I went to Prague and you should too!

Pro Tip: if you are only interested in reading about my trip to Prague, skip to November 9th. Also, if you would like to see more pictures from my trip, check out the album on my Facebook.

4 November: I woke up and went to the mall. I ate breakfast and went shopping at h&m and I spent €30. Afterwards, I got some pizza and I bought myself some groceries to have at home. Then, I rode back home and relaxed for a while and at 4 I went upstairs to play with the boys which was fun. The older boy and I made a “super dragon” out of paper and he was very very proud of it. However, he kept telling me to do stuff like stapling and gluing and making arms and legs, but then he told his dad that he did the whole thing by himself! I guess that’s just the life of a struggling artist in Germany, I’ll tell ya. For dinner we ate bread and cheese and then I rode my bike to the city center for my English speaking theater group and it was so much fun! I’m starting to actually get to know the people which is really nice and they replaced the guy in the scene from last week and my director said our scene went even better. After drama group we went to a café to celebrate one of our members completing his master thesis. It was really fun and I am starting to become friends with more and more people in the group. We stayed at the café until midnight and then I walked with my new friend Guzel back to her apartment. She was really nice to me and complimented my acting and I appreciated it very much. This was a very good day/night that I enjoyed very much.

5 November: I woke up and ate some cereal for breakfast. I cleaned the common area leading to my apartment and I binged more “how I met your mother”. For lunch, I made myself some cheese bread which was tasty. At 3, I picked up the older boy up from kindergarten and he was in a really good mood which put me in a really good mood. Then when we got home, everybody was in a really good mood. It was amazing. My host mom, the younger boy, and the baby were all happy and smiling, which made me happy and smiling! I held and played with the baby for about 45 minutes and my host mom read to the boys. When it was time for me to take the older boy to soccer practice, he refused to wear an undershirt, even though it was freezing cold outside, so he just started running around in his underwear. At first, I was really frustrated, but I managed to make him laugh and he was better and I felt proud of myself. We rode our bikes to the soccer field and it’s unfortunate because by the time the practice is over, it’s pitch black outside and freezing cold even though it ends at 5:30! When we got home, the older boy took a warm shower because he was really cold and I was really cold too, but that’s life in Deutschland. For dinner, my host dad brought us all delicious döner and we ate it all. After dinner, I played with the boys for maybe 15 minutes and then I went to the city center to meet my friend Maximillian for dinner at a place that has (self-proclaimed and I agree) amazing fries. We also went to a Mexican restaurant and got flan and sweet potato fries. It was a lot of fun. This was a good day.

6 November: I woke up and ate breakfast and then I rode my bike to my 8:30 AM class. The class went by very fast for me and was actually a really enjoyable period. I felt like I learned a lot and I thankfully wasn’t falling asleep with boredom. Afterwards, I rode my bike to my lecture that’s entirely in German and that one was so boring I was falling asleep, but it’s entirely in German so can you really blame me? I had extra time in between my lecture and my next class, so I got hot chocolate and cheesecake. My next class was a little more difficult because I was more tired and it’s an interesting class, but we talk a lot about the history of Bamberg and sometimes the history lesson can be a little boring. At one point I started falling asleep and the teacher called on me to answer his question and I obviously had no clue what we were talking about or what the question was so I just made up an answer and the whole class laughed and the teacher laughed and I laughed, but after that I stayed awake for the rest of the class period so it was very important that we all shared a laugh over my stupidity. After class, I met my friend Mark from Ireland at a cafe for lunch. I had crêpes and he had a sandwich and we talked about our lives and our jobs and school stuff, you know the typical study abroad conversation. Then we went shopping together and we also walked up to the Bamberg cathedral because he’d never seen it before. When we stopped hanging out, I still had one hour left until my choir rehearsal, so I went to a cafe and got hot chocolate. My choir rehearsal was really nice and although it went by a little slowly (3 hours is such a long rehearsal), I really enjoyed the music we made. It feels wonderful to be singing in a group again. When I got home, I took a shower and fell straight into bed, excited to see what the future holds.

7 November: I woke up early this day and went to the city for my classes. Unfortunately, on my way there, I crashed my bike and it was so embarrassing for me, but thankfully I was wearing my helmet and my bike and I were both safe. (Aside from a scraped knee). My classes went really well this day, even though they are my typically boring classes. In my American studies class, the teacher complimented my insight. We also had to make a group presentation and I was the only one in my group who would talk which was a positive and a negative. I think the teacher admired what I contributed to the class. Afterwards, I had to ride my bike back home quickly to start babysitting. We ate lunch together and then I read to the older boy and we watched Dragon Tales together (except I will admit I was falling asleep). We read some more stories and then he left for a play date at his friends house and I played with the younger boy which actually went really well. It’s really strange how well I bond with each boy individually, but when they’re both together, I can’t seem to get really connect with either of them. At 6 pm, I went and got a pizza for dinner and I was trying to speak German to the pizza maker and he said “you know I speak English too, right?” And I said in German “yes, but I need to learn German”. This made me feel insecure about my german speaking, but also, I felt good about myself for not just switching to English when he said that. After I ate my pizza, I rode my bike to the city center and I met my friends Megan, Phillip, and Jonas at a brewery that was having a special “bock bier” opening or something like that; I just drank the milk that I had smuggled in. After that we went back to their apartment and Vera, Maximilian, and Moritz joined us and we had a game night. We played cards, uno, and some group games that people had downloaded on their phones. It was honestly such a fun night and I was so happy to have had a great time with my friends.

