Finally took a day off from the gym today and instead walked around Prague a little bit with Kristin. We got coffee in a very nice coffee shop where they give free refills!!! Today (Tuesday) is also Ashley's (my best friend who goes to Union with me) birthday today so we also got a piece of delicious chocolate cake (I found the death by chocolate of Prague) in honor of her birthday. I was able to skype with her a bit which was very good. I will definitely be going back to the coffee shop to have coffee, lunch and study. It is a very cozy hole in the wall place we had recommended to us. We walked on the Charles Bridge and I took some pictures myself since last time I was there I didn't have a camera. The first picture a view of the east side of the river from the bridge. The second is the Charles River Bridge Tower. And the third is Tyn Cather or The Church of Our Lady Before Tyn. It has been the main church of Old Town since the 14th century. I also got to take a video of the Astronomical clock becasue we conveniently were there at the top of the hour. Later tonight I went out to dinner with Hillary her aunt who came to visit for a few days, Liz, Kristin, and Allie. It was Hillary's aunts last night in Prague and we took her to this great restaurant in Old Town. I got a delicious tuna salad with a humongous amount of vegetables, yum so healthy. Tonight we have our country presentation. We are going to be dancing to the Cotton Eyed Joe, Cha Cha Slide, and Soulja Boy. We will be making Cape Coders (cranberry and vodka) for our drink, and Jodi is making a slide show to show everyone a little about the US of A. I am wearing flip flops(only Americans where them here) and my Red Sox shirt and hat! Should be a fun night!! Well that's all for now, class all day tomorrow and most likely the gym, nothing too interesting but I will update on how the party went!!

(sorry about the video being sideways, I can't figure out how to turn it. Its on photobucket too)

Wow this has been a busy week. We got back very late Monday night so I took Tuesday to catch up on some sleep and get some laundry done and clean up a bit. I had class pretty much all day Wednesday but Wednesday night we had a party in the basement bar and Sweden, Norway and Slovenia did their country presentations. Angela and I missed most of them because we forgot about the party and were at the gym longer than expected. We went down a little later and got to see some pictures from the night from a friend of ours camera. Nothing really interesting happened on Thursday except Kristin and I went exploring in the area around our dorm. We walked around a bit and then it got surprisingly cold so we found a little cafe and got coffee and this chocolate cake that was amazing!! At 4pm we headed to our Czech Culture class where we learned many many interesting and new things. This is going to be the best class I take here. We get to learn about the economy, traditions, history, democracy, and media. We also are going to be taken to a gallery to see a Czech artists work, see a movie in Czech, and go to a Czech professional hockey game!!
Friday morning Angela and I had to get up at 5am becasue Angela's mom, mom's boyfriend, and her grandparents flew in from JFK at 6am and we along with Paola met them at the airport to show them to their hotel. After we dropped them at the hotel Angela and I went to the gym for a morning painful work out. We were very sore from the day before. Angela spent the day with her family and I hung out with Kristin and Marc and we bought preparations for Marc's 21st birthday party. About 12 of us went out to dinner (pic to the left) to a wonderful restaurant where I got svickova which is marinated beer sirloin in a heavy sauce served with potato dumplings. Afterward Marc had reserved the game room and we invited all the Union kids and a few others and had a great time! We split up into two group and some went to a club of Marc's choice that was a techno bar which was pretty far away. But a group of us stayed behind and went to a club closer by called Lucerna music bar and they were having an 80's and 90's dance party which was really fun!!

Saturday morning we woke up early and Angela and I went to the zoo with her family. We had a great time there despite how tried we were. The Praha Zoo is in the top 10 of zoos in the world and I can see why. It is huge! We were there for 4 hours and only got to see about half of the zoo! The cool thing was that the animals were not in cages they were in open areas and there were only wooden posts separating us from them. For dinner we found a great traditional restaurant where we got Becherovka, the traditional Czech liqueur that tastes like Christmas, not even kidding it is a mix of gingerbread, pine, cinnamon, and holly in your mouth, so good.

