I think it’s an interesting step by the Prague government to deal with the homelessness issue, I wonder how it would effect those of us who look less vagrant?

Yes, I’m thinking back to May when I spent the night at Prague Airport. To be honest, I didn’t notice a huge number of homeless. That was far more of a problem at Praha Hlavní Nádraží when I’d head there to catch a train. Then again, it wasn’t the depth of winter either.

Judging by Prague’s section in Budget Traveller’s Guide to Sleeping in Airports, I’m certainly not the first to do so. In addition there were facilities open to serve those of us there –without a place to sleep or waiting for connections. I wonder how they’d feel if the night time clients were chased out?

“We want to expand our perspective, see each other as locals might and constantly push the limits of our role as tourists,” wrote Duke University junior Casey Dean and NYU’s Billy O’Hare, the magazines editors-in-chief, in a letter featured on the site.

I was vaguely aware of The Prague Wanderer, currently in its second semester, while in Prague this summer but it didn’t seem to have much relevance to our short summer term. I think it’s definitely a good idea to push not only beyond the status of tourists but the often equally negative “college student” perception. For some reason, students who choose to study abroad are regarded as party animals, rather than as people interested in learning about a new culture, language, etc.

My personal favorite at the moment is the Top Ten Column: Recognizing an American in Prague, which includes amusing items like smiling and shell suits. The ‘zine, however, also tackles more important issues such as disabled access in Prague.

I think this ‘zine could prove an interesting connection with other NYU Study Abroad programs as well as other university’s programs in Prague and in other cities.

ETA: WSN’s Interactive Study Abroad Issue

We basically wrapped yesterday with a tour of the Prague Sports’ Facilities including Sazka Arena, Czech Lawn-Tennis Club (where Navratilova trained before immigrating to the US) and Toyota Arena, home to AC Sparta. We had a great tour of Sazka and received a book about the development of the arena, and were even allowed on the field at Toyota. Even not being much of a soccer fan, that was pretty cool. Although we didn’t have a tour of the tennis center I enjoyed seeing pictures of Martina, since she was Queen at the time I really loved tennis. OK co-queen with Sabatini, Steffi Graf, etc.

After the tour finished we came back to the study lounge here at the apartments where we did our presentations. I didn’t stress about mine because I’ve looked at the socio-cultural impact of tourism throughout the class, it was easy to add sports. We focused mainly on the Olympics (which has been the focus of the class since Prague is considering a 2016 bid) but added in the World Cup and Japan’s concern about soccer hooligans.

We decided to go to a celebratory ‘end of class’ dinner and one person recommended the Matylda Botel. It was wonderfully located right on the river, good food and quite cheap (<$400 US for 15 people,including dessert and drinks). We had a lot of fun and then some headed out to karaoke. I opted not to but on the way back to the tram a few of us got a sight: our first Czech prostitute. It was good for a laugh.

So Sports Tourism is over. Some general thoughts on the class and Prague:

-sports and tourism are even more connected than I’d initially thought, and not just in connection with large events such as The Olympic, World Cup, etc. There really needs to be a strong partnership in order for the two worlds to work well together.

-sports tourism covers things that I normally would not have thought of i.e. spa tourism. It just didn’t occur to me as a sport.

-still no great interest in Prague/The Czech Republic. Sure, Prague is a fun city and it’s a great place to take these classes, but I have little to no interest in the city itself. I shouldn’t be surprised, it was the same last time when I went to Vienna nearly as soon as I arrived. It’s not like I can pinpoint an interest in a specific other location since it’s basically 7 cities in a month (Londo, Prague, Krakow/Oswiecim, Rome, Berlin, Zurich and Geneva) but just the general ease of travel and desire to explore. I’ll see more of the Czech Republic and Prague in the next class though.

I’m really looking forward to Rome, I’m staying in the center so I should come back with many photos, I hope. I have a few from the sports tour that I need to take off the camera.

So according to Flight Memory, I’ve flown 112,781 miles since August 2001. I’m not sure whether I expected that to be higher or lower, but I wish there were an equivalent for the bus since apparently the circumfrence of Australia is 10,000 miles and I doubled up in some areas and also went up and down the middle. Re: flight travel, I could go back further but I’m not sure I’ll remember all flights and I don’t think it will add a significant amount with the exception of London in December 2000 and Spain in April 1996. Translation the mileage gained isn’t worth the brain power of trying to remember flight details.

