The Prague Blague

It's been a while since I've made an entry...take that as a good sign that I've been so busy outside enjoying the beautiful weather and all the benefits that comes with being in Prague (Praha, as the locals call it) for the summer! That includes paddle boating on the Vltava River in front of the castle, sitting out it Letna, Petrin, Rigro v Sady and countless other parks while sipping a beer and throwing around our communist frisbee (given to us by a friend who got it during communism...its red). Now, unfortunately, its pouring outside and looks to be a very wet weekend, so I figured I might as well stop procrastinating and post some pictures. So lets start at the beginning of summer....
Back in the middle of June, one of the families I work for took me to Lidice, a memorial to a town about 20km outside of Prague. During WWII, this town was made an example of when one of its members was suspected of assassinating a Nazi General. Part of the German army invaded Lidice and killed every single man in the town, transported all women to concentration camps along with any children who could not pass for German (where they were all finally killed as well). Seven children were "spared" by being shipped off to German families and being raised as Germans. Today there is a beautiful memorial where the town used to stand, containing gardens of red roses sent from almost every country in the world, and an eerie statue of the children of Lidice.

On a lighter note, there was a free music festival later that week in Prague! It was called United Islands because the concerts were held on the islands in the Vltava River in Prague. There was tons of delicious smelling food, home made and local crafts for sale, and of course music! Some of the music was great, like one particular blues/rock bad we saw, and others were not as good...such as the band we heard singing about what kind of food they liked and didn't like at a BBQ. Hmmm....

In the beginning of July, Dan and I ventured to Karlovy Vary, a town about 2.5 hours away by bus. We went during the Karlovy Vary International Film Festival, which is actually quite big and well known (level A, so I have been told). Unfortunately for us, that meant we were stuck with seeing the only film that was not sold out, a "hard to interpret Christ film". Needless to say we read this review after buying the tickets. We were desperate though, so we went anyway and it lived up to its description. I fell asleep and we left part of the way through. Other than that, the town was amazing! It was nestled among the trees on the river and it was very Russian architecturally. It was also a spa town, as they call it here, so there were natural springs shooting out of the ground, and one especially cool fountain that had a hot spring coming out inside a hotel into a fountain. We did the whole trip in one day, but so far this is my favorite town (other than Prague) in the Czech Republic!

And thennnn Dan's family came to visit! His dad, little brother, sister, and aunt from Ireland all stayed with us in our 1 bedroom flat for 3 nights. It was so much fun having them around, and it gave us the chance to show off our city. Its also nice for Dan and I because we get to revisit nice parts of Prague that we usually avoid due to tourists and what not... but still great areas.

Dan's sister took an amazing picture from the top of the cathedral...
We went and saw the John Lennon wall which has been covered and recovered in Lenon loving graffiti since the late 1980s.

We searched for a perfect mojito and ended up getting a giant one to share 5 ways!
And finally we walked around downtown at night...beautiful views!

All in all its been a great summer so far, and I'll be sad to leave in a few weeks...But happy to be home around all the people (and food) I love, not to mention the English language!
Na Shledanou!

Dan and I have finally made the move outside of the city center...away from the smog, away from the graffiti, away from any markets that stay open past 8pm. We now live in a little town (still in the Prague city limits, but you wouldn't know it) called Suchdol, where we have views of trees out both the bedroom and living room windows and can go for long walks in the park. Much more like what we are used to back in Northern California! Our apartment is usually a language school, so its really clean and has nice furniture as well!


Unfortunately, this new apartment comes with quite the commute from everywhere I work. When I first visited the apartment, it was pretty quick to get there by bus and metro. With our great timing, we of course moved out right at the start of the production of a new tram line to our area. This means the usual 8 minute bus ride is now upwards of 25 minutes at some times, meaning it basically takes an hour to get anywhere. This has had one positive outcome, that I burn through books unusually fast. It's really the only way to keep a positive attitude after 2 hours of public transportation per day. But I shouldn't complain, work has been going really well and I have as many hours as I need, sometimes more. On Saturday I joined one of the families I work for out at their weekend cottage, about 40km outside of Prague. Their "cottage" was not as small as the word might lead you to believe...the ceilings in the main room were 18 feet high with custom designed stone work pillars and a magnificent fireplace, all on top of hand picked bricks from northern Bohemia. I enjoyed a delicious barbecue at their quaint weekend home and got to run around their two acres of well kept land with their 4 year old son. All in all, not a bad way to be making a living. Their son, Sebastian, seems to have taken a disliking to me for some reason. He often shoots me dirty looks and hides his "treasures" from me, as if he thinks I'll steal his precious rock collection. Although he didn't do it on purpose, I'm sure he didn't feel too bad when he whacked me in the knee cap with a golf club (an adult club-a driver). I am still limping a bit a few days later, and hoping that this rascal didn't do any permanent damage. I'm pretty sure the only reason they keep inviting me back is because I get along so well with the mother (40 years old) and her eldest daughter (17 years old). Fine by me!
After my adventure at their cottage, I met Dan in our favorite area of town, Vinohrady, and went for some dinner and a few drinks. The streets of Vinohrady are lined with beautiful old buildings and burgeoning greenery. I had a delicious salad, complete with the traditional fried cheese that no meal is complete without, and then we started walking toward the main museum in town, creatively named Muzeum. Saturday night was the annual museum night in Prague, which means that after 7pm about 50 of the museums throughout the city are free! We decided to take full advantage of this and started roaming around just in time to see the growing lines outside of the exhibit. We did, however, manage to get into a few interesting exhibits. The Rudolfinum concert hall was first, followed by the Lobkowicz museum, a tour inside of the castle, and then a walk down Golden Lane. Unfortunately, it started to rain on us around 10:30 and due to our short-sleeved attire, we decided that was a sign to head home.
The Rudolfinum:

The Crown Jewels at the castle:

Golden Lane:

View of Prague from the castle:

Now, switching gears, I am pleased to announce a new addition to our little household! Meet Walter, our scruffy and adventurous little hamster.

We adopted him off of the expats site over here from a couple of hippies who, of course, lived in Santa Cruz at one point. He is 2 years old (already elderly for a little hamster) but he came with tons of accessories so we wont have to buy him anything for quite a while. We missed our pets from home dearly and decided the void needed to be filled...and hamsters and fish are pretty much to only animals we are allowed to have soooo hamster it is! He is adorable though, and so far seems to enjoy exploring the corners of the room, nestling in my scarves, and being a reckless driver in his hamster ball. Anyway, he is incredibly amusing and were glad to have him!
Ciao for now! <3
Side note: seeing these night pictures has made me realize my camera (or myself) takes crappy pictures at night. note to self to figure out how to fix the settings/save $1000 for a real camera!

I have just arrived back from one of the most amazing and simultaneously unlucky trips of my life, all in a whirlwind of 4 days. Let's start at the beginning...Dan and I rented a car here in Prague, one of those little euro-cars that look like half of the car has been cut off. We somehow found our way out of the city, but not before Dan leads us down a tram road where cars are not supposed to go- oops! But a few illegal moves later and we're saved from embarrassment and injury. We were lucky enough to borrow a tent and some mattress pads from a family I work for, so we stopped there on our way out, only to find that the mattress pads we borrowed were basically yoga mats (oh how we missed the aerobed!) Anyway, its 9pm, so time to start heading for Croatia! We go through Brno, and then into Slovakia where we pass by Bratislava, then I fall asleep and miss all of the fairly uninteresting nighttime views in Hungary, and then finally we manage to cross the border into Croatia! It was time to get gas, but when we stopped we found that this gas station would not take my credit card, but figured it was just that one station. So we drove a few miles to the next place, and they asked me to enter a pin number, but of course I don't have a pin number for my credit card. Nowhere was open yet to change money (I had plenty of cash in Czech crowns) and no one would take my credit card! At this point we began wondering if we would be stuck in Croatia forever...but Dan managed to fill the tank, and we continued to worry about how we would get money for the rest of our trip. We stopped at an ATM in Karlovac (a fairly ugly Croatian city, at least the parts we saw) and I tried to enter a few pin numbers I thought might unlock the card. After a few tries, the ATM informed me that it was holding my card because of unauthorized use. Oh geez...long story short we met a very helpful Croatian who, in the end could not get me my card back, but became a sort of friend of ours on our trip. We managed to just barely make it through the trip on the cash I brought, with $15 to spare! So it turned out alright in the end...
Our Croatian friend, Corina, suggested a camp site for us nearby and then offered to visit us that evening. The campground at first glance was not so impressive, but we found the best spot!

We were on a deck right over the river, which was dotted with a bunch of small islands that the water was weaving through.

The weather was beautiful, but unfortunately we went quite hungry because of our failure to keep a fire going on their old grills, so we enjoyed a dinner of bread and cheese with some pizza sauce on top. That night was beautiful, so we threw the rain tarp on our tent without really securing it properly. Oh what a mistake that turned out to be! That night we were caught in the biggest thunder storm I have ever been in. It poured rain from midnight through the next afternoon, and the thunder was so loud and boomed so often that we were both up for over 2 hours in the middle of the night. When we woke up in the morning, we realized the rain fly had not been as successful as we would have liked. One of our blankets was completely soaked, about half of our clothing was soaked, and our only towel, which had been left outside, was not in great condition. We packed up in the rain (and became soaked ourselves) and tried to optimistically head for the coast, which we hoped would be dry, as the rest of the country was to be covered in rain that day. We were lucky, and made it out to Senj where, although it was not raining, we were struck by winds intense enough to almost sweep Dan off his feet.
We went for a walk up to the castle on top of the hill, which basically looked like one of those castle pieces from chess. Not the most impressive castle we had ever seen, but the views from up there were amazing! We could see a few Croatian islands just off the coast...

and we got a great view of the town of Senj!

