czech does NOT equal spanish.

jenna and i at the opera

hello all, sorry it's been so long, but we have been very busy. today marked the last day of our first week of our INTENSIVE (and by intensive, i really mean that-- 5 hours a day, 5 days a week, of AWFUL czech language). You would literally die if you sat in on that class, i wish i could record it. Jenna and I laugh the ENTIRE time. the letters do not make the sound you would think. for example, ch makes a k sound. makes sense right? no. it sucks. i just speak spanish half the time, which the teacher is not too thrilled about! anyway, we're starting to get it, but it is definitely not going to become a second language. i know how to say the basic greetings and ordering food and drinks (crucial) even though most places speak some english. we are in the 9am-145pm class and our other 2 dorm mates are in the 230-645 one, which kind of sucks since we hardly see them anymore, but we still go out at night. these past few days have been awesome though, besides the class, because we're starting to get a daily routine going, making prague really seem like our home.

jenna, kirsten and i 

this week, we've been waking up at 8, leaving the dorm by 830, stopping at this fresh juice store for some good mango, kiwi, orange juice, going to class, going to the gym, and heading back to the dorm. you know how i always like to feel productive in the morning, so i actually prefer the morning class. last night jenna and I went to an Opera composed by mozart called Magic Flute. the opera house was absolutely stunning. there was a huge chandelier and gold lined throughout the entire theater. it was my first opera and I have to admit i am not rushing back to another one. don't get me wrong, i'm glad i went since it was very interesting and i feel like it was super cultural and one of those things you have to do here, but i'm not the opera type. this weekend, jenna and i are going to try and trek to find a launder-mat because we've been dragging this out for way too long and we both agree it's time to do laundry. the weather hasn't been too bad surprisingly, but our teacher told us it's supposed to get bad again, GREAT. I'm starting to really know my way around, and starting to really feel at home. this is honestly the most beautiful city. i'm hoping to explore a bit this weekend, hopefully go to the lennon wall and charles bridge if it is nice out. mostly, i'm just excited to sleep in!!! Anyway, i miss you all, and don't worry about me, i am having the time of my life!

Moravia, yes it REALLY IS a city.

gregor mendel's museum

What a weekend. We took our first trip with AIFS to Moravia, the center of the first slavic empire, which was established in the 9th century. It is a very religious area, seeing as it is linked with the first Christian mission and contributed to the spreading of christian faith. We got there on Friday, and on our way to Brno, the capital of Moravia, we stopped at a church that had a cloister built in the 13th century. The structure was beautiful and is built in Romanesque-Gothic style. After seeing the beautiful architecture, we moved on to our hotel, WHICH WAS CRAZY NICE (well, compared to the dorms we've been living in where jenna and I can basically hold hands as we sleep). Jenna and I made sure to shower twice while we were there to take advantage of the decent showers. After we had some time to rest at the hotel, the program directors took us to a family run wine cellar for dinner. We got delicious chicken, veggies, and potatoes, and of course, we tasted a bunch of delicious wine. The family told us about each of the wines and showed us where all of them are stored and how long everything takes. Overall, it was so nice going to dinner with a small group of us and getting to learn about Moravian culture. Yesterday we had a long day of sightseeing. After a delicious spread at the hotel (eggs, fruit, tomatoes, cold cuts, etc.,) we visited Gregor Mendel's garden and museum. Mendel grew famous wrinkled peas and discovered the foundations of genetics. It was pretty cool to see all of that, but I'm no scientist (obviously) so I wasn't as intrigued. Next we saw the Austerlitz battlefield from the Napoleonic period where the Battle of Three Emperors took place in 1805. It was very interesting to see the huge area of land where people fought. We also saw the memorial that was build to commemorate all people that participated in the battle. The memorial was so detailed and lined in gold which was gorgeous. Finally, we saw St. James Church, and St. Peter and Paul's cathedral. Both were absolutely stunning, each made differently but again, very detailed and exquisite. To be honest though, many of the churches are blending together to me, but they are all GORGEOUS! Last night, a few of us stayed at the hotel for dinner and then went to bed early. Today we woke up, had another BOMB breakfast, and headed out to see our last cathedral. While we were in there, there was actually a communion taking place! Of course, I was so confused since I've never been to one before, but it seemed intense.

inside of the caves!

