Not really much has happened this week. The plague has been going around, almost everyone I know is or was sick (including myself), so I decided not to really go out. I am, however, almost done with czech intensive. It's a really hard to language to learn, and if I actually put the time into it, I could probably learn more. At least I know how to order a beer, dám si pivo, prosím?
I can't really complain that much though. Although it's long hours and I'm usually exhausted during class, we have done some interesting things for free. We visited, as I mentioned earlier, the Narodní Galerie (National Gallery), an english bookstore (I also found another one called The Globe, which is an American/expat hangout, still cool though), the Narodní Muzeum (I'll let you guess what that means), where they had an exhibit about the birth of Czechoslovakia, and the First Republic. There was an interesting placard that read that the modern republic is only as old as the first one before it was dismantled by the Nazis in 1939 (or 38, I forgot). I dont think Czech people like British, Russians, or Germans very much. We also watched a documentary about Vaclav Havel, but we never finished it. It was interesting though, it sort of reminded me about how Barack Obama managed to get elected. They showed a few scenes with Bill Clinton playing his sax at the Reduta, a jazz club underneath a famous cafe, Café Louvre.
I found a few cool cafes that I'll probably frequent once my classes start. I'm kind of nerdy and cliché so I'll wake up early and do my homework and read there. I found a few places that offer free wi-fi (surprisingly there are a lot of free wi-fi spots around the city), like Café Indigo. I still have to get used to the coffee. It's relatively cheap in a lot of cafes to be able to order cappucino, lattes, espressos, or other types of coffees like Turkish and Viennese, but one thing I still haven't found is "American" coffee, like Dunkin' Donuts or Starbucks (though there is a Starbucks or two, they're really expensive though, like most fast food here). A good substitute that I found back home in New Paltz is Americano, it has a similar consistency and flavor to "regular" coffee, but it's stronger and generally smaller, but you treat it similarly with milk and sugar. I also like Turkish coffee, which is really dark, groggy, and strong, and has dark grounds sitting at the bottom, not unlike the way Japanese tea is prepared.
So I realize now that living in and visiting a city are two different things. When you visit, you're more likely to get a catch a quick instance of what life is like there. You dont spend time walking around as much, or "wasting time" getting lost and finding new places, since you dont have as a much time. You're always on foot and really only get the chance to see the landmarks a lot of times, but living in a city is different. Riding the tram everyday to class, walking the same streets as commuters, and going to local places has a different feeling to it. Although I still feel like an outsider, I do feel a lot different from tourists, even the European ones who can claim it's more "their" city than mine. I noticed a lot of people have already adapted to the czech mannerisms, like keeping your voice down in public, trying to order in and speak in czech, and small things like staying to the right on the escalator to allow people to stream past you if they're in a hurry, giving up your seat on the tram or metro for an older person (this is common in the States I guess, but I notice it more here, its almost instictive to do it).
I'm also glad I chose to study in Prague because of the cost of living. I live pretty nice here, and the cost of living is relatively low compared to other European countries like in Scandanavia, Spain, or Western Europe. I realize that any place that posts a menu in English is probably a rip-off, even if the food is good. I heard from some people that in August the exchange rate was around 13Kc to the $, but now with the financial crisis, it's around 21Kc to the dollar. Still, it's cheap to be here, but I can imagine is much harder for locals, especially outside of Prague, who aren't as wealthy as Americans and tourists. A side note, but related, the Czech Republic holds the presidency for the European Union this year, it should be an interesting year, too bad I can't read czech newspapers.
Ok, so soon I'll post more pictures, I finally charged my camera again. The sun has also been out more so I'll be able to take some nice shots of Prague
Adam
Wednesday, February 18, 2009
Sunday, February 15, 2009
It's surprising that I manage to figure this blog out here, since the website is in czech.
Speaking of which, I started my Czech Intensive class last Monday. I thought Spanish was hard...you have no idea. It's hard enough just to read, let alone pronounce the words. Then its all downhill from there. Although I have to say, I think that all laziness put aside, I could learn a good deal of czech while I'm here. Right now though, I really dont have the drive to do that. Besides, even if I could manage to learn a lot, I wouldn't even be able to understand the response. I ordered a hamburger with sauerkraut the other day as a street stand, and I ordered the number 2 (dvě), and realized when the woman responded to me in czech, that was a mistake.
Although my class is 5 hours long starting at 930, after a half hour commute on the trams/metro, and I'm dead tired from the night before, it's not that bad. It's kind of like Spanish, I always liked taking it, and learning it, but I just hated going to class. My professor took us to the Národní Galerie (National Gallery) halfway through class. So it's no MoMA, and definitely not a Met, but it bears a resemblane to the Guggheim, both in shape and size. The different being that yo dont walk upwards in a spiral, the main galleries are outside of the rotunda, and it was kind of dirty, smelled and felt damp. The museum actually had a lot of good art work, except the modern art was a little bizarre and ridiculous at times. The one gallery I wanted to see, an exhibiton of Pablo Picasso's engravings, I forgot to make a round to. I think by the 4th floor, I was "art-ed" out.
That night I went to this club called Cross Club. It's an alternative scene, so there were guys in dreadlocks and girls with pink hair walking around. It's in a sketchy neighborhood, but there are other expats and Americans there as well. The entire club is decorated with old, used, tram parts. The walls, ceiling, stage, bar, handrails, you name it, are all pieces of computers, engines, and other parts.
