Na Shledanou Prague!

I am no longer in Prague. :(

I moved away in June 2012 and have since worked at English summer camps around the Italian countryside, bummed around my home state of Florida for two months, and am now back in Italy (Milan to be exact) with YWAM learning about the Biblical Christian Worldview. I will be here until Christmas 2012.

And after that....who know!? I have many paths to choose from...so until then, follow me:

here (tumblr)
here (instagram)
here (pinterest)

or follow me through bloglovin'

a room of my own ::my little hiding place::

Have nothing in your home that you do not know to be useful and believe to be beautiful.

William Morris

I love this quote I found on a blog:

"The furniture you own should be a culmination

of all the different people you have been

at different points in your life."

I love that our little spaces tell so much of who we are.

We create stories around us,

for us to enjoy and to remember.

I have lived in so many different houses,

flats, rooms, cities, and countries.

But each one of them has given me the space I need

to contemplate,

to reflect, and to escape.

I'm so grateful for all of the wonderful memories

I've created with special people

in all of these special places.

I just wanted to share a glimpse of my sanctuary in Prague.

Here is where I sneak away from the chaos of the city,

where I hibernate in winter,

where I bake in the afternoon,

where I cultivate my mini Spring garden,

where I read & write & reflect,

where cry & shout & laugh.

This has been my home.

Love&Laughs,

H

My Last Month in PRAGUE ::a bucket list::

Once I knew that I would definitely be leaving in a month

I decided to create a list of activities to do

before my time here expires.

Some of these things I have already done,

some I have put off for the past two years,

some I just want to do because it's spring

and spring in Prague is just lovely.

Archery. I want to be Katniss Everdeen. 

And this little spot is a nice climb up a hill way out of the center.

Paddle-boating on the Vltava.

A completely different view of the city from the water.

A great way to relax and chat about our amazing adventures over the past two years.

A grand picnic in Stromovka Park with many friends. The largest green area in the city, 

a part from Divoka Sarka, which is a national park near the airport.

I really want to go inside the Rudolfinum, the symphony house in Prague.

What better way to see it than to go to a concert? There's a piano & violin recital next week!

This is a seasonal thing, but I really want to bake something cherry related!

I've found so many delicious recipes on my favorite blogs.

{see my Wanderlust page}

I have many parks I want to re-visit: Petrin hill, Vysehrad, Divoka Sarka,

my secret garden in Mala Strana. And I have so many books to finish reading

before I ship them home, so, put 2 & 2 together and + an ice cream

= lots of time spent out of doors.

I'd really like to go into this church. Can you believe I've not been in!?

I've also heard it's got a killer view from the top, St. Nicholas.

Another thing I can't believe I haven't done yet is really explore the castle area,

known as Hradcany. I think I'll tag along on my roommate's tour one day.

This weekend I will be leaving on a little two-day trip to Cesky Krumlov

with some friends to go rafting down the river.

We went last year and it was seriously the best trip of the year!

This might just be my last time in the Czech countryside for a long time...

And, finally, as my time comes to a close, I may splurge and get myself a massage

before I spend the following six weeks with lots of crazy Italian children 24/7.

One of the many things I'll miss about Prague is the relative cheapness of such services,

things I would never even contemplate getting done in the U.S.

{manicures, pedicures, massages, waxing, hair cuts, etc.}

So there it is!

My Prague Bucket List!

*some of the photos are my own. Some were found on Pinterest.

Changes

It's May.

Spring is here. In full bloom.

Summer winds slowly blow through the city,

making yet another seasonal change inevitable.

And with it, I have some changes of my own.

Are you ready?

I'M MOVING TO ITALY!

I will be teaching at summer camps here.

Then going home to visit family here for a bit.

Then joining YWAM Milan here in the fall.

And after that.....

I'm crossing my fingers for a direction to go in or a job offer in Italy.

I have a little less than a month left in this great city.

A city I have always loved, a population I'm growing fond of.