jenna and i- outside part of caves

Last but not least, my favorite part of Moravia was the caves! The Moravian Karst is a complec of underground caves, ranked to be the most beautiful area of central Europe. We got there and walked through a portion of the caves, which were dark and icy, but then we got to an outside portion with a waterfall. I can't even describe how beautiful it was! The second part of the cave tour was by boat, kind of like a mixture of the Matterhorn, Indiana Jones, and Pirates of the Carribean rides at disneyland! We got to go on the water through the underground caves and it was beautiful. I'm happy to be back in Prague and with all of our roommates again (Steph didn't come but it is nice to be back together!) Tonight is the superbowl (starts at 1230am Prague time) and so we are going to this American bar to watch the game with a bunch of people from our program. I am so happy to be back in Prague... Home sweet home!

my first snow fall!

view of the entire sternberg castle

The past two days have been unbelievable. Yesterday, a group of us went to Kutna Hora, a small town in the Czech Republic, about 1 hour or so bus drive from Prague. We left at about 830am again, another early morning, and got to our first destination... the Sternberg castle (I felt so famous! They kept mentioning how Stern in czech means "star"!) The castle was absolutely stunning... and right when we arrived, it started to snow &

me and the roomies in front of st. barbaras cathedral

 I was the only one freaking out when I started to see it fall. The castle looked beautiful with its white blanket. After touring the castle, we headed into the central town of Kutna Hora and went on a brief walking tour. We saw a bunch of different cathedrals, structures, and buildings and learned which style they were designed as. The town wasn't THAT beautiful, but I'll admit the architecture was awesome (really got me excited for my architecture class in Prague). After the tour, we got a lunch break and my roommates and I went to a really cute pub and got some good czech food (I got grilled sausage and some potatoes). Hearty as always, wow. After lunch we went to St. Barbara's Cathedral in the center of the city. It was seriously so beautiful. Stained glass windows, intricate engravings and statues, and gold frames everywhere. I was shocked to hear that this church, as well as the synagogue from the day before, is rarely used for actual prayer--more so for concerts. Our final destination of the day was by far the coolest of them all-- The bone church. Inside of this ossuary contained the bones of 40,000 corpses! While it sounds crazy scary, it was actually awesome to see how well the bones were preserved and how many bones there are in one body. We got home at about 6, picked up some sandwiches for dinner in the dorm, and FINALLY GOT INTERNET!! Now we don't have to schlep to the lobby to get internet. We went out last night with some people from other programs which was nice and a good change of pace. The club was called Mecca and it was really fun and had great music and lights.  Overall, it was a great day, and needless to say, busy.

roomies at the Bones church

Today was another great day, but in a different, more relaxing way. After a whopping 5 hours of sleep, we went to the ECES (charles university, my school) office to receive our student ID cards. After that, Jenna and I wanted to sign up for a 3 month gym membership at this awesome gym near Wenceslas Square called World Fitness. We THOUGHT we knew how to get there from the office, but we were sorely mistaken. On our way to the incorrect tram route, it started to SNOW SOOOO HARD and I of course was loving it. After about an hour of walking in the complete opposite direction, we finally found the gym, and were so excited that we found our way. After all, our program director told us on the first day that getting lost is the best way to see the city! After the gym, we went on a hunt to find this place that I have been hearing about from all my friends who went to Prague. This place, Bohemia Bagel, was DEFINITELY worth the walk. Their menu is endless-- bagels, muffins, and scrambles, to chilli, soup, salads, and sandwiches, Jenna and I were struggling with our order choices but ended up both getting some chilli and a salad. It was very delicious and especially in the cold snow! Now we are all back in the dorm, trying to book our weekend trips to Rome, Belgium and Spain. It is a lot harder than we thought seeing as though we have a lot of weekend trips planned with AIFS including Poland, Moravia, Istanbul, and Vienna. Tough life, right? Anyway, tomorrow we are leaving for Moravia at 1030am and I am very excited because it is supposed to be super cool. Hope all is well in the states. Jealous of the weather, Dan.

