Prague has been amazing, though the trip definitely did not come without challenges. The obvious obstacle that most people face when traveling to a new place is a language barrier. Not to say that this wasn’t a problem because there were definitely people that I encountered that spoke no English, and the only Czech phrases that I knew were hello (dobrý den), thank you (děkuji), and please/you’re welcome (prosím), but most people in Prague in restaurants, shops, etc. spoke enough English to complete the transaction. With the fantastic resource of google translate, we were also able to get through some situations that were a little trickier. However, google translate is also wrong at times, so we had to resort to hand signals/pointing sometimes to communicate with people. However, this was, by far, not the biggest obstacle that I experienced on this trip.
For me, it was very difficult to not get mentally and socially burnt out on this trip. For my program, I travelled with 13 other engineering students and 2 faculty members, and we often had programming and events that we had to be at for minimum 5 hours per day, though it got up to 10-11 hours on a few days, for every day of the two week long trip. I absolutely loved the people that were on the program with me, and I know that some of them will be my friends for at least the rest of my college career and possibly for life. However, getting burnt out was inevitable for me, especially when I was with these people all day every day, and it was hard to find alone time. Though I am typically very individually oriented, the idea of going out in an unfamiliar city alone was very daunting to me, and it took me a some time to find the courage to do this. One night I just decided to go to a sandwich shop and have a picnic by myself for dinner, and it was one of the most memorable parts of the trip for me. It really helped me to maintain my sanity throughout the trip, and I am so glad I was able to get some time to myself. It is so so important to remember to prioritize your mental health while abroad, even if you have to put yourself in an uncomfortable situation to do so.
My favorite experience so far has just been getting the opportunity to explore the city. On one our first days in Prague, our guide, Jana, took us on a walking tour of the city. She took us to some touristy spots, as well as some hidden gems, and told us about the history of each monument as we walked by. The city is hundreds and hundreds of years old, and so the architecture was phenomenal. One of the first things Jana told us was to remember to look up, because the first level of many buildings were shops and restaurants, but higher floors were generally untouched. Every street brings something new, and it was impossible for me to not be in awe even after being in Prague for so long. We even took some day trips to other smaller cities in the Czech Republic (Kutna Hora and Český Krumlov), and those were just as amazing as Prague! I love seeing new things and getting to explore, so this was definitely a highlight of the trip for me. Enjoy some of my favorite architecture pictures below!
Photo caption: Photos that I took in Old Town, Prague!
Photo caption: Photos that I took in Český Krumlov (left) and Kutna Hora (right)