Prague - Days 3 & 4: The Final Installment

(Sounds like a dramatic title, eh?)

Here it is: The final installment in the trilogy that is my trip to Prague. Thanks so much for staying with me through each written step... or, if you are just joining us, you can read the other two installments within the two entries before this one.

Day three in Prague was a good one, and had some of my favorite moments in Prague. My only complaint? It seemed to get chillier and cloudier with each day we were there. Boo. I wish there had been more sun to capture better light in pictures and just add more warmth... but it was still good. (I also wish I had brought my non-wool jacket - just a side-note there...) If that is my only complaint, I think Prague treated us pretty well. It didn't rain at all while I was there, so... there you go.


As we started the day, we decided to tackle the "nature area" or Prague and do the little hike up to the observtation tower. We caught the metro over to that side of town and somehow missed the moment we crossed the river... Ben realized we were too far from our mark and pointed to where we were on the map. I'll admit, I thought he was WAY off, until I saw the street sign. Haha! I thought I was being quite attentive, but we crossed the river at some point, and we both don't have any recollection of doing so on the metro... ever. Haha! Anyway, we got turned back around, figured it out, and got to the bass of the hillside. We must have been more tired than we thought... Hm. Haha!

So, we began the slight ascent to the top and found ourselves surrounded by the forest trees, all beginning to change color and catch the essence of Fall. Glorious. I really could bask in changing leaves year-round if there was a place that this occurred. Even here in Germany leaves are changing like crazy and I'm in love with it. Everywhere I ride my bike, I breath in Fall and visually drink in the colors... There's something about the crisp chill and jumping in a pile of leaves. I can't explain why I love it SO much, but I have been looking forward to living in Bonn during this time of year ALL year. It's sheer beauty...

Back to Prague.

So, we hiked up the mini- mountain side to a citadel (In my head, I was singing Anna Nalick's song the whole way up... "I'm sittin' on a citadel..." Classic.), walked around the "ruins" and up to a little monastery and the observation tower. We got some great shots walking around and I didn't really care about going up... so we continued on. We walked around up there, and stopped to ask where Strahov Monastery was, to which the guy replied, "Which one? There are a lot of them here!" It's true. A lot. We finally stumbled onto this Monastery that's suppose to be cool, but it was closed, so we moved on. Haha! I felt like that whole morning was a lot of, "There it is. Moving on." Haha! It wasn't a bad thing at all, but it ended up being stuff I didn't really care about or it was closed... so I went with it. We stopped about the vineyards and took some pictures and then walked down through this touristy part of that city-side.

When we got to the base, we were over in "Lesser Town," were we stopped so Ben could check email and I could write my journal notes. It was a good little break... We headed to get lunch and for the life of me, I can't recall where or what we ate, but oh well... This isn't about a menu recall... I think we got brawts that day, but I don't think I ate two of them, so I must not have eaten one the day before. It's bugging me that I can't remember! Haha... I'm getting old, I suppose... I mean, I will be 25 in a month. Hello, Quarter Century Club! Bring it on... :)

We hit up a post office to mail off our postcards (I had to wait till the next day to get some addresses) and then headed back up by the castle to see the Picture Gallery. Actually, we were heading to the National Gallery to see their art, but the Picture Gallery up there was free after 4pm and the National Gallery was pricey for having virtually no advertisement and marketing promoting it... sketchy. It was actually bizarre, but there didn't seem to be a lot of art places to go to. We asked the lady at the hot dog stand and she kept sending us to the National Museum, which is not art. Haha! It was a funny moment actually...

We headed to the Picture Gallery, but it wasn't quite 4pm (when it's free.99) so we walked up and around the castle area. It's kinda cool up there... reminds me of an old city's main-street with more pastel colors on the buildings. We also stumbled across a poster for the Museum of Communism... We didn't go, but as you can see on the side, the promotion for the museum was pretty classic. Perhaps it was a missed opportunity and we should have gone there instead? Next time, readers.

We finally made it back to the Picture Gallery and it was pretty bland and unexciting. I could recall a few paintings a saw, but they aren't anything overwhelmingly exciting. As we were discussing this in the gallery, I noticed I really like Greek Mythology and art surrounded around the myths and Gods. I noticed that I really like modern art, but not really contemporary art. I hate it when people try and do something SO different that it's disturbing or just SO out there that it's ineffective. In my eyes, those exhibits merely contribute to the artists ego or are WAY too far-reaching. I'm reminded of the two exhibits in the National Gallery in Copenhagen... Blech. They were not my thing.

I WILL place a disclaimer here, because I believe strongly in free expression, the right to do so, and that one can find worth in beauty in all art... but I don't have to like or appreciate it all.

