To mail things to me here:

Caroline Lampinen

FF UK, ZAHRANICNI ODD

WMU Prague Summer Program Office

nam. Jana Palacha 2

116 38 Praha 1

Czech Republic

Be sure to ask the post office how long the package will take, and don't mail anything toooo important, because it's likely to get delayed/damaged along the way. I'm here until July 25. :)

It's weird to live without a cell phone. I slept through orientation yesterday, which means my first trip to St Charles University was today-- oh Lord. The buildings are huge, old, and absolutely gorgeous. Our classroom is very narrow with high ceilings and dusty old books that I don't think I could reach even standing on a chair. My professor is kind and reputable, my classmates are warm and thoughtful. There's a bit of a rift between the older and younger women (because we are, indeed, all women), but I have a feeling it will fade as the class continues.

I went to Tesco to buy some food and silverware today and decided at the check out that I am going to take the Survival Czech class being offered here for 600Cz, including the book. I just want to learn to say thank you to my cashier! And let people I know I can't speak Czech...

Jet lag is already wearing off, because I slept from 9pm until 8am today, with a half hour break of reading near 2am. The beds here are so nice and comfortable! I'm almost happy that people keep speaking to me in Czech. Maybe I look European! hah.

Shoshana and I are about to go running. The area is beautiful, the city is typically safer than the United States, there are tons of parks, and the temperature is perfect right now. It was warmer this afternoon but the sun is dipping to the height of the trees and the air is getting cooler. 

I'm learning the tram routes and general location of things. I'm still not sure where I live, but I'll figure it out eventually.

First

Prague Blog!

Shoshana and I made it through our flight without any problems, aside from sleep deprivation. I've decided to keep my laptop in the Detroit timezone, but adjusted my watch to local time. I'm six hours ahead of everyone at home, and completely exhausted.
We decided to attempt public transportation instead of taking a taxi to the dorm. I exchanged 50USD to 675CZK and the transportation was only 26 korunas (less than 2$). We took a bus then a tram, and the gap between the two was hysterical. We exited the bus slap happy, exhausted, and utterly confused. We seemed to have gotten off at a big field. There was a tram across the street that looked broken down and abandoned, but we walked toward it anyway. We found an old man and a teenage boy with short hair, pink and purple swirls dyed in. They both seemed to be laughing at us and it was clear that neither spoke English. While Sho and I were busy giggling, they both got into separate Tram #23s (the ones we thought were broken) and drove away...
We found our tram, and then the building. Got our keys and met two girls, one from New Orleans and one from New York.
When I got into my room the first thing I did was completely unpack my suitcase. I love having all my things in drawers and on shelves instead of stacked in a bag. The beds are fantastically firm here, with nice blankets and squishy pillows. I reached into my toiletry bag and quickly pulled it back out, my right ring finger covered in blood. That'll teach me to put my razors in with the blade facing down... I ripped off a rather large circle of skin. Whoops.

The program had a party for us at a pub a block or two away. The whole pub was reserved for us, with an open bar. As a result, I am not a bit wiggly (?) from my single glass of white wine, combined with lack of sleep, combined with not eating much today (though the food on the plane was shockingly good- Indian curry!)

I've already met a group of people, and at nine we're going to the square because there is a big soccer (football!) match that will be played on big screens there. Classes start at 9:30 tomorrow. I still need to buy a towel and an alarm clock.

Overall, I'm surprised at how easy the transition has been for today. Prague is just another, older and more beautiful city. I haven't had any culture shock yet, aside from the confusing vending machines in the airport. That could just be because I've been entirely surrounded by Americans so far. We'll see tomorrow, when I get to go to the university then purchase things at the store.