Believe it or not, I actually planned to combine both last week’s post and this week’s post. I felt a little behind, and though it’d be best to do to two posts instead of separate ones.
That being said, it’s been a while. Fall has finally arrived in the Czech Republic. The leaves are turning golden and the sun isn’t out as often. It is still 67 degrees here though, which is nice.
Last weekend, I traveled to Berlin with my program. I met some incredible people, saw some fantastic sights, and tasted some amazing food. Here is what I mainly noticed while in the city:
- There are a lot of Turks. Berlin has the largest population of Turks outside of Turkey. This means the Turkish restaurants are authentic. And good.
- Haribo is founded in Germany, which means the Haribo gummy bears are AMAZING. You can actually taste the difference!
- There are so many cranes in Berlin. The city has been destroyed and rebuilt multiple times; there is always something to fix. Many Europeans joke the city will never stop being rebuilt. And, I think they may be right.
- Their public transportation system is terrible. Just awful. Mainly due to the Berlin wall, there are only a handful of buses and trains available to ride.
- This year is the 30th Anniversary of the Berlin Wall fall. The Festival of Lights shows were all oriented around this monumental event. It was really powerful. For the first time, I felt proud to be an American. I was so proud of the American involvement that led to the fall of the wall. Seeing what it meant to the Germans through the festival… there are no words.
- German curry-wurst is sooooooooooo gooooooood.
- Germans still feel guilty about their Jewish history. A lot of the locals strongly respect the Jewish memorial and grave sites. If they see anyone disrespecting these areas, they’ll shout out and rebuke them.
- There’s some kind of cult around the green “walk” light in East Berlin. Not sure why, it’s just a thing.
Here are the pictures from that weekend. It was a really great time, I would definitely go back. We barely touched what the city has to offer.
Brandenburg Gate 
Jewish Holocaust Memorial 
Checkpoint Charlie 
The Berlin Cathedral 
The Festival of Lights, this year celebrating the 30th Anniversary of the Berlin Wall fall 
The Reichstag Parliament, on top 
The Reichstag Parliament, on bottom 
The Reichstag Parliament, the outside 
Tiergarten Park 
Berlin Victory Monument 
The Berlin Wall, preserved area 
Inside the Berlin Cathedral 
On top of the Berlin Cathedral 
View from the top of the Berlin Cathedral 
Ryan on the top of the Berlin Cathedral 
Us and friends we met at Maximilian’s, an authentic German restaurant. Mikkel, the Danish, is on the left. Dean, the Brit, is on the right. Both of them made our night! 
Me and one of the most famous Berlin Wall graffiti pictures. Quite scandalous!
For this last weekend, I decided to stay in Prague. I’ve been traveling every weekend, and I needed some time to myself before I go off and travel again.
This past week, I finally found a community choir to join! Adventist Brethren Church welcomed me into their community. They even let me sing with them during service and invited me to perform in their Christmas concert! I can’t wait! Even though the rehearsals are in Czech, as I’m the only foreigner in the ensemble, the language of musical is universal. I’ve been able to follow along fairly well by watching the conductor and the other singers. It’s been great to be a part of a musical community again.
My program also hosted a trip up to Petrin Tower this weekend. It’s one of the highest points in Prague, and there are some gorgeous views from the top of the tower. We were lucky it was sunny when we climbed up. The sights were breathtaking.
I also explored more of Prague with my girlfriends, Beza and Ari. I ventured in the Vyšehrad Fortress with Beza, wandering through the beautiful St. Paul and Peter Cathedral. Ari and I hiked around Park Sarka, taking in the beautiful green hills and forests throughout Prague 6. It was a wonderful, relaxing weekend.
Here are some pictures from my life in Prague. I love all of the friends I’ve made, people I’ve met, and events I’ve attended while here.
Meeting other international students at Parukářka 
Dinner with international students at Pizza Nova. VERY good pizza! 
Chilling at Cat Cafe. This coffee shop has given me great animal therapy 
My friend Ari rocking out on the guitar! I got to see her set at a restaurant. She was incredible 
Prague’s Festival of Lights show 
Prague’s Festival of Lights show 
Me and Petrin Tower 
View from Petrin Tower on the lower level 
View from Petrin Tower on the top level of Prague 
View from Petrin Tower on the top level of Prague 
St. Peter and Paul Cathedral 
Beza and I from view on top of the Vyšehrad Fortress 
Beza! 😀 
The left is the fortress, the river is the Vltava 
The Vltava River 
Ari and I in Park Sarka 
Ari! 
We found a cave!
I’m headed to Italy this weekend with Ryan and Beza. It’ll be during our fall break, so I’ll be in Italy about six days. Lots of traveling, but it’ll be lots of fun. 🙂
From Portland to Prague 