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"Thank you, Czech government, for a day off in the middle of the week..."

 

After sleeping in till 9am on a Wednseday morn

and having a slow, lazy breakfast,

I took the tram to Divoká Šárka with Kristen.

We hiked and took advantage of the nice weather,

with cameras in hand and backpacks full of 

fruit and books and sandwiches,

we set out at a slow pace to see the natural sights

of this Czech National Park right outside of Prague.

In the evening,

I attended a dinner party at the house of some friends.

It was a relaxing night as we chatted in their garden

and ate grapes right off the vine

while waiting for the grilled veggies and chicken to be done.

Their home will definitely be a regular haunt

in the winter.

With their immense collection of teas and books

and a charming fireplace in the corner.

I can already envision a soft snowfall outside on their veranda.

Okay, okay, I really am enjoying autumn.

It's actually really warm outside at the moment,

but I'm ready to curl up and finish Dorian Gray.

Thank goodness tomorrow is Friday!

I'm ready for the weekend; this holiday

in the middle of the week has messed with my weekly routine!

But I loved it anyway!

A summer's day in autumn? It was hot without a cloud in the sky at Karlstein Castle, CZ.

Yesterday I went to Karlstein castle for their yearly burchak festival.

We saw knights and ladies, beggars and gypsies.

We drank red and white burchak

and ate festive Czech food

as we walked around, sometimes pushed around by the crowd,

and wandered up to the castle to see the parade process.

It was warm, but even in the warmth,

the slight change of color in the leaves

was apparent. 

It was glorious!

This weekend I am feeling much better. There is no rain.

And this week there is much to look forward to..

~a pub talk with my older students

(pray for good conversations!)

~a day off in the middle of the week

to be spent hiking at Divoka Sarka and at the movies

~and a week of bellydancing classes at our new studio here!

Have a great last week of September!

Love&Laughs,

H

Autumn is quickly approaching Prague

photo credits

photo credits

photo credits

12 Reasons why I love autumn:

1. My wardrobe has been invaded by fall colors.
2. Sweater weather, but not quite coat weather. :)
3. Burchak, i.e. Czech "young" wine that only comes around every fall.
4. My windows are always open and the breeze feels oh-so-good
5. Pumpkins! I'm going to "teach" my students how to carve a pumpkin in class.
6. Halloween. You gotta love the costumes and scary movies and candy.
   (it's purely an American holiday nowadays...)
7. Trips into the country. It's perfect hiking weather.
8. Gingerbread lattes. And Pumpkin, of course.
9. Soft light at early sunsets.
10. Reading classics because everyone else is in school and still "learning," plus it doesn't hurt that they're the perfect fall    accessory. I mean, who can resist Dorian Gray or Dracula on a blustery day?
11. Saturday markets are much more enchanting along the river in the early morning mist.
12. French Onion Soup! My homemade meal for the week!


Tomorrow I'm off to this castle for the day with friends!

Love&Laughs,

H

rain, rain go away. come again some other day.

this weekend i slept in, then took a leisurely walk to the market along the vltava

where i bought some chocolate and flowers and a honey stick and a fruit pastry.

it started to rain, so i went home to get my weekly chores done.

then i took part in a scavenger hunt {which i'll post about later}

through prague in the late-afternoon.

it was a good weekend,

but filled with lots of reflection.

i'm not sure why rain has that power over me.

living in another country is certainly not an easy task.

and this weekend was one of the worst

as i was filled with loneliness and the feeling of defeat

as i can't even have a simple conversation with strangers.

i asked the question over and over,

are people supposed to put themselves through this?

i never know what's going on around me,

i can't eavesdrop, i can't listen to a fight or an affair,

i don't hear words of love or hate

{although i completely see the looks all the time}

it wears a person down.

but i will let you know that i am feeling a bit better

even though the rain still falls around me

and sometimes don't understand

the point of it all. 

today i received some compliments from my students

and got some good opinionated conversation out of them,

which made my reflective weekend

worth every single doubt i had.

i am here till june for them.

Hiking::we made it to the clifftop

We made it to the top and took in the views.
Pine trees swayed in the wind,
birds soared, along with small planes.
We had a little snack and lots of water.

We leaned on the railings and kept our thoughts to ourselves.
Some getting ready to leave and move on from here,
some just arriving and wondering about their journey.

We watched as the afternoon passed.
Thankful for the sunshine,
knowing dark and cold days are before us.

the only natural stone bridge in the Czech Republi

our hiking group

doesn't that rock on the right look like a reclining lion!? Aslan, right!?

Now off to a week full of teaching!

This weekend on the agenda:

Prague. Dinner parties. Burchak festivals. 

and a swimming pool in the city.