After the gallery, we headed back toward our hostel and found a little cafe on the way to sit and drink cocoa and visit before Ben's plane took off that evening - I stayed an extra day. It was nice, chill.... We certainly drank our share of Czechoslovakian cocoa. One place literally gave us chocolate soup! Haha... It was good, but we couldn't drink the whole thing and wondered how it go SO thick. Ben's guess was flour. My guess was NOT flour. :)

Ben left to catch his flight and I was left with the evening and final day to myself! Now, I could have gone to try and catch a "Black Light Theater" show or a ballet performance, but in all honesty, I was exhausted. Haha! I don't know why, but I just craved the chance to read. I know... The social butterfly. The party animal. The center of every event, constantly on the go... She just wanted to READ?! Yep. I had checked out a new book from the library and wanted to get into it. So, I checked my email for the first time on the trip and emailed my family and best friends - got their addresses to send the postcards - and then headed up to take a shower and read my book... It was fabulous. I read half of the book that evening and had the room all to myself the entire night.

The next day I relived some of my favorite places in Prague. I could be really detailed, but I simply don't feel like recounting each step of the way. However, I WILL tell you some of my favorite moments... :)

- Eating some AMAZING apple strudel in Wenceslas Square and writing songs while I did so... I wrote a new song that I am SO proud of! The lyrics are inventive and the theme is creative enough for a pop/indie song... I also wrote some poetry and basked in the process. I love writing.

- Watching the Asian photo-shoot right outside of the window I sat by. There was this adorable Asian couple with a giant camera who were sitting and sipping their beers while they took photos of one another, their rings, their chairs, the birds, the buildings, their beer glasses, and the classic together snap-shots. It was just funny watching them get excited over certain shots and pull out the "bummer" face for photos that didn't quite meet the mark. I really enjoy people watching.

- Walking along St. Charles Bridge where all the little musicians were playing for coins, and this jolly, old man on a tour with his wife was dancing and singing along to "As the Saints Go Marching In..." It was SO cute! He was just bouncing along to the music and his wife was bluntly rolling her eyes at him, but this little smile was playing at the corner of her lips... I hope one day, when my husband is being a little awkward or funny, I just roll my eyes and give him a side-smile. Perfection.

- Seeing a huge Protest in Wenceslas Square where they all blew whistles and and walked through the city with the police surrounding them... a few holding sounds. It was just cool to see... I like seeing moments where people are using their freedom of speech within other countries. I like freedom, and seeing others access their own.

- Searching for 45 minutes for the John Lennon Wall and not finding it, but stumbling across other great parts of the city and water-side lookouts. Now before you say, "Linze, how did you miss it?" I used a map and asked people... It doesn't exist anymore. Okay, it does... but no one else seemed to be able to see it either.




I had to catch that train that evening right after six, so I grabbed apples and yogurt, go on board and read until I fell asleep in my compartment - I got the top bed on the train which was awesome, but my experience coming back to Koln and Bonn was actually not as pleasant as the way to Prague. The compartment was my own until right before I went to sleep and a young man from Australia joined me. He was chill and very nice... easy to share with. However, right after 1am we were joined by some others who were all ridiculously loud and rude. They turned on the main light and just were talking SO loudly... I finally asked them to be quite, but they wouldn't shut up. I just kept saying, "Be Christ-like" in my head. The guy across from me on the top was trying to help me out with asking them to be quite, but it was to no avail... Haha!

I got a few hours of sleep though and was able to catch some more Zzz's when I got back to Bonn, so it was fine. It didn't ruin my journey to Prague! It's a city I would re-visit, and plan to do so someday... Love it.

There you have it. That was my Prague experience, and next time you hear of an "exotic adventure," it will be.... The French Riviera. Yep... in one week. YES.
*muah*

Sidenote: Apparently the musical we saw, Baron Prasil was a movie from 1961 made into a musical, and is REALLY quite big in Czechoslovakia! Wow - who'da thunk? Click on the title above for a video from the musical, with the people we saw!

Song of the Day: This was one of my favorite songs in fifth or sixth grade, and Glee just re-did it for an episode. I actually like the Glee version better, so... here it is - One of Us by The Glee Cast (originally, Joan Osburn). The video with Glee is below and then the whole song version is below it - you should watch the first, listen to the second. Just sayin'. Listen to the words - watch the original music video - embrace it. Enjoy!

Prague - Day Two in Czechoslovakia!

In the mood for Jewish Synagogues, old cathedral grounds, city-line views, natural history museums, and the best crepes ever? Oh, then you're ready for my "Day Two: A Journey Through Prague" adventure. You didn't even know it was called that, huh? Yep. That's cause I just named it that. Boo-yah.

First, let me remind the readers that if you did not watch the video of my "song of the day" on the last entry, that contains pictures from Day One in Prague.

