It's Been Far Too Long...

St. Vitus Cathedral

Hey everyone! So I know it has been far too long since my last post, and since I'm sure you are all just sitting by your computers, waiting for me to update my blog, I will fill you in on everything that I've been up to in the last couple of weeks (if I can even remember that far back).  So on my last day of Czech class (hallelujah) our teachers took us to a theater where we were able to watch an Acadamny Award winning Czech film. Although I've seen movies with subtitles, I had never seen a foreign Czech film before, nor had I ever even considered trying to watch one. Despite my specualtions, I really enjoyed the film! If a movie can make me cry while I am focusing on subtitles at the same time, I consider it a success. That friday I got to experience my very first hockey game! Although I was a little disappointed about the fact that fighting in hockey is illegal here in the Czech Republic, it didn't seem to take away tooo much from the experience. We all had so much fun eating stadium food and attempting to chant for our team in another language. Unfortunately our team lost agains Moravia, but at least Sparta managed to hold their own. On Sunday night, a large group of us (mostly girls) went to go see the ballet Copellia in a beautiful baroque theather. The dancing and costumes were amazing and I found the ballet to be much more entertaining than the opera. Some of us have even been looking into buying tickets for Swan Lake in a couple of weeks.

Inside the Ballet Theater

After a great weekend, classes finally started. As interesting as some of my courses may be, I find it a little difficult to concentrate when my classrooms have the most amazing views of the castle. The scenery outside the windows definitely makes for some excellent daydreaming though. For one of my favorite classes, Art and Architecture, we basically spent the first day of class walking around Old Town Square and discussing the architecture as we saw it. Being able to learn outside of the classroom makes everything so much more interesting and hands on. After a "grueling" three days of class, my weekend started on Wednesday and the adventures began.

Hanging out at the Castle!

On friday, Dani and I decided to take an adventure and explore one of Prague's most beautiful sites, the Prague Castle. The weather was absolutely beautiful and only continues to get better as we come closer to spring. Before we went up to the castle, Dani and I stopped for lunch at one of our favorite Italian restaurants in Prague. It is on a boat that is docked right on the river next to the Charles Bride, with an amazing view of the castle. Once we finished lunch we hiked up to the castle just to walk around in awe of its beauty. We sipped on hot wine as we looked out onto the city, feeling like we were on top of the world. We then decided to go to the top of the St. Vitus Cathedral, because apparently where we were jsut wasn't high up enough for us. Well, after 10 minutes of panting up a spiral staircase, and 3 rest stops later, we finally made it to the very top. The view was breathtaking... literally. We could see for miles on end and it felt as though we were looking over all of Prague. It was definitely worth our burning leg muscles to make it up there.

View from the top of the Cathedral

Yesterday (Saturday) was another amazing day as well. As the weather slowly gets warmer and warmer (and by warmer I mean 35 degrees), the tourists continue to come flooding in. Each weekend here gets more and more crowded with people from all over the world. As much as I love kind of having the city to ourselves during the weeks, I love the energy that all of the different people bring on the weekends. Old Town Square was filled with musicians, food vendors, and even jesters juggling with knives (sketchy...). The thought of being inside on such a beautiful day was an impossible one, so Dani and I, clearly attatched at the hip, decided to cross the Charles Bridge in an attempt to explore what is on the other side. There we discovered a charming little bookstore and the perfect ledge to take our books to read. The ledge is right next to the river, with a backdrop of the Charles Bridge and jazz music playing in the background. To put it simply, its perfect. I can't even begin to describe how much I love it here. Prague is such a beautiful city with so much charm and history that can be seen in both its architecture and its people. I am so fortunate that I will be able to share this experience with Mack in only three weeks!! I am counting down the days and I can't wait!

Here's to a Fabulous Weekend!

We had to do it!

View from the Charles Bridge

So this weekend marks the end to my first full week of Czech intensive class. And let me just say that when they refer to the course as being "intensive", they weren't kidding around. 5 hours a day, 5 days a week... its a whole lot of Czech. As painful as it is to be sitting in a classroom knowing that during those 5 hours you could be exploring one of the most beautiful cities in the world, the teachers ease our pain by taking us on the occasional field trip. In the first week we got to watch the astronomical clock go off at the hour, see an exibit of Czech legends at the National Museum, and visit the National Gallery. So I guess I can't complain TOO much. Unfortunately I have a test tomorrow, so it looks like I am going to have to be a real person for the first time in 2 months and actually sit down to study... yawn. Only one more week of Czech intensive though until my more than ideal class schedule starts. And by ideal I mean class just three days a week. It doesn't get more perfect than that. Oh wait, it does. My weekend these past couple of days was absolutely perfect. Starting on Thursday, I got to experience my very first opera, Mozart's Magic Flute. The opera house was stunning and so intricately decorated. While the perfomance was beautifully done, I am not sure that I will be going to another opera anytime soon. It may have to do with the fact that I was seated directly behind a pole, so actually getting to watch the performance required a little more effort than I was willing to put in. Regardless, I really enjoyed the experience and I am so happy I went. On Friday night everyone went out with a bang and we danced our heads off to classics for club Lucerna's 80s themed night. On Saturday, Dani and I went to Old Town Square to eat breakfast/lunch at one of our favorite restaurants, Bohemia Bagel. Sooo yummy!