My decision to move and leave behind my teaching job

and all of my wonderful (and sometimes slightly annoying) students

was more difficult than getting on that plane two years ago.

Yet, as each day passes I am beginning to get into an

Italian state-of-mind.

I am so, so excited for this new chapter in my life.

A little apprehensive. A little nervous.

I've got chaos roaming around in my brain.

But I'm believing that Jesus has got my back.

Leading and following me. And with me now.

In this chaotic springtime madness.

"Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; 

in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight." 

{Proverbs 3:5-6}

I love that nothing ever stays the same.

But it also breaks my heart.

Change is inevitable.

Everyone can change.

And everything does change.

Change is what I hope for.

Changed people. Changed cities. Changed countries.

Changed lives &

a changed world.

Arrivederci da Italia! A presto!

H

*Photos found here and here.

The Writing Life

"Every morning you climb several flights of stairs, enter your study, open the French doors, and slide your desk and chair out into the middle of the air. The desk and chair float thirty feet from the ground, between the crowns of maple trees. The furniture is in place; you go back for your thermos of coffee. Then, wincing, you step out again through the French doors and sit down on the chair and look over the desktop. You can see clear to the river from here in winter. You pour yourself a cup of coffee. Birds fly under your chair. In spring, when the leaves open in the maples' crowns, your view stops in the treetops just beyond the desk; yellow warblers hiss and whisper on the high twigs, and catch flies. Get to work. Your work is to keep cranking the flywheel that turns the gears that spin the belt in the engine of belief that keeps you and your desk in midair." 


{Annie Dillard from The Writing Life}

Before I left for Riga last week,

I got caught up in reading a short book called

The Writing Life by Annie Dillard.

The poetic prose was wonderfully tempting

and inspirational

that I couldn't help but to jot down some notes

and take in the idea that perhaps one day I will write

in solitude near the sea or deep in forests

as Annie has done over the decades,

along the eastern sea shore and the western cliffs.

Spring has revitalized my ambitions

and my motivation.

With the sun out I am doing and creating and working and playing,

not hibernating in my warm room and fluffy bed as I've done all winter. 

It's time to go out and wonder at the world

and the people who inhabit it

and record my sightings and imaginings. 

*photos were found here, here, and here.

*My Latvian Easter will be up in the coming days. 

I wish I could live this way.

Just go. Not tell anyone.

Though I do love spontaneity, a daily dosage of it is great

for staying young and lively, I must admit

I am a planner when it comes to travel.

I'm the one writing detailed emails to my family and roommates

informing them of my travel schedule, the people I'll be with, where we'll be staying, etc.

Not that I anticipate anything going amiss; it just brings me comfort knowing

my whereabouts are being closely followed. 

I do dream of a day, however, when I can just pick up and go 

and not tell a soul

and not log on to any technological device.  

How freeing that would be! 

My limbs want to carry me off into the wide world right now!

What do you think, dear reader? Did Oscar Wilde have it right? 

Love&Laughs,

H

*the photograph is my own, the text borrowed from a Mr. Wilde.

Liva and Latvia::Upcoming Easter trip::

I have some exciting news!
I am going to Lativa for five days! I leave on Wednesday.
I can't wait to have some of my own photos of Riga, the capital city of Latvia.
(the top photo I found here)

I'm going to stay with my old roomie, the crazy girl above with food dripping from her face. ;)
I miss her so much and we have had so many fun memories together, like the food fight in the forest
for her birthday celebration or the pillow fight we had in public near the river or the time our flat was robbed and we got upset together (but prayed in our aggravation).

I'm also going to get to meet up with a fellow traveler and couch surfer whom I met in Sicily last May.
It'll be a nice little reunion in many ways.

On top of all this excitement, I am going on a solo day-trip to Lithuania.
The country where my grandfather's family came from.
At the turn of the 20th century.
A place so different from Florida, where my immediate roots come from.