This morning (Sunday) we got up and went to church. Angela and I met her family at Our Lady Victorious which is the church of the Holy Child of Prague. This church is where the statue of the child Jesus is where people from all over the world come to see and pray. One is supposed to go to the statue and the more times you pray to the child the more luck you will have in life. The service was held in English and the inside of the church was absolutely beautiful! There were gold statues and marble columns everywhere and the decorations was beautiful as well. We were not allowed to take pictures during services but I hope to walk around Old Town again on my own on Tuesday to see some things again now that I have a camera. Well Angela and I are off to the gym and are making Caprese pasta tonight which includes pesto, fresh mozzarella, tomatoes and whole wheat penne.

Weekend in Vienna

Wow, what a weekend!! Vienna is my favorite city thus far. It is so beautiful and full of history and the people and places were wonderful. We left Prague at 10:30 on Friday morning and arrived in Vienna (Wien) at about 4pm. On the way there we saw endless fields of turbines, personally I found that amazing, not many others did. The fields went on for miles, and Dad you should have seen the lawn cutting job that was done, it was exquisite, perfect lines ;) We stayed at Hostel Hutteldorf in Hutteldorf, a little town on the outskirts of Vienna. It was a very nice small place that had surprisingly comfortable beds and gave us breakfast every morning which included yogurt, cereal, coffee and a variety of breads to choose from. The first night we arrived we went into the city and walked around a bit to see a little but of Vienna and see what we wanted to come back and do the next day. We saw a little bit of a ballet on the outdoor screen viewing area outside the Vienna Opera House (Wiener Staatsoper in German). Saturday morning we woke up early to get to the
Naschmarkt which was an flea market with many different vendors with scarfs, fruits, veggies, meat, fish, linens and much more. This day was especially busy becasue the Sturm season is in session. Sturm is a special kind of wine that is made during the months of September and October in Austria, Switzerland, and Germany. It is more of a sparkling wine and tastes a lot like grape lemonade. At this market they sold it for very cheap and you are only able to get it at the market or directly from a vineyard. The market stretched for about 3 blocks of the city and took a long time to see all of it. We ate lunch outside the Opera House and took many pictures. This is one of us outside the opera house next to a fountain. After lunch we went to an Impressionism exhibit at the Albertina Gallery. We saw 2 floors of artwork from Monet, Renoir, Degas, van Gogh, and many many more. I was very excited to see some of my favorite artwork but no Starry Night from van Gogh. The Albertina is also part of Habsburg Palace and we were able to see some of the Habsburg State Rooms which were very detailed and beautiful. Wish I could show pictures but there were none allowed in the gallery or the state rooms, believe me I tried to get some, got in trouble a few times though...oops. A few inhabitants of the palace were Archduke Charles, Princess Henriette, and Archduke Albrecht. I need to read a little more about the history because I don't really know who these people are. We then saw the monument against war and fascism. The walk-in monument is to serve as a memory of the darkest period in Austrian history. The area is dedicated to all victims of war and fascism. Ironically, at the time I took this picture there was an anti-Iran going on. The picture to the right is a bronze sculpture of a kneeling man representing the humiliation of Jewish citizens in Vienna after the annexation of Austria to the Germans on March 12th 1938. On our way to dinner we passed a group of men playing music on the street. What makes it interesting is they were playing Sentimental Journey! Nana and Grandpa, I posted the video here for you. And it will also be on Photobucket. Later that night Angela, Paola, Hillary and I sat outside of the Opera house to watch the opera on the outdoor screen. The other girls were able to get standing room tickets inside. We saw Pique Dame (The Queen of Spades) composed by Tschaikowski. I wish I had known more information about the opera before we watched it becasue it was very confusing and we didn't really know what was going on. We now know that it is a 3 act opera about a man who lost money and falls in love. I am planning on reading more about it. I posted a video of the beginning of the instrumental part of the opera.