Sunday morning we woke up, felt a bit religious, and decided to revel in the Jewish Quarter for the morning. I had read online that this was the best thing to see in all of Prague. It's an area with five famous, Jewish synagogues and an incredible graveyard. If I'm being completely honest, my experience there was not at all what I thought it would be. I was expecting to see and read things more on the educational side, dealing with WWII or the Holocaust. However, this was more of Jewish stuff and basics to how their religion worked. I already know a lot of what I read in each place, but some of it was cool to see. It simply became a bit overwhelming part way through, and I wondered if sometimes that's how people who visit Utah and are not LDS feel when they see so many Mormon sights.

Growing up in Phillie, we learned a lot about the Jewish culture in school. In order to sing Christmas songs, we had to also sing Hanukkah songs - Example, "Dreidel, Dreidel, Dreidel." I thought it was interesting that when I asked Ben (grew up in Idaho) if he had to do the same thing, he said no. I wonder what places and states in the country teach things regarding other holidays outside of Christianity... Interesting thought.

The coolest parts of the entire area were the Spanish Synagogue (because it was SO beautiful!) and the cemetery. The cemetery was established in the 15th century, burying over 12,000 bodies there. They say OVER 12,000 because that's how many tombstones are present, but there were many more buried there. Over time they built new layers of earth on top of the old one and buried people over the other grave sights. There was no evidence of a bone yard somewhere else either. Thus, there are a TON of bodies buried there, and sidewalk through the area is like two to three feet below certain points of the cemetery's burial grounds. It's just a really cool thing to see... Plus, I am weird and I really like cemeteries. I could spend hours in Arlington's cemetery, and when I was a kid in Phillie I use to hang out with my friend Janelle at the graveyard by her house every other day. I know, weird, but it is what it is.


After having our fill of Jewish culture and rituals, we headed off to find the metro and head to Vysehrad. There, we walked around the park, went through another cemetery (we found a Christus there!) and the cloisters, saw St. Martin's Rotundra, peaked into St. Paul & Peter's church (which was closed), and headed back into town via the "New Town" area. Let me just say, New Town was my least favorite part of Prague. Haha! That will be all on that. The park around Vysehrad was actually really chill and nice, but the view from the castle the previous day was far more impressive... so we left feeling slightly lackluster. However, we did get to see some random guy shooting a music video and singing sexually awkward songs for an audience of three - his taping crew.


Sidenote: On the way back into the main parts of Prague, we saw an apple tree and thought, "Those look good." So, I hoisted Ben up, and we knocked down a good apple. However, we had to go up a bit to get the good ones... It reminded me of this quote:

"Girls are like apples. The best ones are at the top of the trees. The boys don't want to reach for the good ones because they are afraid of falling and getting hurt. Instead, they just get the rotten apples that are on the ground that aren't as good, but easy. So the apples at the top think there is something wrong with them, when, in reality, they are amazing. They just have to wait for the right boy to come along, the one who's brave enough to climb all the way to the top of the tree...”

Just sayin'... :)

After we got into New Town area was made our way back toward Wenceslas Square to find a little coffee shop and get some hot cocoa. First, however, Ben was kind enough to notice my feet were in dire need of different shoes. See, I had taken flats with me that I thought would be fine, but were only a week old. They ended up cutting into my pinkie toes after all the walking the day before, and I was taking them off and walking in socks most of the morning. I kept saying, "Yea, they hurt a bit, but they'll be okay." Ben made me buy new shoes. Okay... my stupid decision to bring those flats led me to it, but yea... We found some shopping places open in that area and I found some fairly inexpensive, cheap, checkered kicks that felt great. We also stopped and picked up band-aids, so I was in great shape after that!

We found a little cafe on the corner of Wenceslas Square, got some hot cocoa, and wrote our postcards while listening to the Top 40 Dance Jams on Czechoslovakian MTV. Classic. It was relaxing and refreshing... The perfect break.

We headed out to grab some real food - disgustingly greasy, but good brawts from a street-vendor in the middle of the square. Then, we headed to the National Museum to look at Natural History stuff - aka: animals, fossils, bones, statues, and lots rocks. It was HUGE! The building had a lot to see on the top floor, but I'm not sure what the other floors really hold because we took forever getting around the top floor and part of the second before it was time to go. It seemed like other museums I have been too and a little out-dated, but it was fine. I saw some cool things, learned a few now things, and moved on. Haha!

After walking around for a bit more, we planned out our evening by deciding to find somewhere nice for dinner... We stumbled across a few different options, but settled on "The Meating Point," a restaurant attatched to a hotel. We sat, visited, and had the most AMAZING spinach and chicken crepes of my life. I'm not even huge into spinach... It has to be cooked the right way, but it sounded good... So, I got it. Man, did I make the right decision or what? I made the right decision.