Today my preferred mode of travel was by boat. After class and lunch, Monica and I decided to do a river cruise. Distance wise, it was a short tour but I got some good photos with my favourite being the one above. I just love how the castle seemingly presides over the city. One of the couples on the boat was from Spain so it was a good opportunity to get to use my Spanish. I was grateful they were there because the guide’s Spanish was far better than her English! Walking around the city/to and from class, I also got a few other miscellaneous pics including one of the sign for the Museum of Communism. Make sure to take a good look at the doll’s teeth! Class itself is going well. We meet for a few hours in the morning and then do stuff around the city in the afternoon. Next week we’ll take a few trips out of town, including Terezin and Karlovy Vary.

Tomorrow evening after class, I catch the 20:55 train from Prague to Krakow, where I’ll arrive at about 6 am. I’ll have about an hour before catching the bus to Ozwiecim/Auschwitz. I think it’s going to be a day that really makes me think, but thinking is what it’s supposed to make you do. My mind keeps wanting to go to what this will be like, but I’m not letting it. I don’t think Auschwitz can compare to anything else. For the same reason, I’m trying to avoid reading too much about it before I go. I want this to be my opinions only. I’m just reading enough so that I know how to get from Krakow/Auschwtiz and vice versa. I know that I’m still regretting not having gone in 2003, so I’m not going to miss the opportunity to do so now. Although it’s not listed in their collection, I truly hope they have a copy of Holocaust Journey because it’s meant to be an eye-opening read. I’ve heard the same about Generations Should Remember, and I’m glad the museum has a copy. Somehow I don’t think I’ll be lacking for anything to read after this trip.

The return train to Prague is at ~11p (love that they’re both overnight so I don’t lose any time) so depending on how long I spend on site, I may do a tour of Krakow. It’spurely history for me as I know very little about Poland. I’ve borrowed an Eastern European Phrasebook for the trip but I doub I’m the first non-Polish speaking visitor

We had a very interesting lecture this morning from Jiri Pehe, the Director of the NYU in Prague program. I had a rough idea of Czech/Czechoslovakian history, but loved all the holes he filled in. Of course like any good lecture, it left me wanting to know more so I spent part of the afternoon on a quest for books. Came up empty, but I’ll find some when I get home. There are many more bookstores with English books than before.

After the lecture, Professor Boland–he wants us to call him Bob, I can’t do it so I don’t end up addressing him at all–introduced the course and outlined the overlap between sports and tourism. I like the fact that we’re each going to be responsible for teaching a section. With my being the only tourism student in the class, I don’t foresee difficulty in getting the section(s) I want, so I’m looking forward to my day.

Shortly after 1 we adjourned and scattered. A few of us went to lunch, more pasta for me. I seem to be replacing my sushi fix with a pasta fix, odd because I don’t usually like pasta. Today’s pasta was spaghetti with italian bacon and chili peppers. So far have yet to end up in a restaurant without an English menu even though we keep wandering off the square. I think it’s partially because Prague is such a tourist city. There is a ton more English than last time, which is good. Makes it a lot easier. I never did find the post office though On the plus side, I did find Citibank. On a related note, I LOVE Skype. I’m still having issues with my Debit card pulling from the wrong checking account so I looked to see if I could call 800 numbers from Skype. Yep. It was as easy as calling from home and I think/hope it’s finally fixed.

I posted a few photos. I’d say I really have been behaving but in truth I kept 27 of the ones I took. I just find editing photos in Gimp to be annoying so I don’t end up posting them. I have been taking a ton of photos and in preparation for this weekend’s trip, I went to Tesco and got the second set of batteries and second memory card I’ve been talking about. Prices here are pretty good: 256mb Sony Memory Stick Pro and 2 rechargeable NiMH batteries for $56. Probably would have been cheaper had I gotten my act together to get them at home, but I didn’t and so they weren’t too bad to get here. I’d already run out of memory card space in London and don’t want that to happen.

It’s interesting as I walk through the city, take pictures and think about the photos I took last time. I passed Namesti Miru on the tram today and remembered the church before the name of the place. I’ve gone across the Vlatva but not up to the castle yet as we’re doing that next class so I don’t feel the need to do it twice.

I didn’t really have a destination in mind today, just wandered until it got chilly. Boland said that Prague’s old town is like “old town on steroids”, which is one way of putting it. I think what I love about Prague is that with the castles, churches and other old buildings, you feel as if you’ve stepped into a time machine and gone back three hundred years. I’m glad that the Soviets and Nazis didn’t destroy the heart of the old culture, and that it escaped serious damage in WW II. That’s the big difference with Japan, where there’s history but it doesn’t feel like it because everything has been rebuilt so often.

On our way back from ‘class’ (more on that later) this AM, I wanted to stop for bandaids because my new shoes chewed up my feet. I brought bandaids with me but they didn’t stick very well in the heat under the strap of the shoes. So I go into the drug store near the apartments and ask for a ‘band aid’. Got offered a tampon, then a pad. Finally I slipped off the sandals and showed him the blisters.

