Caitlin

My Praktikum in Germany
2002-08-27 09:06:30 (UTC)

Prague (Updated!)

Because we got in to Prague at almost eight in the evening,
we just stayed home for the evening, and enjoyed spending
time with the family. Because of stomach surgery, Uncle
Bora rested on the couch while we sat at the table talking
and snacking on Vida (the housekeeper's) cooking and
baking. Little Tara, who is nine years old now, wasn't shy
at all, and was very excited to see all of her cousins.

The next day, Dana, her boyfriend Alexander, Holly, Lena and I all
went downtown to look around and do a little shopping. Because of
the flood, there were a total of four subway stations open, and we
were so lucky that the one right by their house was open. So we
jumped in, and took it to the center of the city, which was as far as
the subway went, before it had to turn around because of the flooding
in the stations. And because of the irregular schedules, all of the
public transportation was free!!

(I'm really running behind on my diary entries, so I'm gonna just
give a summary of the trip, so I can get back on track).

Carolyn had a closet full of her sample clothes from work, so I got
to pick out stuff, and was lucky to find a Lord & Taylor suit that
fit me perfectly... additionally, I found a skirt and a dress.

Tara and I went swimming on two of the afternoons, and we had a great
time playing games in the pool. I taught her how to push from the
wall and glide through the water, and she proved to be a quick
learner.

Because the fruit trees in the yard were producing so many plums and
apples, each day, someone had to go out and pick a whole bag of fruit
(mostly the plums). Tara would climb up into the tree and shake it,
and then she hopped down and we filled the bag with the ripe (but NOT
rotten) plums. When we had filled the bag, we brought it inside to
Vida, who made so many different foods with it... plum cakes, plum
jam, plum pie, breaded plums, etc etc... That was quite a bit of
plums!!

Tara also played piano for us, and Dana encouraged her to play one of
her harder songs. She did beautifully, and we all got a couple of
pictures of her playing. The moment she finished, she ran from the
piano, and buried her head behind Dana, held her hands over her ears,
and refused to look at anyone. Apparently, she was embarrassed, and
didn't want to hear us clapping for her. She's adorable!

On Friday night, Lena, Holly and I went out to a club called Radost
FX. It's supposed to be one of the most famous clubs in Prague, and
although it was nice, I didn't see what was so special about it. We
all had fun dancing, and the music wasn't bad at all. (Dana had a
headache, and didn't want to come out).

On Saturday night, Dana, Lena, Holly and I went out for dinner in
celebration of my coming up birthday. Carolyn and Bora had given us
the money for the meal, but because Carolyn had left to Hong Kong on
business and Bora was still recovering from his surgery, it was the
four of us. Alexander might have come along, but then suddenly
realized that the water polo semifinals were on that night, and he
just HAD to watch it with Bora. Serbia is still in the running, and
the Serbs are very excited about it. (Serbia beat the US 9-3
recently). Anyways, Alexander wouldn't have understood much at
dinner anyway. His English is decent, but he is relatively shy to
speak it.

So we four girls went out to dinner at an Italian restaurant with
Yugoslav waiters. It was so much fun, because even though it was one
of the best restaurants in Prague, the meals cost between $4-9. We
tried so many different things, and spent the time talking and
laughing. It was by far the most enjoyable night in Prague!!

The next morning, we had to be on the train at 6:30 am. Soooo
early! But we made it, and the trip went so smoothly, that we were
back in Cologne by 4:00 pm. That was the trip!!




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