August 25th-30th

Rod spent part of this week in Brno attending and presenting at the Czech Teachers of Physics Association Summer Meeting. He had an immersion experience as nearly everyone was Czech, speaking Czech, and eating Czech food. His spoken Czech has improved somewhat as a result. The countryside between Prague and Brno (two hours SE of Prague) is quite pretty, hilly with lots of woods.

The weather has been on the warm and muggy side for Minnesotans like us and we were glad to see some cooler temperatures by the end of the week. While Rod was away, Charyssa and the kids got in another trip to the amazing Gutovka Park where they met up with several other American expat families. It was fun to trade information and experiences. They also spent a rainy day at Beckliland Indoor Park. While it was a long trek out into the Prague suburbs by tram, metro, and finally bus, it was well worth the effort. There was a huge climbing wall, go-karts that go pretty fast, amazing bouncy trampolines, an indoor soccer field, scooters, and a train among the many fun amusements. The kids and Charyssa notice the absence of waivers to sign, helmets, seat belts, and the like. No one is worried about a liability lawsuit. The kids had a wonderful time.




They also spent another day at the Prague Zoo. Since we usually only get to the Minnesota Zoo a couple of times a year, it's fun to be able to go more often.










This weekend's highlights included a day trip into the countryside to visit the 900 year old Krivoklat Castle. Set in a deep forested river gorge, it is a beautiful location. The train took us through many picturesque small towns. It was nice to see more of the countryside. There were many Czech hikers and backpackers on the train.









On Sunday we spent the afternoon cruising around in a paddleboat on the Vltava River. School is beginning in the next week for both kids and then for Charyssa, so it will be time to move out of vacation mode and back to reality.

August 17th-24th

We had a pretty low key week as we adjust and settle into a routine. Rod was in England attending and presenting at the summer meeting of the European Teachers of Physics Association. The weather has been just beautiful in Prague. The kids and Charyssa got in several afternoons of swimming and a couple of outings to parks. We have to put in a plug for the website http://www.kidsinprague.com/ It has been created by a group of English speaking moms in Prague and has the most comprehensive listing of activities, pools, parks, etc. of any site I have found. It's certainly enough to keep us busy for the next year! Well, thanks to this site we visited the most amazing outdoor playground/recreational area we have ever seen. It's called Gutovka Park and we spent an entire day there.

The big draw on a warm summer day was the stream that flows through every kind of water wheel contraption ever made. Kids have to work together to pump the water up through various gates and troughs. In addition to this, there is an enormous sandbox, a beautiful playground, two snack bars, a huge climbing wall, small go-karts, and a skate board park. And it's free! On the way out both kids asked, "Can we come back here tomorrow?" We also had our first out of town visitor. Our friend Patrick McDonough was traveling through town and we spent a relaxing Saturday taking in the sites and catching up.

Buying Local, Czech style

We're starting to get used to life without a car, but one of the main differences we notice is how often we have to shop! Normally, we make out a menu for the week, go the grocery store on the weekend, shop for an hour, load it in the car, and we don't return until the next weekend. When you are limited by the amount that you can carry, it really makes a difference. I feel slightly embarrassed that I find myself running to the corner grocery practically every day. This coupled with the fact that our kids seem suddenly to have great appetites, something we attribute to them having to walk everywhere. So this Monday morning, I went shopping along with Max because basically I needed help carrying things. Our first stop was Billa grocery store. It was really busy with lots of older people and mothers with small children. This is about six blocks away, about a 10 minute walk. There is also a street car, but it was a pretty day so we walked. This store is really a lot like a smaller grocery store in the US and feels very familiar to me. Next we walked to the green grocer down the block. An interesting thing about Prague is that it has a substantial Vietnamese population. This is a remnant from the communist era. These immigrants have an almost complete corner on the fruit and vegetable market. Practically every block has a small store that sells beautiful produce at great prices. I like the lady who runs this one because she is very friendly and understanding of my halting Czech. Our next stop was the bakery for rolls and bread. We finished at the corner grocery a block from home. This type of store doesn't seem to have a real equivalent in the US. They are kind of like a mini mart, but their prices are very reasonable. They have all the basics you might need to pick up on the way home from work, but not too much selection. They also have a deli counter. Here we bought milk and eggs, so we wouldn't have to carry them too far. Wow, I think we are supplied for a couple of days now. There is also a huge Tesco, a European competitor to Walmart, about a 20 minute bus ride away. They seem to have everything - even a Mexican food section and maple syrup! It's good to know it's there should we develop a craving.