8 November: I woke up at about 9 am at Megan’s apartment. Megan, Jonas, Phillip, and I hung out for a few hours just talking and then we walked to the nearby döner restaurant and had delicious döner for lunch. Afterwards, I rode my bike to the city center and I got coffee with two women who are also American and are looking for babysitters.They were both really fun and I enjoyed meeting them. Afterwards, I went shopping and I bought some new clothes and a coat and some Christmas socks (it’s early, but there’s no thanksgiving here, so it can be Christmas now!). Then, I came back home and I packed my bag for Prague and relaxed for a moment. I then went with my host dad and the boys to their “English Speaking Story time” and I honestly think it’s the cringiest thing in the world, but I appreciate the concept of it. The main problem is that the other kids (including the leader’s son) are not really invested in the story or speaking English, so it’s very chaotic with kids running around or not being able to focus. I don’t know if either of the boys actually enjoy it, but it’s a good way to spend some time speaking English. When we got home, the boys all of a sudden were in really bad moods and everything was making the older boy scream and cry which was a little frustrating for me, but we powered through. I was babysitting this night, so I had to bring the boys to bed and it was such a struggle. They didn’t want to listen to anything I said and the younger boy wouldn’t lay down, and it was a whole ordeal. Thankfully, after a bit of grit and perseverance, they finally fell asleep. I would qualify this day as a fun day, and it was a great kickstart to my weekend away.

9 November: I woke up so early at 4:30 AM and got ready to go to Prague. It was weird riding my bike to the train station at 4:55 in the morning, but I kind of like that that’s just a part of my life now. I met Awije at the station and we took the train from Bamberg to Nuremberg. We had an hour of time to spare before our bus left, so we went to a bakery at the Nuremberg station and ate breakfast. Then we walked over to the bus station and it arrived precisely on time at 7:15 and then our bus left precisely on time at 7:20. It was such a comfortable bus and there were very few people on it. It was just so pleasant and it wasn’t difficult to sleep at all and the WiFi connection was absolutely perfect, unlike some buses where the WiFi can be so spotty. (This blog has not been sponsored by DeutscheBahn). We arrived in Prague early and we ate Burger King for lunch and I honestly think it tasted better than in America and I used to eat Burger King nearly every day of my life! We then walked to the old town square for our walking tour. At first, we accidentally joined in a tour that we thought was ours and the tour guide was like “can I help you ladies” and we said that we were here for the free walking tour and he said “well, this is a free walking tour, but we’re halfway through, so I don’t think this is your tour”. And he was right, it wasn’t. We were embarrassed, but it was really funny. Thankfully we were able to find our correct tour and our guide was so nice. He was British and very funny and knowledgeable about Prague and he told us many interesting and engaging stories that we both really appreciated. He showed us the university where Albert Einstein once studied, which really impressed me and he also showed us the Estate Theater where Mozart premiered his opera “Don Giovanni”. It was so cool for me to go to this place especially after having visited Mozart’s apartment in Vienna last month and learning about his life and history. Halfway through the tour we stopped for warm drinks because it was cold and rainy in Prague this day, my hot chocolate really hit the spot. The tour lasted about 3 hours and 15 minutes and we learned and saw so much. Pro tip to anybody who is traveling: your first activity should be a free walking tour! They’re great and they really give you your bearings in a new city. After the walking tour we ate at a place called “Tom’s Burgers” and I got a vegetarian burger (that had vegetables on it that I ate!) and it was really nice. It’s a little difficult to budget the money here because they are on the Czech Korunas and not the Euro, but we’ve managed. After lunch, we stopped at a little station to get Trdelník which Wikipedia defines as: a kind of spit cake. It is made from rolled dough that is wrapped around a stick, then grilled and topped with sugar and walnut mix. I had mine with ice cream and it tasted amazing. Don’t be surprised if I have it several more times throughout this blog. We checked into our air bnb around 5 pm and we are in awe of our amazing view. I can’t believe how cheap we got this room for considering it’s amazing location and accessibility. We took a nap for about an hour because we were both exhausted from waking up so early and the walking tour. After our nap, we went back out into the city and dinked around lots of souvenir shops. We also went to Starbucks and had a drink. I was surprised that there were so many drunk people on the streets at only 8:30 PM, but everybody has those days I guess. We saw two guys start to beat each other up and I just told Awije to turn around and walk the other way with me. I don’t know if that was the correct thing to do in that situation, but I wasn’t really sure what role two young female tourists were supposed to take. We ended up walking in a quaint Christmas market and we went to the shopping mall and looked at stores there. It’s a little refreshing that the stores here don’t close at 6 PM like they do in Germany. I am so amazed by the beauty of Prague and I’m so happy that I get to spend 2 more days here. Although, I will admit I had a few tired, cranky moments this day, I wouldn’t have lived this day any other way. It was great.