Spray painting the Lennon Wall

Inside the Opera House

After that, we met up with Kara, a sorority sister of mine who was visiting from Rome. It was so nice and comforting getting to see a familiar face from home! We all lucked out that it was a beautiful sunny day, so of course we took full advantage of it and spent the entire day outside. We walked across the Charles Bridge, explored the cobblestone streets, and we finally got to see the Lennon Wall. Because it was the weekend and the tourists were rolling deep, the town was energetic and full of culture. Jazz bands were playing out in the streets and everyone seemed to be having a good time. The Lennon Wall was definitely a highlight of that day.
The colors of the wall were so vibrant and loud (which of course makes for a great photo shoot)! We took endless pictures next to each of its unique spots, and spent time reading the thousands of layered on spray painted quotes and doodles. We even got to add to the wall ourselves which was a pretty awesome experience. Dani and I added our initials so we will forever be on the Lennon Wall in Prague, along with millions of others who have helped to make this wall what it is. I probably could have explored the city for hours on end that day, but I didn't want to cram it all in at once, I have plenty of time. So I said goodbye to Kara and headed home for the day with a huge grin on my face. This was one of the first days that we have really had to ourselves to explore Prague without having any class, meetings, or planned excursions. I felt that on Saturday I was really able to take everything in and marvel at the fact that I am living in such an amazing place. It was such a good feeling. Today was a very good day as well, just in a different way. It was cold and snowy out, weather that screams sweats, hot chocolate, and movies. Sooo, that is exactly what Dani and I did. Exhausted after a long weekend, we decided to spend the second half of the day inside for some cozy R&R and we caught up on all of our TV shows. It was exactly what I needed. All in all, I'd say this weekend was a pretty successul one. I can't wait for more to come!

The Hidden Pearls of Moravia

I know I haven't updated this blog in quite a few days, so bare with me and I'll catch you up on the last few days of my life. On Friday morning, a group of about 20 of us went to Moravia, which is about 3 hours east of Prague. After visiting a couple of beautiful churches along the way, we finally got to our hotel, which in comparison to our hotel in Munich, was pure luxury. Not only was there plenty of space to function and walk around in each room, but the hotel came equipped with a bowling alley, spa, and a menu that was to die for! (aka I was finally able to get a piece of salmon haha) Anyway, the first night we were there we took a 40 minute bus ride to a family owned wine cellar to have dinner and go wine tasting. The room we were set up in was absolutely beautiful and charming! We were all encased in a brick tunnel with good food, good company, and bottomless pitchers of both red and white wine. After we polished off our meals (and more wine than one needs at dinner), we went down into the cellars for even more wine! Here we tasted different kinds of Czech wines, both red and white, along with some good cheese. Once we were done tasting all of the wine, we headed back to the hotel for a good nights sleep. The following day we took a tour of the city center, visited St. Paul and St. Peter's Cathedral (stunning), and even got to walk on the bloodsoaked battlefield where Napoleon led the French against the Austrians and Russians. Being on the actual battlefield where the war took place was a pretty awesome experience. When we finished our tour of the city center, we called it quits for the day and went back to our hotel for a relaxing dinner. Sunday, our last day in Moravia, has probably been one of the highlights of my trip so far. We started off the morning by getting to see one of the most beautiful baroque churches in Europe, a church that was nicknamed "The pearl of Moravia" for a reason. Because it was a Sunday morning, we walked in in the middle of a communion. The combination of the architecture, pipe organ, and chanting sent chills down my spine- an eerie, yet beautiful combination.

Once we left the church, we headed to the Moravian Karst, a system of underground caves known to be ranked among the most beautiful areas in Central Europe. Getting to walk through these caves was probably one of the most amazing experiences I've ever had. After we toured the caves by foot, we got into little boats and took them through the underground water areas. It was like a mixture of the Matterhorn, Splash Mountain, and Pirates of the Caribbean all in one, only cooler! (hard to believe, I know.) After the caves, we had a quick lunch and then drove back on the bus to Prague.

By the time we got home, we all got ready to go to an American bar and watch the Superbowl! Keep in mind that kick off Prague time wasn't even until 12:30 am so needless to say it was a late night. Then after only a few hours of sleep, Dani and I woke up bright and early for our very first Czech class! The 4 hours and 45 minutes seemed to go by pretty quickly considering I spent basically the entire class laughing at the sound of everyone attempting to speak Czech. It is a pretty hard language to learn. Once class was over, Dani and I went straight for the gym, our first official day of being members of World Fitness! It felt so good to finally have some routine in the day again. Anyway, tomorrow will probably consist of the same routine :) Hope all is well!!

The Little Town of Pilsen

Hey everyone! Today was a really good day, very educational, very interesting, and very, very cold. Starting bright and early at 8:30 in the morning, a group of us took an hour drive to tour the small town of Pilsen. We started off by getting to experience and walk through the third largest synagogue in the world! Something that really caught my attention was that this gorgeous synagogue is no longer being used, due to the fact that there are almost no Jews left in Pilsen because they were one of the first communities to be wiped out by the Nazis. After we toured the synagogue, we went to the main square for a traditional Czech meal. Yep you guessed it, goulash AGAIN!! Just as we had finally defrosted ourselves, we came back outside to treck to the famous Pilsner Brewery (the same one we stopped at on the way to Prague.) This time however, we got to tour the actual factory which was pretty damn cool. It was like the Willy Wonka factory for beer! We got to learn about the process of making the "perfect beer"and what to look for in its taste and color. We even got to go deep down into the cold cellars and taste fresh beer from the barrels. It was cold, crisp and delcious! After a long, yet fulfulling day, we were all eager to get back on the heated bus and head back home. Tomorrow will be another tour, but this time we will be going to a bone church, which should be pretty awesome. I will update you all on that next! Can't wait.

Down in the beer cellars