I must also add that as we talked over dinner, I found myself re-evaluating myself in many ways. It sounds weird, but when I have good conversation and get to know someone, I often think about the things that they have accomplished and the things I have... and like to think about where I can improve. I decided that I don't spend enough time doing the things I've always wanted to learn to do outside of my occupational area. For example, I have always wanted to take a photography class and work on my camera skills. I have never done it... but it's a skill I could gain if I added in a class once or twice a week after work. When I get back to that states, that's going to happen. There are other things I could work on more too. I've always wanted to play the piano better and learn guitar, so I'm determined to tackle those. I'm consigned to the fact that I will never be an visual artist (like painting or drawing), but I think trying out pottery would be cool. I don't do enough to cultivate myself aside from music, film, and events... I wanna do more to help me grow in different areas.

After dinner, we headed back to the hostel to shower and get ready for bed... It was a good day. I felt a bit like our plans didn't go "as planned" because things ended up being different than what was expected, but I was chill about it all.

Day Three and Four? Expect a post tomorrow! :)
*muah*

Song of the Day: I listened to this song about 12 times this evening... It just kept grabbing me. What can I say? I'm in the mood to move and shake today... everyday. Here is Stephen Jerzak feat. Leighton Meester singing, She Said. Classic. Enjoy!

Prague - It's in the Czech Republic.

Prague... Oh, Prague. What can I say against thee? Though thy streets made my feet ache, as my choice in shoes was not the most intelligent, and though your endless windows of Marionette dolls did cause me some amount of fear, I am at complete and utter contentment in my journey with you. I might even, dare I say it, love thee. Yes, I shall relinquish this feeling to all my joyful readers.

I, Linze, LOVE Prague.

I can just hear my Kindergarten nemesis saying, "If you love it so much, why don't you marry it?" in the background. Kid, I would if I could.

Okay, not really.

However, Prague really is one of my new loves when it comes to Europe. The city itself reminds me somewhat of Vienna or Salzburg (they were all under the same reign at one time), but more Eastern European. I can't say that it's not what I expected, cause I really didn't expect anything. As I said in the entry before, I did not know a whole lot about Prague before deciding to go. I've had so many wonderful friends tell me how beautiful it was, but I wasn't really expecting it to be so great. Certain cities in Europe have been cool to visit, but I have no desire to return. Example? Paris. *Gasp* Did she say, Paris? Why, yes. Yes, she did.

I loved the girls I met in Paris and loved seeing all the sights... It's an INCREDIBLE city. The art, the architecture, the food... It's breathtaking stuff. However, all the trash-lined streets, urine-smelling sidewalks, tricky and devious gypsies, creepy sexual advances... They kinda ruined the ambiance. It was a GREAT experience, and one I am grateful for, but I have no desire to return to the "city of amore." Perhaps I WILL return one day, but it's not a priority for me.

ANYWAY, this entry is NOT about Paris, but about Prague... Oh, how I love Prague. Haha!

I got to Prague via night-train and it was actually a good experience - I slept alright and it was fun to say I had tried it. The bummer was waking up and then having someone tell me we were delayed two hours. So, after fourteen hours on a train (rather than the twelve hours planned) I finally got to Prague, oder Praha! It took me a bit of time at the Hauptbahnhof there to figure out exactly how to buy a ticket for the public transportation so that I could get to my hostel. In reality, I could have easily walked to my hostel (no sweat) from there, because it was rather close. However, I finally figured things out, called Ben (my friend I was meeting there) and he directed me on how to get to the hostel. We checked in, got a map, looked at my list of places to see, and we were off!

We had walked for only a few minutes before I was singing the praises of the city, as was he.... The buildings are all fabulous and the colors... There are little castles and cathedrals throughout the entire city, and it's just got a good feel. Take it from this point of view... Ben claims to be a person who took 24 pictures total on his mission - obviously not a huge picture taker - and he took a good amount of photos on this trip. Yea - it's a pretty amazing city. Aside from the beauty, it's got a charged energy about it too... It's not fully explainable, but it's present.

So, we headed to the main square and took in Tyn Church & School, St. Nicholas Church, the Astronomical Clock, and the statue of Jan Hus. We even bought postcards and trdelnik -really good, wrapped sweet-bread. We walked the streets over to the castle and then followed a wedding party (one of MANY we saw there - I think "Destination Wedding" was too literal a term in regards to this place...) up some stairs, past the vineyards, and to a rather beautiful lookout of the city. We took a zillion and one photos before venturing onto the castle grounds. The "castle" itself is whole area, apparently. We saw St. Vitus's beautiful cathedral, and the castle grounds. Royalty and country politicians still live and work there to this day - it's a fully functional place.

