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October 19, 2006
Prague, Czech it out!
So as Elizabeth kindly pointed out, I am indeed a complete idiot. Yeah, who spells ciao, c-h-o-w. Yeah, pretty stupid. Anyway, I said ciao, because even though it is an Italian word, wherever I go in Europe it seems to be used as an informal way of saying hello and good-bye. Please forgive me.
Wow, I really have a lot to catch up on! So much to write! So I will start at Prague (or Praha as it is called in Czech). The first night we were in Prague was a little distressing. Jennifer and I were both SO tired from our long trip, and not only that, but we were in a strange country where we didn’t know the language. We were still adjusting. Plus, when we got to the hotel, they told us that we had received a call from Andrea, one of the teachers we would be working with. I called her back and she informed us that when we got to the town we were going to be teaching in we would be living in a flat with the P.E. teacher and his girlfriend. Wait… did she just say… HIS girlfriend? I was a bit shocked, and a little nervous that we would be living with a boy.
So I will be honest with you, the first night I cried myself to sleep. Not because I didn’t necessarily want to be where I was, but because it was so overwhelming. I thought to myself, “What have I done?”
With the morning came a new day and I felt a little more confident. It was so funny because while we were in Prague people kept talking to me in German. I don’t know if it was because of my good ‘ol German roots or what, but thankfully I could understand some of what they were saying to me (I took German in HS). Anyway, we wanted to venture into the city but weren’t quite sure how to get there. We asked the hotel attendant, who spoke some broken English how to get downtown, and she tried to tell us how to get there using public transportation. Jennifer and I didn’t completely understand, but we got downtown where we wanted to go, so we considered our first experience using Czech public transportation successful! We rode on the bus, tram, and underground train and got on and off at all our stops successfully, all without using or hearing any English. We felt pretty proud.
Prague is a beautiful city. It is so historic and I couldn’t help thinking how much history was rooted just in the small area we toured. We took a walking tour with a guide in English, and met some other English speaking friends from Canada, Australia, and Scotland. We walked and saw the old town square, Jewish quarter, lesser town, Prague Castle, and Charles bridge. The Charles bridge was by far my favorite. It was built in the 13th century and has many statues of saints or famous Czech figures that were placed there in the 17th century. The most popular statue is probably the one of St. John of Nepomuk, a Czech martyr saint who was executed during the reign of Wenceslas IV by being thrown into the Vltava from the bridge. Touching this statue is suppose to bring you good luck and ensure your return visit to Prague.
Prague is also full of so many different kinds of churches and mosques. They are very beautiful and our tour guided explained a lot to us about the protestant revolution and how it changed the face of religion in the Czech a long time ago. It is very interesting to me though, that even though Prague has such a rich religious history, only about 30% of the people believe in any kind of religion here now. Most are atheist or say that they have no interest in church or religion. I know that this has a lot to do with the countries history in communism, but still, I find that statistic very interesting.
I think that is enough for today, but until my next adventure…
Na shledanou! (good bye in Czech)
Posted by Amber Ruppert at October 19, 2006 10:07 AM
Comments
whoa, whoa, whoa...what happened with the living situation?
Posted by: Autumn at October 19, 2006 10:38 AM
Come on now living with a boy isn't that bad.
Posted by: Wagner at October 19, 2006 10:56 AM
Hey Amber! Have you been able to get in touch with my sister Leah yet?
When I first moved overseas, I think I too cried for the first couple days... I think culture shock hits people differently, especially in countries or places where little English is spoken.
But Whoa, woman... maybe if you could get a hold of my sister she could help with your living situation? I know she has lots of friends in Praha. Did I give you her cell phone number? If not, email me and I can get it to you.
I will be praying for you!
Dana
Posted by: Dana Marie at October 19, 2006 12:03 PM