Prague!

What a wonderful weekend I had in Prague! Lindsay, Rikki and I took the first bus from Plaza Catalunya to the airport at a little past 5 a.m. Everything at the airport went perfectly smoothly--I hope it will stay that way for the rest of my trip! When we arrived at the airport in Prague, however, I found that my Spanish phone was not working. It is supposed to work internationally, and I was counting on it because all Becca and I had planned was to call each other and meet somewhere in the airport. I had written down her address, but had no idea of how to use the metro station or how to get in contact with her at all. Just when I started to really freak out, I saw her beautiful face and all was well again! She helped point Rikki and Lindsay in the right direction to meet their respective friends and then she and I went to meet a bunch of her friends for brunch. They were all really sweet and we had a great time. After brunch, Becca and I went to the Old Town Square and got delicious chocolate and biscuit crepes. They rival the strawberry and nutella ones I get here.

After that, Becca had her last four hours of intensive Czech language, so I got to meet up with Julie , who is also studying in Prague. We wanted to take a tour of the Jewish synagogues, but the tours were over for the day so we just bought tickets and walked around on our own. I actually found it comforting to be around Hebrew. I really haven't seen any of it in Barcelona. After seeing three of the synagogues and the graves, we went back to Julie's apartment for a bit and I got to meet her roommates. She had plans to go to the opera that night, so she walked me back to Old Town Square where I waited for Becca to get out of class. I was on my own for about half an hour and really had a moment by myself just taking in the beauty of Prague and realizing that these types of experiences are why I came abroad. Prague is breathtakingly, stunningly beautiful and I stood there looking around in awe. The first picture I posted is of Old Town Square at night.

That night, we went out to a club called Laverna, which has 80 and 90s music dance parties on Friday nights. It was fun. I don't think I've done the macarena since bar and bat mitzvahs!

Saturday morning we got up pretty early and went with Becca's best friend from home, Alex, to look for bagels. There are no bagels in Barcelona!! We wanted to eat at a place called Bohemia Bagel, but it was absolutely packed so we settled on a smaller place around the corner. After bagels, we headed across the Charles Bridge and onto the John Lennon wall. The wall is definitely a sight to see. I posted a picture of Becca and I in front of it at the top of the blog. After the wall, we went to the castle. It was beautiful but freezing. For dinner that night I had goulash, which is veal in a tomatey sauce with bread dumplings. Typical Czech food and delicious. We decided to have a more chill night, so we went to this small, authentic billiards bar nearby Becca's dorm and hung out, talked and played a really fun game called Nelson with a few of her good friends.

It is easy to imagine a lot of the historical events that took place in Prague because the city is so strikingly different. I obviously know I am abroad in Barcelona, but in Prague it really hits you. While Spanish is still hard for me, Czech is impossible! Not one word is identifiable. I was also not a fan of the snow or cold in Prague, but it should definitely warm up. I couldn't believe Becca and her friends were happy with the weather, but I guess compared to the freezing snow they had last week, it was better already!

Becca's friends were all really sweet and I thought it was great that they are all in the same dorm building. It felt like freshman year again! I definitely do prefer living in an apartment over a dorm, but I also feel really isolated at times. If I could go back again, I would definitely have picked a smaller study abroad program and would really consider living in a dorm. It is a great way to meet people and it is very social.

All in all, I had a great time with Becca and Julie. I am so grateful to Becca for taking me in and being such a great host. It is so nice to see familiar faces. Lucky for me, I am off to London on Thursday!

Yesterday, I got to have coffee with a girl named Denisse, who is in one of my business classes. She is from Mexico and is fluent in Spanish and I asked her if she would like to get together to practice Spanish and English. She happily agreed and it was great. She was very patient with me and really forced me to use Spanish. We set a once a week date on Mondays after class and I am so glad.

I also start my volunteering tomorrow. Wish me luck! I'm a little nervous, but I will just do my best.