Hiiiiiii! I have been so busy with classes and Praha/European life for the past couple of weeks, which is why I haven’t updated in a while. But because it is a gloomy, rainy Sunday (which, might I add, are much more enjoyable over here), it’s the perfect time to update!
TONS of things have happened in the past two weeks, let’s see…
Classes started! I’m taking Marketing, Czech Art & Architecture, & Civil Resistance in Central & Eastern Europe Reflected in: Literature, Art, and Film (long title, I know). I’m only taking 12 credits this semester since 1) I’m in Europe, and 2) I have been taking 18 since freshmen year so might as well not make myself crazy over here. Classes are good so far! I only have class Tuesdays-Thursdays so I can’t complain. There’s a lot of reading for all of the classes, but I really don’t mind doing it since it doesn’t feel like work. Everything here just doesn’t feel real, it’s so surreal to the point that if I have to write an essay (which I was just doing before I started this), it’s more fun than annoying. My professors are awesome; they’re really chill, very smart, and understanding about us being here and wanting to travel, etc. One of my professors was the official student spokesperson for the Velvet Revolution in 1989 - this was the non-violent revolution that ended Communism - so it’s amazing having her teach us and hearing about her experiences. Having professors who have so many incredible life experiences makes going to class not too painful. NYU has been treating us extremely well; it’s very nice.
Last weekend, I went to Berlin! I had no expectations going into it so I was just looking forward to a nice, cool weekend exploring a new city. Berlin was absolutely incredible. I was blown away the entire time. From the architecture, to the history, to the Holocaust Memorial, to the Wall, to the free 4 hour tour - everything was amazing. The people were extremely nice (and way more attractive than the Czechs) and spoke perfect English. The shopping was also great. It was just the perfect weekend. However, it was weird - I didn’t feel like I was in another country. It felt a lot like America which was nice since Prague is just so…not anything like home.
We took an early bus on Friday morning that got us into Berlin around 13:00 (1pm). It’s only a 4.5 hour bus ride, but it ended up being a little more than 5 hours due to weather. When we got to Berlin, we took a cab to our hostel, threw our stuff down, and then just hit the town. We were starving so obviously food was the only thing we wanted. So of course, we hit up California Burrito. Now I know what you’re thinking: “They’re in GERMANY, why are they eating BURRITOS?” Well, let me tell you why: because they looked SO GOOD and in Prague they have German-like food so might as well just eat something that we can’t get there. After lunch, we started walking. We had no idea where we were going or what we wanted to do, but we did know that we wanted to see as much as possible. Our first day we walked around 6 hours, got dinner, and then crashed. The next morning we woke up bright and early and went on a free 4 hour walking tour that we were a little skeptical about, but it was absolutely amazing. Our tour guide was awesome and took us everywhere. After the tour, we walked another 5 or 6 hours to see more things. Oh, and we got crepes. So. Good. Banana Nutella mmmnomnomnom. Anyway, We literally saw EVERYTHING. I don’t know what more we could have seen or done. The things we did in roughly 2 days is what people probably do in a full week of vacation. I would love to go back someday.
Last time I wrote, I said I was going to Oktoberfest on the 24th. That’s not happening anymore. It just got too complicated with trying to find a way to get back since we were going to do a day trip. I would rather spend the money on another trip than run around a beer festival all day. Sooooo I’m going to Krakow! I am so so so excited. We’re taking an overnight train Thursday night that gets us in at 7am on Friday. It’s a 10 hour train ride so I’m going to die but it will be worth it. We’re planning on going to Auschwitz on Saturday which will be extremely emotional, but unforgettable.
Fall Break: Booked! Leaving for Milan on Thursday, November 10th, going to Florence the 11th to the 14th, Rome until the 16th, and then London until the 20th. Looking forward to it!
All of my trips have officially been booked, except for one last trip the first weekend of December. Trying to think of the perfect place to go for our last trip…Portugal, Romania (it would be epic), Greece, and Belgium have been brought up as options, but of course no decisions have been made. There are so few weekends to do everything we want to!
It’s almost been one month since I’ve been here, but it feels like a lifetime. It’s everything I wanted for a study abroad experience, and much, much, much, more. Picking Prague was definitely the perfect choice since it is completely different from New York in the sense that it’s small and cute and so central to everywhere for traveling purposes. Like I said before, Berlin was really great, but coming back to Prague was so nice. It felt like going back home.
I’ll try to update more. Hope you’re all having great semesters, whether it be in America, Europe, or somewhere else in the world.
xx.
