly | | |
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