Maria von Trapp and Bohemia!

Hi everyone!

I'm currently updating from my youth hostel here in Prague. Unlike nearly all other places in Europe, the internet is free, so I figured I'd let you know what I've been up to recently!

My friends Jack, Lindsay, Shelly, and I flew in to Salzburg last Friday, and actually met two girls from the States who were taking a train to Germany for Oktoberfest in line for the plane. One of them was from Cherry Hill, of all places, and we share some mutual friends. Talk about a small world! They are studying in London as well, so we exchanged contact information and hope to meet up again once we're all back in the UK. When we arrived in Salzburg, we decided to do everything we could in our 20 hours or so there. We made our rounds pretty efficiently, and highlited the route we took to travel - we ended up seeing at least two thirds of what we hoped! On our journeys, we went to the Mirabel Gardens, which is behind the Baroque Museum, and also went to the Salzburg Castle, which provided us with absolutely breath-taking views. The castle also houses several museums, the Marionette Museum, the War Museums, and the State Rooms, which were really unique. The War Museum was also really interesting, especially since we are currenly studying Austria's role in WWI in my British History class. I also took plenty of Sound of Music pictures, and spent the day singing Do-Re-Mi. While we would have loved to spend more time in Salzburg, it was fortunate when it was time to move on, as the American dollar is extremely weak in comparison to the Euro.

On the bright side of things, the Czech crown is fairly week compared to the dollar, so I've only spent about twice what I did my one day in Salzburg for a whole week here! We've done some touristy things, like the Kafka Museum, the Botanical Gardens, the Jewish Quarter, and a walking tour, but mostly our time has been spent wandering about. My guidebook has proved a wonderful resource and pointed us in the direction of many excellent restaurants and quality, cheap beers - the Czech Republic is where the first beer was brewed, so it is considered a fine art here, and it's cheaper than a soft drink! The four of us also met some great English travelers who we spent some time with while they were here. We have tickets tonight to see The Marriage of Figaro at the National Theatre's Estates building, which is the only remaining place where Mozart himself played in his lifetime. I'm beyond excited to see one of his operas there, and even more so, as the ticket cost the equivalent of 3 American dollars! Jack and I are also attending a performance by the Czech Philharmonic tomorrow night, which should be a great way to round out our trip, before heading back early Saturday morning.

Prague has proved a wonderful choice for the four of us. For those of you who may not be familiar, the Czech Republic was once called Bohemia, and it became synonymous with art, music, and culture in Europe. This is still relavent today, even in fashion, where a person dressed slightly more artistic and cheap is called Bohemian. In celebration of that, I sang at two open mic nights here as well, and had great fun meeting other musicians and artists in the process. The most bittersweet thing about Prague is its history. There is a piece that was installed on a hill here which is essentially a gigantic metronome. It took the place of a statue of Stalin that once stood in its spot during the Communist reign here. Even now the effects can be felt- the fashions feel dated, and music that msot Americans listened to in the mid-1990s is just now being celebrated and listened to. It's like being in a time-warp, especially taking into account that in my lifetime, this city has tried to find its identity outside of the Communist reign. It's quite disheartening to think what Prague could have been if it were allowed to progress naturally as a hot-spot for art, literature, and philopsohy... but much stronger than that feeling is one of hope, which the Czech people certainly have a lot of. They are still celebrating their identity in the global community, and it is a beautiful thing to watch.

I will update you all on my new London adventures once I've returned to the UK. I miss you all and hope that all is well!

-- Christina