Week 9–

 

We came as strangers, but left as great friends

            Already had to start saying our goodbyes to the people that have impacted my life for the better and who have become my family. We are driving back to home sweet Olomouc for the last time. This last field trip to Bohemia has been a whirlwind of adventure.

We started off our trip going to Litomysl. We only had one day there, but it was packed with great memories. We stayed at a neat hostel that was also attached to the castle there. We went to a presentation and then got to tour the church and after see the gardens. For the evening we grabbed a few boxes of pizza and hung out before celebrating Jessica’s birthday.

 Next, we ventured to Kutna Hora. Along the way we saw Lezaky, which was once a village before the Nazis came in and had the entire village murdered. We walked along what was once these peoples home, but was now a beautiful memorial.

Once arriving in Kutna Hora we first stopped at the bone church. They said it is estimated to have the bones of about 6,000 people. It was so interesting to see and yet I had a strange feeling walking around looking at these bones because they are real.

On the third day, we packed up and went to the silver mines in the morning. We were given hard hats, white coats, and also told that some of the spaces were going to be very narrow. Throughout the tour we were bending down to crawl through tight spaces, going sideways, and always seeming to have to duck. This mine is the oldest mine in Europe and has definitely been one of my favorite tours we’ve had. After, we got back onto the bus and drove to our last destination, Cesky Krumlov.

Rafting adventure with the crew

 This was a place that looked as though it had been taken right out of a fairy tale. There was a river that ran through the village helping add to that feeling too. After arriving we got our rooms in the hostel and then had the rest of the evening to get a good feel of where we were. We dropped our

Couldn't have asked for a better roomie

stuff off and headed straight out. They have so many cute little shops that line the streets and I can’t forget about the cafes where you can sit right next to the river. For dinner the first evening we hiked all the way up to the castle gardens and had ate at a medieval restaurant. It took us awhile to find it and then when we did it didn’t look like it was open because they didn’t have any lights on. Turns out they wanted to enhance your medieval experience by having you eat by candle light. The eight of us enjoyed each of our meals and walking back down to the hostel was breathtaking because the village was light up and the lights reflected off the water.

 Day two in Cesky Krumlov we went and saw a theater and then had the opportunity to tour the castle. After splitting up for lunch we met back up and then went rafting. There were three boats of six and we all had an absolute blast! Even though it was kind of rainy the sun would come out from behind the clouds. Laughing and enjoying our time floating down the river made for some great memories. The day flew by with all the fun we were having and for the evening we headed dinner with our whole group plus our two professors and even the bus driver.

Current Status:

With bags packed and plans set we are off to make more memories all over the world for the next 3 weeks!

Week 8-

  Pierogi heaven in Krakow Poland!

 The entire class ventured over to Poland for a weekend field trip. It not only became one of my favorite cities, but one of the best weekends!

"Krawling through Krakow"

            Friday morning we got on the bus and drove four hours to Krakow. When we arrived we headed straight for the salt mines. I had never been to something like this before, but it was so neat to see how they chiseled out to rock salt and learned about the process. We took the tourist route, which consisted of 800 steps down and 20 different chambers. Our tour guide told us to imagine the Eiffel tour, only turned upside down. By the end of the tour we had seen underground saline lakes, statues made of rock salt, and even got to lick the walls! After exploring the excavated salt mines we barely saw 1% of the whole mine.

            After the tour we all loaded back onto the bus and headed to our hostel. Once settled in we grabbed our stuff and headed back out to explore Krakow. We stayed very close to the Jewish Square and decided to try Pierogies. This is a dough dumping that may be filled with potatoes, cheese, cabbage, or a variety of meats. The restaurant we decided to eat at had an entrée that consisted 24 pierogies, but it was a variety so I got to try many different kinds. Pierogies, pierogies, and more pierogies!

            The evening was filled with great memories and even better company. We went on the “Krawl Through Krakow” Pub Crawl and thoroughly enjoyed the night going from pub to pub with almost our entire group. This is definitely a must do activity while staying here.

            Our second day there we had the opportunity to see Wawel Castle in the morning and then had the rest of the day to explore Krakow. We visited the town square, ate some delicious polish sausage, and then shopped at the markets there too. By the end of the day I had purchased a beautiful hand carved and painted wooden box for my friend, bought polish ceramic dishes for my family, and met some very nice locals. We made our way back to the hostel for the evening while still exploring what Krakow had to offer. The evening came and we headed out for dinner then unexpectedly danced the night away.

            All too soon it was our last day in Krakow and we went to visit Schindler’s Factory before another four-hour bus ride home. At the museum our guide told us the story of Oskar Schindler and how he helped give jobs and protect the Jewish individuals who were in trouble. The museum was interactive and our guide was so passionate about everything he said that it made the tour even better.

            Krakow has been one of my favorite weekends in Europe so far. I had no idea what to expect, and that’s kind of why I love it! Daily life being a foreigner I’m not really sure what I'm doing. Frankly, I want to live life as unexpectedly and with as many surprises as it has to offer. I have decided to stop figuring out precisely how to feel and stop deciding what I want, and to simply see just what happens next. If I did otherwise I feel I would be not living at all.

Here's to one great weekend!

Week #7-

            Daily life in the Czech Republic is definitely a culture shock in itself from what I was use to in home sweet Nebraska.