Leaving is a journey after midnight, since the regular trams stop running, and the metro stops running altogether. Instead, you have to wait in about half-hour intervals or more to get your tram, and then it takes a long route since there are less available. It also picks up a lot of really drunk people going home after a long night, so it's kind of funny being on the late night tram. One way or another, I've bumped into other people from my program somehow going home at 5AM. I've also met other Americans too, like a girl from Brooklyn who is teaching English in Prague. It's kind of relieving sometimes to find other expats, like when I was in Tesco (a large super-store like Walmart), I wasnt sure which label was for what item on a shelf so I tried asking a woman, who was actually from Ontario.
Friday night, I left with some of my suitemates to go to a pub called "The Pub." There are a few in Prague like it, another popular one called The Beer Factory. Basically you sit yourself down (as you do in almost every restaurant I've been in) and there are 4 taps fixed to your table. You fill the beer yourself, and a computer registers how much beer your table has accumulated.
Last night, a few of us wanted to take an adventure and try authentic czech cuisine, so we took the tram in the opposite direction of the Center (what you call the main part of the city), and got off at a random stop. We went into a small restaurant spotted with locals coming home from work. It was interesting trying to speak to people who didn't know a word of English, but we ended up successful, so it was worth it. Plus, when you go closer towards the city, the prices are more expensive and less authentic. Afterwards, I went with two of my friends to check out a band that as playing in a nearby "club." We found the area it was in, it looked like a college campus, but it was apartments. There were two soccer teams playing a match (circa 11PM...) on a court in between the buildings. Under the buildings, there were small dive bars and each were called Bar 1, 2, 3, ect. We went to 007, but the band we went to see had played earlier than we thought so we caught the tail end of the show. oh well. Afterwards, a few of us went to another bar behind the dorm, A Proč Ne, and had some Pilsner there.
So right now I dont have a lot of time to go out that much, since I have to wake up early, I cant really go out late, and everyone kind of dies a little bit after class since it's so long and overdrawn, everyone takes a "siesta." Once I overcome my laziness, I'll update with pictures.
Speaking of which, I started my Czech Intensive class last Monday. I thought Spanish was hard...you have no idea. It's hard enough just to read, let alone pronounce the words. Then its all downhill from there. Although I have to say, I think that all laziness put aside, I could learn a good deal of czech while I'm here. Right now though, I really dont have the drive to do that. Besides, even if I could manage to learn a lot, I wouldn't even be able to understand the response. I ordered a hamburger with sauerkraut the other day as a street stand, and I ordered the number 2 (dvě), and realized when the woman responded to me in czech, that was a mistake.
Although my class is 5 hours long starting at 930, after a half hour commute on the trams/metro, and I'm dead tired from the night before, it's not that bad. It's kind of like Spanish, I always liked taking it, and learning it, but I just hated going to class. My professor took us to the Národní Galerie (National Gallery) halfway through class. So it's no MoMA, and definitely not a Met, but it bears a resemblane to the Guggheim, both in shape and size. The different being that yo dont walk upwards in a spiral, the main galleries are outside of the rotunda, and it was kind of dirty, smelled and felt damp. The museum actually had a lot of good art work, except the modern art was a little bizarre and ridiculous at times. The one gallery I wanted to see, an exhibiton of Pablo Picasso's engravings, I forgot to make a round to. I think by the 4th floor, I was "art-ed" out.
That night I went to this club called Cross Club. It's an alternative scene, so there were guys in dreadlocks and girls with pink hair walking around. It's in a sketchy neighborhood, but there are other expats and Americans there as well. The entire club is decorated with old, used, tram parts. The walls, ceiling, stage, bar, handrails, you name it, are all pieces of computers, engines, and other parts.
Leaving is a journey after midnight, since the regular trams stop running, and the metro stops running altogether. Instead, you have to wait in about half-hour intervals or more to get your tram, and then it takes a long route since there are less available. It also picks up a lot of really drunk people going home after a long night, so it's kind of funny being on the late night tram. One way or another, I've bumped into other people from my program somehow going home at 5AM. I've also met other Americans too, like a girl from Brooklyn who is teaching English in Prague. It's kind of relieving sometimes to find other expats, like when I was in Tesco (a large super-store like Walmart), I wasnt sure which label was for what item on a shelf so I tried asking a woman, who was actually from Ontario.
Friday night, I left with some of my suitemates to go to a pub called "The Pub." There are a few in Prague like it, another popular one called The Beer Factory. Basically you sit yourself down (as you do in almost every restaurant I've been in) and there are 4 taps fixed to your table. You fill the beer yourself, and a computer registers how much beer your table has accumulated.
Last night, a few of us wanted to take an adventure and try authentic czech cuisine, so we took the tram in the opposite direction of the Center (what you call the main part of the city), and got off at a random stop. We went into a small restaurant spotted with locals coming home from work. It was interesting trying to speak to people who didn't know a word of English, but we ended up successful, so it was worth it. Plus, when you go closer towards the city, the prices are more expensive and less authentic. Afterwards, I went with two of my friends to check out a band that as playing in a nearby "club." We found the area it was in, it looked like a college campus, but it was apartments. There were two soccer teams playing a match (circa 11PM...) on a court in between the buildings. Under the buildings, there were small dive bars and each were called Bar 1, 2, 3, ect. We went to 007, but the band we went to see had played earlier than we thought so we caught the tail end of the show. oh well. Afterwards, a few of us went to another bar behind the dorm, A Proč Ne, and had some Pilsner there.
So right now I dont have a lot of time to go out that much, since I have to wake up early, I cant really go out late, and everyone kind of dies a little bit after class since it's so long and overdrawn, everyone takes a "siesta." Once I overcome my laziness, I'll update with pictures.
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