Hanging Out at KFC - Local Culture
So you didn’t know it was considered cool to hang out at KFC? Really? Well, I’ll be. It may be that most of these kids have no idea what a Kentucky is, but they can recognize Colonel Sanders and his chicken at a distance of 500 metres. Why is “Ka-Eff-Tsay” so popular here, when elsewhere it has faded into near-obscurity?
a) Czech cuisine by its very nature involves a lot of chicken, a lot of bread, and a lot of frying. You might say it was a match made in Kentucky.
b) Colonel Sanders is a short, hearty man in a white leisure suit. For Czechs having lived under a communist regime, he represents the exotic joie-de-vivre that is America.
c) It is American, and therefore, cool and trendy. And since there are no Starbucks, the honor falls to KFC.
d) The bright red and white tub of chicken rotating atop its pole can be seen for miles. It’s almost as tall as the communist-era television tower that dominates the west of Prague.
According to travel guru Rick Steves, the statue of Saint Wenceslas is a popular meeting point.
“Locals say, ‘I’ll meet you under the horse’s tail.’”
It isn’t true. They meet at KFC.
And Happy Saint Wenceslas Day to YOU
Wednesday was Saint Wenceslas Day. That's
Den Svateho Vaclava, for the myriad Czech speakers reading this blog. :)
A holiday, as I believe I said exasperatedly (are we making up adverbs here?) on tuesday night, is just what I needed! What did I do on my day off? Not to pose a rhetorical questions, I'll answer it: I went exploring. Here's what I found:
1) They have bowling alleys here. In Czech, it's referred to as
bowling.
2) ALL of the shops are closed on St Wenceslas Day except the herna bars and touristy places downtown.
3) There is an awesome restaurant I'll call "Mural Pub #2" near my flat - yay!
4) I can get a take-away pizza for 60-kc (and extra 6-kc if I want the box .... don't know what I'd need that for!)
5) There is a pub near the metro that sells fresh burcak. Burcak is young wine straight from the vines - awesome! (
but no, not as awesome as rohliky)
Oh! And I went shopping and found a wall map of the Czech Republic that is so incredibly cool, you'll just have to come and see it.
It's Official - The Awesomest Thing Ever
1-crown rohliky. It's true. Mini-baguettes for a measly crown. That's about ....
4 cents. Yessss.
Is there a Plan C???
Munich Report:
- German beer consumed: 2 litres (Good German beer consumed: 1/2 litre)
- Sauerkraut eaten: 0
- Sausages eaten: 0
- Drunken Irishmen run across: 1, but what a one!
- Number of times I was yelled at in German for being in the way: 15,817
- Bavarians in lederhosen: Far too many
A nice weekend trip, but man did it feel good to get back to the Czech Republic.
Plan B: Going to Munich for Oktoberfest
To remedy the aforementioned situation, I, Daniel Wicklund, will endeavor to:
- Consume healthy portions of German beer.
- Consume unhealthy portions of wurst, sauerkraut, and other deliciously fatty German foods.
- Confine my exercise to walking to and from the beer tent. At all other times, I will attempt to utilise public transportation.
God help me.
Desperate Times - a weight update
I'm certain everyone is dying to know: Not how does Dan like Prague, or how does Dan enjoy teaching, or even how much beer is Dan drinking, but the eternal question - how is his waistline? I'm here to tell you, the situation is desperate. I am now using the Dan-made sixth hole in my belt and I feel like one of those skaters back in the '90s (remember way back then?), sagging my jeans down to, well, down low.
Apparently eating pork, dumplings, and irresponsible amounts of bread and beer is just not cutting it. Desperate times, indeed. I think this Czech beer is deceptively healthy (how dare they).
I may just have to resort to Plan B.
Is he REALLY in Prague? (Pictures, yes!)
Ah, Prague. Taken from one of the little islands in the river (where there happens to be, oh yes, a beer garden), this is a view of the end of the Charles Bridge and a smattering of old town and the spires for which Prague is famous!
The view out of my bedroom window in my old flat. The spires you see are those of the Strahov Monastery, where you can go for a delicious 67-korun lunch and lovely tmave pivo.
And for now, that's all folks! More pics when I get the internet at home, including pics of my new flat, my flat-mate, and heck, maybe even myself. :)
Ahoj.
Pop! Goes the Weasel / Bed / Whatever. Rearranging Furniture.
Question: If a bed is to be used as a storage facility, such that the top (mattress) opens to reveal storage space, for what reason would one
spring-load the blasted thing???
It seems to me – and maybe this is the engineer talking – that gravity is on your side here. You want the mattress to stay down, gravity helps you. You wish to open the compartment? You lift the mattress. It’s not heavy.
But perhaps there is a method behind the madness. Possible reasons I can come up with:
1) Developed by the French during one of many revolutions, this bed allows for quick conversion from “sleeping” mode to “barricade” mode.
2) Spring-loaded mattress allows easy access to the items of marginal importance normally stored underneath a bed (such as: seasonal clothes, boxes, and packing materials).
3) Developed with the moody sleeper in mind, this bed allows the owner to simply roll over and gently lift, thus triggering the springs and jettisoning the unwanted (or snoring) companion directly into the wall.
4) Originally developed by the U.S. Military for military transports, so that soldiers wouldn’t have to wake up in the event of an emergency ejection.
But whatever the reason, it sure makes moving the bed a pain in the arse.
... and a flat. With a pool. Yeeeeeaah.
After a hellish week of apartment searching (following a hellish week of starting work, on top of a hellish week of the course), we finally found our new flat. Yes. It has a pool. Even one with a “resistance” function to prevent over-enthusiastic swimmers from running into the wall. And a terrasse. The Champagne in the fridge is chilling until, well, until we’re both well enough to drink it. :)
You may be wondering who I meant by “we”. The last time I used that, I was talking about my car, but now I’m talking about Erica, my awesome flatmate. We were flatmates in the old flat, and decided to just ditch the weird girl and the annoying guy for our own place.
Our flat is a ways out, in Prague 10, an area called Strašnice, but it’s nice. It’s a little villa-style building with only 5 flats. Our flat is pretty class, actually. Black leather furniture, white tile floor, glass tables. And a terasse which looks out on the more affluent in the neighborhood – i.e. nice old houses with lots of flowers, fruit trees and gardens.
Very swingin’ baby, yeah!
Champagne, a job, and then, I think... a nap.
Yes, it's true! Not only am I drinking champagne to celebrate having passed (moderately successfully) this course, I am also after having taught my first class this morning!
For those who may be wondering what it is I am doing, and who I will be teaching - or perhaps I should replace the word 'wondering' with 'fearing' - I am teaching English to impressionable young 18-20 year olds who somehow have been given the impression that they will be taught something called "Intensive English". Little do they know they will instead be taught Beatles songs and Irish slang.
On a more serious note, my kids rock. Wait for next week's blog which may read "My kids are brats, was I ever this obnoxious???". But for now, they rock, and I am very happy. :)
Now, how about that long-deserved nap...
