Český Krumlov pohledem foťáku

Krumlov mám ráda a hlavně se do něj ráda vracím. Nemám potřebu tam ale zůstávat nějak dlouho, stačí mi pár hodin na procházku městem. Užiju si svoje oblíbený nádherný výhledy a můžu zase pokračovat někam dál...

I proto se dneska nebudu moc rozepisovat. Nechám vás, abyste si Krumlov vychutnali spolu se mnou :)

Už je to rok aneb vzpomínám na Erasmus

Sedím doma u počítače. V Čechách. Pročítám si rok starý články, který jsou plný stylistickejch chyb, hlavně jsou ale plný vzpomínek. Krásnejch a nezapomenutelnejch.

Je to přibližně rok, co jsem se vrátila ze semestru ve Švédsku. Z úžasnýho semestru. Z krásnýho půl roku, kterej mi nezkazilo snad nic. Zpětně si uvědomuju, jak sluníčkově jsem musela ve svejch článcích nebo třeba zprávách kamarádům působit, ale ono to byla všechno pravda. A přestože se snažím bejt optimista, trochu se bojím, že tohle jen tak něco netrumfne...

The Most Important Thing No One Tells You About Studying Abroad

I already told you 10 reasons to study abroad but I realised I forgot to mention the most important thing about studying abroad. This might actually make you doubt whether you should go on an exchange... 

ČEŠTINA NÍŽE...

The thing no one will mention before you go studying abroad is that you'll miss it when you're back home. 

You'll miss it a lot!

I wrote an article named When you miss your second home where I talk about missing Gothenburg. Now, 4 months later, I still feel the same. But my post That feeling after coming home from living abroad speaks more about what I want to talk about today.

5 Reasons to Visit Copenhagen

It's been one year since I visited the capital of Denmark and I want to remind you why you should visit this amazing city. Last year I published posts about our trip to Copenhagen (Copenhagen Day 1 and Copenhagen Day 2) which are full of photos. Now I want to summarize the reasons why Copenhagen needs to be on your travel list!

1. Food

You could say that there's delicious food in every city and you're right but damn Copenhagen... If you want perfect breakfast you can't go wrong with any bakery in the centre but my personal tip is to go to the Holm's Bager. That's where you start the day right!

10 Reasons to Study Abroad

I spent one semester in Sweden and I loved it. It has been something I wanted to do and now I think everyone should try it. Here's why...
ČEŠTINA NÍŽE...

1. You'll learn to be independent 

I've been "mommy's girl" until I landed in Gothenburg last January. I wasn't able to do anything without her help and suddenly I had to go through bureaucracy and everything connected to moving to another country all by myself. But that wasn't all. I had to take care of myself. You might think it's obvious but I wasn't used to it. I had to plan my time, do laundry, cook and so on. That was a sudden change. So you just have to do all of this because none else will! And that's good...

2. Learn the language

If you've never really used English in everyday life studying abroad will be a huge change for you. You might think your English is good because you have good grades but you might find out it's not true. Suddenly you'll have to speak English to your doctor or learn how to use special machines by reading English instructions. That's when you really learn. And of course you'll learn the informal English which is something you can't practice anywhere else. 

And of course it's not just English :)

Living Abroad: Katerina - Czech Girl in the UK and the Netherlands

I can see that you like my interviews with people who lived or live abroad so I'm here with another one, interesting one! And I might be even happier because this time it's an interview with Czech girl who's already lived abroad twice and loved it :)

ČEŠTINA NÍŽE...

Hi Katerina! You're currently living in the Netherlends but before we get to that I'd like to ask you about the UK because you spent half a year there. Where exactly were you and why did you move there?

People often want something new and I was looking for new experiences and I wanted to find my boundaries. I spent one semester as an exchange student at the university in Bristol. Bristol is an amazing student city in southwest England. The UK is a great place for life I just need to forget the well known windy British weather that I couldn't get used to. I traveled a lot while I lived in the UK. I love their architecture, brick houses, old British pubs as well as wild countryside that looks like from Emily Brontë's or Daphne du Maurier's novels.

Living Abroad: Christmas Abroad

Many people spend Christmas at home, usually with their families. Honestly, I can't imagine going abroad, with or without my family, to celebrate Christmas. I need our big and cozy house to feel the festive spirit. But that might change one day... So I was interested how it feels to spend Christmas abroad and found girls who were willing to answer my questions...

ČEŠTINA NÍŽE...

I've already done two interviews with people who live abroad (Cristina travels the world with her husband and Katie - from the US to Europe). Now I wanted to talk to people who are going to spend Christmas abroad. I found 4 girls who wanted to participate in this interview and I want to thank them for that! I won't write more and will let them introduce themselves now...

Jessica Solomatenko

I’ve been living and working in South Korea for 11 years, married for 8 and “mommy” for 4. When our son was really young we started traveling more so that we could visit our family members who are spread all over before we had to pay for more expensive flights for our son.

Beautiful Christmas Markets in Prague

I love Prague. I love night Prague. And there are no words for how much I love Christmas Prague! 

Get comfortable because I'm here with (too) many pictures from beautiful Christmas Prague!

