prague!!! and other things slightly less exciting...

a lot has happened since i last posted...over a month ago. nothing terribly exciting at least. i did manage to go see mia in newcastleton, scotland (which was an amazing look at the scottish countryside, and culture to say the least). we went to greenwich (pronounced "grenich") and saw the prime meridian, experienced a london halloween and 5th of november, which was basically all fireworks and roasted chestnuts. but, this weekend, i have to say, topped it all.

friday, 2:30 a.m: torri and i depart london for prague, czech republic. i was nervous, she was nervous, but we managed to make it just fine. our professor, his wife, and her brother happened to be going as well, so that saved a lot of stress. we spent all of friday walking the streets of prague, getting situated. We then settled into our hostel.

i have to say, of all the hostels i've experienced, this one was surprisingly not sketchy. the door was covered in graffiti, but once we climbed the several sets of concrete stairs and unlocked the door to the common area, we were pleasantly surprised. you might even say our room is nicer than the flat we're staying in london. when my computer is up and running again, there will be pictures.

anyway, we spent yesterday evening in an absinth bar, where we had two rounds of absinth shots, two absinth cocktails (absinth, rum, coke, and uh...something else?) and absinth cake. absinth is served by the bartender this way: we had our shots brought out to us, including some sugar cubes. The first set of sugar cubes are dipped into the shots of absinth and then set on fire (intended to sweeten the taste after the shot) and then a second set of sugar cubes are set on spoons over bigger cups. the shots of absinth are poured over the sugar cubes into the cups, the cubes are set on fire, and then dipped into the cups, melting the sugar into the shots. The shots are then poured back into the absinth shot glasses and are taken right then. the burn was incredible. seventy percent alcohol. ouch. the remaining burned sugar helped, but not a lot.

it was definitely touristy, but an interesting experience. the kind of drunk you get off absinth is like nothing else you can experience with any other alcohol. it's a heady kind of high, not quite drunk, but definitely not completely coherent. we wandered home happy, slightly loopy, and completely satisfied.

saturday: torri and my professor's wife depart early to shop. i spend the morning walking about the city, lost and enjoying it. we all meet up 'round noon. janeea had arrived by then, and while she napped, the rest of us meet up with my professor's wife and brother's old sitter (while they lived in the embassy), named...well, i can't pronounce it haha. we spent lunch with her, listened to stories and enjoyed some traditional czech food, then went on to get janeea, and then toured the famous czech castle. the cathedral inside is beyond words. i wish i could post pictures now but i'm on the hostel computer and i doubt anybody would care to see any of the pictures i took. i'd say it was about thirteenth century gothic (maybe twelfth century). the most incredible (and unusual) part about it was the mosaic of the last judgement. it was on the outside left of the cathedral which is unusual, but it made it all the more exciting to see and experience.

we got dinner and beer in a traditional czech beer hall. i can't describe it, except it was long tables full of people, laughing and singing, and the most delicious beer i had ever tasted. the beer they served was actually brewed in the place itself, and was unusually light for an ale. in between, we were served shots of hips, which gave the beer a sweet taste and brought out the natural flavors. towards the end of our meal and drinks, we had a singing contest with a table full of young drunk footballers. to conclude the night, we had more shots of absinth with janeea, and took candid pictures which i cannot wait to recieve.

i cannot wait for tomorrow.

ps: i'm sorry for the poorness of my spelling/grammar. i've had a few.