We strolled the gardens and enjoyed stumbling onto random buildings, statues, a little waterfall, and cute bridge... It was just nice to wonder. I had my list of things to see, but wasn't even sure what they all were. Haha!

That afternoon we headed to grab a donner sandwich before heading into "Lesser Town" or "Little Town." It really isn't as glamorous as the main city streets with all their spires and grand buildings. (Sidenote: I just spelled "glamorous" by singing the Fergie song... Yea.) What is fabulous about "Little Town" is the little alleys that remind one of Italian alleyways and the colors on the building that make one recall their days strolling Downtown Disney. It's got a little quaintness to it all...

We walked along and randomly stumbled into the Church of Our Lady Victorious, which contains the "Infant Jesus of Prague." It's a small replica of the Christ child, adorned in rich clothing and jewels (green and gold), that sits in a case on the wall of the church's side-alter. It's really beautiful, but nothing overwhelming... nothing to search out, but it was nice to stumble across. I spent time later in the week trying to "stumble across" the Lennon Wall, but that didn't go as well... just sayin'.

We headed back toward the city center and decided that we'd hit up Wenceslas Square, grab something to drink, and decide on what to do with the evening. Now, I'm usually a big planner, right? I've got my trips pretty well down pat... This trip I was WAY more relaxed about everything... I had places written, but just went with it and saw the things on the list all in time - nothing specific. On most of my trips though, I have traveled alone... so I don't plan the evenings. It seems silly to some, I'm sure, but I like to be a bit over-cautious. In a city and country that I don't know, with languages I am unfamiliar, I figure it's best to be in at my hostel by the time it's grown dark. Thus, I am in by no later than 9pm usually if I am alone. So, when Ben turned and asked, "What do we wanna do tonight?" I hadn't actually considered it an option till I was already on the train to get there... I LOVE seeing a city at night though, so it's perfect!

We decided on a Czech music show at a local opera house/theater, followed by hittin' up St. Charles' Bridge for some night-shots. We headed to the theater, found someone who spoke Czech (Ben speaks Russian, so he was stumbling through some basic Czech, but the lady wasn't havin' his attempts...), secured tickets, and headed inside right away, as the show was about to begin. We were quickly ushered in the doors and some random man jumped in front of us, shouting, "Quick picture! Quick picture!" I flashed a cheesy grin, knowing they were craving more money for a photo we could take (I'm obviously not big on that gig.), and then we rushed to grab our seats. We were near the very back, and as the show started we realized that it was not what we imagined...

We were at a Czechoslovakian musical. You read that right. A Czechoslovakian MUSICAL.

As they begin to speak, I started to laugh, realizing we weren't going to get any of this... Ben was smart and checked for subtitles... They were there, but we were sitting too far back to see them... So, we moved up. Security in those places was nothing... In fact, I took pictures (Yes, the man is flying on a giant, bird foot... No, I still don't know why.). Why, you ask? Because no one would believe me if I told them about this crazy production... The plot took forever to develop, but once it did, a fairly predictable and typical ending ensued. However, the steps to get to that ending were all over the place! Some of the voices were good, others rather raw, and the translation between languages HAD to be a bit off. We were laughing through a good deal of the show over translation errors (I hope) and because we couldn't really believe we'd stumbled across this show. Visually, the show was a 10. The sets and costumes were great, and there was SO much to take in through the eyes... I mean, this show was all about spectacle.

Sidenote: Aristotle's Six Principles of Tragedy are as follows: Plot, Character, Thought, Diction Musical, Spectacle. I can still see my teacher, Miss Jones, dancing across the stage to help us remember these in order... I still do. Classic. Anyway, I (along with many others) have adapted this theory amidst all our intake of acted art. Whenever I see a musical, television show, drama, film, etc. I think "What importance does each of these six principles play in the piece?" I can already tell you that shows like The Office or Modern Family - two of my favorites - are more character driven than plot driven. I think this kind of humor is popular right now... It's always had a significant presence in sit-coms, but it's stronger today.

Why am I telling this lovely "sidenote?" Because the Czech musical we saw was mostly spectacle... and when that's the main thing driving it, it says something significant about it not being a very strong musical. Surprisingly, I enjoyed it a lot! It's nothing I'd purchase the music for, or go to again and again... but it was fun! We really did spend most of the time laughing and joking about the craziness of everything that was going on, but that just made it all the better. So, if you're ever in Prague and need something to do at night for under 10-15Euro, and you want a laugh, go see the Baron Parsil!

Sidenotes: They totally broke into Mamma Mia's "Money, Money, Money" song in the middle of the second half - NO JOKE. They stole the song and changed it to be in an Indian style. Second, they all clap in UNISON at the end of the show! No joke here either... Curtain calls start off scattered, and get on a beat! It's a weird feeling. I tried to break it a few times and got some abrasive glances shot in my direction. Bizarre! Haha...