ČEŠTINA NÍŽE

I know that many people who came to visit Prague fell in love with it. Those who visited this city that looks like it was built for shooting a fairytale, during the Christmas loved this city immediately. And I can definitely see why. I go abroad, usually to Vienna (my post about Christmas in Vienna last year) or Dresden (my trip to Dresden and the beginning of Christmas season) for Christmas markets every year and I admit they are beautiful as well but trust me, Prague has my heart. 

Amazing Places in Prague: One of the Best Views in Prague

I'm walking through a park looking around because it's the first time I'm here. It's cold but sunny autumn afternoon and I'm excited to find the spot that's famous for its beautiful view over Prague. I can hear some noise, maybe banging, and people laughing and shouting. What is that?
ČEŠTINA NÍŽE

Oh, so there are skateboarders all over the hill. That's the noise. Well... I've always had a thing for boys riding some kind of a board. And I love the clothes these people wear. Plus there are grafitti all over the walls. And that huge metronome. It all fits together. I like the place already... 

But I knew there should be more. And I was left speachless as I reached the walls and the end of the hill. I've seen Prague from so many famous spots but I've never been here. This view is new to me. And that's how I fell in love with Prague once again!

Living Abroad: Cristina Travels the World with Her Husband

I'm here with another interview and I'm sure you're gonna like this one as much as you liked the previous one. This time Cristina is going to show you how to travel the world with your loved one, how to live life abroad!
ČEŠTINA NÍŽE...

Hi Cristina! I know you've spent quite some time living abroad. You come from Romania and the first place you moved to was France. I know that one of the reasons why you moved there was love. What were the other ones? Would you say that it helped you that you already knew someone who lived there?

I knew just my beloved future husband :-) and another reason was that I thought I would have a better future if studying abroad.

How did you feel before moving abroad for the first time? What was the hardest? Could you speak French?

I have dreamt for a longtime going abroad, especially that my country was during the communist era...until 1989. I was speaking French but not very well. The hardest thing was to understand the French education system and to adapt myself to it ;-). Also it was quite hard that nobody helped us...

Beutiful Belgian Town That You Might Have Never Heard Of!

I've spent hours on Instagram and Pinterest scrolling through pics of Belgian cities before actually going there to visit my friends. I knew I'm going to love it and I was right! And I actually didn't even go to one of those well known cities...

I spent 4 days visiting my friends in beautiful city of Leuven, Belgium. This was my first time in Belgium so I was really excited to go there and see the beauties of its unique culture. And I wasn't disappointed...

You might now be asking how could I recommend you to go to Leuven if I haven't been to other Belgian cities? Well... When you ask someone (google) which cities you should visit in Belgium, you'll propably find these: Brussels, Ghent, Antwerpen, Bruges,... Leuven won't most likely be in TOP 5 or you won't find it at all.

When You Miss Your Second Home

I knew that I'm going to miss that place but I had no idea that I would miss it so much. I also expected to miss my international friends but I didn't expect that I'd find myself missing the city...

ČEŠTINA NÍŽE...

When I was leaving Gothenburg I told to many people that I'd like to stay. They usually replied that they'd like to stay as well but only if they could stay there with all the other students they've met while studying there...

7 Things to Do in Prague

Guest post from Andrew from Wanderlust 15
Most of you know that I live in Prague and I'm planning to write posts for people planning to visit this beautiful city. When there was the opportunity that someone would write guest post about what to do in Prague I didn't hesitate a minute. Andrew from Wanderlust 15, where he posts great articles full of travel tips, wrote one for my blog too! And even though I know his tips do not need approval I have to say that I totally agree with all the point he mentioned that you should see :)

ČEŠTINA NÍŽE...

7 Things to Do in Prague

As the capital and largest city in the Czech Republic, Prague has been an economic, political, and cultural center for Europe for at least one thousand years. Its history likely predates even that, but most historians place Prague Castle as the seat for the Dukes of Bohemia by 930 A.D. at the latest. Though the city’s fortunes have waxed and waned over the years, modern Prague has not only preserved its history but also turned itself into a hustling, bustling modern metropolitan center. Who could blame a traveler for wanting to visit? If you do, here are our seven favorite things to do in Prague.

1. Old Town Square

5 Things I Miss about Studying at Swedish University

Some of you know that I've spet one semester in Gothenburg, Sweden. Now when I'm already back in the Czech Republic I've realised that I miss a couple of things that I got used to while studying at the University of Gothenburg. 

Čeština níže...

1. Calling teachers with their first names

In Sweden you call teachers with their first name. Not only it is really nice and it brings you closer to the teacher, it also makes everything less stressful. Here, in the Czech Republic, you always have to use the right title in front of the teacher's name and it can be a bit confusing when there are more of them. I'm sure you can imagine that stress we all have before writing an email (it takes a lot of courage to press "Send"). I don't want to make it sound like I didn't have to show respect to the teachers in Sweden, we all did, it's just doable without tons of titles as well.

2. Less time spent in school

Living Abroad: Katie - from the US to Europe

Last time when I told you about this project I came up with, many of you were excited to read more about people living abroad. And after I got the first answers from Katie I promise you that you'll love these interviews because all these people have many interesting things to tell you! 

