Thursday, May 17th was jointly one of the saddest and one of the happiest days of my life. It was sad because it marked the end of our three month period of being able to use our unlimited Eurail passes. It was incredibly happy because my parents were finally here to see MY city!
After a pretty tough week of school, capped of with a final in my class on investments and finance, I was ready for a relaxed weekend in the city. Around 5 on Thursday, Hillary and I headed to my parent's hotel near the castle. After retrieving them, exchanging important presents (all of the placemats (more than 15!)), and having them finally meet Hillary in person, we decided on a quick walk.
That night we spent up near the castle, vowing to return as we strolled down through Mala Strana past our school and across the Charles Bridge. By 8, we were ready for dinner and sat down at a place near Malostranske Namesti for goulash and beer.
We parted ways around 10 and Hillary and I headed back to her place to watch the Giants game.
Friday, we met in Old Town, walked around a bit before trying to go the castle. Unfortunately, it closed at 4, and we got there at 3.45. So we made our way to the Old Jewish Cemetery. From the cemetery, we headed to Karlovo Namesti (Charles Square) to see Frank Gehry's The Dancing House (Fred and Ginger). To kill more time, we caught the tram to my apartment. My parents were somewhat impressed before dinner at Las Adelitas, an amazing Mexican food restaurant a short walk from my place. After dinner, we said our goodbyes and I headed to Hillary's to bake some cookies and watch another Giants game.
Saturday, may parents visited Dresden, so Hillary and I spent all day working on a presentation and paper. The paper ended up being 61 pages! The project was supposed to be a 5 member presentation. Our group failed to contribute in a helpful manner, so Hillary and I put the entire thing together with a lot of stress along the way.
Sunday was a sad day because it was my parents last night in Prague. We started at the castle, spending time seeing the inside of St. Vitus, the Royal Palace, St. George's Basilica, and the Golden Lane. From the castle, we went to our favorite grocery store for my parents to stock up on snacks and ended up at Modry Zub, my favorite restaurant in the city (Thai food). Taking my parents to the train station was sad, but I know that they had a lot of really cool things to see in Krakow (their next destination).
Monday, we spent all day studying for our Operations Management final at 6.30.
Tuesday, we finished our presentation, gave our presentation, and began packing to leave. It is scary how quickly time flies.
Wednesday, I spent all day at Hillary's house trying to even out the weight of our bags (23 kgs max) so we could take them home. At 5 PM, we had to leave the premises. Carrying my camping backpack with 40 lbs on my back, Hillary's school backpack with 20 lbs on my chest, and my protective bag with odds and ends (60 lbs) on two trams, Hillary and I struggled to make our way to our hostel. Hillary was stuck with her camping backpack, while wheeling two huge suitcases full of stuff and extra bags of food we plan to eat before leaving.
After some confusion with finding the hostel, we checked in, relaxed, and headed back to Los Adelitas for Mexican food. (try the nachos).
Today, Thursday, May 24, we headed out early in the morning on some errands.
WOW! What a relief it is to actually be able to be like a tourist in such an amazing city. With no stress to worry about, Hillary and I went about our errands while being able to really enjoy the city and a leisurely pace. Having lived somewhere for four months with your nose to the grindstone, you rarely get time to really notice all of the little things. Souvenir shopping for Hillary's siblings and our old roommate, we visited the big touristy areas, but were able to see them as tourists, which is an amazing feeling. Forced inside by 2 because of the heat, I am excited to finally have the time to catch up on my blog, and start reading a book my mom brought to me.
Tonight, we are walking to Modry Zub for a Thai dinner, and have no plans. Such a relief.
Before we leave, we hope to get to the church at Vysehrad, the Zoo, and Letna Park. Saturday, we arranged a taxi trip to our last hostel (at the airport) so we won't have to worry about hassling with our bags on public transportation anymore.
More updates to come, with a reflection on the semester once I am home on Sunday, May 27!
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