Pilzen

jenna & i outside of the synagogue 

jenna and i at the pilsner brewery

Dobry Den! Today was a LONG LONG day over here in central europe. We woke up at 8am and headed out on an hour and a half bus ride to a town right inside the border of czech republic called Pilzen. It is not as beautiful as Prague, but it was super interesting and we did a bunch of cool things. First we saw the Jewish Sanctuary of pilzen-- the third largest synagogue in the WORLD. Unfortunately, now there are hardly any Jews left in Pilzen to pray in it, so it is mostly used for concerts and exhibitions. It is insanely gorgeous and exquisitely designed. We learned all about when the communists took over the town, they couldn't destroy the synagogue because it is too close to the main town and attached to some homes. However, the nazis DID remove all the stars of david from the building. After that, we went to the older synagogue which is a lot smaller, but the one that is used for prayer today. We also saw a jewish memorial of all the jews in Pilzen that passed away during World War 2. After the morning tours, we went to a czech lunch in the little town square of Pilzen. I've got to admit, I'm really enjoying some hot goulash and dumplings after a day of 12 degree touring weather. After lunch, we went to the Pilsner brewery (the same one we went to coming into prague) and got to see the entire factory and how they brew everything. It is amazing to see all of the technology and the differences from today from when they first started brewing so many years ago. After a long day, my roommates and I passed out at about 7pm and just woke up a couple hours ago. I'm starting to feel the time difference!!! Anyway, it was a very long day, but very informative and pretty. I love learning about how special the czech republic is and why it is so historical. Hope all is well and I'll update you soon !

DOBRY DEN!

PRAGUE!

jenna and i at pilsner brewery

hi!! so it's official, i am IN praha! We arrived yesterday after a pit-stop at the pilsner brewery right near the Czech Republic border. it was soooo delicious, got an order of goulash... i'm telling you, I don't understand how these europeans stay so skinny. beats me. anyway, regardless, i enjoyed that dish, along with some amazing, and might i add strong, pilsner beer (a czech classic). After lunch, we continued to prague and arrived at like 7pm. I was so happy to finally unpack and get all of my stuff put away. Our dorm is a lot less crammed than i thought, so that was a relief. The actual dormitory is kind of on the outskirts of prague but it actually works out this way because we get the best of both worlds.. we're not in a touristy location and it's only a quick tram ride from our dorm to downtown and our school. Today was our first full day and we woke up at 10 and had a walking tour of our area and then walked into town. IT IS ABSOLUTELY BEAUTIFUL... looks like a fairytale, i describe it as the fantasyland section of disneyland. After we walked around we had an orientation for AIFS and they told us everything we need to know about the program, activities, places to go, and weekend trips available to us. At 4pm, we were finally free to wander about. Since we were all exhausted, we did a quick trip to TESCO (aka target) and got some groceries and towels, etc and then came back to the dorm. Tonight we'll probably go out to downtown to a club or bar since we didn't go out last night but it's only 6:30 so we haven't really discussed plans for tonight.

steph and i in prague

The money is still very new and it takes me about 15 seconds to do the math from czech caronas to U.S dollars in my head, but I am working on it. We learned a few words in czech-- wow, not easy. makes NO sense actually. oh well, I've been doing my best to use please and thank you's every time I order or see anyone. Overall, I love prague so far and I know this is just the beginning!

so far, so good!

of course I had to take a phone booth pic.

me, steph, kirsten, jenna, and phil by the fountain in front of the national art museum.

Hi everyone! So yesterday was the most AMAZING day in London. We took an incredible tour of the entire city and stopped at a bunch of great locations: Buckingham palace, the london bridge, Westminster Abbey, and we went to a museum, and Big Ben. We toured all day and then we had some free time so a few of us went to this amazing national art museum. We chose to look at the artwork from the 1700's to present day. It was really cool, and it made me look forward to my art history class in prague. After we went to the museum, the same small group of us stopped at this cute little 

we stopped at the london bridge, beautiful view of the city.

