Dobry Den

This is my third day in Prague and the first time I have actually sat down and relaxed. It is go, go, go here, which is great. I have been constantly doing things, wandering around, exploring, getting lost. I've realized that because of this, my blog probs won't be updated as much as I like, but I will try to keep it current.

No, this is not a museum or church or famous monument, this is our school! It has previously been a palace and an orphanage, and now its the location of CERGE-EI and my classes this semester. 

Not the best picture, but this is one of our classrooms where we were having our orientation session. The  walls & ceilings are very decorative with amazing art, chandeliers & baroque patterns everywhere.

If there's one thing to describe what I've been doing the past couple days, it's getting lost. It was inevitable that this would occur, and actually a good learning experience. With that said, my friend Leigh & I got terribly lost on our first day:

These things are my lifeline in Prague right now. But even with these tools, we still managed to get so turned around that we had to eventually call my program director because we were late to orientation. Note to self: Definitely invest in a compass.

Ways to get around Prague: 

 By metro,

By tram (yes, this a Czech advertisement endorsed by Chuck Norris)

And by foot.

Basically, it's so easy to get around, the public transportation here is amazing, super reliable & cheap aka the opposite of St. Louis & New Orleans (very sad excuses for transportation in both the cities I've lived in) I feel like I've gotten the hang of it the past couple days.

Observations made so far:

-The Czech language is hard, unlike anything remotely familiar. I cannot wait til our Intensive Czech class start so I can feel more competent while attempting to speak it.

-Czech pivo (beer) is super cheap, the rumors are true. It is also very delicious, way better than the canned stuff I'm used to drinking. But I also need to realize that the koruna is not monopoly money, and still have not conquered the exchange rate

-Czech food is hella heavy & of course not very vegetarian friendly. With that said, I've enjoyed every meal I've had here so far and I am very anxious to try some Czech fried brie.

We went to a bar called Chappeau Rouge last night. It was definitely more of an American crowd, but there were a lot of Erasmus students there too (European study abroad), and they seriously like to dance like this. It's called "Tecktonik", and what can I say, I'm a huge fan. I'm hoping to go to more local, Czech bars. We've heard about this Soviet bunker bar built by Communists in the 1950's. It is a block away from our hotel, but is only open certain nights so I will def be czeching that out soon. It's crazy to think that a lot of the older people here have lived through communism and how much Prague has changed in the past decades. We met up with some Americans that have been living here for over five years, and they said Prague has made a huge transformation from a typical Eastern European city to a more Central European place.

I'm off to go apartment hunting, I cannot wait until I have a place of my own and can stop living out of my suitcase!

Na shledanou,

Charlotte

*Czech words I learned today: 5 or so basic phrases that I feel semi-confident in saying, it's gonna be way tougher than I thought