We over toward St. Charles' Bridge after the show was through, but ended up taking the long route somehow and walked along the waterside. It was nice and not too busy... perfection on a Fall evening. We stumbled onto the corner where the Dancing House along the way, so we stole some pictures at night... It looks much cooler at night. We got to the bridge, snapped some night-shots and then headed back to the hostel via the main square and tourist shopping areas, stopping for gelato on the way. Somehow, we chose the most expensive gelato place out of all of them too! Boo. I was content to believe that ours must have tasted dramatically better than the others or something... Haha! Either that or I must resign that we're just stupid... Yea, ours tasted better.

That was day one... More on Prague, tomorrow. The SONG OF THE DAY has a picture slide show of Prague with it! :)
*muah*

P.S. Before I got on the train there, I dyed my hair.... DARK. Hm.... New me? For now!

Song of the Day: A current favorite off of the new (YES. NEW.) David Archuleta CD is Stompin' the Roses. It's so realtable to things in my life right now... a little TOO much, actually. Haha! SO, here you are - Enjoy! :)

Finally Fall!!!!!

A ghost and a chicken met on the street. The chicken said, "Do you have a telephone? I lost mine." The ghost said, "BOO!" and the chicken fell over, unconscious, and lost all his feathers.

That was Nico's Halloween joke. He made it up. He looked at me after he had told it and asked, "Why are you not laughing?" In return, that made me laugh and all was right with Nico. Haha!

Fall has officially started!!! I suppose the official day it started has come and past by me, but this week it was not only chilled that way I expect and love Fall to be, but the leaves are really starting to change their color and flutter to the ground... beautiful. I was waiting to "officially announce Fall," because that means it's official worldwide or something (?), and today the moment happened...

I was riding my bike through the streets of Bad Godesberg and the Fall wind lightly blew a little whirl of leaves up from the ground and around my feet. Simultaneously, the wind gently shook the trees above me and a few leaves came tumbling toward the sidewalk. Fall is finally here.

It's beautiful.

So, in honor of Fall and it's beauty (and because I can), I am going to celebrate with a four-day trip to Prague! That's in the Czech Republic in case any of you were wondering... and I know some of you were.

I didn't know much about Prague when I decided a few weeks ago that I wanted to go there - I did know it was in the Czech Republic. However, over the past few days, pouring over website and friends suggestions on what to see and do while there, I have grown ultra excited. I also stumbled across a blog by someone who is living there, and they posted pictures of the changing colors there... and officially announced Fall. That's when I determined this was a Fall Celebration trip! :) Get ready for the mass amount of picture I shall be posting next week of this beautiful city...

Also, I'm taking a night train! I have been on a hundred plus trains while I have lived here, but I have never ridden a night train... I'll be sleeping in a pull-out-of-the-wall cot, and staying in the same train for 11 hours. Crazy. It's great though because I'm getting to a city while SLEEPING IN A BED. It's sheer beauty in my mind. We'll see if I still believe this after I have been on the train for 11 eleven hours...

Since I have no Prague pictures yet, I will merely take a shallow moment to discuss something other than a beautiful cities... beautiful men. Did I just type that? Yes. Yes, I did.

I have been watching my seasons of The West Wing (LOVE) and noticed how beautiful and attractive some of the older men are. That's when I realized something... The day has arrived. What day is this, you ask? The day that I am attracted to men who are old enough to be my father. Gross.

Now, before you think I'm some sort of grandpa-loving-creeper (I do love my grandpas, but not like that... I'm from Virginia - Not West Virginia), none of you can tell me you have never been diggin' on someone older on the golden screen, or in real life - that's a bit weird to me though. If the actual older (like OLDER) man was in front of me, the very thought of kissing him would gross me out - even if he is attractive... Too old = not gonna happen. When I say too old, I mean like over 40 years old. Yea.

Thought I would clear that up.

Anyway, I have complied a list of those men who I would classify as "older hotties..." Creepy yet? Sorry. It is what it is.

Robe Lowe - 46
Denzel Washington - 56
Matthew McConaughey - 41
Brad Pitt - 47
Tim Daly - 54
Pierce Brosnan - 57
Richard Gere - 61
Mark Harmon -59

HOTTEST?
Dean Cain - 44

Okay - that's done. You can click on any name for a delicious snap-shot. Yes, I just said delicious.

Until Prague.... Caio!
*muah*

Song of the Day: I am currently in love with the song Choose You by Stan Walker... LOVE! Enjoy!

Beethoven Gone WILD!

I pose a question to all of my fellow readers of this here blog... What could be better than water works, lasers, Beethoven and rock, and pop music, cold drinks from a birgarten station, projected pictures onto a "flat-screen" of water, and good friends/family all in the middle of city center in Bonn, Germany?