10 November: Sunday is God’s day and I thank God for such a great Sunday! We woke up and got Starbucks and delicious crêpes at a creperie right by our air bnb. Then, we walked across the bridge (stopping to take amazing pictures, of course) to the Franz Kafka museum. To save you the trouble of googling who that is, I’ve done it for you: “Franz Kafka was a German-speaking Bohemian novelist and short-story writer, widely regarded as one of the major figures of 20th-century literature.” It was very interesting for me to learn about his life in Prague and the man he was, because I had never heard of him either. I ended up getting finished with the museum way earlier than my friend though, so I went to a café next door and drank hot chocolate. Then when she was done, we had lunch at a restaurant with really delicious french fries and sandwiches. I also got another Trdelník (which I now know is called chimney cake in English). Then we walked to the John Lennon wall and that was also very cool to see, because it is also very important in Prague’s history. It was made as a tribute to John Lennon’s teachings of non-violence and freedom of speech in 1980 after John Lennon was murdered. The art on the wall is very beautiful and inspiring which I really appreciated, especially being a pacifist myself. After the wall, we went back to the Kafka museum so Awije could buy a postcard and then we walked by the river where there were many many swans that you could get really close to because they are so used to being fed by civilians. I thought that was very cute. After this, we went to some shops and looked around at cute clothes and cute stores. I personally didn’t buy anything, but after reading this blog, you all know I just love to shop. We walked along the largest square in Europe, the one our tour guide from the previous day noted “it’s so big it’s actually a rectangle” and that was great. We ended up going to a Thai massage place that is a chain here in Prague and we let fish eat the dead skin off our feet. It was a really cool experience and felt so weird! At first it really tickled, but then I got used to it. I loved it very much and my feet are now baby soft. For dinner, we ate at Vapiano which is a chain Italian restaurant and I ate cheese pizza (my favorite). I know I should be eating authentic Prague dishes, but the options are very slim and kind of expensive for vegetarians who are traveling on a budget. Afterwards, we climbed the Old Town Hall tower and got a gorgeous view of Prague in the night. We had the whole viewing deck to ourselves and I was amazed by the beauty of the buildings. It was so great. Now we’re back at the air bnb for our 2nd and final overnight in Prague. I had such a great day today and I’m so excited for our third great day in this beautiful city.

11 November: Today was our final day in Prague. It’s sad, but I am also ready to go back to Bamberg. We woke up at 6:30 AM and got ourselves ready, then we walked to the St. Charles Bridge which was beautifully uncrowded so early in the morning. We had hopes of seeing the sunrise, but it was much too foggy and cloudy to see the sun, but neither of us minded. Personally, I think the bridge was even more beautiful with the eeriness of the fog. We took photos and walked the entire bridge and then we went to Starbucks and I had a gingerbread latte and a slice of New York Cheesecake. There’s no Starbucks in Bamberg, so it was very nice to get a fix of my home in the USA. After breakfast, we went back to the air bnb for about an hour and packed our luggage up. We then went to the Jewish History Museum. The Jewish quarter in Prague is very special because it is home to the world’s oldest active synagogue (dating back to 1270) in addition to being home to several other synagogues. The Jewish quarter in Prague has many original buildings, despite being one of Hitler’s most desired cities. The reason for this, is that Nazi leaders had plans to make the Jewish Quarter in Prague a “museum of an extinct race”. Thankfully, this plan was not successful and the Jewish quarter is only home to the Jewish History Museum. We went to the Klausen synagogue, the Pinkas synagogue, and the Old Jewish cemetery. We were also able to see the outsides of the Spanish Synagogue (which some describe as the most beautiful synagogue in the world) and the Jerusalem synagogue. These exhibits and museums were all very powerful and impactful for me and they make Prague an even more special city. Another cool exhibit we were able to visit is the Robert Guttmann gallery. He was a Jewish painter who resided in Prague and I actually really enjoyed his art. Sometimes, I feel like I don’t enjoy older artwork or I can’t appreciate it, but I actually found this gallery to be interesting and the art was very appealing to me. After the Jewish Museum we went to a café and got a drink to warm up and I also got one last Trdelník to commemorate my time in Prague. This was such an amazing trip for me and while I am happy to be on the bus back to Bamberg, I am so amazed and grateful for the chance to have visited this beautiful city.