jenna and I at buckingham palace

canadian pub and picked up a classic order of chips (french fries) and a sandwich... and of course beer. I am starting to ENJOY beer, although I am still one of the last to finish my mugs. After lunch, we went back to the hotel and took a long nap because we knew we had to leave at 4am for the airport for Munich AND we wanted to go out again in London. So, as we predicted, we had an amazing night at the clubs and made it back to the hotel at around 230am, leaving us just enough time to chill in the room, order some pizza, and then make it to the bus by 4am. Needless to say, this morning was not my best. I was SOOOO tired, not feeling amazing, and schlepping 4 bags around the airport. wow, seriously packed enough for a year... not okay when you're traveling every other day. we got to the airport with plenty of time, sat around the terminal (we boarded the plane at around 630am) and then we arrived in Munich at about 10am. Seeing as though we were beyond dead, Jenna and I immediately napped when we got to the hotel, and set our alarm for just enough time to grab some lunch before our tour of Munich. However, at about 6pm Munich time, we heard our friends calling our names from the hallway and Jenna and I shot up out of bed. We completely slept in through our tour of Munich, oh well. From the looks of it, it is very pretty, but I needed my sleep :-). Anyway, at 6:30 a huge group of us from the program went to this place called Beirgarden and got HUGE mugs of beer and of course had a sample of Germany's famous sausages. Very good. After dinner, we went to this awesome place called "hofbrauhaus" for more gigantic mugs of beer and pretzels. It was a lot of fun, although the Germans are pretty aggressive and rude. Now it's almost 1am in Germany and I am still pretty wide awake considering the 5 hour nap we took. Tomorrow we GO TO PRAGUE!!!!! I am soooo stoked and cannot wait to finally get my bags unpacked and get settled. We leave Munich at 10am, stop for lunch at a brewery (of course!) and then get to Prague around 5 or 6pm. I can't wait to explore tomorrow as soon as we get there and I will update you as soon as I get a chance. LOVE YAAA.

elllllo mate!

If you couldn't tell from the post title, I am officially in LONDON! After the very easy 9 hour 50 minute flight, I landed in London at about 10am local time. I slept for about 5 hours of the flight which wasn't too bad... and of course they had complimentary wine and spirits on the plane which didn't hurt either! You would've paid to see me schlep all my bags around the London terminal. The AIFS representative almost passed out when he saw Jenna, Kirsten, and I rolling around 2 huge duffels each, plus our 2 carry ons. Oh well... you may take a girl away from Los Angeles, but you can never take the Los Angeles away from the girl!! Anyway, when we got to the cute little hotel, a small group of us went to a couple local pubs while we waited for check in (I wasn't complaining). I can officially say I've had my first European beer! Hopefully by the end of my trip, I will enjoy it a little more. By the second pub I had to switch to a glass of wine...  some things never change. So I can already tell the four of us will be SUPER close: me, steph (boulder), kirsten (boulder), and jenna. We already get along really well which is fun. Tonight AIFS is throwing us a "welcome drink" in the lobby, and then some of us are heading out to a fun dinner and the clubs. I am VERY excited to explore London. Tomorrow we have a tour of the entire city, Buckingham palace and all. In addition, we are going to see WICKED in a beautiful London theater tomorrow night. I am still pretty confused with the money situation here. They don't take euros like I thought, so I had to get some pounds, which are apparently very pricey... annoying. Lets just say everyone knows I'm American. From my bags, to lack of an attractive English accent. But I am having an amazing time so far and can't wait to meet the rest of the people on my program. good day chap!

Here Goes Nothing.

bring it on snow.

WOW. I cannot believe the day has come. I am actually leaving for Prague tomorrow! My emotions are endless: excited, anxious, nervous, happy, fortunate, STOKED. However, I am quite worried considering I do not know one word of czech, and supposedly it's not too easy to learn. oops. Basically, these next four months will be the most incredible months of my life. I cannot wait to learn, travel, and really use this time to become more independent and realize that there is a whole world outside of my little bubble. For once in my life, I am excited to be uncomfortable and out of my element. I've got myself used to Calabasas, to Berkeley, my core group of friends, and now I am entering an entirely new stage, one that I have no idea of what's to come.

don't worry, these all fit into my 2 duffels =]

So,I've never had a blog, but I figured it would be the best way to let everyone I care about know about everything I am doing, seeing, eating, learning, etc. I will try my best to update it often, but knowing me I will start out strong, every day or so, and then end up doing other things... apparently prague has a huge party scene. I had absolutely NO idea ;-)


I'm on a non-stop flight to London tomorrow, staying there for 2 nights, flying to Munich, and then finally heading to Prague. I am going to be living in the dorms with Jenna and 2 other girls, Steph and Kirsten (they go to Boulder). Anyway, I hope you enjoy this blog and I will be sure to take LOTS of pictures and post them. Thanks to Molly, Ragan, and Alex for the AMAZING LISTS of places to go in Prague. Seriously, you are lifesavers.


get ready prague, here I come.