June 2009
56 posts
I'm sitting on a plane bound for Washington D.C.
wondering what I’ve been wondering for about a week now: did I just study abroad? Is it really over already?
A few of you know that prior to this trip, I had been attempting to become a temporary ex-patriate for quite some time. In fact, during the summer before my sophomore year, I announced about 12 different locations where I decided (“no really, I’m actually going! I’m...
Here's a shout out:
My “friend” Brooke on this trip has been bugging me to write about her in my blog for about six weeks now. The problem is, my mom always told me that if you can’t say anything nice, don’t say anything at all. I have nothing nice to say about Brooke Anderson. She’s been nothing but a nuisance and keeps inviting herself along on trips, such as to Vienna and Berlin. I...
One last film recommendation
We watched our last movie before taking our final in film today, which was the Hungarian “12:08 East of Bucharest.” It was really entertaining and funny, while making a point about the questionable revolution in Bucharest in 1989.
The sky was gloomy and gray this morning as we walked up to the gates of Terezin, a concentration camp about an hour away from Prague. Walking from room to room in the barrack-style camp, combined with the weather, made for an eerie experience. It was so surreal to be there after learning and reading about concentration camps for several years. Terezin wasn’t meant to be a death camp, like...
Ladies and gentlemen: the tables have turned.
Helen and I got caught in a bit of unexpected rain on our way from dinner to the public library. Helen was nice, for once, and loaned me her gray scarf with off-white tassles to protect my head from the weather. I wrapped it elderly-woman-style round my head as we walked down the sidewalk. I guess I forgot I was wearing it in that fashion, because I left it on for the duration of our stay in the...
If Vienna was a fairytale, Berlin was a history...
I just returned from my second weekend excursion outside of the Czech Republic. Five of us went to Berlin, and I feel like I learned so much in just two days!
When we arrived on Friday, we went to the museum at Check Point Charlie, one of the exit/entry places on the Berlin Wall. The museum was full of stories of people who attempted to — and succeeded, in some cases — escape from one...
Today, I saw the most mind-blowing sight thus far on my trip: nothing at all.
I will explain: half of Bob’s class went to Terazin, a concentration camp, today. The rest of us showed up for lecture at the usual time. Bob said we would walk a short distance to see something, but didn’t say specify the destination.
We followed him as he weaved through the crowds in the city, and stopped in front of...
We went to the opera last night
and I had no idea what to expect. Within 10 minutes, I thought to myself, “this story seems very familiar.”
It turned out to be a dramatic, Czech opera version of “The Little Mermaid,” minus the Disney-style happy ending. And, it lasted 3.5 hours. I was very greatful for the stacked Czech/English subtitles on a small screen above the stage. I found it funny that a song...
We've switched back to tourist mode in Prague.
After initially running around the city as if we had a day to see it all, then lounging around on free days like locals for a few weeks, we’ve switched back to tourist mode out of fear our time here is flying by all too quickly. Today, we headed up to the castle and paid to tour its rooms. It was really pretty. This afternoon, we’re going to a museum about the era of communism.
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I deem Vienna to be a princess city.
London has a certain regality to it, and Prague has historic charm, but I must say: after a weekend in Vienna, I feel confident calling it a place of fairy-tales.
Eight of us headed to Austria for the weekend, stayed in a hostel, and explored as much of the city as we could. Everything went smoothly, the people were friendly, and it was a great trip over all!
