Mám ráda Praha

      Alas our intensive Czech classes have come to an end. We learned how to order food, count to 10,000, get and give directions, and conjugate some words. It's fun to speak and practice Czech with each other and with Czech people. We went to lunch on the last day of class to order Czech and practice our numbers when asking for change. We have our first quiz on Monday which will hopefully go well. We also learned one of the cases called the accusative. It is used for direct objects and changes only feminine noun endings. Generally I think I like cases much more than tenses. I'm much better at recognizing what role a noun plays in a sentence than trying to decide which kind of past tense to use (completed or not completed action... what? Aren't they both just like in the past or whatever?... okay maybe I'm not that bad). I'm sure the cases will become more complicated as we go. We talk about alcohol much more in class than is normal, like learning to order beer: dám si pivo (I'll have a beer), saying I like white wine: líbí se mi bílé vino, or just learning how to say different alcohol types (becherovka etc.). It doesn't seem weird at the time but looking back on it is pretty funny. If I'd ever used sangria in an example for spanish class I would have gotten a disapproving look. A few of my friends and I have been trying to make a sound that doesn't exist in English but seems to be in at least half of Czech words. It's supposed to sound like a rolled r and a j at the same time but we can't seem to mix the two. After laughing at our attempts, Jiří advised us to have a few beers before we try it again. He also keeps telling us different alcohols to try.

      Along with our first quiz, I start regular classes on Monday! I have Czech again, but I'm really excited for my Resistance and Dissent class. It focuses on resistance art movements like punk and graffiti from Nazism to Communism. I might just die of happiness in that class. Our schedule is much different than I'm used to at Grinnell. We have some of our classes only once a week for three hours and others twice a week for an hour and a half. I'm hoping the three hour classes will be ridiculously interesting haha. The classes are also spread throughout the day more; on Tuesdays I have a class in the morning from 9:30 to 11:00, then another from 1:30 to 3:00 and one more from 4:00 to 7:00. It will be pretty strange having class for so long and ending so late at night, but I suppose I'll get used to it. Fridays are generally free which will be a nice break.

      I've been searching for a few good cafes where I can get my school work done. I know I don't do well working at home and the library is a bit far from everything. So far Maddie and I found two cute places about 10 minutes from our apartment and Eva, Jeanette, and I found one a bit further called the Globe. The Globe is especially cool because it doubles as an English book store and has some fun events. I'll probably spend most of my Sundays there drinking coffee and doing work. We're going back tomorrow to study for our quiz, have dinner, and watch a showing of a Czech film with English subtitles (Mom aren't you proud!). If we're feeling up to it we might even stay and watch the superbowl, though we have class the next morning and I'm not sure I fancy staying up until three the night before. Maddie and I also stumbled upon an outdoor food market where we grabbed some sausages and sauerkraut which we paired with some mustard and bread from our local grocery. It was such a delicious meal, we'll probably become regulars at that sausage man's cart.

      Earlier this week we also went on a tour of the Jewish quarter where we saw a few synagogues, museums, and my favorite: the Jewish cemetery. Because the Jewish community could not expand the cemetery, people began to be buried in layers. Because of this about five head stones lay above each grave, and as the earth settled, the stones leaned askew. The effect is astoundingly beautiful, peaceful, and a bit eerie.

      Last night we went to a 90s dance club which was really fun. Backstreet Boys music videos played on the huge screen while Czechs sang Brittany Spears with accents. I felt like I'd been teleported to some strange version of Grinnell's 90s Harris! I'm sure we'll be back. In the rest of my free time I've found a website to watch English TV and I'm onto my fifth book; I can't remember the last time I read for enjoyment this much. I'm joining a gym on Monday once my regular schedule starts. I think actually paying for a gym membership will motivate me to work out (fingers crossed). I'll also hopefully find a volunteer position teaching English, but I'm waiting on an opening (fingers crossed for that too).

      I really love Prague, which is actually the title of this blog: literally "I have a deep liking of Prague"). Jiři told us we should use the form "líbí se mi" (meaning I like) until we spend enough time here to form a deeper connection, allowing us to use "mám ráda" (meaning I like deeply), but I think my love for this city promotes me up to the deeper liking level. Who knew I would commit to anything so fast ;). There are only three things I miss about home:

1. Ice (as Rick Steves so cleverly put, "the last ice left Europe in the ice age." No one drinks anything cold.)

2. My bed (all the other students in my building got new ikea beds with new ikea bedspreads but apparently the program ran out of bed money leaving my roommate and I with 50s children's mattresses with no headboards and dingy old bedspreads).

3. A few select people (self explanatory).

      The ice thing hasn't been much of a problem seeing that everyone's drink of choice is beer. I've also solved the room temperature water problem by freezing my water bottle overnight and carrying it with me everywhere. The bed thing isn't so bad either, though it is a bit comical. I do miss some people from home but I'm quickly making friends here. I'm sure I'll be yearning to see old friends soon enough. Prague would be the most perfect place ever if I could ship my friends and family here.

      This upcoming weekend we're heading to Česky Krumlov and I plan to spend the weekend after that exploring Prague some more. I think I'll be able to see the entirety of the city in about four full days of sight seeing. After I've seen Prague I might do a bit of traveling. We don't have a lot of time off since most free time is taken up by traveling with our program. First is Česky Krumlov, which is this fairy tale little town close to Prague. We're going to Lidice on March 1st and Terezin on my birthday (the model concentration camp that the nazis used for propaganda to show the world how well the Jews were treated). We'll get the more typical concentration camp experience when we go to Auschwitz later in the semester. We're also going to Brno, Krakow, Vienna, and Budapest. If I have time/money/energy to travel on our four free weekends I might go back to Germany to see a smaller town, see some castles, and/or go to a small student town called Olomouc. We'll see.

      Tonight I'm going to grab a beer at a place called The Three Little Pigs down the street and turn in early so I can do some serious studying tomorrow... unless I get roped into a roller disco that's going on tonight. Who can say no to a roller disco?!

      I'll give another update at the end of the week about classes and another after our first trip. Until then na shledanou!

P.S. I stumbled upon this lovely door in the Jewish Quarter. I must say, Eva got more excited about this particular door than I did, and I was pretty damn excited.

-Patty, or as Jiří calls me, Pat