After wandering around and warming up with a few cappuccinos, we headed back inland in search of our campground near Plitvice lakes (in Croatian, Plitvička Jezera). Keep in mind that Euro-campgrounds are much different from Californian campgrounds. A normal campground in Europe consists of a few trees, but mostly you can see your neighbors quite easily. The campground is always complete with a general store, restaurant, bar and recreational area. Basically, a KOA. So we were not so impressed by any of our options, but we finally settled into a spot which was at least separated from our neighbors. The next morning we woke up bright and early to pack up camp and head for the lakes! We were dropped off by our bus driver at an unmarked spot with an older German couple. Somehow, the 4 of us managed to wander around until we found the entrance to the park. $40 later, and we were waiting for a boat to take us across the first lake so that we could begin our hike.

The water next to the dock was so clear! And it was filled with fish! We both really wanted to jump in, and Dan started craving fish.

We started hiking along these wooden plank trails and saw the most amazing plants and beautiful scenery I have ever seen. Before I show you some of the many many pictures I took, I will explain a little about the lakes. The park itself is about 300 square kilometers and is composed of 16 lakes. Each lake is a slightly different color due to different organisms and minerals as well as how the sunlight hits the lake. Basically, it all comes together beautifully, and we hiked around all of the lakes. Anyway, on to the pictures!

The next picture is of my favorite waterfall. As we walked around it we saw another side of the same fall with similar features. It was amazing to see it from all sides!


There was a huge cave which we decided to wander in (without any light) and every few steps I would take a flash picture so we could see and walk another few steps.

We got to hike up the side of the mountain at one spot, where we had some gorgeous views of the lakes and falls below.

Finally, we got toward the end of the trails, where we saw the big waterfall (behind Dan and I) although in this picture it doesn't look so big.

Our journey through Croatia ended with a trip to Varazdin, a little city north of Zagreb where we failed to find a place to stay that fit our budget, so we just decided to stay for dinner and a few drinks and then hit the road back to Prague at midnight!

We arrived back home at 7:30 Monday morning, thoroughly exhausted, but very pleased with our trip! I would highly HIGHLY recommend a Croatian vacation to anyone who has the time and money!

Ahoy! (Not just a pirate greeting, but also what they use for hello here). I am finally back in connection, thanks to the arrival of my new computer. Attempting to retrieve it taught me a lot about the Czech bureaucracy and about living in a country where I don't speak the language in general... Although my computer arrived in Prague on April 23, a mere 4 days after the US got their hands on it (and did their part with great efficiency), the Czech Republic deemed it necessary to let my package sit in the customs office until May 10. You might be wondering why, and so was I. So I asked (once I finally found someone who spoke English), and the reason- there is no reason. There is no explanation, and nobody really cares that you could be waiting for up to 5 weeks just because. Fortunately, everything turned out alright because I somehow managed to sidestep paying the huge customs fine which I expected to be about 4,000kc (or $240). Hopefully I will not have to deal with anything government run for the remainder of my time here.

On a more positive note, spring has finally arrived in Prague! We still get cold weather and thunder storms off and on, but at least its not freezing or snowing. I bought an umbrella here when I arrived, but due to its cheapness and the strong winds that can whip through the city, it is in a pretty sad state. Dan and I went out for drinks a week ago and ended up getting caught in a thunderstorm...and we were totally unprepared, not even the sad little umbrella was with us. We got to sit outside under an overhang and watch the rain and lightning until we decided to run for it...about 4 blocks. Needless to say we were soaking and made a mental note to invest in another umbrella. But that was just one day- most days have been sunny and in the high 60s or low 70s. We have been walking around and exploring a lot more and have found some good parks, although we both miss being completely in nature, where you can't here the train speeding by or see a high rise in the distance. Hopefully, though, we will make it to Croatia at the end of the month! I have been hoping to go to a national park there known for having hundreds of waterfalls for a while. Fingers crossed!

So anyway on to the most exciting part of this blog, the pictures. Here is what we have been up to lately...

My friend Elaine (you might remember her from my house in Santa Cruz) visited for 5 days! She came at a great time in terms of weather and Dan and I having time off work for Easter. She became obsessed with Prague in her few days here.

Elaine and I decided to visit the markets in town, where they sell some food and souvenirs but also these really creepy witch puppets that cackle and dance...

