This past weekend, for example, we spent four days in Prague. It was really nice re-visiting it because upon arrival there three weeks ago we were in a rush to see everything. We once again got to see the tour of the city, which included the Old Town and New Town. We heard about the dramatic history that shaped the city. We saw the Jewish Town once more and this time we got the chance to see the inside of the Jewish synagogue and cemetery. Another interesting side trip was a day trip to Dresden, Germany. There we got to enjoy the day in the city and got a chance to see the museum of our choice. I went to see the museum of armory, which includes all armory used back in the medieval and renaissance period. They also featured an amazing exhibit on Turkish armory.
Even though we've spent very little time in Germany, I really did enjoy the country. Though they are very close countries, there is such a huge contrast between the Czech Republic and Germany. From my very limited experience in Germany, I noticed it was calmer and the people were definitely more friendly. I gathered this from our experiences in the German airport when we arrived and our interactions with the merchants in the city of Dresden. It was very interesting to see, because I had assumed that traveling with such a big group we'd be annoying the locals. But in Germany they seemed rather fond of us. I'm definitely not trying to imply the Czech citizens are mean, because they are not. But in contrast to Germany, the service in Czech Republic is a bit more honest. And when I saw honest, I mean that unlike America the customer is not always right. We have waiters and servers who roll their eyes at us, use demanding voices, and quite frankly seem rather annoyed with us. Though this might come off rude to some, it just comes down to the fact that in the U.S. people can be a bit fake. And I'm more thankful for honest service, than pushy servers in the States.
The actual stay in Olomouc has been interesting. It seems like the University here was not ready for us at all. We've had so many problems with not getting information, getting wrong ID cards, and overall just missing a lot of important details. Our first trip proved to be a mess because we didn't have the proper I.D. cards, and it was impossible to communicate with the bus lady because she did not know English. So we spent a great amount of time with us flashing her our ID's and documents and her yelling at us in Czech. But in the end she was right, we were NOT given the proper ID cards and I wish I could say this was the only time we've had this particular problem . . . but it happened yet again on our way back from Prague. It is a bit frustrating for us because we needs these cards for our student discounts and without them we can't really do much at all. With Spring Break being so close it would be a good peace of mind to know we have those. But with the pace I see work gets done here I'm not holding my breathe that we'll get them in time or even get them at all.
On a more boring note, I can't get over how nice and stable the weather is here! Coming from Nebraska, I really do enjoy this. Literally everyday it is 60+ and it's so early in year! In Nebraska, it's STILL snowing! It just is so nice to be able to walk around with a small sweater and eat ice cream like literally almost everyday. But alas, I hope it doesn't take a turn for the worse now that I've made that comment. I'll keep my fingers crossed! And hopefull Spring Break is decent weather, we'll be heading to Rome and Croatia and it's so close to Holy Week that we MIGHT be lucky enough to see Pope Francis. Keeping my fingers crossed for that too!
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| Bridge in Dresden, Germany |
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| View of Prague, Czech Republic |
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| Dresden, Germany |
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