Okay. There are probably a few things better than that... Disneyland is pretty far up there - I think that trumps most things. I think that a few other things in life might trump this too... just a few... However, last night, it was pretty perfect.


Then, after last night I found out that it was going to take place every night for the next week. Score... I'm going again on Wednesday or Thursday. This week will be EPIC.
*muah*

P.S. I ate sushi for the third time in my life, and liked it for the first time... Score, again.

Song of the Day: Billionaire, by Travie McCoy Feat. Bruno Mars - Sorry for all who heard the "F Bomb" via the one posted last night. It's fixed now.

Live at Five: Nico & Finn

"I can run faster than a monkey." - Finn... out of nowhere.

"A little bleeding never hurt anyone. Well, it hurts, but... Yea." - Nico after falling and scraping his knee outside the aquarium. He acted like SUCH a big boy that day - no tears or anything!

"Want a tie?" - Linze
"No. I'm not a missionary yet." - Finn

I was reading scriptures with Nico and as I read, I always take time to put the stories into simpler, children terms. We were reading in Alma's "War Chapters" and I was discussing the war strategy that Moroni used to sneak into a city when provisions were being passed through the gates to the Lamanites. I said, "It was kinda like they were shouting, 'I've got your food and your weapons!'" To this, Nico BURST out laughing, tapped my arm in an adult-like way and said, "Oh... 'I've got your food and your weapons!'... That was good. Thanks, Linze." Haha!

Finn was singing the ABC song and this was his version... "ABCDFHG, I'll meet you at the top of the coconut tree!"

"That would be cool if I would be a talking penguin." - Finn... again, out of nowhere.

"We aren't lego people. I'm sure glad we aren't... cause we couldn't move." - Nico

"I'm going to be a man, and you're going to be a woman." - Finn, on growing up.

I told Nico my mom was older than his mom and could no longer have children, to which he responded: "Why? She doesn't have breast anymore?"

"Nico, where do you learn all these things?" -Linze
"My brain just teaches me them." - Nico

"My bike just wanted to ride alone.” -Finn (after falling off his bike as the bike kept going...)

"Can I give you a secret? I love you, friend!" - Finni

"You're like my giant teddy, because I love you SO much! Am I your teddy bear too?" - Nico

The last two are perhaps my favorites... :)

*muah*

P.S. I am thankful for good friends. Each Sunday, I have the chance to talk to friends from back in the states, and it makes me realize how blessed I really am for having the friends that I do in my life. I am one lucky girl.

Song of the Day: I know that I have a living prophet on the earth today... we all do. His name is Thomas S. Monson, and if we heed to his words, we will grow to be happier people. He loves us so much, as does our Savior, and our Heavenly Father. That is why we have a prophet here - because Heavenly Father loves us SO much and wants us to return to Him... a prophet teaches us how to do just that... So, with those words I leave you Spencer Mangum's arrangment of We Thank Thee, O God, For a Prophet. Enjoy... :)

Germans Know How To PARTY!

If you had any doubts in your mind, rest assured that Germans do in fact, know how to party... hard. Haha! This past weekend I stayed in Darmstadt for a church YSA Convention involving young adults from Germany, Switzerland, and Austria. I was a bit nervous because of the language barrier I have, but true to most Germans I have met so far, many of the others there could speak English, and were understanding that my German is... struggling. Haha! In fact, one boy I met this weekend told me, "No one is going to punch you or laugh at you if you mess up." Not true. When we experienced the laughter over my incorrect pronunciations and awkward sentence structures, I turned to him and said, "You said no one would laugh at me!" He smiled and said, "No one punched you." Thanks. Haha!

So, let me back up... I got there Friday night after a LONG trip there. Dana and I caught a train to Koblenz and met up with Mathias, a guy from our ward in Bonn, who offered to drive us the rest of the way. We were grateful and headed on our way as soon as we got there... Koblenz is a cool lookin' city though... It's just got a nice feel. I might head back up there before I leave here - why not?

After a small drive through the city to the autobahn, we were on our way... for awhile. Then, out of nowhere the car started smoking a bit and driving funny. We pulled over to see oil was leaking everywhere and the car wasn't exactly drive-able. We waited for around a half hour for someone to come tow the car and hook us up with a rental to finish our journey. They were actually really fast - I was impressed. So, after we got a new car, we headed the final stretch to Darmstadt. We arrived as the dance was "suppose to begin," but of course it took some time for it to get really started.