We walked to the center where there was a traditional Easter market. The markets sold mainly Czech food-we got jacket potatoes, which is like potatoes covered in cheese, spices, and other delicious but unknown ingredients.

As we wandered around, we saw this amazing painted egg with each season painted on it. They paint eggs here on Easter just like us, but they have an extra tradition of giving the little boys whips so that they can chase and whip the girls. Then the girls reward this behavior with candy. What a terrible day...

We wandered over to Charles Bridge, where there was a surprisingly good band playing, creatively named "The Bridge Band".

While Elaine toured the castle, Dan and I decided to take a hike through the woods nearby. This is the view from our hike!

And then shortly after Elaine headed off for Barcelona, Natalia arrived just in time for Easter! We decided to make a feast for Easter, but instead of the more traditional food, we made what we were all really craving- Mexican!

I know I have posted a picture of Namesti Miru before, but I just wanted to show how much more beautiful it looks now that flowers are blooming and trees are green!

On Sunday, Dan and I decided to go to a nearby town, Karlstejn (pronounced Carlstein-their j's sound like y's here). It was a cozy little town surrounded by woods, with a huge castle on top of the hill.

Part of the Karlstejn Castle. Built in the 1300's it was King Charles summer home...how modest.

Anyway, thats all for now! This weekend we are taking some of our kids (from the family out in Dobrihovice) to caves south of Prague! Should be fun. Miss you all! Ciao <3

Ciao all! (Yes, they actually say ciao here, convenient). A short update before I show off a bunch of pictures from the city... so I have been relatively busy teaching English to quite a range of students. On one end of the spectrum a 2 year old girl who speaks absolutely no English but is adorable, and on the other end a middle-aged man who will not speak to save his life and is balding. Both students make for interesting classes in which I have to be extremely creative. My favorite group of adults is an excruciatingly early Friday class in which we discuss topics from Mexican drug wars to cultural stereotypes to Libya. They are a really chatty group of people, so unlike the balding man, it is easy for me to bring up a topic and let them run with it. They have also taught me a few things about the Czech culture and history...like how during communism (when they were all in elementary school) their families had to be put on a waiting list through the government in order to go on vacation. They also explained to me how the Czech people are very sensible and often don't have superstitions or believe in any sort of paranormal activity such as ghosts or the Lochness Monster. I have also picked up a few more Czech phrases such as "Jak se mate?" which means how are you and is pronounced "yak samash", and also "chci" which means I want and is pronounced "ya xte". So if you can't tell the pronunciation here is pretty much impossible. They actually have the hardest sound in the world in their alphabet, which is an r with a crown over it. I can't say it, but it sounds a bit like making the r sound and the z sound at once.
Last night Dan and I set off for a romantic evening on a Prague Riverboat Cruise. There was a lovely and delicious dinner (a buffet- I think the main reason Dan was excited for the evening) and live music. Although it is a bit of a touristy thing to do, we thought it sounded awesome and we wanted to do something nice for our anniversary, which was Friday! Anyway, on to the pictures! Also, I have included a video I took of Dalton snowboarding back when we went in February...I had forgotten to show it off, so its here at the bottom!

Namesti Miru is a church/square thats a few minutes walk from our house. I took this picture in the beginning of my trip, but I'll have to take another in a few weeks as it will be much more colorful!

I took this in the old town square when there was a local Czech market. The food smelled delicious and mostly consisted of meat and potatoes!

This is the famous astrological clock which can not only tell you the time, but the astrological sign we are under, the current name day, and whether its bright or dark outside (if you couldn't already tell).

This is the far end of Charles Bridge- through this magnificent passageway is the castle and the new town.

A statue outside of the Prague Castle- illustrating the brutal history of the Czech Republic (would be my guess). Centuries ago the Czechs had been very fond of punishment by being thrown out the window!

The Prague Castle- too big to fit in any of my pictures, it took about 500 years to build! Gorgeous all around

To Germany! In third week of March I visited my friend Natalia (fellow Petalumian) in Cologne. It was great to see her, and her city is beautiful!

Sidewalk art being done in front of the Dom. It reminded me of the sidewalk-chalk festival in SLO!

The Dom in Cologne...one of the only surviving buildings (of any significance) in Cologne after World War II. Absolutely massive.

Beautiful stained glass window in the Dom. It is a mosaic of differently colored glass tiles that doesn't make any picture, but when the light shines through it looks amazing!

The Dom Cathedral in Cologne. One of the tallest I have ever seen- too tall to fit into my pictures!

More in old town square...

The astrological clock in the foreground with the Tyn Cathedral in the background.

Dan and I on our Prague river boat cruise!

There was some pretty amusing live music on the boat- these guys playing what we thought sounded like mariachi inspire music.

A view of Prague at night...bella cita.