I got a box of “Bang-Ze”s. My favourite part:

“Scope of Application: It is mainly used for surgery to paste wound or fix pinhead of intravenous transfusion.”

Guess I got some sturdy bang-zes.

I’m going to file bandaids with hangers and adaptors.

Class was a non-event today. We met in the computer lab at 9:30 to walk together because none of us knew where we were going. We eventually arrived at 12:15 after a scenic tour of Prague. It was a good way to learn the city and get to know each other a bit. We met the staff at the NYU Center (some photos-not mine- here) and then opted for a ‘traditional Czech lunch’ (mmm tagliatelle with salmon!) before returning to the rooms for a siesta.

We aimed to attend the Czech soccer/football match, but 45 minutes after the game had started, we were still wandering around so 9 of us chose to watch it from a pub while a few braved the elements. I’m not too heart broken because we’ll be touring the stadium later in the week.

While we haven’t had a formal class, we had some interesting discussions re: naming rights, sports and tourism, the Olympics, etc. I think it’s going to be a great class. And as per usual when I’m in Europe, I want to see it all. I have three weekends to play with and they’re shaping up to be: Auschwitz, Berlin and ____. With the pattern I almost need a “C” city though I’m actually leaning towards Italy if there’s a cheap flight since the trains are just too long (+5 from Prague to Vienna). Copenhagen is a possibility however since Sterling flies there. I love LCL for all the options they offer.

Decisions, decisions…

I’ve puttered around the neighbourhood a bit. Found the aforementioned shop for dinner last night and lunch this AM, forgot how cheap food is here. Made an interesting tuna/pasta puttanesca and passed out aroud 5pm last night. Woke up at 7 trying to figure out if I’d slept the night or not and passed back out until midnight when the bladder woke me. Woke around 8am and kinda vegged as I woke. It wasn’t jet lag so much as having pulled an all-nighter after two days of little sleep.

Books read so far this trip:

What Color is Your Jockstrap? -Jennifer L. Leo
The Sun in My Eyes – Josie Dew

I need to slow down or I’ll finish all my books before the 12 hour train trip and flights home and that’s not allowed.

Off to study some more Czech, I didn’t lose nearly as much as I thought which is good. Picking more back up as I walk around the neighbourhood. Things like a Lego sign are a good clue that ‘hradcy’ means ‘toys’ and other words are similar enough to English like a sign that read ‘delicatess’. Lots of Italian products in the grocery stores, of which there are three within a few block radius, so that makes cooking easy.

8 AM flight from EWR to LHR on Thursday was uneventful and I cleared immigration in good time due to there being very few non-EU/UK passport holders on the flight so our line zipped ahead. Because my backpack was checked through to Prague, I had nothing to collect or declare. A quick call to Gemma and I was on my way to meet her at Leicester Square. V. impressed at the easy tube connection at Heathrow.

Friday morning I was indecisive about what I was going to do, so Gemma and I split at her office and I meandered down to the Circle Line before exiting at one of my favourite views on the banks of the Thames. I was craning my neck to look at a map that was posted about knee high on a barricade to figure out which side of the river I wanted to be on when a woman offered me a copy of the posted map and asked if I needed help.

Turns out the map was a brochure for BigBus and after looking at it and thinking, I decided to go for it. I had only about three hours before I was to meet Gemma for lunch and then head to the airport and there was so much I wanted to re-see. As I said to Gemma, “I didn’t have a digital camera last time.” Of course this time Ididn’t have an empty memory card so I had to quit at 83 pics. A handful are posted, but I still need to go through and re-size more. The Tower of London is still one of my favourite sights in the city, as well as the Houses of Parliament/Big Ben. Although I didn’t have time to visit any of the stops, I got some good photos and the weather was fabulous for a ride atop a double decker bus. Yes, the current exchange rate hurts, but overall I didn’t find London on a price basis to be much worse than NY or Osaka.

After lunch, it was unfortunatley time to head back. Time with Gemma and in London was all too short. Had I known how delayed my flight would be, I would have taken my time. We were due to leave at 18:20 but didn’t take off until just shy of 21:00. Owing to the delay and the time difference, we didn’t make it to Prague until 11pm+. By the time I cleared customs and immigration–just a factor of time in line and to collect bags since neither inspector actually spoke to me–it was nearly 12.

Due to being slightly jet lagged and just plain tired from the day scampering around the city, I’d decided to just suck it up and stay in a hotel. Except due to the time the only two realistic options were the Tranzit Hotel and Marriott at the airport which are exorbitantly priced. So, like most of the rest of the people who were in late/leaving early, I made use of the transit lounge. Vending machines, tables, somewhat functioning net kiosks and read two books. Need to quit that if my books are going to last through the train to Switzerland.

