Whew, one wonderful and exciting week/weekend in Prague down! I ventured to a bar with LIVE Puma’s on the prowl just outside within the bar courtyard for patrons to enjoy watching, walked all over Prague to a farmers market and then sat along the riverside with some classmates, went into the city on Saturday night for FREE museum night with some fellow classmates, met a wonderful Czech woman for tea and pastries on Sunday morning with whom I had been put in touch with by a friend from back home in Boston, and finally spent my Sunday afternoon Skyping with two of my best friends from home, my Mom and my Dad. LOVED it!
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At the Puma bar with my fellow TEFL-ers! |
By the way, for those of you who have been waiting
for these…here are some photos of my apartment, finally! This is the apartment I am living in now
which I will be staying at until Thursday, October 3 which is when our course
ENDS! That is already so soon, I cannot
believe it.
The outside of my apartment building |
The little courtyard where I jump rope in the mornings |
My tiny bedroom with all my HUGE bags in there. Yes, I am still living out of bags as unpacking them and having to re-pack them again in 3 weeks seems pointless. |
The other bedroom in our flat, my roommates room. |
Kitchen |
Cooking area |
Bathroom |
So I have received numerous comments and messages
from friends and family about how amazing of a time it seems I am having, which I
am! Thank you so much, everyone!
However I also thought it might be helpful for those
of you not doing a huge, exciting cross-Atlantic leap like I did to hear about
some of the negatives or challenges of this experience so far. Some relate specifically to the city of Prague itself;
others are just general challenges I have come across in a situation like this,
now having had to deal with it.
Challenges I have met so far in my venture include:
1. The
language barrier. Czech is a difficult
language, and a rather isolated one. For
instance, you do not come across many other people in different parts of the
world outside the Czech Republic who speak Czech. However you do meet many people throughout
the world who speak languages like English, Italian, French, Spanish or
German. Many of the people here in
Prague speak Czech and Czech only.
English is up and coming in Prague, many more people are seeking out the language
(I would be out of a job if they weren’t!) but Czech is still the predominant
language here, followed closely by German.
2. Dog
Poop. This is specific to Prague. It is prevalent, it smells (obviously) and it’s
gross (duh). You frequently come across
smears or piles of it when walking down sidewalks, strolling throughout parks,
walking in the street or alongside of city squares. It’s a bummer, to say the least. I am rapidly learning to keep my eyes trained
on the ground in front of me much of the time when walking instead of in front
of me!
3. The
Czech stare/Czech people slamming into you.
I have looked around on the trams during my morning commute to be surprised
to find numerous women staring back coldly at me. And as opposed to an American who would immediately
look away, embarrassed to have been caught, the Czech woman continues with her
cold hard stare, slowly raking your body up and down with her eyes. This is both intimidating and rather
uncomfortable to be on the receiving end of.
By some of the instructors at our school, it’s been dubbed “The Czech
Stare” and it tends to be older females who give it. And secondly, Czech people seem to have neither
a personal bubble, nor the words for excuse me.
They will frequently just slam right into you while walking and without
pause, continue on their way without so much as a glance or even an acknowledgment
that they just touched you at all.
4. Grocery
shopping. I have rapidly discovered this
to be a daunting venture. Not only does
one know none of the brands, as they are all Czech of course, but all the
writing is in Czech too. Now you would
think that just looking at products to clear up what they actually are would be
easy and that any bonehead could do so.
Not as easy as you think. For
instance, lunch meats. You cannot tell
which one is turkey, ham, salami or whatnot.
They all look so similar and the Czech words for these products resemble
gibberish. Same goes for various cheeses
and other meats. Figuring out which milk
is full fat, reduced fat, low fat and non fat is close to impossible. Therefore, just selecting your products and
deciphering what they say to make sure you choose the right item is a trying
task in itself. Now you arrive at the
checkout. They move fast, and tend to
speak ONLY Czech. Also, you are to bag
your own items. Each time, I have found
myself shaking with nerves trying to open my bags, which of course always
refuse to open, while the next person is being rung in and now their items are
rolling down the chute mixing with my items as the cashier glares at me with
annoyance. Not a great leisure activity,
that is for sure.
5. No
social network. This is not specific to
Prague but to this experience in general.
That has easily been the hardest thing for me about this so far. I do not really feel any culture shock (yet…fingers
crossed) surprisingly. It just feels
like a big, fun, new exciting city. I do
miss my friends though, a lot. I took
time to build up some truly wonderful friendships back home. All of them are loyal, loving, kind,
supportive, SO much fun to be with and just generally great people. I am so, so lucky. Their physical absence in my life is
beginning to loom larger as time passes.
I miss being able to see my Mom and sister on the weekends. I miss being able to call my Dad, brother and
other relatives up any time I felt like it to say hello (now this has to be
scheduled a few days ahead of time and on Skype). I know I will build some of these things in
time, some close friendships here and such.
