As we have begun to settle in after our first few days in the beautiful city of Prague, I thought I would take a few minutes to reflect on this whole new world I am living in. Prague is one of the most lovely places I have been to, and I have had a wonderful time exploring what all this city has to offer. In the short 5 days I have been here, I have had so many new experiences. On our first day here I was able to try some traditional Czech cuisine consisting of sirloin, cream sauce and dumplings. This was a meal that I had never had before, and it was absolutely wonderful. The Czech Republic's prices for food are extremely low, and you can receive a full meal for around 175 koruna, or about $7. I was reminded that water is not free at restaurants, and sparkling water is the norm in Europe. In these first few days, our schedule has been jam packed with sightseeing and "survival" courses to help better acquaint ourselves with the Czech language and way of life. We learned words such as "dobry den" (good day), and "prosim" (excuse me), as well as several other important phrases and words. I have also been learning how to use the public transportation system, which is something I am not at all accustomed to. Most people in Prague get around using both the extensive tram and metro systems, and most younger people do not own cars. I can proudly say that I have yet to get lost using these, but I am sure it is bound to happen eventually. I also have had the pleasure of learning how to be a consumer in Prague. Our second night here, a group of us went to Brilla, the grocery store close to our dorm and got a few necessities. I wanted to buy some bananas as well as milk and bread, so after carefully watching the people in the line in front me, I felt fairly confident I could check out. I was the first of my group to go up, and I soon realized the cashier did not speak any english (most people here do know a fair amount of English). I began to put my items on the conveyor belt, when all of a sudden the cashier started saying very loudly "weight, weight". I assumed she was saying "wait", so I slowed down thinking that she was not quite ready. She continued yelling at me, and I soon realized that I had needed to stop at this tiny weigh station in the corner and weigh my produce. By this point, there were about 15 people in the line behind me, and I started to panic. I ran over to the weigh station with the bananas, however I had absolutely no idea how to utilize the machine, so I decided to sacrifice them in order to not upset anyone. After this fiasco, everyone in my group behind me quickly shuffled out of the line to the station. I am sure I will run into many more situations like this one, and I look forward to conquering them as I become more comfortable here. Below I have attached some photos from our river cruise on the Charles River, the Jerusalem Synagogue, Terezin Concentration camp, and various buildings and statues we have seen walking around the downtown area.
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