August 10 to 15

The first order of business was for Charyssa and the kids to be officially registered with the Foreign Police. It sounds ominous, but it's just immigration. Lida was so kind and took time off to accompany her. It took two trips there and some additional forms from our landlord, but the second time, the official looked over the forms, there was a flurry of stamping and initialing and we were legal! Other than that, we've been having a nice week settling in. The weather has been great and the kids have enjoyed exploring Prague's many parks and playgrounds. We've also gotten in some sightseeing. It seems that all of Europe is on vacation right now. There are plenty of tourists in Prague from out of town, and many of our neighbors seem to be gone this weekend.

Here is some interesting playground equipment:

In a country obsessed by hockey (along with soccer), rollerblading is very popular. We rode the tram to Ladronka park where they have a very nice skating trail along a high ridge. The kids enjoyed it as did we. People of all ages were skating, more than we've ever seen. Several parents were rollerblading and pushing baby strollers.

It's also common here in parks to have a snack bar next to the playground, where they serve ice cream, sausage, and beer. The playgrounds tend to have a high (say, six foot) fence around them and a gate. This serves two purposes: the kids can only escape from one outlet and the ubiquitous dogs can't get in.

We are rather in vacation mode currently. School for the kids doesn't start until September, so we're taking advantage and sightseeing. We took a boat ride on the Vltava river which was fun.

We saw the summer palace of the Hapsburg emperors.

We checked out the church of St. Nicholas, a High Baroque church from the late 17th/early 18th centuries.

Finally, we climbed Prague's mini Eiffel tower, called the Petrin tower, for great views of the city.

We finished up with wonderful beer brewed by monks at the Strahov monastery.

Prague, August 10, 2009

The big news is that Charyssa, Max, and Katrina arrived on the 6th of August. Their trip went just fine. Katrina slept well on the overnight flight while Max was busy enjoying the many channels of TV available on the little screens that each seat has! They got into the airport on time and amazingly all their luggage came with them. We had a shuttle van take us to our apartment. The kids have settled into their room and seem to like the bunk beds. They are adjusting to life without a car and more walking than they have ever done. They enjoy riding the trams (what we would call street cars) and the metro with the huge escalators that go down, down, down. We have been exploring the nearby parks and playgrounds. The playgrounds are all well fenced and many have slightly different play equipment which the kids have enjoyed. It has been really warm and muggy (so this is what summer is like!) and we found a nice swimming pool just a short walk from our apartment. We did notice some different norms as far as swimming suits go. For example, swim diapers and suits are optional for the under 6 set! Some kids wear them, but many do not. Max and Katrina had a great time playing with some Czech kids from the neighborhood at the park this evening. We notice that they're already starting to pick up a few words. The language barrier hardly seems to exist for kids when they are running around playing. Also, the different types of candy and ice cream bars have been fun for them to try. There is A LOT of chocolate and we hope to sample it all. We explored the Prague Zoo on Saturday. It was sunny and warm with lots of Czech families out for the day. It's a beautiful zoo and quite different in that the animals are really so close. For example, we could go INTO the lemur area and get right up next to them. This was a thrill for the kids since both of them have watched the PBS show Zaboomafoo. The zoo also has a chairlift which took us up to the high point from which we walked down past a lot of animal exhibits. We know we will be back there again soon. Each day has a new adventure for us at this point. Rod went to many music stores last week and finally found a keyboard, so we will all be able to keep up our playing. Whether it is exploring the local grocery store, riding the metro and listening for our stop, or figuring out how to open the apartment door, each day brings us new challenges and adventures. It's exhausting and exhilerating at the same time.

Oh, I suppose we should have a few pictures. Here we are in Old Town Square:















Here’s Max (with Katrina in the lower right corner) at an avant-garde playground with the 14th century Charles Bridge in the background.
















And here’s a pic of the Old Town Hall with a dark and stormy backdrop.