Lazy, Lazy, Monday

Well, nothing much really happened today. I just kind of sat around the apartment. So here are a few of my favorite pics from the gypsy festival.

The Lion Sleeps Tonight

Two things I thought I would never see in Prague: Giraffes and a Tex-Mex restaurant. Today we went to the Prague Zoo and after that a very tasty Tex-Mex restaurant for dinner.

The Prague Zoo or "Zoo Praha" as it is known here in Prague, is a 40 minute tram and bus ride from our apartments but, it was well worth it. The zoo is unlike any in the U.S because of the closeness to the animals I have yet to experience in the states. Some of the animals you could literally reach over and touch. I almost pet a Meerkat, pretty cool? The Zoo even has a ski lift that you can take to the top of the park and see the entire skyline of Prague. I got alot of great photographs and had a great time.

I know what you are thinking, a Tex-Mex place in Prague? Yes sir, this place was AMAZING! The atmosphere made me feel like I was back home eating at La Casona. The food was reasonably priced and it tasted alot better than I expected. Of course they charged for chips and salsa because they charge for everything here, even water. The food was great and it was a very pleasant end to a wonderful day here in Prague.

My Feet Hurt

My feet hurt. Like really, really bad. The ammount of walking I have done in the past 24 hours might actually be more than I have walked in my entire life. My feet hurt.

Well... I might be exaggerating a little but, today I did walk quite a long ways. We went on a walking tour of Prague and visited different parts of Prague that tourists usually never see. We went across a rickety old pedestrian bridge into the commmunities that were once communist housing. We eventually ended up at the communist museum and walked around that for a while. Today was a very tiring day and not my favorite so far.

The most fun thing though happened this morning when we watched the sunrise from the castle that overlooks Prague. I have never seen anything so gorgeous in my entire life. It's hard to describe it, you just had to have been there.

So, well...since I'm tired and my feet hurt. Let me just leave you with a few of my favorite pictures that I took today.

Hare Kristna Photos

Here are some photos of the Hare Kristnas I saw today in the Old Town Square

Czech It Out...

I guess I have a thing for the dead. I decided to go back to the Prague cemetary today to get some more shots for my project and I'm glad I did. More than half of my shots that I am using for the project are from today. I find that when you go over your photographs and see your weaknesses then go back, your shots will improve dramtically. I got a really cool shot of a gravedigger which I will put in this addition of Reality Czech!

Also today the group went to the Prague museum. This museum was well... really boring. The only interesting thing was a miniature model of Prague. A librarian made it in the early 1800's and it shows the entire city. The craftsmanship was amazing and I can only imagine the work put into something so detailed. I would have pictures for you but, you had to pay extra to take pictures in the museum. The Czechs charge for everything, even water.

The last interesting thing that happened to me today was when I was actually sitting in a Starbucks. I heard some strange music outside and like a good little photojournalist I ran outside with my camera to inversigate. It was a traveling group of Hare Kristnas. "Hare Kristnas are a sect of Hindu Vaishnava and their core beliefs are based on traditional Hindu scriptures such as the Śrīmad Bhāgavatam and the Bhagavad-gītā,both of which, according to the traditional Hindu view, date back more than 5,000 years (Wikipedia)." They were singing and marching through old town square which made for some very cool pictures.



So, cemetary, museum, and Hare Kristnas. A very relaxing and calm day here in Prague.

Gypsies and Juliet

Actress in Romeo and Juliet


Two households, both alike in dignity, in fair Prague we lay our scene? Today was one of those days that I will remember for the rest of my life. Today I not only marched in a gypsy parade through the streets of Prague but, I saw Romeo and Juliet outside of a castle overlooking the city.

The parade started in Wenceslas Square where groups of gypsy dancers, musicians, and even stilt walkers congregated to warm up their performances. The colors of the gypsies dresses and the motion of them when they danced was a dream for an aspiring photographer. This is the first time that I have felt like a real photographer. Shooting graveyards is an easy thing compared to this. "No one will get in your way and push you around in a graveyard, and if they do then run",famous words of Dennis Darling. There were so many tourists and we had to go through narrow streets to follow the parade. I found myself bumping into people and falling over numerous times but, as long as I got a good shot I was happy.

Tonight we went and saw Romeo and Juliet across from my apartment where the old castle used to be. Now all that is left is a church and the giant wall that protected the castle. The play was performed outside in an ampitheatre. The cast was amazing and the setting was even more ideal to see this famous Shakespeare play. The nurse was played by a very funny british man in drag, so that was a sight to see. I also got some really cool shots of the actors in the play.

Today was a good day. I saw gypsies and watched Romeo and Juliet, what more can I ask for? Go hence, to have more talk of these sad things; Some shall be pardon'd, and some punished: For never was a story of more woe than this of Juliet and her Cody-O?

Biking Around Prague

I haven't actually rode a bicycle since I was a little kid, so I have forgotten how fun it is. Today half of our group, 9 of us, rented bicycles to take a tour of the entire area in Prague we would be mainly visiting. We went to the bike rentals and met a Czech friend who worked there and speaks very good english. From there we started out on our journey to visit much of the city of Prague. I found myself getting behind the others because I was too busy taking picture. There were just so many interesting people on the streets that I could take photographs of.

We went over to the Jewish quarter of town and saw one of the oldest synagogues in Prague. Much of the Jewish population was killed during World War Two so most of the synagogues have been turned into museums. We also learned about the legend of the Golem. The Golem was the inspiraton for Mary Shelley's Frankenstein. It was said to be created by a Jewish Rabii to protect the Jewish quarter. However, the Golem got out of control and the Rabii had to put it to sleep forever. It is supposedly still sleeping in the attic of a synagogue in the Jewish quarter.

