Original idea borrowed from Kaelene.
I can’t believe we have already been in the beautiful city of Praha for one month. Technically, it’s just under five weeks, but, semantics :).
I apologize for the radio silence over here. This has been due to the insane schedule we’ve had the last week, between finishing training, starting as teachers (!!!), seeing many friends off who are moving elsewhere, and the Black Lung that kept me bedridden for a few days (and still rears its ugly head at the most inopportune moments), I sadly had to put my little space on the back burner lately. We finished our TEFL certification last Saturday, and since then have been working, searching for more jobs, and searching for apartments. Almost every night we go out, as well, as it’s always somebody’s last night in Prague and you just can’t miss those. Although my illness is slowly getting better, now E has it, right in the midst of moving.
I realized how long it has been since I’ve done an update when my brother mentioned he hadn’t seen anything on the blog in a while. Since I didn’t even realize he read this blog that often (we are stellar communicators in my family, apparently) it was the kick in the pants I needed to get writing. (Also, hi Adam! Thanks for reading :)).
This month has been a true roller coaster (and not just with my emotions-ha). We made great friends in Prague–but now most of them are gone, teaching elsewhere in the world. We studied our brains out to get certified–and now we are teachers! We’ve been very comfortable in the student flat–but now we have to move out TOMORROW and we currently do not have a place waiting for us.
Excuse me while I go cry in a corner.
The real estate market in Prague is very intense right now. The job market is, luckily, the same, so when we aren’t running to interviews we’re running to look at flats. There are many “almost-right” flats, but I am being a little picky. I don’t care too much about the actual apartment–just the price and the location. If we only have one year in Prague, I want us to be where we want to be in the city. We have a few places lined up to see so here’s hoping!
Despite all of these highs and lows, it really has been a great month. An unforgettable first month in Prague, really. It’s not all rainbows–now that we are living here, it’s not just vacation time in Europe, although I am jonesing to travel every.where. We have to deal with real world things, like banks and leases and the dreaded visas. I was in vacation mode at first, weirdly, even though we were so busy with work. Now, it’s hitting me that even in a charming city with Prague, you have to deal with red tape (OH THE RED TAPE!) and the pesky little details of life that exist everywhere else.
But…
I am so happy we are here.
Now please can we just find the perfect apartment already??
(Keep your fingers crossed for us!)
ONE MONTH IN PRAGUE: BY THE NUMBERS
1 TEFL certification.
Our successful group of TEFL graduates! I really got to know and love these people over our intensive four weeks. I will miss the ones who are leaving! Now we can be teachers, though! And speaking of that…
3 new jobs.
I have one temporary job at our TEFL school, through the end of September, teaching a group of intermediate students, mostly adults. Since one of my students brought me a cookie today, I think it is going pretty well (or maybe she was just late and was trying to bribe me. It worked). I can’t say I loved teaching during our training, as we were always being observed by someone who would then give you feedback (barf), but I am really loving it now. I hope my students love our class as much! I also have a one-on-one client for a few lessons to help him pass an English competency test. See below for the THIRD job…
ONE WEEK booked for the mountains in September.
E and I were both lucky enough to sign on for a one-week “English camp” for Czech high school students in September. The camp will take place in the beautiful Krkonoše Mountains on the border of the Czech Republic and Poland. Hopefully it will not be this snowy–but it will certainly be rainy! Even though this job has impacted our ability to sign on to any long-term work at the moment, we didn’t know if another opportunity like this would happen. So, why not? Plus, free room and board…and a modest salary! I’m looking forward to seeing a new area of the Czech Republic, getting back into the mountains, and hanging out with teenagers for a week. (I’m not even being sarcastic–teenagers are hilarious. And difficult, yes…).
6 job interviews.
Still on the hunt for a longer-term job! I don’t feel too worried since I’ve had quite a few interviews and we have a nice cushion (until October) but I can’t really say I love interviewing because who does?
2 new Czech friends.
E and I were invited to an international potluck at one of my students’ flats. We didn’t actually eat any Czech food, but it was still a great night! I instantly fell in love with her kitten (of course) who had a love-hate relationship with me. I’ll take what I can get!
4 hours of karaoke.
Every Thursday, our school has a pub night which often turns into karaoke. I love me some karaoke.
HUNDREDS of little alleyways to explore (and get lost in).
The alleyways in Prague have quickly become one of my favorite things! Whenever I feel disenchanted with our life here (which isn’t that often, except after a dud apartment), all I need to do is take a little walk among the alleyways and the magic returns.
DOZENS of pivos.
Pivo is Czech for beer. The Czechs love their beer. I usually love beer. Mostly I love sampling the different beers they have to offer. I will probably be thrown out of the country for saying this, but I don’t love the famous Pilsner Urquell. It’s fine, but just okay. My favorite so far is a dark one (always the dark ones!) called Kozel.
COUNTLESS adorable, historic buildings seen.
The architecture here in Prague is so interesting. Most of it is gorgeous, but there are some “normal” buildings and some that are obviously leftover from Communism. I love wandering the streets, looking up, and seeing a new building that is incredibly ornate, bright pink, or covered in flowers. Even the less ornate ones have their charm…and many of them have graffiti. Somehow it’s okay that everything is graffitied, though. Prague makes up for it!
MANY ice cream cones from our favorite shop.
Of course I already have a favorite ice cream shop, don’t you know me at all? This place has Italian-style ice cream (read: gelato) and I convince E to go there at least once a week, especially if it’s warm out.
DAILY walks across my favorite bridge.
Sadly, since we will be moving, this will likely no longer be “our” bridge (unless we score a place in this same neighborhood of Prague). I will always think of it that way, though, since we spent so many mornings walking across it. Even during the most difficult parts of this last week, I have always enjoyed this walk across the bridge. On clear days, the castle is breathtaking. At night, the castle is lit up. And today, a swan was wandering around on the bridge, stopping traffic, tourists and trams alike.
FIRST out-of-town trip in the books…for this weekend!
Český Krumlov, a little UNESCO heritage site in the Czech Republic, has been on my radar for years. Since we are homeless this weekend anyway, we figured we might as well explore a little. The town looks adorable, and we are planning on taking a boat trip out to an abbey…and a pub, of course, because this is the CZ.
Linking up with Nicole!