After the opera we went to the world famous Cafe Sacher and got original chocolate Sacher-Torte and Hausgemachter Wiener Apfelstrudel (Homemade Viennese Apple Strudel). They were not as good as I was expecting and had heard but the desserts were satisfying after a 3 hour opera in German.


On Sunday we again got up early and Allie and Robin went to the Spanish Riding School and watched a show with the world famous Lipizzaner stallions. While they were there, the rest of us got off on a random stop in the metro and ended up finding a huge amusement park. This park was built after World War II to lift the Austrian spirits and become a public place for people of all ages to enjoy themselves.


After the park we went back to the area we were in on Saturday but went to the Imperial Residence. We laid outside for a bit in the palace gardens, which were beautiful. We were only able to take pictures of the outside of the palace but it was still good pictures. After this we went to St. Michael's Cathedral right outside of the Spanish riding school. This is one of the most beautiful churches I have seen. I got chills when I went inside and saw all the details decorations. We wanted to see the crown jewels of Austria but it was too expensive to see a few jeweled crowns, 18 euros! As we were walking back towards the center we saw a man dressed in all gold singing. He sang to the group in Italian. He was supposed to be Mozart. We found a great little place on a side street for dinner but it ended up being mainly Italian so we all got pasta of some sort.

On Monday we had to check out of the hostel by 9am so we needed to bring all our stuff with us until our 6am bus. After we checked out we headed straight for the Schonbrunn Palace. We were not able to get a tour for free but we could get into the back of the palace which was where the real view was. The area of the palace and grounds is HUGE. The pictures capture only a fraction of the beauty of this place.

We took the rest of the day easy. Angela and I went back to the palace gardens where we were on Saturday and wrote post cards and took power naps. At around 5 we headed to the bus station to catch our 6:30 bus and we arrived back in Prague at around midnight but didn't get home until after 2am. Since the metros shut down at midnight we needed to figure out a tram route home. We just rode around on different trams until we started seeing things we recognized. Luckily we picked the right ones to get on and off. Overall this was a very successful and fun trip. I learned a lot about both myself and others and an immense amount of history. I love this whole traveling thing. Its so liberating. Well I am off to register my visa with the Czech Police, hopefully I'll be legal not be sent home next week!!

We didn't end up going on that castle trip, I was a little to sick, tired, and needed rest to make my trip to Vienna super good. Angela and I instead made sandwiches for the weekend. Delicious meals of peanut butter and banana, pb and nutella, and for the bus tomorrow we made tuna. We are leaving Prague at 10am but we are going to the gym before we leave at 8:30, ambitious huh? Well off to bed to get up early for our 6am workout!! Ill write again when I am enriched with the best coffee in the world and some Austrian history!!

Well Tesco was out of school supplies so I went to the first day of class with a pen and pencil. It was all i needed anyway, so it worked out fine. I had my Energetic and Ecological Systems class and I think it is going to be very interesting. The professors all speak English and English is the language of the school, so the Americans will get along fine. The topics are very interesting so far and the class will be very useful for my Energy Studies minor. After class Angela, Marc, Dan and I went to the Jewish Quarter of Prague and tired to get into a Holocaust Exhibit but it was closed to we will go another time. Instead we walked around the area and then ended up in Old Town. We got back and the guys went shopping for dinner. Marc and Dan made a delicious of red pepper and onion couscous, a stir-fry of zucchini and broccoli, and hummus on rolls. They did a wonderful job, everything was so good!! I didn't have class today (Tuesday) so I woke up with the rest of the gang and went for a run. I got a little lost....but I found my way back after a little bit. When I got back I in return for dinner last night I made pancakes for the guys. They were not as good as Bisquick mix from home but they satisfied the guys' appetites. Angela and I are off to go find a gym and get a 3-month membership to keep us in shape.