I also went to a Czech mall today to buy a rain coat because it literally rains everyday here. The mall was just like any mall in the states, except for the langauge barriers of course. I guess seeing the mall made me realize even more that the Czech people are not that different from us. Even though we have differneces in our culture and customs, we are more alike than we are different. We are just seperated by a big pond.

Beer, Charles Bridge, A Cemetary

My days here in Prague are kind of blurring together, and not because of the beer. I feel like I have been here for such a long time and it has only been a few days. Prague is such an easy place to get used to. Even though I don't know the langauge, except for a few words, I feel like that dosen't really matter. Most of the Czech people I meet are happy to help me and seem very nice. There are the occasional rude Czechs but, no more than in the states. As long as you make an effort to try their langauge they respond to your wanting to learn about their langauge and culture. Yesterday, we had our orientation at CET, which is the center that we are taking classes at. Jarka and Marta, our program directors, both English speaking Czech women, are very helpful and make out trip much easier. I lost my tram/bus/subway pass yesterday and Marta went with me on the subway to get a new pass. I would have been very lost without her. For dinner we went to a traditional Czech brewery and restaurant.


Yes I drank a beer. It is customary in Prague to have beer with every meal, and I mean every meal. Some Czechs even have it for breakfast. In Czech beer literally means "bread". They treat it as a side dish and even toddlers drink it. For dinner I had roasted chicken, two types of dumplings, and cabbage. It was very tasty and I think I am going to like Czech food, except for the lack of salt. The food is good but, very bland. Last night, we walked across the famous Charles Bridge at sunset and it was amazing. Charles the fourth was a very well liked king of the Czech Republic and this pedestrian bridge is a sight to see. With artists and musicians performing, they really give this bridge character. Since, I didn't blog yesterday this one will cover two days in Prague.

Today was our first day of class at CET. We woke up and took the tram to the center which is five stops away. The speaker was very entertaining and we learned alot about early Czech history and he also kept it interesting with his own personal stories in the Czech Republic. After that a a few of the other students and me went searching for a place to eat lunch on our break between classes. We found a restaurant that served fairly cheap food for lunch. I got a beef broth soup which was absolutley delicious! Except again, not enough salt. I guess that is what they make salt shakers for. After this, we got lost. We had gone through a back garden entrance and couldn't find it to get back. Luckily, we were only a few minutes late and we met the group to set off on our cemetary photoshoot.

The cemetary was gorgeous. I know it's hard to imagine a cemetary as gorgeous but, this one was. There were giant statues of angels and crosses, all dating back to the 1600's. We spent about two or more hours there shooting and I am starting to like photography more and more each day. I love capturing moments in my camera that would be gone otherwise. I think I shot over 250 photos. For dinner a few of us went to a little cafe near our apartments and I got an eclair with whipped cream and chocolate. It was so relaxing to sit outside in this cafe and just soke up the surroundings. We even met other students studying abroad from Virgnia.

Needless to say, this trip had been memorable already and this is only the third day. There is no telling what is to come. All I can do is just sit back, relax, and enjoy the ride.

Ahoj Praha!

I'm in Prague. I'm here. I think the best way of knowing where you are is to go back and look how you got there. So, How did I get to Prague? Let's go back to Saturday around noon. My mom, grandma, little brother, and I headed off to the airport. First, we stopped at Gringo's in Pearland to get some amazing Mexican food before I took off to a place where all they eat are dumplings and potatoes. After we ate I stood in line for the bagage drop off at the airport and said goodbye to my family before going through security. In security I set my passport and boarding pass down and almost forgot them but, some nice man handed them to me before I took off. So, a special thanks to that guy. After I was on the plane for sometime the girl sitting beside me started vomiting all over the place. It was pretty gross, but I got moved to first class! After the 9 hour flight to London Heathrow, I was already getting tired because of lack of sleep. We had a 4 hour lay over in Heathrow, where I discovered that the toilets in Europe are very small and square. Also the toilet paper comes out in individual sheets. weird. Anyways, I was then off on my 2 hour flight to Prague. Nothing exciting really happended on that flight, which was where I got most of my sleep. A whole 30 minutes! The Prague airport was really small compared to Heathrow and much less hectic. Marta, one of our tour guides, got a taxi bus to carry us to the apartments. I have learned that in Prague there are two speeds on the road, fast, and faster. We arrived at the apartments, which look like a catalog from IKEA. Then I went grocery shopping and bought food;I have no idea how much I spent or what the food even was. At night all of the students on the trip went to old town and watched the hockey game on a giant screen in the center of the square while drunk Czechs, painted in their countries colors, cheered their team on. There were so many interesting people, I cannot wait to start my photography class to capture all of these moments. So, taking a look back can show us alot. It showed me how I got to Prague. It showed me how beautiful this city is. It showed me that this oppourtunity is priceless. It showed me that I can. Yes, I can.

Getting ready to leave Austin

I am sitting behind my desk at KLRU writing a list of the things I need to take with me to Prague. Clothes, check. Shampoo, check. Passport, double check. It's so hard to imagine that I will be leaving Austin in a few days and going back home to little ol' Danbury. My freshman year has been amazing and I am going to miss it. It's even harder to imagine that I will be leaving Danbury a week after that for Prague. I have never left the U.S. and I am really nervous. So many questions keep racing through my mind. What will I eat? How will I communicate with people? What if I don't like it? Even though I have all of these worries, I am still excited beyond all reason for this adventure. I will have the opportunity to learn so much about the Czech culture and have a little fun along the way. So for now, while I am still firmly planted in the United State of America, I will put my worries behind me and just keep planning. Socks, check. Toothpaste, check. Sense of adventure, check.