Late Nights

This is what it's like when you don't leave work until 8:30 p.m. on a Monday.

Brunch Time

No words needed.

Creepy Babies

"The babies look even creepier with the red light."

Insatiable

I can't get enough of this city!

Sunsets and Trams

A Long View

You can see Prague Castle from the tram stop near my apartment.

Puppy

I love this bar and this dog!

I have a video of the dog trying to catch the cue ball but I'm having trouble loading it. Check back another time. It's hilarious.

Národní Divadlo

I like the architecture.

Czech is Hard

Even as a teacher I hate doing homework.

Aida

We saw Aida. I still can't say if I'm sold on Opera, but it was nice.

To The Opera

I went to my first Opera on Friday.

Moon Through the Clouds

Can you see the moon?

Monster Art

This is how you teach an 11-year-old parts of the body and prepositions.

Majda loved this game and honestly so did I. I told her what was where and she drew it. Then we switched. Can you tell which ones she drew and which one I did?

Just Another Tuesday

And I still <3 clouds.

Singles Awareness Day

I'm Flann's valentine.

Honestly, on Valentine's Day I was talking about how I really didn't care. I worked 12 hours and was exhausted by the time I got home. I watched some "TV" and passed out.


This picture was actually taken a couple of days later (Wednesday) when I received my Valentine's package from Flann, but I decided it deserves the Feb. 14th slot on the blog. This girl has a thing for garland. You've already seen the one that's currently on my wall and while I was in Taiwan she sent me one made of glitter covered card stock leaves. Amazing. 


These are felt hearts and although it's meant to decorate the home, I felt the impulse to decorate my neck. (Note: Felt is a little itchy.)


Also, take note of the Sweetheart candies - en Español!

Armor for Winter

I made a new winter hat. Isn't is fabulous?

Seriously though, I found out it's supposed to get cold again and I've basically decided my hats aren't that awesome. I mean, they're cute, but they aren't always the warmest. One of them only barely covers my ears. 

So I spent about four hours on Saturday night making this sucker. I'm quite pleased with myself.

Productivity

I finally put together my bookcase.

Yesterday was the single most productive day I've had since I've been in Prague. All it took was actually putting together my bookcase. Everything else just fell into place.

Prague Astronomical Clock

Can you believe this thing has survived 600 years?

Seriously though, somehow this clock has managed to make it through a number of wars without significant damage. They just celebrated is 600th anniversary in October 2010. Amazing. 


If you're looking at it and saying, "Well it looks pretty cool but I don't know what it means," let me give you some help.


There are three major parts. First is the astronomical dial which show the position of the sun and the moon. The second is a calendar dial which tells the month. Then there is the hourly "Walk of the Apostles" in which the figures all move around. 


You'll also find Old Czech time and a 24-hour clock on it for keeping time. If you want to know more about the clock, there's a pretty awesome graphic here.

A Bird's Eye View

Have I mentioned how absolutely amazing this city is?

Every time I look at this city all I can think is, "Wow, I live here."

Petřín Tower

Petřín Tower is apparently supposed to be like a mini-Eiffel Tower.

I guess that makes sense. It's cool because they have one set of stairs for going up and one set of stairs for going down. This is a good thing because those are some narrow stairs... and there are lots of them. 


Amazing views up there though. 

Sunsets Are Beautiful

Even when they're hidden behind traffic.

I'm pretty sure sunsets and sunrises are right up there with my obsession with clouds. Maybe it's more of a general obsession with the sky. I'll consider that further while you enjoy this.

Communism and Those Affected

Memorial to the Victims of Communism

This memorial is powerful in and of itself. It is honestly one of those pieces of art that simply needs no words but I will say this. It was placed at the bottom of Petřín Hill and has actually suffered damage from a bombing in 2003 which no terrorist or activist groups ever claimed.


The interesting part is that while most memorials are for those who have died, this memorial is for everyone who was affected by the communist regime in the Czech Republic, or in the artists words, "also those whose lives were ruined by totalitarian despotism."


On the bronze line going through the middle it says:

• 205,486 arrested
• 170,938 forced into exile
• 4,500 died in prison
• 327 shot trying to escape
• 248 executed

Living here has taught me many things and that is that this sort of affect on people's lives doesn't just end overnight. It's a long struggle for the people to finally gain control over their lives and their government again.

A Nice Day for a Walk

Today was the perfect day for a walk up Petřín Hill.

The weather changed drastically (like it does) and we had sun and temperatures in the 50s (Fahrenheit). It was amazing simply wearing jeans, a light long-sleeve t-shirt and a fleece today. No leggings. No gloves. No scarf. No hat. 


What a gorgeous day.


More information about our Petřín Hill adventure at Tales of a Traveling Texan tomorrow. 

Memorial of Two Martyrs

Memorials for Jan Palach and Jan Zajíc

Jan Palach committed suicide by self-immolation in Wenceslas Square (something we've been hearing about a lot in the news lately with this 'Arab Revolution' going on) to protest of the demoralization of Czech people as a result of the Soviet invasion of the Czechoslovak Republic. This was on January 16, 1969. He died three days later.


Jan Zajíc also committed suicide by self-immolation on Feb. 25, 1969,  the 21st anniversary of the Soviet occupation of what was then the Czechoslovak Republic. He apparently wished to encourage the Czech people to fight against the military occupation.

Hockey Time

Czechs love their hockey.

Hockey games here are a little peculiar compared to what I'm used to though. They have cheerleaders and drum lines and girls dressed like fairies who sweep up the goals. Also, there is advertising like whoa. They even had a couple of cars circling around on the ice between periods following the Zamboni around. 


Oh, biggest difference, no fighting! What's hockey without a gloves-off throw down?

Kafka Monument

Franz Kafka monument near the Spanish Synagogue in the Jewish Quarter.

Kakfa is a famous Czech author. His parents were working-class, German-speaking Jews. He wrote all of his works in German given that was his native tongue. This statue, designed by Czech artist Jaroslav Róna, is based on Kafka's short story Description of a Struggle in which a man rides the shoulders of another man through the streets of Prague. Here you see a tiny Kafka riding atop a headless man, who some say is also supposed to be him.

Church of Our Lady before Týn

Gorgeous Gothic church in Old Town

I'm always so amazed when I see that things like this have survived so much time and so many wars.

Ugly But Warm

I did wear this out of the house (minus the house shoes).

I also wore jeans to cover up the ugly. But hey, when it's 8°F out you learn to layer it up no matter how trashy it looks.