Čeština níže...

Hi! I thought it would be perfect to start my series of interviews with you since you now live abroad but you live in Prague (which is home for me :)). But it wasn't just Prague, am I right? Could you please introduce yourself to my readers and also tell us where have you lived so far?

It’s true!  I first lived abroad for a semester in Aix-en-Provence, France in 2011.  Afterwards, I went back to the US to finish my degree, and then I moved for one year to Cardiff, Wales.  My bachelor’s degree is in Theatre with a focus in Production and Design, but after I studied abroad the first time, I realized that I was much more interested in cultural studies and international education, so I made a dedicated career change.  I did my master’s degree in European Studies with a focus in Culture and Ideology, and eventually accepted a job offer to work at a highly-respected Czech university in Prague.  Full time, I work as a program administration for international students while they’re studying abroad in Prague.  In my spare time, I travel as much as I can, and run my travel blog- Study Hard Travel Smart.  My blog was initially meant for friends and family to keep up with my travels, but it eventually turned into a much wider community which I absolutely love!  The blog now focuses on culturally immersive travel and study abroad, but also has my musings about expat living, living in Prague, culture, travel, etc.

What was the first reason for moving abroad? Was it something you wanted to do for a long time?

My undergraduate university required all students to have a “cross cultural experience” of at least 14 days.  I wanted to make my experience as long as possible, so I went for an entire semester.  I had always wanted to travel back to Aix-en-Provence after visiting for just a day several years earlier, so the program was perfect for me.  After I got my first taste of living abroad in Aix, I knew that it was something I wanted to do much more of!

NotSittingOnMyAssThisSummer: National Park Plitvička Jezera

Even tho I'm Czech I've never been to Croatia (that's country where almost everyone goes for holidays!) and I've never even really wanted to go there because of the sea but there was one place I wanted to see which was National Park Plitviče Lakes...

Čeština níže...

Plitvice Lakes is worldwide known national park but for Czech people (or people mostly from post-communist countries) there is another reason why everyone knows it - there was shot super popular movie with main character Indian Vinnetou. I love these old movies as well but honestly I didn't think about them at all while walking through this beautiful park. There's actually not much to think because you're just so overwhelmed with the beauties of this place! Two words how to describe this place? Lakes and waterfalls. 

Living Abroad

Have you ever spent a few months or years living abroad? I'm pretty sure that if your answer is yes you'd understand my opinion that this experience is really different from what we all know from vacations and holidays. I'd even call it a life changing experience...

Čeština níže...

Author: Vincent de Laat

I only spent 5 months in Sweden as an Erasmus student but it had already helped me to see my life and world differently. As I said at the beginning, I think that living abroad can change your life (as it has mine) and the way you see things. 

But I have talked to many of my friends after I came home from 5 months in Sweden and I realised that there are many people who would like to go but not everyone is brave enough to do that! I think that I'm the perfect example of a shy person who jumped into it and had the best time of his life. But it might not be enough... so I thought that I'd come up with series of interviews with people who are or were living abroad. Why?

#NotSittingOnMyAssThisSummer: Short Stop in Kutná Hora

Kutná Hora is second mostly visited Czech town after Prague and one of the reasons why is its famous church - St Barbara's Cathedral and its surroundings. 
Czech below...

Kutná Hora is small but beautiful city only one hour by train from Prague and from place where I live it's only 20 minutes by car. I've been there a couple of times and this time when I found out that I'll have to go there and that I'll have a bit of time to look around, I decided to take my camera with me to take a few shots.

Travel Tips: My Top 5 Restaurants in Prague

As a person who's been living in Prague for 2 years and visiting this beautiful city a lot before that as well I feel like I can already give you some tips that would help you when visiting... and what else could I start with than with food!

As a tourist I prefer to try local dishes but it can sometimes be a bit tricky because the restaurants in the centres of big cities are usually really expensive and it's actually not guaranteed that the food there is good. Of course you can look at TripAdvisor and see the reviews but I think that the very best option is to ask locals! They know where to go for good food that actually tastes the way it is supposed to and what's more, it usually happens to be less expensive! 

NotSittingOnMyAssThisSummer: Trip to Budapest, Hungary

V červnu jsem spolu se svými kamarády z Erasmu cestovala po Evropě a jednou z našich zastávek byla Budapešť, hlavní město Maďarska. I když je to už trošku déle, co jsem se z cest vrátila, pořád vám chci alespoň ukázat fotky a podělit se o zážitky (a to i přes to, že jsem si s sebou nezvala foťák - v tomto článku jsem vysvětlovala proč).

English below...

Do Budapešti jsme se z Prahy vydali vlakem a po odpoledním příjezdu a ubytování (dopočuju airbnb, ceny sice nebyly zas o tolik nižší, ale za to najdete opravdu skvělé podmínky a hlavně lokality bytů v centru :)) jsme hned vyrazili na hlavní náměstí, abychom společně s Maďary sledovali fotbalový zápas Maďarska ve skupině Eura. Večer jsme společně s celým národem oslavili historickou výhru národního týmu v několika hezkých barech :)