Well that was an unsuccessful trip, they had no notebooks!! Its a super Wal-mart type store and they were out of notebooks. So I am going to my first day of class with a pens and a little notepad. I have tomorrow off so I can get some things then. On a more exciting note I booked two trips. One to Vienna, Austria from Friday, September 25th to Monday September 28th. Don't worry I am not skipping my classes Monday, we have that day off for a Czech holiday, not Yom Kippur, haha!! The second is for Budapest, Hungary from Friday, October 9th to Sunday, October 11th. We just booked the hostel for Vienna and have been looking at thing to do, there is plenty. I am sure we will find something to keep us busy ;)
Tuesday night we had a party in our suite and about 12 Union kids were here and a few other kids who we have met also came. It was a really fun time and I got to know a few more people. It was a late night and I didn't get much sleep so for the past few days I have been feeling a little under the weather but I am drinking tea and keeping hydrated.
Angela and I joined the gym on Tuesday and went yesterday (Thursday) All the weights are in kilograms so we didn't really know how much we were lifting. I am very sore today...oops but it was a good work out.
Last night we went to the PM Bar again where the International Student Club held a country presentation. Every Wednesday for the rest of the term, each country has a chance to give a presentation about their culture and they bring food, dancing, pictures, games, talk about traditions and much more. Last night was the Czech Republic night so we learned a little about Czech Easter where boys chase girls with decorated eggs? (It was very loud, it was hard to hear exactly what happens). We learned a few Czech drinking songs, ate Svičková, which is some kind of a meat in a very tasty sauce, and listened to some Czech music. It was a very fun time. We made the last metro back at midnight and were in bed early to wake up for class at 8am this morning!
I went to the post office today to get my package! I got a camera (FINALLY), some clothes, a belt (which I desperately need, hard to believe I have lost weight right?), and drawstring packs for the gym! Thanks so much again Mom and Dad for sending that stuff, I really appreciate it!!!
Tonight I am going to Strahov, the other dorm on campus where we will eat dinner and try a new 'special' Czech beer, Master. After that we plan to go to the Prague Castle to see it lit up at night and have a moonlit tour of the castle. Two of the boys from the ISC organized the trip and there are only a select few going on the trip so it will be a small but very fun trip. I am leaving for Vienna tomorrow morning around 8am and am not sure if I will bring my computer or not, I probably won't so I don't have to worry about it in the hostel and on the bus. So if you don't hear from me for a while thats where I will be, hopefully there will be internet access but it will be nice to be cut off from the world for a while. Hope everyone is well at home, wherever that may be. Ill have plenty of stories for you on Monday!! Love to all!!

Saturday was a very easy going day. Got up a fairly reasonable time (9am) and Jodi and I took the metro to Mustek to look around a wander the streets of Old and New Town. We went to tons of shops on the main road and found a lot cool stores and some nice little boutiques. We found an international bookstore with English books and they have JAMES PATTERSON!! Not quite done with the two I brought with me but pretty soon I will being paying a visit to the 6 story bookstore. Next to the bookstore was a 7 floor shoe store! Jodi and I spent a long time in here, it was so overwhelming and the different styles and trends here. After the main road we turned down a side road and stumbled upon a bunch of street vendors selling Prague souvenirs, fruit, sausages, crepes, paintings, leather bags and table linens. At about 2pm we found a restaurant and ate great pasta dishes, they were more Italian than Czech. We then went back to the street vendors and got crepes, Nutella and banana is the way to go!! We sat on a curb and people watched for about an hour making up stories and histories for the people walking by and trying to guess where they were from and what their purpose for being in Prague was. I guess you could say we were very easily amused. When we got back Angela finally was able to get the key to the laundry room and we did about 5 loads of laundry in the smallest dryer in the world, it took so long. But we have clean clothes that don't smell like the smoky bars and the European metro stations. Once laundry was done we went to the grocery store to get supplies for dinner. Angela, Jodi, Eric, Dearon and I all made dinner in my room. We made fried eggs in tomatoes, broccoli, and rice. The fried eggs in tomatoes is a Greek dish we found in the Greek cookbook Angela bought in Greece. Its basically the same concept as stuffed peppers and it was very very good and cheap. The dinner all cost us about 75 cents per person!!! Since we didn't eat until about 11pm we decided to stay in and just sit around the dinner table and talk. It was a very nice change of pace. I just got back from a run and explored the other side of the campus! It reminds me of the East Side of Providence but the big houses are apartments, but very nice apartments. The it was very peaceful and quiet and a beautiful area to run in. It was nice to get away from the busy part of the city. Well I am off to cook an omelet with what i think is ham...looks close enough. Then I am off to Tesco in Mustek to get some school supplies!