Spagetarna take out

            We do have a little kitchenette on our flat. It consists of a counter, microwave, stovetop, and then we each have a mini fridge in our rooms. Sometimes our flat mates cook out there, but I have yet to cook here. For every meal we either go out or just eat a small snack that we bought from Globus (The main grocery store here). My favorite two restaurants to go to are called Spagetarna and Bistro. Spagetarna is nice when you are in a hurry and it’s only a 2-minute walk away from Café 87.  They have many different kinds of spaghetti and because the restaurant has very limited sitting they will put your entrée in a Chinese box with a plastic fork for take out. It’s great when you are done with class but have stuff to go do for the evening! And Bistro is only two tram stops away from the dorms and they even have English menus! The people there are so nice and the meals they have are very reasonable for the prices. My favorite drink that I have found here is called malinovka and it’s a raspberry drink. Note to future students: bring a water bottle. I wish that I would have brought one with me because you have to pay for water almost everywhere you go here and I find that staying hydrated is one of the toughest things that I struggle with daily.

        

    As far as the weather goes we have not had very many nice days. Normally it’s been cold, windy, dreary, and cloudy with the sun poking out every now and then. The warmest days that we have had are the days that we are visiting other countries. Hopefully we will see the sun within the next couple of weeks before we have to go! Note to future students: it may be a pain to bring a thicker coat, but I really wish that I had brought one!

Malinovka

            Meeting other students is fairly easy because there are multiple events that different student groups put together and they do a good job at advertising their event. Also, we have Teresa who will post on our Facebook group created to specifically keep our group involved. The first week we were here the Erasmus students put together a welcome party and that really helped us get to know some of the students. I do believe that it was the second week we were here they set up a pub-crawl with some fun games that we all went to. Note to future students: get involved and make friends with the

Bistro with my Malinovka

other students, they can really help you!

Welcome Party

            Money issues… this is a topic that I have struggled with. The first week we were here there was a charge to my card that wasn’t suppose to be there so I had to cancel that card and have another one shipped to me. A few weeks later this happened again to my “travel” debit card and had to have another sent to me. Then, just last week when I was trying to book things for our free week my card got shut off. I seem to just have bad luck with this though because no one else has had this many issues! Note to future students: Make sure a family member has access to your bank accounts in case you need help with any issues while you are abroad.

            They daily life in Olomouc is definitely a good change from what I was use to back home and pushes me outside my comfort zone. In the little coffee shops you become a common face and feel comfortable sitting for a few hours getting your work done. 

Olomouc has been a good home away from home.

Week 6-

The view after we crossed the rope bridge

Road trip to every coastline in Ireland!

Spring break was a week full of travel and adventure. We stayed in Dublin, on the eastern coastline, and took three road trips to the north, west, and southern coastlines! But let’s start from the beginning!

Our first night there we went to the oldest pub in Ireland for a folklore show and dinner. It was a great way to start the trip and get a feel of their culture.

Carrick Rope Bridge

Giant's Causeway

The next morning we took our first road trip and headed for Northern Ireland. One of the stops we made along the way was to cross the Carrick Rope Bridge. The day was absolutely beautiful, not a cloud in the sky, and as I crossed the bridge I could see Scotland! After grabbing some lunch not far away we made our way to Giant’s Causeway. It was a little bit of a walk down, but there was so much to look at we didn’t care. Being there was kind of surreal because it’s always been on my bucket list and it was truly captivating as I walked from stone to stone. 

Little Windy
Courtesy of Kassidy McConville

I thought that I had a great time on our first road trip, but when we left for the eastern coastline I didn’t know that it could get even better. We were headed for the Cliffs of Moher, but made a few minor stops to stretch our legs. The best stop we made was at the “baby” cliffs. It was so beautiful and seemed to go on forever. After we finished our lunch we arrived at the Cliffs of Moher. I’m still not sure how we lucked out with the weather, but I am definitely not complaining! Because the weather was so inviting we got to go on an hour boat ride to see the cliffs from the ocean's point of view. This was honestly my favorite part of the day because it put in perspective how big there are!

The next day we took a day off from traveling and explored Dublin itself. After breakfast we walked around and had a great time as we followed the same path of the Liffey River through Dublin. Spontaneously, we decided that we would get our hair done! Two hours later our hair was cut and colored and we were out the door with high spirits ready to find our next adventure! We went to the Guinness factory and got to sample the Irish dry stout, also known as “The Black Stuff”. The tour was so neat in that after the tour was done you ended up in the Gravity Bar. This was the highest point of the building and it was circular in shape with all glass windows looking out to the city.

Giant's Causeway
Courtesy of Kassidy McConville

Made it to the Gravity Bar

Saturday we took our last road trip of spring break and headed to the southern coastline to see the Blarney Castle. The ride was long, but once we got there it was worth it. The grounds were beautiful with flowers and everything was as green as could be. Once we had reached the castle we explored little caves and holes in the walls that were so tiny you almost had to crawl through some pathways. I’m so thankful that I am exploring while I am young because when we were making our way up to the kissing stone, at the very top of the castle, you had to climb very small and steep stairs. It was not very safe and they even had a rope to help guide yourself up. We did make it up with no incidents and got to the kissing stone. I had no idea what to expect, but it was so amusing that I had to laugh at myself! I am fairly short so when I laid down on my back and grabbed the bars I had to bend back pretty far to kiss the stone! I wish that I had bought the picture, but the memory will definitely do!

Exploring caves at Blarney castle

            Our last day there was bittersweet because we were excited to see everyone again, but we did not want to leave. From the good food to friendly people this has been my favorite place so far. 

Ireland taught me that traveling makes you feel tiny, humble and yet inspired all at once! 

Spring break with these two couldn't have been better!