Even days with colds are fun!

Yesterday, something very important dawned on me: I have ENTIRELY too many identification cards here in Prague for a person of my (to be kind) somewhat absent-minded nature to be carrying around. Now, before anyone freaks out, I have NOT lost anything. I haven’t forgotten a vital card at home when I needed it most. Not yet. But it’s going to happen-I just know it- and it’s going to happen when I least expect it. If you’re skeptical, or think that I am, perhaps, exaggerating my identification dilemma, I will make a list to prove just how dire my dilemma is. Actually, I’ll just list them all here anyway, so I can come back to this blog and use it as a checklist when I inevitably get that uneasy feeling in my stomach. I have a:

1. Passport
2. Driver’s license
3. Insurance card
4. ISIC Student card
5. CERGE student identification card, which I must have at all times to get into CERGE palace
6. Charles University ID card, which I must have on me for everything else Charles University related
7. Gym membership card, which I must produce every time I go to the gym
8. Transportation pass, which is checked by the police force on random days at random metro stops. I have already been checked once
9. University of Richmond ID. I should have left it at home. I do not need it. It’s in a suitcase right now so that I can’t lose it

And then there’s also my debit card, which is not exactly a traditional form of identification, but does have my name on it, AND is my sole source for ATM cash. Of course, I don’t take my actual passport anywhere, so that’s not really an issue. Same with numbers 2 and 3. It’s numbers 4 through 8 plus the debit card that are going to cause problems. Time to invest in a real wallet? I think yes.

Wednesday, I had my first real class since I’ve been in Prague! It was my 3-hour walking tour class through CERGE. We were all a little apprehensive about spending 3 hours outside in 30 degree weather, but it turned out not to be to bad at all. Granted, we only spent 2 hours outside this time, because the first hour was an introductory lecture by the professor. However, I think it’s going to be a great class. The theme on Wednesday was “How Statues Speak,” so Pavel, our professor, talked about the significance of some of the statues in Old Town and on and across the Charles Bridge. One easily recognizable figure that appears in many statues, for example, is St. John. Legend has it that when he was tossed from the Charles bridge after being tortured, five stars appeared in the sky as he hit the water. Therefore, many statues of St. John have a halo of 5 stars around their heads. The stars also appear elsewhere. On one fountain, they appear to be coming out with the water from a lady’s pitcher. We ended the tour by climbing many stairs to the top of a tower in Lesser Town. Long hike up, but there were excellent views of the city.

St. John and his 5 stars

5 stars on the water coming out of the pitcher

Only surviving arch from the first bridge across the river

One view from the tower

Another view with the river in the background

On the tower!

 We went to dinner at Radost a couple hours after the walking class, because it is so wonderful and Rhee-Soo and Pranadhi hadn’t been there yet! The original dinner group was six people, but we had a difficult finding seating for 6 at 7 on a Wednesday night. This was the case because restaurants in Prague don’t turn over tables like American restaurants (as in, a waiter will not offer you a check or make it seem like maybe it’ time to go). They will let you sit there for hours. It’s sort of nice, but not really very efficient. We did find a table for four, though, and in the interest of Rhee-Soo and Pranadhi getting to try the food there, we split up the dinner party. The food was fantastic, as usual.

Coca Cola Light! I love the bottles. None of that"Diet" mess, either.

Pranhadi and Michaela

Rhee-Soo and I

After dinner, Kate and Renee (the two girls I met at international orientation) came over to hang out at the apartment, and then we went to the Charles University International Club’s Welcome Party at a club right next to the Charles Bridge. It was literally jutting into the river. We had a great time, and I was quite proud of myself for using the tram system for the first time afterwards to get back to the apartment. I would have just used the metro, but it’s closed from 12 to 5, so it was not an option.

Thursday, I woke up with a cold, and spent most of the day choosing classes and trying to figure out a schedule for my classes at Charles. It took forever and a day because the class descriptions weren’t really in the same place as the class times, and the number of credits each class was worth was also not entirely obvious, and so on and so forth. BUT at the end of the day, I had a pretty decent selection of classes from which to draw.

Friday morning I still had a cold, but it was definitely better. I registered for classes at 10am and some of them filled up quickly, but for the most part this was not the case. I guess Charles University students aren’t as crazy-obsessed with picking out the perfect classes and best schedule as Richmond kids. No fear. I was there to represent in all my obsessive class-picking glory. I spent at least 2 hours pouring over the schedule, and worked out what I think is a great schedule. After nearly taking a class on the History of Poland that would have been taught in Czech (oops) and signing up for two back-to-back classes that were in buildings across the Charles Bridge from each other (oops), I have classes that I like and that are possible for me both understand AND attend. As soon as I’m sure about my schedule, I’ll write about it, but I don’t want to jinx anything (yeah, it’s that good).

Yesterday night I went out for dinner with Kyra, Jeannie, Kate, and Renee at a delicious Thai Place near the Charles Bridge called Lemon Leaf Thai. I got some sort of curry dish with vegetables and pine nuts. Perfection. After dinner, we got Michaela and went for drinks at a super cute cocktail bar a few blocks up Vinohradska, where Rhee-Soo met up with us! I guess super cute is not really the right description. More like… small and cozy with a hint of 70s themed décor. I got a Pacific, mostly because I wanted something blue. Kate got the Flying Kangaroo, so fitting (but she’s going to kill me for putting it online), and Jeannie got this great gin/cucumber/ginger drink that everyone else started ordering, and which I’ll apparently have to try next time.

Lemon Leaf

Lemon Leaf

Pacific!

Today, I will go to the gym. I have decided that I must find the motivation to trek to the gym here, because it is sort of far away and I have only been twice since I got my pass. Unacceptable. Therefore, I have decided to sign up for the Hervis Prague Half-Marathon! http://www.praguemarathon.com/en/2010/hervis-prague-half-marathon-10/hervis-prague-half-marathon/about-the-race. I’m doing it because it sounds fun, of course, but also because I figure that a long distance run looming in my immediate future ought to provide a little extra incentive to get to the gym. Jeannie might do it with me, which would be totally awesome. Half-marathon number three, here I come! Haha..