Sorry for the time between posts but we have been so busy the last few days!!

On Wednesday we took a tour of the city and saw St. Vitus Catherdral and the surrounding area, the Charles Bridge and the Clock in Old Town Square. The first place we went seen to the left is the presidential square where the President's office is. The picture next to it is a building used for offices and governmental meetings today. The last photo here is a view from the top of the hill where the Presidential offices and building are. The panoramic photo doesn't do the view justice at all. The city is so beautiful and full of history. I am so happy and I love this city!!!




St. Vitus Cathedral has some of the most beautiful Gothic architecture I have ever seen. There is also some interesting history behind it. Saint John, not the apostle, is buried in the foundation of the church. Also one of the windows in the cathedral is not stained glass, it was hand painted by and the famous Czech painter Alfons Mucha and depicts the story of creation very intricately. The tomb of John of Nepomuk, the national Saint of the Czech Republic is also inside the cathedral and is made of 250 tons of silver. We could not get close to this but it is an insane amount of silver.

We then walked to Old Town Square were we saw the Astronomical Clock of Prague (The Orloj). The Orloj is on the southern wall of Old Town City Hall in the square and is a very popular tourist attraction. There are three components: the astronomical dial, represents the position of the sun and moon and displays various astronomical details. "The Walk of the Apostles" is an hourly circulation of figures of the Apostles at the top of every hour along with the ringing of the bell by a skeleton. There is also calendar dial with medallions representing the months of the year. The mechanical clock and astronomical dial dates back to 1410. There are four figures above the clock which are set in motion at the hour The four things represented left to right is Vanity, represented by a figure admiring himself in a mirror. Next, a Jew holding a bag of gold represents greed or usury. Across the clock stands Death, a skeleton that strikes the time upon the hour. Finally, the infidel Turk wears the Turban. This is a very historical and famous clock that attracts many people to the square every hour to see the clock at the top of the hour. The clock holds many years of history and its amazing how it keeps track of the time, day, month, year, and the sun and moons positions.

I signed up for classes on Thursday morning. I am taking four classes. The first is Building Structures in Civil engineering (Lecture: Wed 9-12, Lab: Thurs 6-8) where we learn about vertical loads, joints, materials to use, and design concepts. Second is Waste Water Treatment in mechanical (Lecture: Wed 1:15-4:45) which we learn about waste water treatment obviously and renewable sources of energy which will be good for my energy studies minor. The third is Energetic and Ecological systems part of the civil department and will also help the minor. This class meets Monday 8-10 or 10-12 depending on what section i am in and lab is 12-2. We will be learning about water supply, drainage, gas supply and heating systems. The last class is the Czech Culture class which will count towards out culture requirement for Union. Not sure when that class meets yet. Signing up took most of the day becasue I had to get each class approved individually so I had to go back and forth from mechanical to civil buildings. Thursday night Liz and I walked back to New Town to get dinner and walk around a bit. We then walked to Old Town square to see a concert. There was a Serbian band playing in the square. It was a very different type of music but there were people of all ages and nations standing in the same square have a great time dancing and laughing. As you can see the location is one of a kind. It was definitely something I will remember.