While we were waiting for the dance to really get kickin', Mathias and some others showed me Disco Fox - aka: German partner dancing. People dance to fast, slow, and anything in between with this basic triple-step system of dance that's really fun! I was into it, but my only complaint was waiting for the boys to ask me on fast songs... I just wanted to go out there and jam. So, Dana and I found others and we did JUST that. Haha! I have to say, the music at this dance was some of the best I've heard at a church dance. It was also the first time that I heard some swear words dropped in a church cultural hall - haha! They're European... they don't get the language completely... I think they missed a few of the words... maybe. Haha! It was also the first church dance I have been to that lasted past 1am! Europeans party HARD and we were in that cultural hall till around 3am! I was SO tired from dancing... but it was FABULOUS!

After only a few hours of sleep, I was back awake and heading to the church for classes and a four hour relay-race over a 4K distance. Haha! I was SO tired, but just kept myself going. In the morning I signed up for a Hip-Hop class... I loved that when they announced it they said, "Don't worry. The teacher is black." Haha! The teacher was excellent and SUCH a sick dancer... and really hot. Haha! I thought it was funny though, because some of the moves he was teaching were so basic to my dancing. I mean, he taught the running man and I was thinking, "Doesn't every kid learn this at age 5?" The other American girls I met there said similar things... I think hip-hop is just so embedded in our culture in America now, we assume it's ingrained into everyone else's culture, but it's not. I couldn't help but think, "This is why black guys say white men can't dance," when I was in that cultural watching people do the moves he was teaching... Haha! It was a lot of fun!

Afterward, I hung out with some Swiss girls I had met that morning and got to know them. We spent the rest of the weekend hanging out and I just loved these girls! They were hilarious and so sweet... I like the Swiss.

After lunch (Tacos - Mexican in Germany! Haha...), we were split into groups to compete in the "Space Race," which was four hours of little stations spread out over a 4K area through the woods and around the lake. We had row boat challenges, pyramid building, water balloon passes, tug-a-war, and mind games... but my favorite thing was the rope and Sumo suit challenge. There was a rope tied about five feet high and we had to get everyone over the rope and back as many times as we could in seven minutes... Sounds exhausting, right? Yea. Now, add in the factor of two individuals having to wear Sumo suits. YEA. It was fairly classic! The boys were great though... I had no desire to take part because I was a bit worried I would be heavy and they already had to lift to Sumo girls. However, the team leader convinced me to do it, and the boys would just pick me up and chuck me over. It was amazing... It was pretty great team work!

We headed back to the church EXHAUSTED and hungry, grabbed sandwiches, and went back to the schools we were sleeping at (a popular trend in Europe - renting schools for sleeping in at conferences for YSAs) to take showers, change, and sneak in a power nap. It was perfect because the dance that followed, though this one ended at 12am (the Sabbath day), was intense and crazy. I haven't had that much fun at a dance in a long time! The music was hip-hop and house music, and it was perfection. I found my Swiss girls and just jammed out... I took some breaks to visit with people and because I was fairly exhausted. Haha! I haven't had such little sleep and so much physical activity in a weekend since EFY - haha!

The next morning was an early rise to get out of the school by a certain time and get over to the church for Relief Society and Abenmahl - Sacrament Meeting. I was fading a little during the talks because it took not only the effort to stay awake, but also the effort to listen and translate what was being said... It's not such an easy task on a dead mind. Just sayin'. Haha!

After sacrament meeting we all met outside for a group picture (Dana and I were totally unserious during all of them - haha!) and lunch. Let me tell you, we had a fun little group for our lunch meeting... Good times right there. "How does your throat not hurt?" - Haha!
We headed into the church when lunch was through to find seats for the fireside and were REALLY lucky to squeeze onto the second row... because Elder Russell M. Nelson and his wife were definitely there to speak to us, in the flesh. Haha! It was SO cool! They had great things to say and changed my perspective on a few things in my life for the better... and it made me SO excited for General Conference. It's only about two weeks away and I could not be more excited. I know that we have a living prophet today on this earth, and that man is President Thomas S. Monson... and I am so thankful that I will be able to hear from him and the apostles, so that I can know how to make the right changes in my life. I am a blessed girl.

Dana, Mathias, and I headed home pretty quick after the fireside and I was glad because I was SO tired! Haha... I fell asleep for a little while in car, but it was hard to sleep on the autobahn. I can't explain it, but I get a bit nervous sometimes driving where the speed limit ceases to exist. Haha!

I am so glad that I went and really glad that I had to chance to get to know Dana and Mathias a bit more. They are two really chill, good people... Overall, it was a FABULOUS weekend! Germans know how to dance and party hardcore, and I'm just sad I didn't hit up more of these things throughout my time here. Live and learn! :)
*muah*

Song of the Day: This is a song that is played at dances here a lot and I'm in LOVE with it - SO fun! Here's Yolanda Be Cool and DCup, with We No Speak Americano. Haha! Creative music video too - Enjoy!