I waited until about 8:30 when I went to get a shuttle here, which ended up being a direct ride owing to no other passengers.  The landlord was here and I’m in my room, which is really nice. It’s bigger than I imagined and nice and airy and light. Only bad thing is that linens haven’t arrived yet. I suppose that’s good for staying awake as I’d planned to have a shower and a nap to keep the jey lag at bay, but having been up 29 hours is a little tiring.

I think I’ll go explore and hope the linens arrive by then. It’s definitely a good thing that for both Zurich and Geneva, I don’t get in late and the hostels are within walking distance of the train. So far, so good. Off in search of food that’s not diet coke

I’m mostly packed except for a few crucial things, like the laptop. It’s going to be weird putting the backpack back on nearly one year after I returned.

Skype is set up. My screen name is travellingcari [shocker, shocker]. I have SkypeIn set up, but I don’t feel comfortable posting the number here. Feel free to e-mail me for it.

I’ve got a few books to read on the plane, but I’m planning to sleep. I apparently realized the logic of packing only two carry on books four years ago, however I don’t stick to that. I’m petrified of being caught without something to read especially for the long train ride in June.

7 hour direct flight from EWR to LHR and then a tube journey to see Gemma. Yay! Been 6.5 years since I saw her when I was last in London and 15 years since we first became pen pals. It’s official, we’re getting old. Because my time in London is 21 hours it’s not a layover and I’ve just been informed that my bag might be checked through to Prague. I have what I need in case it is – might make life in the tube a bit easier.

Not sure what I’m going to do on Friday in London or Saturday in Prague before the others arrive, but I’m sure I’ll find some good mischief. Will be nice to wander around Prague again, especially since it won’t  be so cold.

I’m a step ahead of last time, I have two adaptors! It’s fun to look back at the old entries:

 ”So I now have two EU stamps (both entering)–my passport is definitely going to be full before I need to renew,”

Yep. Still true. Very full passport. And I did learn from the suitcase escapade.

Dorm and school are wireless so I’ll be around from Saturday on.

Not a bad week at all, just crazy. We had the PGAV/Gettysburg Foundation presentation on Tuesday and I think it went well. All parties seemed happy and I think we, both as a class and as six teams targeting six segments, did a very good job. I loved the fact that we were able to take what we learned and apply it in real life situations, it’s part of why grad school seems so much more real than undergrad. I’d upload the PowerPoint but I don’t even have a copy of our final segments. The one for education didn’t even work properly so I winged (wung?) it. Now just have the marketing plan for GRO to finish for Monday, a final paper for Wednesday and a final exam for the 7th and I’m done…until the 28th anyway

Oh, and I added another “destination” to this summer’s wanderings, though it’s not really new. I was going up to Rochester anyway for Beth’s graduation and was not looking forward to driving ten hours in two days. Had ruled out flying because everything was coming up ridiculous…and then I found a continental flight through Orbitz: $133 into Rochester on Friday night and out of Syracuse on Sunday morning. Yay!

Last weekend the NY Times had an interesting section on budget travel which started with an interesting article on budget airfares.

Where had I just been? Where was I going? I wasn’t really sure anymore — all I knew was that getting there wouldn’t cost much more than my sanity.

Although the author is talking about a week-long trip across Europe on various budget carriers, the same pretty much applied to by trip on the big grey dog across Australia. Most segments were fine but some (Darwin to Alice Springs – ~20 hours on the Stuart Highway; Coober Pedy to Charters Towers – 36 hours via Tenant Creek and Mount Isa on the Stuart and Barkly Highways and then on to Townsville and Cairns) were bewildering to say the least. But I accomplished my goals: to see the country in a way I couldn’t from the air and be able to guarantee I’d be able to finish my trip. I ran into far too many people over the course of my trip who were ‘stuck’ somewhere, having to fly or change course because they couldn’t find a ride–I wanted to be able to get back to Brisbane, and I did–some four months later.

Flylc.com is another wonderful site, second only to kayak, which was where I found my cheap flight last night. I love them both because they eliminate the need to punch your details into umpteen different sites. I was somewhat limited in choosing my flight home from Europe because I was looking to see where easyJet flew, but I hate to think of what other options I’d have considered if I knew about flylc. Oh well, I’ll have several weekends while there and there’s always next time. Plus, I think Switzerland will be wonderful. I haven’t ruled out flying from Prague to Geneva and then taking the train around Switzerland. I do need to make a decision soon though.

I know I’m definitely going to be making good use of the Prague guide. I’m glad I’ll arrive on Friday. I’ll go from wherever I stay on Friday night to the apartments to make sure I know how to get to class on Monday. Will be nice to putter Prague for the weekend. Almost one year back in the US, I’m getting itchy feet again.