Yesterday, Friday, about 40 of us went to Czech Paradise. In order to get to paradise we took a very small two hour train ride into the northern countryside of the Czech Republic. We hiked through the wilderness and saw some amazing views very different than Prague. We played a lot of silly camp name games but they did help us meet more people and learn names. We hiked from about 11 to 4 and stopped at a few castles through out the hike. The first was Valdštejn and the view from that castle is the picture with the girl in the purple shirt. This is one of the oldest castles in the Czech Republic. The last photo is our groups creative photo. Each group of people that went on a trip had to think of a creative photo and the most creative photo gets an prize at the beginning of next week. Angela and I thought of spelling out Czech Paradise with people becasue we thought of the "Z" which is not shown well in the picture, it was much better in practice. We had a long train ride home and were exhausted from our 8km hike. Not only was this trip full of beautiful scenery but I also met a ton of people, created new friendships and strengthened existing bonds. Another beautiful and successful day in the Czech Republic.

Our veggie stir fry came out great! I am so happy we have a systems of guys and girls who all help cook and clean! Yesterday at orientation we just went to an informative meeting and learned the times of our registration for our faculty (major) and some tours and trips and the rest of the surrounding area. In the mechanical engineering building there are these really cool elevators. They have no doors and one side goes up and one side goes down. You have to jump in and out of the elevator in order to switch floors. The left side you jump in to go down and the right side goes up! Its really cool, once I get a camera I will take a video or a few pictures and post them. After orientation Liz, Kristin, Allie (a girl we met from Kansas), Nick and I went to pay for our internet at the bank. Kristin and I also got our cell phones which are nothing extravagant but they will get the job done. We walked around the town of Mustek for a little bit where I must go back to. The architecture is absolutely beautiful!! The buildings are so full of detail and color! We then went to the next town on the metro, Andel, and found the best store to buy everything needed here, its basically a super Wal-Mart but better and cheaper. I could have spent hours in there, but we needed to get back for our international student club (ISC) first party and bonding event in Prague 2 at the P.M. Bar. There was a live band playing and it was so much fun. At one point they were playing 50's swing stuff and me and my ISC buddy we dancing the night away. It was so fun! We all had a really fun time and were back in our rooms in bed by midnight becasue we were so tired from all the walking and dancing. Now off to have some breakfast of fruit and probably more touring today!

I am finally all registered and have all my swipe cards and what not. The international student club people have been very helpful showing us the city and telling us where to go! Two nights ago Nick, Angela and I went to find Ikea in Zlicin and were successful, we aslo found a huge mall with H&M, sweet! At Ikea we bought plates and silverware and some stuff for the room. When we got we went to the basement bar for an international student party and it was German night. We had a lot of German food and candies and gummy bears, I didn't know gummy bears were German. The next day, Saturday, Angela, Nick and I went to the grocery store and got some food to make dinner. We got chicken, apples, nectarines, bread, a peach, pasta, sauce, eggs, yogurt, and a bottle of wine for only about $35!! When everyone came back to the room last night we all made dinner together, we were like a little happy family! I cooked up some chicken and some pasta with sauce and it was a delicious meal. Mind you I have not had a full meal in about 5 days with all the traveling and trying to figure things out. After dinner, a very late dinner, we went to the popular 5 story club which was very fun. There is a different type of music on each floor, its pretty cool but very hot on the bottom floors. We got in very late last night, 6am but had a great time with the whole group. We woke up today, Sunday morning and Marc made us all scrambled eggs and we had some bread with butter and jam. Orientation starts tomorrow so there will be more to do and we will learn the city better. There are a bunch of trips that the club has planned for us. Tonight on the docket for dinner is vegetable stir fry with spaghetti. Off to the market to get some more things we need!