"A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Czech Republic"

I'm beginning to wonder if I'm really cut out for traveling.  Looking back, I have yet to have a smooth traveling experience.  Anywhere.  I'm missing flights, or sleeping in airports, or pack to much, or not enough, or I just seem to forget how to keep my own two legs underneath me, or, on a really good day, all of the above.  It makes the whole endeavor so exhausting and usually all I want to go is find something hard to bang my head against.

Anyway, after Kara's time in Florence, she headed to Prague to see Allison and I set out to join them late Thursday night.  After catching the train, I made it to the airport and made it to the airport check in only to be informed that my flight left 30 minutes ago.  And my confirmation said that my flight was not supposed to leave for another 30 minutes.  I was bluntly told by the WONDERFUL man at the desk, that no, they could refund my flight or find another one for me for some dumb policy reason or another and the next flight that airline even offered to Prague was not until Saturday afternoon which would have been a really pointless move on my part.  It was late enough in the evening that everything was closed so there was no other airline to talk to about flights, so I was left with a choice: give up the weekend in Prague or camp out in the airport and hope to goodness that there is another option.

I had been able to get in touch with Allison and Kara and alert them to my situation and asked them to get in touch with my Mom and give her updates.  Upon deciding that I would camp-out in the airport, we decided that we would leave out that update (Sorry, Mom).  And I camped out.  For the record, backpacks don't actually make good pillows and there is no such thing as retaining body heat on marble floors.  Five o'clock finally rolled around and I made sure I was the first person at the ticket window.  They had a relatively cheap flight that left that day- at three in the afternoon.  I still had another ten hours to wait.  I hope my grandchildren realize how much patience it took to procure these stories for them.  I'll leave it at that.

When I finally landed, I encountered another first.  This was first time to be on my own in a country where I didn't have any familiarity with the language.  I didn't even know how to say 'yes' in Czech.  Heck, I couldn't even pronounce the language if I tried.  By some minor miracle, I made it to the correct bus and found the correct stop where Allison and Kara found me and presented me a lovely flower to make up for my oh so exciting trip.  I cannot even begin to explain my relief and exhaustion.

Does the bottle look familiar?  

After dinner, we went to go see the Prague Castle at night.  Castles, I've learned, are actually compounds made up of different administration buildings for the government.  There's a surprising lack of fairy tales castles hanging around in Europe.  Bummer.  The spires you can see throughout the city at the castle are actually the church spires from the church within the compound.  It's beautiful, especially at night, though it's a shame we couldn't go see the inside of the church and even more of a shame that I forgot the battery to my camera, which I had left in Allison's apartment.

Prague Castle

Since I had arrived, Allison had been going on about a surprise that she had planned for Kara and I.  After seeing the castle, Allison took us to the Lennon Wall.  When the Communist government was still in place, students would come to this wall outside of the government headquarters and paint Beatles lyrics and other words and images of peace on the wall.  Each day the wall would be painted white again and each night, the students would return and graffiti the wall.  The government finally let the wall be and people still come to it and leave behind their own words of hope.  Naturally, we all went nuts.  I made sure to cover all my bases and leave behind something for all the different things I care about- the Rockhurst "R," my family name, OLOG, the name of the camp I work at, I.H.S., a A.L.A.M. and a ladybug for my sorority, and the word 'joy.'  We spent quite a bit of time there and ended up in a few passerby's pictures because of our work.  Who knows how long what we left behind will last until it is covered by someone else's work, but a little piece of each of our hearts are there on that wall, joined with so many others.  Just as it should be.

From there, we went to a local bar to try the local cider that is very popular for the time of year.  We didn't stay long, but enjoyed taking notes of the differences of this bar and bars back home.  I honestly feel that Europeans got the bar scene right and we could take some good cues from them.  The fact that the bar is calm enough for people to bring their dogs in while they enjoy a drink says it all.

Kara had to leave the following morning, so we said our good-byes early and we escorted her to the bus stop to head home.  Once Kara was safely on, Allison and I set out to see the city.  We started on the main city square.  Prague's beauty cannot be described.  It's just quaint and lovely and you feel at home immediately.  It was considerably cooler than Florence, but the chilly fall weather just seemed to add to the experience.

While wandering around the city center, we stumbled across an art exhibit.  While I had no idea what was going on, Allison immediately knew who it was and what it was all about.  I found it a little strange to be honest.  One of the pieces we found was an aquarium that held the body of Saddam Hussein with the noose around his neck.  I was a little freaked.  I think of the Communist regime has really left the Czechs scarred.  Yikes.

We then made our way up to a major church that has a nice overlook of the city.  It was simply stunning there.

We made our intentions clear that we simply wanted to sit and be and take in the day, but that wasn't in the cards.  We received a call a few minutes after reaching the top of the hill from Kara's mother.  Her flight had unexpectedly been cancelled and she would not be leaving until tomorrow morning.  We did a quick tour of the park there and peeked into the church and I saw another wedding (I've bumped into a lot of wedding parties during my time in Europe.  I think I'm on number eleven.) then we headed down the hill to catch a tram to meet Kara.

Kara had been so ready to get back to school as much as she loved Europe.  We decided that the evening should just be a chill girls' night.  We cuddled up on the futon and attempted to watch some Grey's Anatomy and then went to dinner and feasted on some wonderful Czech food.  The Czechs are very hearty eaters and I found them to be diners after my own heart.  It was wonderful to have this last delicious and wonderful meal together.

Kara and I both left the following morning and, thankfully, everything going home went smoothly.  I was going to panic otherwise.  I had midterms that upcoming week and those could not be missed.

Though I may not be the best traveler, or really even a good traveler, I hope that I never stop traveling.  I've seen so many wonderful things and learned so much about the world.  Each history is so complex and so rich.  Each group of people I have encountered take such pride in all that they stand for and where they have come from.  It's crazy to think that I ignored it all so easily before.  After seeing and feeling and experiencing all the I have, I have no choice but to step out of my comfort zone, but that's the only way I've ever gotten anywhere.  And leaving behind that comfort zone sure does feel good, even if it means a night on the airport floor.

Hoping that you can step out of your comfort zone without sleeping on an airport floor,
Sam

** Credit for this post's title goes to Karen Gormley