But not having that right now is a bit sad. I miss it.
And I miss those specific people with whom I grew quite close. Of course, I have many superficial connections for now, with my classmates and
such. Some of these have potential to
become closer ones (depending on where I end up teaching) but that takes time
to develop of course. So right now it
just is not the same.
“Get
a life in which you are not alone. Find
people you love, and who love you. And
remember that love is not leisure, it is work.”
6. And
finally, no income currently. This is
incredibly stressful. I do not think I have
ever not had an income in my life, since I was 14. Maybe aside from a period of roughly 8 months
in high school, but other than that, I have always had some form of money
coming in from a job. It’s a very
unsettling feeling not having that. I do
have a decent cushion saved, and I will almost certainly have a job secured
within the next few weeks. So I know
things will work out fine, they always do.
But the feeling isn’t great. It’s
a bit of a nervous, terrifying, unsettling and insecure feeling. That is certainly a new experience for me.
And now, the things I LOVE about being here
so far:
1. The
architecture. It is absolutely gorgeous,
ornate, Gothic, old, intricate, distinct, colorful, romantic, art nouveau,
charming and just a constant point of interest for me. I love looking at all the fabulous buildings
all over the city.
These are three everyday apartment buildings, about two blocks from my flat. Case in point. |
2. Being
in Europe, in general! As all of you who
know me already are aware, I LOVE Europe. I
have always felt drawn to it, and every time I have come to visit and left, I
miss it deeply. There is just something
about this continent that consistently tugs at my heart, pulling me toward
it.
3. Being
a stone’s throw away from SO many other countries is incredibly exciting. I cannot wait to have a job so I can finally
begin traveling!!! At the top of my list
as of now: The French Riviera, Bruges in Belgium, returning to Italy, see more
of Germany, ski the Swiss Alps, Austria and Greece.
4. Travel
by train. I know, flying is often cheaper
and quicker, but there is something so romantic and so quintessential Europe
about traveling by train. I think it’s
thrilling. And I cannot wait to do it again.
5. Old
Town in Prague, it makes me swoon. It’s
romantic, magical and incredibly charming, all the Gothic and colorful architecture, I love
it.
6. Parks,
there are TONS of them all throughout the city, with grassy expanses that
Czechs love to lounge on, most of which are couples lying against one another
reading, napping, chatting or picnicking.
7. Prague is SUPER cheap, very affordable in terms of a European city, that's for sure. As a few examples, 100 czk dollars is roughly 5 euros, which translates to about $6.50-7 USD. Beer costs around 30 czk dollars. That is around $1 USD. And this is for a HUGE beer! A pastry at the little farmers market pastry stall by my school costs around 20 czk dollars. That is less than $1 USD. And it is DELECTABLE!! I purchased a few groceries for the week which came to 250 czk dollars. That is around 12 euros I believe, which is about $16 USD. Here is what I bought:
This will last me all week. I will make that happen. |
8. And
last but not least, the PASTRIES!!! How
could I forget?? As with most European
cities, the pastries are just better here than in the US. To name a few that I have been consuming in my time here so far: chocolate croissants, trdelnik, gingerbread
stars and spice cake.
An excerpt from my roommate’s book, Let’s go Europe, 2012, the students travel
guide, which I feel described Prague accurately:
“Prague is a city of magic. No really, it is. Skip the tourist traps and everything that
claims to be “authentic Czech culture” and open yourself up to one of the most enchanting
cities you’ll ever experience. Prague is
neither sterile Western European capital, nor Eastern European post-Communist
wreck- it’s caught somewhere in between daily reality and the realm of
legends. These cobblestoned streets were
planned by Charles IV, the ambitious Czech king who dreamed up Prague the way
it looks today (aside from the fast food restaurants, of course) and walked
upon by Franz Kafka, the famous brooding author. And then there’s the more recent specter of
Communism, which left the entire country with a hangover as well as some peculiar
sights, like a Mala Strana tower where Communist secret police spied on foreign
ambassadors and Czech citizens. Today,
the giant metronome in Letna Park that replaced a statue of Stalin stands as a
reminder that time ticks on. This is
also Prague’s most magical vista, with hundreds of spires piercing the air, the
roofs merging into one big sea of red, and the glistening Vltava River bending
its way around the imposing buildings and under pedestrian bridges. And we haven’t even told you yet about the
beer that’s cheaper than water, the cafes filled with easy-going locals and the
art, which creeps around in all forms, from the subtlest jazz melodies to the
heaviest of modern sculptures. There
will be moments in between, when all you see are other tourists breathing at
your neck, Western shops turning the city into just another European capital
and silent Czechs staring at you on the Metro, but it’s the moments of magic
that brought you here. For these, the
entire trip is worth it."
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