I am looking forward to some soul searching the week before Easter.
Some time to journal and reflect as I wander a country that is not my own,
but brought me here, all the same.

Love&Laughs,

H

Saturday mornings...

my market treats-flowers, veggie chips, french bread, honey cake, and a mini fruit tart.

Saturday mornings, when I'm not hiking or traveling,

you can find me at my favorite market along the river.

This Saturday was dark and windy and cold,

as if winter had come back to us.

I must admit, I rather liked it.

It was a day worthy of lazy idleness. 

After strolling and sipping on some Masala Chai

and shopping for some yummy goodies to be eaten back in bed,

the annual Prague half-marathon found us,

exploding with runners, banners, cheers, balloons, and video cameras.

We stood and cheered along the sidelines for a while,

when the amazing professional African runners whizzed past us on their way back!

Their speed was my speed for a 5-minute sprint....

We stood with our mouths gaping, wondering what we just saw....

The winners of the Prague half-marathon 2012!

Have a wonderful first week of April around the world!

Happy Holy Week!

Love&Laughs,

H

The city at night is bright,

not sunshine bright, even in daylight

the city mutes its colors under clouds,

but a dim bright, if there can be such a thing.

Lit trams and flashing neon signs

and the occasional candle flickering in a low window

of a restaurant---

These are my stars.

I follow the street lamps by the river,

tree     light     tree     light     tree     light

my steps are uneven on the wide stones.

Uneven and worn down.

Just like the Czechs.

Just like my thoughts when I wander

the city at night---which isn't often, I admit.

I can't afford to let my thoughts wander

from street to street under protection

of darkness

of stillness

of intimate couples strolling ahead

of rowdy study abroaders staggering behind.

Danger does not exist under the starless sky 

here.

Night holds a painful beauty

instead.

It aches to be seen, to be admired, to be given lavish gifts---

But photos can't discern those desires.

So I give night my time, my attention.

I give it my thoughts, my fears, my decisions,

and in return

it gives me open admittance to myself.

It lets me wander, alone, down deserted paths,

under dark passages---

To where I fear to be in daylight.  

-a poem from my journals

Malaga, España

                

My travel companions and I started our Spain adventures in Malaga

back at the beginning of February.

Here is a glimpse of what we saw and experienced.

We had some adventurous times,

complete with a broken-down taxi, a bumpy propeller flight from Lisbon,

a couch-surfer host who fell in love with me,

sneaking up to the roof of a hotel, swinging on the beach,

and meeting a Dutch "Free Hugs" man

who gives hugs "for a living"....don't ask. ;)

More to follow.

Love&Laughs,

H

*all photos were taken in Malaga, Spain by me or one of my fellow companions.

A Decision

I've spent the last couple of months

trying to decide what to do with this blog.

I couldn't determine whether or not I did it for myself

or for others.

I wasn't sure if I liked the idea of people reading my thoughts

and seeing my experiences.

And,

I didn't know if I genuinely liked spending so much time on the computer

typing away in a cyber world.

Plus,

I've just been so busy, I haven't even had time to think about post ideas. 

I've been back in Prague for two and a half months

after spending Christmastime with my family in Florida.

And in that time, I've 

taught and tutored and cooked a lot of meals

and belly-danced and done zumba and attempted salsa

and attended church lectures and retreats

and gone to benefit dinners and events

and traveled to Southern Spain

and read The Hunger Games trilogy and gone to the movies

and went to dinner parties and coffee dates

and gone away for a snowy ski weekend

and....lived.

All this to say, I'm back.

I've made my decision.

I will continue blogging

because, all in all,

I enjoy looking back 

and seeing my life in Prague.

It will be something I cherish

when nothing remains, but memories.

I've decided, 

I blog for myself,

but you're invited along my journey.

Perhaps we can learn and share from one another.

Love&Laughs,

H

*Photo taken in Harrachov, Czech Republic while snow shoeing through a forest. :)